How to Choose a Florida Board-Approved Dental Radiography or Expanded Functions Program

What “Board approved” actually means

Florida ties both credentials to course approval. To be certified as a dental radiographer you must complete a course approved by the Board of Dentistry, within 12 months of your on-the-job training.^[1][2] To perform expanded duties you need formal training, which Rule 64B5-16.002 defines as an expanded-duty course or program either at a school accredited by the ADA's Commission on Dental Accreditation (CODA) or approved by the Board for expanded-duties training.^[3]

Approval is not a rubber stamp. For expanded-duty courses the rule sets out what the Board looks for: didactic and clinical training with stated objectives for each task; qualified faculty, with no more than ten students per instructor; a detailed syllabus covering hours, methods and assessment; an examination passed at 75 percent or higher; a licensed dentist supervising any clinical instruction on patients; and adequate facilities.^[3] For radiography, Rule 64B5-9.011 prescribes the subject matter, from radiation biology and safety through positioning technique and infection control.^[2]

If a course has not been approved, completing it does not qualify you — however good the teaching was and whatever the certificate looks like.

How to verify a program in five minutes

1. Go to the Florida Board of Dentistry's Resources page and find, under Helpful Links, the List of Board Approved Expanded Duty/Dental Radiography Programs.^[4]
2. Open the current list and search for the school by name and by street address. Schools change names; addresses are harder to fake.
3. Note the date on the list. The Board updates it periodically, so a new program may not appear yet and a closed one may linger. If a school is not listed, ask it for its approval letter — and call the Board at the number on its website if you still have doubts.
4. Confirm the approval covers the course you are buying. Most listed programs are approved for both expanded duties and radiology, but ask the question.
5. Save a dated copy of the list with your records. Years from now, an employer may ask.

We will go first. The Florida Institute of Dental Assisting, 8761 Perimeter Park Blvd., Suite 107, Jacksonville, appears on the Board's list of approved expanded duty and radiology programs.^[5] Check it rather than taking our word for it; that is the point of this article.

Four terms that are not interchangeable

For transparency: FIDA is licensed by the Commission for Independent Education and its radiography and expanded-functions courses are Board-approved.^[6][5] FIDA is not a CODA-accredited program. For these two courses it does not need to be — the rule accepts Board approval or CODA accreditation — but you should know exactly which one any school is offering you.

The documents you should receive

The certificate is the product. Rule 64B5-16.002 lists what an approved expanded-duty course certificate must show: the course sponsor, the course title, the date, the number of hours, the participant's name, an authorized signature, and the remediable tasks completed.^[3] Because Florida keeps no registry of formally trained assistants, this piece of paper is your proof for the rest of your career. Ask to see a sample before you enroll.

For radiography, the course certificate is an input rather than the end point. You attach it to the Board's application, Form DH-MQA 1202, together with your supervising dentist's attestation, the $35 fee and your Livescan fingerprinting, and the Board issues the certificate.^[7] A good school explains that process before you start and tells you that it, not the school, has the final say. The full sequence is in How to get dental radiography certified in Florida.

Ten questions to ask before you pay

1. Are you on the Board of Dentistry's approved program list, under what name and address? The only acceptable answer is one you can check.
2. Who teaches the course, and what are their credentials? The rule requires real experience: at least a year of expanded-duty experience for dentists and hygienists, five years hands-on for assistant instructors.^[3]
3. How many clock hours, and how are they split between theory and clinical work?
4. Where does the clinical component happen — on campus, or in my own office under my supervising dentist? Either can work; you need to know which.
5. What will my supervising dentist be asked to do or sign?
6. How am I assessed, and what is the passing score? The rule's floor is 75 percent.^[3]
7. Exactly what will my certificate say? For expanded functions, which tasks will be listed?
8. What is the total cost, including books, materials, exam or retake fees?
9. What is your refund and cancellation policy, in writing?
10. What happens if I fall behind — is there an extension, and what does it cost?

Red flags

• “Get your Florida dental assistant license.” Florida does not license dental assistants.^[1] A school that says otherwise does not know the rules or hopes you do not.
• “Nationally accepted” with no mention of the Florida Board. Florida's requirement is Florida's.
• A radiography course with no prerequisite conversation. The three months of supervised on-the-job training comes first and the course must follow within 12 months. A school that enrolls you without asking about it is selling a certificate you may not be able to use.
• One course that promises everything. Radiography and expanded functions are separate requirements — see EFDA vs. radiography certification.
• No named instructors, no address, no phone.
• Pressure to pay today. Approval does not expire at midnight.

Online, in person or hybrid?

Format matters less than approval, but it matters for your life. A weekend in-person course is fast and gets you hands-on time with an instructor in the room; it also means travel and days away from the practice. A hybrid course — theory online, clinical work in your own office — lets a working assistant keep earning and lets the dentist see the skills develop on their own equipment. It asks more self-discipline of the student and real involvement from the dentist.

Be honest about which suits you. An unfinished self-paced course is worth less than a completed weekend one.

Comparing price fairly

Compare the total, not the headline. Add books, materials, retake fees and travel, and for radiography remember the costs no school controls: the $35 application fee and Livescan fingerprinting.^[7] Then weigh it against what the credential returns. An assistant who can take radiographs and perform expanded duties is more productive every working day, which is why many Florida dentists pay the tuition themselves.

For reference, FIDA's Radiography for Dental Personnel course is $499 for 14 clock hours, and Expanded Functions for the Dental Assistant is $1,049 for 20 clock hours. Both pair online theory with a clinical component in your own office. Current pricing is on the tuition page and our terms are in the cancellation and refund policy.

Still deciding?

If you are not sure which credential you need, start with what an EFDA can do in Florida and the EFDA complete guide. If you have questions about FIDA specifically, Atticus answers at any hour, the school answers during business hours, and you can meet the instructors before you commit to anything.