Orthodontists
Examine, diagnose, and treat dental malocclusions and oral cavity anomalies. Design and fabricate appliances to realign teeth and jaws to produce and maintain normal function and to improve appearance.
Most important skills
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Complex Problem Solving
- Reading Comprehension
- Social Perceptiveness
- Coordination
Key knowledge
- Medicine and Dentistry
- Customer and Personal Service
- English Language
- Biology
- Computers and Electronics
- Mathematics
- Administration and Management
- Education and Training
What the work involves
- Fit dental appliances in patients' mouths to alter the position and relationship of teeth and jaws or to realign teeth.
- Study diagnostic records, such as medical or dental histories, plaster models of the teeth, photos of a patient's face and teeth, and X-rays, to develop patient treatment plans.
- Diagnose teeth and jaw or other dental-facial abnormalities.
- Examine patients to assess abnormalities of jaw development, tooth position, and other dental-facial structures.
- Prepare diagnostic and treatment records.
- Adjust dental appliances to produce and maintain normal function.
- Provide patients with proposed treatment plans and cost estimates.
- Instruct dental officers and technical assistants in orthodontic procedures and techniques.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Investigative, Realistic, Conventional.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- Post-Doctoral Training (68.9% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years (43.9%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years (29.9%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 5: Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Orthodontists is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Very high | Higher on contact with others than 96% of occupations compared | 98% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Very high | Higher on dealing with the public than 94% of occupations compared | 75% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Teamwork | Very high | Higher on teamwork than 99% of occupations compared | 99% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Very high | Higher on freedom to make decisions than 95% of occupations compared | 83% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom” |
| Time pressure | Very high | Higher on time pressure than 83% of occupations compared | 58% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Conflict situations | Moderate | Higher on conflict situations than 59% of occupations compared | 37% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | High | Higher on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 66% of occupations compared | 38% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a month or more but not every week” |
| Consequence of error | Low | Lower on consequence of error than 64% of occupations compared | 29% of surveyed respondents chose “Fairly serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: very high
- Conflict situations: moderate
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: high
- Consequence of error: low
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 0%
- Contact with others about half the time: 1.97%
- Contact with others most of the time: 0%
- Constant contact with others: 98.03%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 0.93%
- Fairly important: 0%
- Important: 7.41%
- Very important: 16.74%
- Extremely important: 74.91%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 0%
- Important: 0%
- Very important: 0.93%
- Extremely important: 99.07%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 0%
- Limited freedom: 1.83%
- Some freedom: 15.03%
- A lot of freedom: 83.14%
n = 22, Incumbent 08/2023
Time pressure
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 0.87%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 22.14%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 18.65%
- Every day: 58.34%
n = 22, Incumbent 08/2023
Conflict situations
- Never: 6.96%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 36.65%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 22.91%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 19.55%
- Every day: 13.93%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 0%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 31.03%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 38.39%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 23.61%
- Every day: 6.96%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 21.54%
- Fairly serious: 29.44%
- Serious: 21.09%
- Very serious: 12.59%
- Extremely serious: 15.34%
n = 22, Incumbent 08/2023
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O*NET-SOC 29-1023.00 · SOC 29-1023 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8