DENTAL ASSISTANT SCHOOLS IN OHIO — Federal Data, September 2026
Dental Assistant Schools in Ohio, Ranked On What Graduates Owe And Earn
24 accredited institutions in Ohio report enough federal data on this program to be compared. They are ranked here on a single measure: how many months of gross pay it takes a graduate to cover the median debt.
See The RankingU.S. Department of Education data. No school paid to be listed.
Across the 24 ranked programs in Ohio, the median graduate needs 4.6 months of gross pay to cover a median federal debt of $11,599, against median earnings of $25,951 one year after completion.
That is exactly in line with the national median of 4.6 months for this field, measured across the 398 institutions in our national dental assistant schools ranking. The best performer in the state is Lakeland Community College in Kirtland, at 2.8 months.
Every figure on this page is recalculated on Ohio institutions only. Nothing is carried over from the national page.
At A Glance
What the federal data says about dental assistant schools in Ohio
The Ranking
24 dental assistant schools in Ohio, ranked by months of gross pay to cover the debt
Lower is better.
| # | School | Type | Award | Months | Debt | Earnings | Completion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lakeland Community CollegeKirtland, OH | Public | Associate | 2.8 | $11,200 | $48,254 | 24% |
| 2 | Cuyahoga Community College DistrictCleveland, OH | Public | Associate | 3.0 | $12,400 | $49,218 | 31% |
| 3 | Great Oaks Career CampusesCincinnati, OH | Public | Certificate | 3.5 | $6,668 | $22,709 | 90% |
| 4 | Eastland-Fairfield Career and Technical SchoolsGroveport, OH | Public | Certificate | 3.8 | $7,421 | $23,382 | 81% |
| 5 | University of Cincinnati-Main CampusCincinnati, OH | Public | Associate | 4.0 | $19,309 | $57,217 | 75% |
| 6 | University of Cincinnati-Blue Ash CollegeBlue Ash, OH | Public | Associate | 4.0 | $19,309 | $57,217 | 16% |
| 7 | James A. Rhodes State CollegeLima, OH | Public | Associate | 4.0 | $18,010 | $54,584 | 47% |
| 8 | Lorain County Community CollegeElyria, OH | Public | Associate | 4.0 | $15,747 | $47,358 | 31% |
| 9 | Stark State CollegeNorth Canton, OH | Public | Certificate | 4.0 | $10,563 | $32,023 | 23% |
| 10 | Choffin Career and Technical CenterYoungstown, OH | Public | Certificate | 4.1 | $9,500 | $27,733 | 94% |
| 11 | Sinclair Community CollegeDayton, OH | Public | Associate | 4.4 | $19,346 | $53,091 | 41% |
| 12 | Ross Medical Education Center-NilesNiles, OH | for-profit | Certificate | 4.5 | $9,500 | $25,352 | 61% |
| 13 | Ross Medical Education Center-CincinnatiCincinnati, OH | for-profit | Certificate | 4.7 | $9,500 | $24,411 | 59% |
| 14 | Ross Medical Education Center-DaytonFairborn, OH | for-profit | Certificate | 4.7 | $9,500 | $24,411 | 56% |
| 15 | Ross College-SylvaniaSylvania, OH | for-profit | Certificate | 4.8 | $9,500 | $23,957 | 53% |
| 16 | Ross College-CantonCanton, OH | for-profit | Certificate | 4.8 | $9,500 | $23,957 | 46% |
| 17 | Ross Medical Education Center-ElyriaElyria, OH | for-profit | Certificate | 4.9 | $9,500 | $23,402 | 69% |
| 18 | Remington College-Cleveland CampusCleveland, OH | nonprofit | Certificate | 5.2 | $9,500 | $21,721 | 55% |
| 19 | Owens Community CollegePerrysburg, OH | Public | Associate | 5.4 | $20,688 | $46,021 | 35% |
| 20 | Shawnee State UniversityPortsmouth, OH | Public | Associate | 5.6 | $18,000 | $38,644 | 48% |
| 21 | Fortis College-Cuyahoga FallsCuyahoga Falls, OH | for-profit | Certificate | 6.2 | $13,000 | $25,255 | 47% |
| 22 | East Ohio CollegeEast Liverpool, OH | for-profit | Associate | 6.3 | $11,998 | $22,920 | 74% |
| 23 | Fortis College-CentervilleCenterville, OH | for-profit | Certificate | 6.4 | $14,167 | $26,550 | 44% |
| 24 | Fortis College-CincinnatiCincinnati, OH | for-profit | Certificate | 6.4 | $13,167 | $24,564 | 50% |
Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, Most Recent Cohorts by Field of Study and by Institution (published 9 June 2026). Debt is the median federal Stafford and Grad PLUS loan debt of completers in this program; earnings are median earnings one year after completion. Where a school offers the program at both certificate and associate level, the shorter payback is shown. Completion is the institution’s published rate, not the program’s.
The Top Five, In Detail
The five fastest payback programs in Ohio, one by one
Lakeland Community College
Kirtland, OH
Lakeland Community College is a public institution in Kirtland. Its dental assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $11,200 and report median earnings of $48,254 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 2.8 months of gross pay: the fastest payback in the state, and 1.8 months faster than the Ohio state median of 4.6. The award measured here is an associate degree. The institution reports a 24% completion rate.
Cuyahoga Community College District
Cleveland, OH
Cuyahoga Community College District is a public institution in Cleveland. Its dental assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $12,400 and report median earnings of $49,218 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.0 months of gross pay: the second fastest in the state, and 1.6 months faster than the Ohio state median of 4.6. The award measured here is an associate degree. The institution reports a 31% completion rate.
Great Oaks Career Campuses
Cincinnati, OH
Great Oaks Career Campuses is a public institution in Cincinnati. Its dental assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $6,668 and report median earnings of $22,709 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.5 months of gross pay: the third fastest in the state, and 1.1 months faster than the Ohio state median of 4.6. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 90% completion rate.
Eastland-Fairfield Career and Technical Schools
Groveport, OH
Eastland-Fairfield Career and Technical Schools is a public institution in Groveport. Its dental assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $7,421 and report median earnings of $23,382 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 3.8 months of gross pay: fourth in the state, and 0.8 months faster than the Ohio state median of 4.6. The award measured here is a certificate. The institution reports a 81% completion rate.
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus
Cincinnati, OH
University of Cincinnati-Main Campus is a public institution in Cincinnati. Its dental assisting graduates leave with a median federal debt of $19,309 and report median earnings of $57,217 a year after completing, so the debt is covered by 4.0 months of gross pay: fifth in the state, and 0.6 months faster than the Ohio state median of 4.6. The award measured here is an associate degree. The institution reports a 75% completion rate.
Read It Carefully
What this ranking does not measure
Absence from this page is not a verdict. The Department of Education suppresses figures for programs with small cohorts, so a small, excellent school will often have no publishable data at all. Schools that enroll no students on federal aid are outside this dataset entirely.
The measure is a ratio, not a repayment plan, and it counts federal loan debt only. Cash payments, private loans and employer sponsorship are invisible here. Local wages shape earnings as much as the school does, which is exactly why comparing inside one state, as this page does, is more informative than comparing across the country.
Other States
The same program, another state
Other Programs in Ohio
Comparing a different trade in Ohio
For OHIO School Operators
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