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Healthcare

Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons

Perform surgery and related procedures on the hard and soft tissues of the oral and maxillofacial regions to treat diseases, injuries, or defects. May diagnose problems of the oral and maxillofacial regions. May perform surgery to improve function or appearance.

Median salary (BLS)

$352,220

10th–90th percentile (BLS)

$86k – $623k

Job outlook

+4% (faster than average)

AI exposure

Early-career check: graduates of the matching programs below typically earn $93,000 ten years after starting college — an early-career figure, vs. the all-experience BLS median above. Source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard.

Plan a path to Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons

Education

Typical entry: Doctorate / professional (MD, JD, PhD)

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Typical progression

  1. Junior Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons

    Entry / Junior

    $86,250

    ~2 yrs to advance

  2. Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons

    Established

    $352,220

    ~3 yrs to advance

  3. Senior Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons

    Senior

    $487,430

Key skills

A typical day

  • Administer general and local anesthetics.
  • Collaborate with other professionals, such as restorative dentists and orthodontists, to plan treatment.
  • Evaluate the position of the wisdom teeth to determine whether problems exist currently or might occur in the future.
  • Perform surgery to prepare the mouth for dental implants and to aid in the regeneration of deficient bone and gum tissues.
  • Remove impacted, damaged, and non-restorable teeth.

Fields of study

Any field

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Reputation-based selection; stats shown are outcome data per school.