Free Orthodontist Job Description Templates
Free orthodontist job description templates: associate, lead, pediatric, travelling, and board-certified. Download all 5 as DOCX for small practices.
Orthodontist Job Description Templates
5 free templates for small dental practices. Download as DOCX.
The orthodontist job description usually gets written by a practice owner or an office manager at a small dental practice, often the first time the practice has hired an associate, and usually without an HR department. The generic templates online give one neutral, multi-disciplinary version that ignores what this hire actually turns on: the precise credential requirements, the production-based compensation structure, and how an associate role differs from a lead, a pediatric-focused, a travelling, or a board-certified specialty role.
At FirstHR, we build for small businesses that hire without an HR department, and orthodontic practices are a textbook case: most orthodontists work in small offices of dentists, and a solo or small-group practice hiring its first associate has no HR function to lean on. The five templates below cover the roles small practices actually hire: associate, lead or senior, pediatric or family-focused, part-time or travelling, and board-certified specialty. Fill in the brackets and post. For the general principles behind any posting, the guide to writing a job description covers the fundamentals.
What Does an Orthodontist Do?
An orthodontist is a dental specialist who diagnoses and treats misaligned teeth and jaws: examining patients, creating treatment plans, fitting and adjusting braces and aligners, and managing treatment over months or years. The federal occupational profile groups the role under orthodontists, which captures the core work of examining, diagnosing, and treating dental malocclusions and designing appliances to realign teeth and jaws.
For the employer writing the posting, two facts shape everything. First, an orthodontist is a licensed specialist who completed dental school plus an accredited orthodontic residency, so the credential requirements must be precise and verified. Second, the role splits by practice type more than the single title suggests: an associate in a small practice, a lead orthodontist mentoring others, a pediatric-focused doctor, a travelling part-time provider, and a board-certified specialist are genuinely different hires. The five templates on this page split along exactly those lines.
Orthodontist Duties and Responsibilities
Orthodontist duties and responsibilities center on clinical care, patient communication, records and administration, and the compliance work that a licensed medical role requires. The practice type shifts the weights, leadership for a senior role, pediatric care for a family practice, complex cases for a specialist, but the four categories hold across nearly every orthodontist position. These are the duties grouped the way the templates use them.
A strong posting grounds these in your specifics: the role type, the compensation structure, the credentials, and your practice culture. For a structured way to scope any role before posting, the guide to defining job responsibilities walks through the process, and for the broader hire, the small business hiring guide covers the surrounding steps.
Orthodontist Role Types Compared
The orthodontist title spans several different roles, and naming the right one in the posting attracts the right candidate and sets the right compensation. This is how the variations differ.
| Factor | Associate | Lead / Senior | Travelling | Board-Certified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Practice type | Solo or small | Multi-provider | Multi-location | Specialty-focused |
| Added focus | Mentorship, growth | Leadership, protocols | Rotation, flexibility | Complex cases |
| Board certification | Preferred | Preferred | Preferred | Required |
| Schedule | Full or part-time | Full-time | Part-time or 1099 | Full-time |
| Compensation | Base + production | Base + production + stipend | Per diem or 1099 | Base + production |
The practical takeaway: match the template to the role your practice actually needs. For the surrounding hiring steps when you are bringing on your first associate, the guide to hiring your first employee covers the process end to end. If your family practice also hires for general medical care of children, the pediatrician job description templates cover that distinct role.
Which Template Should You Use?
Pick the template by the role you are filling. All five share the same skeleton, but the matched version reads more credibly to candidates and sets the right credentials, compensation, and schedule expectations. Use this guide to choose.
5 Free Orthodontist Job Description Templates
Download all five as a single Word document or copy individual templates. Each follows the same structure: practice context, position summary, key responsibilities, required and preferred qualifications, and compensation and how to apply. Fill in the brackets before you post.
Template 1: Associate Orthodontist (Small Private Practice)
The small-practice version: clinical care plus mentorship and growth, flexible days, and a path forward without corporate bureaucracy. Start here for a first associate hire.
Template 2: Lead / Senior Orthodontist (Multi-Provider Practice)
The leadership version: full caseload plus protocol ownership, mentoring associates, clinical KPIs, and an optional partnership track.
Template 3: Pediatric / Family-Focused Orthodontist
The family version: age-appropriate care, growth-and-development monitoring, early evaluation, and strong communication with children and parents.
Template 4: Part-Time / Travelling Orthodontist
The flexible version: rotation across locations, per diem or 1099 terms, travel reimbursement, and consistent standards across sites.
Template 5: Board-Certified Orthodontist (Specialty-Focused)
The specialty version: board certification required, complex adult and surgical-orthodontic cases, and proficiency with advanced digital workflows.
Licensing, Certifications, and Compliance
An orthodontist is a licensed medical specialist, so credentials and compliance are the foundation of the posting and the hire. State the required credentials precisely and plan to verify and store them.
In the posting, list the must-have credentials clearly so general dentists do not apply for a specialty role, and mark board certification as preferred unless your practice is specialty-focused. After hiring, verify and store the license, DEA registration, board certification, and malpractice insurance with their renewal dates, and complete HIPAA and OSHA training before the doctor sees patients. The professional body for the field, the American Association of Orthodontists, is a useful reference point for standards and for where candidates network.
Orthodontist Requirements and Skills to Include
Beyond the credentials, the skills that make a good orthodontist hire are clinical judgment, patient and parent communication, and fit with a small-practice culture. The SHRM job description tools describe a good job description as a plain-language summary of a position's tasks, duties, and responsibilities, and for this role plain language means being precise about credentials and clear about the practice environment. The difference shows in how the requirements are written.
| Weak requirement | Strong requirement |
|---|---|
| Dental degree | DDS or DMD plus completion of an accredited orthodontic residency |
| Licensed | Active [State] dental license in good standing; DEA registration as required |
| Good with patients | Clear communication with patients and parents over long treatment courses |
| Experience preferred | [3+] years for lead roles; new residency graduates welcome for associate roles |
| Certification a plus | Board certification by the American Board of Orthodontics (required for specialty roles) |
Keep the must-have list at the residency-trained credential, the active license, and the role-appropriate experience; mark board certification as preferred unless the role is specialty-focused. And keep every line job-related and neutral, since the EEOC rules on job advertisements prohibit postings that express a preference based on protected characteristics.
How to Write an Orthodontist Job Description
A strong orthodontist posting takes about fifteen minutes once you settle the role, the credentials, the compensation structure, and the schedule. Here is the process the templates are built around.
Orthodontist Pay
Orthodontist pay is among the highest of any occupation and is usually structured as a base plus a percentage of production rather than a flat salary. The federal data is the anchor, with an important caveat about how it is reported.
The lower percentiles that the federal survey does report give a sense of the entry range. These are the most recent confirmed federal estimates for the occupation.
| Percentile | Hourly wage | Annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $43.26 | $89,980 |
| 25th | $63.46 | $132,000 |
| Mean (average) | $117.13 | $243,620 |
| Median and above | Not disclosed | Above the federal reporting cap |
Those figures are the most recent confirmed federal estimates (as of May 2023). The reason the median and upper percentiles read as not disclosed is that the federal survey caps reported annual earnings at a top threshold, and a large share of orthodontists earn above it, so the public release suppresses those values. Industry surveys generally place average orthodontist earnings above the federal mean. The practical takeaway for an employer: treat the federal mean as a conservative floor, build the offer around a base-plus-production structure tuned to your local market and case volume, and remember several states require a pay range in job postings. Most orthodontist compensation is negotiated around production rather than a fixed salary.
Hiring for a Practice Without an HR Department
A large dental service organization hires orthodontists through a recruiting team, a credentialing department, and a standard compensation grid. A solo or small practice makes the same hire with none of that, usually the owner doing it directly, often for the first time. Here is how to do it well.
After You Hire: Onboarding an Orthodontist
Orthodontist onboarding has more credentialing and compliance than a typical hire. The standard paperwork comes first: the offer or employment agreement with the compensation structure stated, the I-9, tax forms, and state reporting. The specialist layer is credentialing and compliance: verify and file the dental license, DEA registration, board certification, and malpractice coverage with their renewal dates, and complete HIPAA and OSHA training before the doctor sees patients. Then a practice orientation covers protocols, software, the team, and patient-communication standards. For the broader flow, the new hire paperwork guide covers the documents and the training new employees guide covers running HIPAA and OSHA training with sign-offs.
The 30-60-90 onboarding plan covers structuring the first months.
The documents around the hire follow the usual sequence: the offer letter template or the employment contract template for the terms.
The onboarding checklist template covers the first weeks and the training plan template covers HIPAA and OSHA training with sign-offs.
FirstHR connects all of it, e-signature for the offer and employment agreement, document management for the license, DEA registration, certifications, and insurance with renewal dates on file, training assignments with completion records, and an employee profile and org chart for the practice, in one place built for practices without an HR department. You can also see the flat monthly pricing for up to 50 employees.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does an orthodontist do?
An orthodontist is a dental specialist who diagnoses and treats misaligned teeth and jaws: examining patients, creating treatment plans, fitting and adjusting braces, aligners, and other appliances, and monitoring progress over months or years of treatment. Beyond the clinical work, an orthodontist communicates with patients and parents about options and expectations, maintains detailed treatment records, and works with assistants and front-desk staff to run the practice. Orthodontists complete dental school plus an additional accredited orthodontic residency, which is what distinguishes them from general dentists. In a small practice, the role often extends to light clinical leadership and helping set treatment protocols. The day-to-day emphasis shifts by setting: a pediatric-focused orthodontist spends more time with children and parents, a board-certified specialist handles complex adult and surgical cases, and a lead orthodontist mentors associates and owns clinical standards.
What are the duties and responsibilities of an orthodontist?
Orthodontist duties fall into four areas. Clinical care: examining, diagnosing, and planning treatment, fitting and adjusting braces, aligners, and appliances, and monitoring progress and adjusting plans. Patient communication: explaining treatment and options to patients and parents, building trust over long treatments, and providing age-appropriate care. Records and administration: maintaining accurate clinical and treatment records, coordinating with assistants and front-desk staff, and supporting practice protocols. Compliance: following HIPAA and patient-privacy rules, maintaining OSHA and infection-control standards, and keeping license, DEA registration, and certifications current. The weight shifts by role, leadership and protocol ownership for a senior orthodontist, pediatric care for a family-focused role, complex and surgical cases for a board-certified specialist, but those four areas describe nearly every orthodontist position.
What qualifications and licenses does an orthodontist need?
An orthodontist needs a DDS or DMD from an accredited dental school, completion of an accredited orthodontic residency program (the specialty training that distinguishes an orthodontist from a general dentist), and an active dental license in the state where they practice. A DEA registration may be required depending on the role and prescribing needs. Board certification by the American Board of Orthodontics is a respected credential that signals a higher standard, but it is voluntary rather than universally required, so most postings list it as preferred rather than mandatory unless the role is specialty-focused. For an employer, the practical step is to state the required credentials clearly in the posting, verify the license, DEA registration, and any certification at hire, and keep copies on file with their renewal dates. Requirements vary by state, so confirm your state dental board's specific rules before finalizing the posting.
What is the difference between an orthodontist and a dentist?
Every orthodontist is a dentist, but not every dentist is an orthodontist. Both complete dental school and earn a DDS or DMD, but an orthodontist completes an additional accredited residency, typically two to three years, focused specifically on diagnosing and correcting misaligned teeth and jaws. A general dentist handles broad oral health: cleanings, fillings, crowns, extractions, and general care, and may offer some basic alignment treatment. An orthodontist focuses on malocclusion, bite correction, braces, aligners, and the long-term movement of teeth and jaw development. For hiring, the distinction matters because the credentials and the scope are different: if you need someone to run orthodontic treatment, the posting must require orthodontic residency training, not just a dental degree, or you risk attracting general dentists who are not qualified for the specialty work.
Does an orthodontist need to be board-certified to hire?
No. Board certification by the American Board of Orthodontics is voluntary and is not legally required to practice; an orthodontist who has completed an accredited residency and holds an active state dental license can practice and be hired without it. Board certification is a respected, additional credential that involves a rigorous examination process and signals a commitment to a higher standard, so many practices list it as preferred, and specialty-focused or complex-case roles may require it. For most small-practice hires, the right approach is to require the residency training and active license as must-haves and to treat board certification as a strong plus that you weigh alongside experience and fit. If your practice handles primarily complex or surgical-orthodontic cases, requiring board certification is more justified and worth stating explicitly in the posting.
What is the average salary for an orthodontist?
Federal data places orthodontist pay among the highest of any occupation, with a mean wage of roughly $243,620 a year as of the most recent confirmed federal estimate. An important caveat: the federal wage survey caps reported earnings at a top threshold, so the median and upper percentiles for orthodontists are suppressed in the public data, and industry surveys generally report average earnings higher than the federal mean. Actual compensation varies widely by location, practice ownership, case volume, and structure, and most orthodontist roles are paid as a base plus a percentage of production rather than a flat salary, sometimes with a sign-on bonus or a partnership track. For an employer, the practical move is to anchor on the federal figure as a floor, build the offer around your production-based structure and local market, and remember several states require a pay range in job postings.
How do I hire an orthodontist for a small practice?
Hiring an orthodontist runs differently from most small-business roles because the field is small and specialized. Start with a clear, role-matched job description, associate, lead, pediatric, travelling, or board-certified, that states the required credentials and the compensation structure. Then recognize that the best candidates often come through referrals, residency program networks, and professional associations rather than a single job board, so post where orthodontists actually look and lead with what makes your practice a good place to build a career: mentorship, growth, flexible scheduling, or a partnership path. Be ready to move quickly and professionally when a strong candidate appears, with a clean offer and a smooth onboarding process, since top orthodontists have options. Because most practices hire only once every year or two, treating the search as relationship-driven rather than transactional pays off.
What happens after I hire an orthodontist?
The hire involves more credentialing and compliance than a typical role. The standard paperwork comes first: the offer or employment agreement with the compensation structure stated, the I-9, tax forms, and state reporting. The orthodontist-specific layer is credentialing and compliance: verify and file the dental license, DEA registration, and any board certification with their renewal dates, confirm malpractice insurance, and complete HIPAA and OSHA training before the doctor sees patients. Then a practice orientation covers your protocols, software, team, and patient-communication standards. For a small practice with no HR department, keeping all of this organized and current is the real challenge. FirstHR handles it: e-signature for the offer and employment agreement, document management for the license, DEA registration, certifications, and insurance with renewal dates on file, training assignments with completion records for HIPAA and OSHA, and an employee profile and org chart for the practice, all on a flat monthly plan.