CERTIFICATION


The AADC recognizes the increasing importance of dental consultant certification in the dental benefits industry. Once certified a dental consultant would be exposed to more employment opportunities and career advancement. Put the resources of the largest international dental consulting association to work for your success! When participants seek involvement in our workshops, they develop a degree of knowledge that will lead to certification. Many of our members are leaders in the dental benefits industry, and their staff consultants are increasingly seeking AADC certification. 

No other association or school offers dental consultant certification. 

An AADC Certified Dental Consultant requires a diverse level of knowledge and experience in dentistry. AADC members and certified consultants all possess the clinical background to render consistent opinions on emerging dental trends, utilization review, dental plan coverage, network management, claims policy and standards of care. AADC workshops offer an opportunity to explore areas summarized above. 

AADC Certification Requirements:

  1. You must have a Dental License in good standing to practice dentistry in the United States, a dependency of the United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Canada, or any other recognized foreign entity.
  2. You must have at least five years' experience in the clinical practice of dentistry as a dentist.
  3. You must have been retained, employed, or working in the dental benefits industry for a minimum of three
    years.
  4. You must have attended in-person two of the previous three AADC Spring Workshops prior to sitting for the examination. At least two day attendance of each Spring Workshop is required.
     (Since 2020's meeting was cancelled due to Covid, it will not be counted in the 2 of 3 meetings and virtual attendance will be accepted for 2021 & 2022 in the short term. ie: To sit for the exam you must have attended 2 meetings during years 2019, 2021, 2022)     2023 and Beyond: Workshops will only count if you attend live/in person.
  5. You must submit an article accepted for publication in the Beacon. This article must be a minimum of 3-5 pages on a topic pre-approved by the Beacon Editor (Dr. Clayton Pesillo: copdha@sunlink.net). A one or two paragraph “summary” (stating objective) may be submitted prior to drafting an article to insure that the topic would be acceptable. 
  6. You must properly execute the Certified Dental Consultant (CDC) application form, which is located below, and submit it with the required fees to the AADC Central Office by March 1 of the year you intend to sit for the exam.

Pleases review the posted webinar entitled "Certification 101" for additional information.  Any questions regarding the above requirements please contact the Chairperson of the Certification Committee (Dr. Linda Vidone: lvidone@yahoo.com).

Certification Exam Information:

Once your CDC application has been approved, you will be given further instructions regarding the exam. Your article will be due for publication in the Beacon no later than March 1 of the year you take the exam. Exam questions will be from:   

  1. Previous two years of the Beacon
  2. AADC Position Papers
  3. Cathye Smithwicks book "Dental Benefits: A Guide to Managed Plans" which can be purchased through Cathye Smithwick at cathyelynn@comcast.net
  4.  ADA CDT Current Dental Terminology
  5. AHIP Dental Benefits "An Overview of Dental Benefits and Dental Plans" which will be supplied after your application is accepted

Certification Exam Application

 

Certification Maintenance:

To mintain certification, Certified Dental Consultants must maintain continuous membership in AADC, must be an AADC active member in good standing and must meet a rolling in-person "three of five" Spring Workshop attendance requirement.   In order for a Spring Workshop attendance to count toward this maintenance requirement, you must attend at least two full days of said Workshop. If you are unable to fulfill your continuous membership or the "three of five" Workshops requirement, re-examination will be necessary to regain certification. In severe cases of illness or extenuating circumstances a Workshop Waiver Request may be applied for approval.

Maintance: 2020 will not be included to retain certification (3 out of last 5 years) For example to maintain 2023 CDC one must have attended three workshops out of years 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023. The in-person requirement is waived for the year 2021 since it was held virtually and in 2022 because AADC required vaccination.  However, for maintenance you must have attended virtually if you did not attend in-person.

2023 and Beyond: Workshops will only count if you attend live/in person. Viewing recordings of the workshops will not be considered as "attending but you will be able to recieve CEUs.