Oral Surgeon job description
128 verified openings in Dentists & Specialists
Oral and maxillofacial surgeons are the highest-paid dental occupation BLS measures, with a median of $352,220 in May 2025, or $169.34 an hour. The line counted 4,910 of them, and its spread is the widest in dentistry, from $86,250 at the tenth percentile to $622,640 at the ninetieth. The work is surgery on the mouth, jaws, face, and neck, from extractions and implant preparation to tumors and facial injuries.
Core Duties and Responsibilities
O*NET puts anesthesia first: oral surgeons administer both general and local anesthetics. Planning treatment with restorative dentists and orthodontists is next, then judging whether wisdom teeth are causing trouble or will. Surgeons prepare the mouth for implants and regenerate deficient bone and gum, remove impacted and unrestorable teeth, and treat infections of the oral cavity, salivary glands, jaws, and neck. The list continues through removing tumors, treating facial fractures and lacerations as emergencies, and reconstruction that moves bone, skin, and nerve from elsewhere in the body to rebuild the jaw and face. Cleft lip and palate surgery belongs to the specialty too.
Common Skills and Technologies
Complex problem solving and judgment rank highest, the order a surgeon choosing between approaches would expect. Reading comprehension and critical thinking follow. The tools O*NET records for this job are medical software, graphics and photo imaging software, and development and operating system tools, with no single product named in its hot technology list.
Education, Training, and Career Path
O*NET's Job Zone Five fits: 72.2 percent of surveyed surgeons put post-doctoral training as the requirement. That means a DDS or DMD, then a residency the Handbook says typically runs four to six years and may include a medical degree. A specialty license follows in states that require one. The Handbook projects the occupation growing 6 percent, from 5,600 jobs in 2025 to 5,900 in 2035.
Sources: O*NET 30.0, 29-1022.00 Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/29-1022.00. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, 29-1022, https://www.bls.gov/oes/tables.htm. BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, Dentists, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/dentists.htm.