Hi, my name is Irene Delgado, and I’m a Registered Dental Assistant working at High Desert Oral and Facial Surgery. I wanted to share a little about my journey—how I got started in the dental field and how the El Paso Pediatric Dental Assistant School helped me get to where I am today.
When I first enrolled in the program, I was looking for a new direction and a meaningful career. I’ve always been interested in the dental field and wanted to find a role where I could grow professionally. Dental assisting seemed like the perfect path, and the 10-week program gave me that opportunity!
From day one, the program was hands-on, fast-paced, and designed to prepare us for real-world dental environments. The instructors at El Paso Pediatric Dental Assistant School were incredibly supportive—they didn’t just teach the material; they made sure we understood how to apply it confidently and correctly.
One of the most valuable parts of the program was the externship. I was placed at High Desert Oral and Facial Surgery, where I got to experience another side of dental assisting—surgical procedures. It felt like a whole different world and immediately sparked my interest!
After graduating and earning my Registered Dental Assistant (RDA) license, I was offered a full-time position at the same practice where I had completed my externship. It was such a proud moment for me—going from a student to a surgical dental assistant working alongside a team of nine incredible doctors.
Today, I assist in a wide range of procedures, including IV sedation cases, dental implant surgeries, wisdom teeth extractions, biopsies, and more. I help set up and sterilize surgical instruments, assist chairside during procedures, and ensure patients are comfortable and cared for before, during, and after surgery. I also work closely with the doctors, nurses, and other team members to provide safe, efficient, and compassionate care.
This career has given me so much more than I expected—not just a job, but a true sense of purpose. I’m proud of the work I do every day, and I’m incredibly grateful to El Paso Pediatric Dental Assistant School for helping me get here.
If you’re considering becoming a dental assistant, I highly recommend their program. It gave me the foundation I needed, the experience to grow, and the opportunity to turn my goals into reality.
I’m very happy to have chosen El Paso Pediatric Dental Assisting as my educational foundation for dental assisting. There is always so much to learn in dental with new technology and equipment, but EPPDAS gave the ground work to further my dental education. After graduating from EPPDAS, I immediately went to work at Healthy 32 Dental and now I can do all sorts of treatment from crowns/ veneers to robotic implant surgery. I’m also studying to become a licensed dental hygienist, but none of this would be possible without EPPDAS giving me the opportunities through classes, on hands experience, and field work in order to see what working in dental is really like.