Full-Time | Clinical Care with Heart: a Long-Term Career in Dental Assisting

Adawn is growing. As one of Melbourne’s most patient-focused and values-led dental studios, we’re proud to offer advanced care, warm experiences, and naturally beautiful outcomes.

With a 110-year legacy, a thriving patient base, a kind and committed team, and a Principal Dentist recognised as one of Australia’s Top 100 Doctors, now is the perfect time to join us as a Senior Dental Assistant and build a career filled with purpose, growth, and meaning. And we do mean a career. This is a long-term leadership role within our clinical team, and we’re looking for someone who wants to build something here and help others grow along the way.

Our Purpose

At Adawn®, we believe great dentistry starts with people. We create thoughtful, caring, and trustworthy dental experiences that restore confidence and comfort and leave every patient feeling well looked after.

We’re guided by our values in everything we do:

- Love – for our patients, our craft, and each other
- Brilliance – always striving for clinical and personal excellence
- Service – in how we care, support, and show up
- Integrity – doing what’s right, always

If you’re someone who brings heart, detail, and a desire to keep growing, and who takes real pride in doing things properly, we’d love to meet you. Why Join Adawn®?

We believe the best work happens when people feel safe, seen, and supported. That’s the environment we’ve created and protected at Adawn®.

- Purpose: Deliver meaningful care that truly changes people’s lives
- Clinical variety: Assist across general, cosmetic, implant, and orthodontic dentistry
- Mastery: Learn from experienced clinicians and a kind, supportive, committed team
- Leadership: Take a hands-on role in training and developing our dental assistants, shaping how our clinical team works day to day
- Training: Begin with a tailored in-house onboarding program covering our clinical systems and setups, with ongoing learning and support as you grow in the role
- Environment: Work in a beautiful, modern studio equipped with digital scanning, intraoral photography, and advanced technology
- Growth: Build a long-term career you’re proud of, with regular Growth Conferences, a structured development pathway, and a clear route from Senior DA to Lead DA and Clinical Coordinator over time
- Culture: We foster a passionate, supportive, and friendly working environment with people who genuinely care. In 2025, we were named Australian Practice of the Year.

About the Role We’re looking for an experienced, full-time Senior Dental Assistant to join our Brunswick East team. You’ll start by learning the Adawn way: our systems, setups, clinicians and standards. Once you’ve settled in, you’ll take on responsibility for training and growing the dental assistants around you.

You’ll be

- Providing skilled chairside assistance across a broad range of general, cosmetic and surgical procedures
- Anticipating what each dentist needs next, so the right instrument or material is ready before it’s asked for and every appointment runs to time
- Setting up for treatment in advance and turning over rooms efficiently,



with precision and care
- Upholding infection control and sterilisation to the highest standard by completing every cycle, check and record accurately and on time
- Helping patients feel calm and cared for from the moment they’re seated, with warmth, reassurance, and clear explanations
- Operating digital scanning, intra-oral photography, and practice technology with confidence
- Managing laboratory work accurately, from labelling and checklists to liaising with external labs and making sure return dates line up with the appointment book
- Keeping stock healthy by recording low items in the order book as soon as you notice them
- Supporting the front office when needed, including phones and appointments in CareStack
- Training new and developing dental assistants once you’ve learned our systems, including buddying new starters through their first weeks
- Modelling the standard chairside, so others can see what excellent looks like in practice
- Giving timely, kind and specific feedback that helps colleagues build their knowledge and skills
- Contributing to peer reviews and onboarding for new team members
- Spotting gaps in skills or systems and helping put them right
- Representing our values: love, service, brilliance, and integrity, in every interaction

A word on how we work: at Adawn, excellent work never goes unnoticed because we measure it. This role works to clear daily standards and a scorecard, reviewed together on a regular cadence. If you’re the kind of person who quietly wishes someone would notice how well you do your job, we will. Hours: 38 per week, over a 4 day working week.

You’re looking for meaningful work and a purpose. You care about people and details, and you take pride in doing things properly.

You’ll thrive in this role if you bring

- Certificate III in Dental Assisting and at least 3 years’ experience as a Dental Assistant, including surgical experience
- A Radiation Use Licence, or a willingness to obtain one
- Anticipation: you read the procedure and the person in front of you and stay a step ahead
- An uncompromising standard of infection control and high attention to detail
- Calm focus, so you stay composed and grounded when the day gets busy
- Warm, professional communication with patients and colleagues alike
- Patience and generosity as a teacher: you enjoy seeing others improve and you explain the “why” behind how things are done
- Ownership: you hold yourself to your word, own your mistakes, and put things right without being asked
- An appetite for being measured: clear standards and honest feedback give you momentum
- Experience training, buddying or mentoring other dental assistants (advantageous)
- Experience with digital scanning, intraoral photography, or CareStack (advantageous)




- A desire to be part of something meaningful, a place where care and quality matter

In the spirit of honesty Integrity is one of our values, so we’ll be upfront: this is a role with real standards attached. It’s designed for a career dental assistant who wants to grow with us over the long term. If you’re studying or preparing for registration as a dentist or another dental practitioner, this role won’t suit your plans. The same applies if working to daily standards and a scorecard isn’t how you like to work, and that’s okay. We’re hiring for someone who reads all of the above and feels excited.

Please note

This role requires hands-on experience as a Dental Assistant in Australia, and applications without dental assisting experience will not be considered.

This role is for career dental assistants and is not suited to applicants seeking a pathway toward registration as a dental practitioner.

Why people love working at Adawn®

We were recently certified as a Great Place to Work®. In our team survey:

- 92% said they felt welcomed from day one
- 92% believe the service we deliver is excellent
- 92% said their work makes a difference
- 82% feel genuinely supported in their role

We’re also finalists in the 2024 Australian Small Business Champion Awards, and in 2025 we won seven awards, including Practice Manager of the Year, Brand of the Year, and Australian Practice of the Year. At Adawn®, your growth matters. You’ll be given the tools, mentorship, and clinical variety to build a career you’re genuinely proud of. Your contribution will always be seen and valued.

Ready to Join Us?

If you’re someone who wants to build a meaningful clinical career in a studio that cares deeply about people, about excellence, and about doing things well, we’d love to hear from you. Experience our culture first-hand through a working interview.

In your letter, alongside anything else you’d like us to know, please answer two questions (a few sentences each is plenty):

- Why does a long-term career as a Senior Dental Assistant appeal to you, and where would you like to see yourself in five years?
- Tell us about a time you helped a colleague learn or improve. What did you do, and how did you know it had worked?

We read every letter, and your answers to these two questions matter more to us than a perfectly polished CV. Optional: Have a bit of fun by including a short (1–2 minute) video introducing yourself. A phone video is perfect, no fancy edits needed. You might like to share what you love most about dental assisting, how you like to help others grow, what makes you you, and why you’d love to join the Adawn® team.

Please note:

- All candidates must have the right to work in Australia
- Shortlisted applicants will be invited to complete a short practical assessment
- The position requires a Police Check, a Working With Children Check, evidence of role-specific immunisations, and a current CPR/First Aid certificate
- Applications without a cover letter answering the two questions above will not be considered

Want to learn more about us? Visit adawn.me/about | Follow us on Instagram: @adawn.me We can’t wait to meet you.

📌 Senior Dental Assistant (Full-Time) | Adawn® Dental Studio (Brunswick East)
🏢 Adawn Dental Studio
📍 Brunswick East