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Navy NEC · Medical

L38A Dental Laboratory Technician (Maxillofacial)

Current service use not established

This code is listed in the directory. Inclusion alone does not confirm current service use.

A Navy Enlisted Classification: a skill designation sailors hold in addition to their rating.

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Overview

A maxillofacial dental laboratory technician assists a maxillofacial prosthodontist with clinical and technical procedures for prostheses and appliances addressing oral, craniofacial, and other anatomical defects. The technician constructs and finishes ocular, extraoral, intraoral, and somato prostheses, designs stone, metal, or silicone molds, and assists specialists in related medical and dental disciplines.

Minimum clearance: Secret

Core Skills

  • Ocular and facial silicone prosthesis fabrication
  • Stone, metal and silicone mold construction
  • Clinical support for craniofacial prosthetic rehabilitation

Civilian Career Paths

Career associations are editorial assessments of the cited evidence, not an official crosswalk unless the evidence explicitly says so. O*NET supplies civilian occupation information, not proof of a military match. Related experience does not confer civilian qualifications. Tasks and tools below describe civilian work, not military training.

Dental Laboratory Technicians

Fabricating intraoral prostheses, constructing molds and performing advanced prosthetic laboratory procedures directly overlap with dental laboratory production.

How to prepare: Prepare a de-identified work portfolio showing mold construction and prosthesis finishing for review by dental laboratories that handle prosthetic appliances.

What the civilian work involves
  • Read prescriptions or specifications and examine models or impressions to determine the design of dental products to be constructed.
  • Fabricate, alter, or repair dental devices, such as dentures, crowns, bridges, inlays, or appliances for straightening teeth.

Medical Appliance Technicians

Constructing somato prostheses and rehabilitation molds provides transferable fabrication experience for producing other prosthetic devices.

How to prepare: Seek supervised laboratory practice in thermoplastic forming and structural-component assembly to broaden beyond silicone prosthesis fabrication.

What the civilian work involves
  • Read prescriptions or specifications to determine the type of product or device to be fabricated and the materials and tools required.
  • Make orthotic or prosthetic devices, using materials such as thermoplastic and thermosetting materials, metal alloys and leather, and hand or power tools.
  • Bend, form, and shape fabric or material to conform to prescribed contours of structural components.

Notes & Sources

Evidence for this guidance (3 documents)
  1. NAVPERS 18068F Vol II (NEOCS, Jul 2026 edition): NEC L38A

    [1] NEC entry "L38A - Dental Laboratory Technician (Maxillofacial)"; cached text line 8176; NAVPERS 18068F Vol II, 2026-07 edition

    Supports: Ocular and facial silicone prosthesis fabrication, Stone, metal and silicone mold construction, Clinical support for craniofacial prosthetic rehabilitation, Dental Laboratory Technicians (O*NET 51-9081.00), Medical Appliance Technicians (O*NET 51-9082.00)

  2. O*NET: Dental Laboratory Technicians

    [2] O*NET 30.3 occupational data

    Supports: Dental Laboratory Technicians (O*NET 51-9081.00)

  3. O*NET: Medical Appliance Technicians

    [3] O*NET 30.3 occupational data

    Supports: Medical Appliance Technicians (O*NET 51-9082.00)

Defense contractor jobs for L38A

Descriptions may be summarized for clarity. Verify all information with your branch career counselor or official military documentation before making career decisions.

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