Christchurch. Hygiene training was briefly offered at the Wellington School for Dental Nurses in 1990 as 2-week a supplement to Dental Therapy students training. However, this was quickly discontinued. The first independent non-military training began in 1994. Otago Polytechnic began offering a 15-month Certificate in Dental Hygiene in Dunedin. In 1998, the programme was modified to be a 2-year Diploma. Otago Polytech stopped offering the course in 2000. The following year, University of Otago began offering a 2-year Diploma in Dental Hygiene qualification. In 2002, the university added a 3-year Bachelor of Health Sciences (endorsed in Dental Hygiene) degree alongside the Diploma. From 2006, New Zealand dental hygienists and now oral health therapists have been trained at either University of Otago in Dunedin (at the country's only Dental School) or at Auckland University of Technology. Until official establishment of the oral health therapy scope in late 2017, the qualifications (Bachelor of Oral Health at Otago, Bachelor of Health Science (Oral Health) at AUT) enabled graduates to register and practise as both a dental hygienist and a dental therapist. In order to practise, dental hygienists and oral health therapists must register and annually recertify with the Dental Council of New Zealand. One dental hygienist is represented on Council for a 3-year term. The representing body for dental hygienists was the New Zealand Dental Hygienists' Association. The association was founded in 1993, and is affiliated with the International Federation of Dental Hygienists. In 2021 the association merged with the New Zealand Dental and Oral Health Therapists Association to become the New Zealand Oral Health Association. United States Dental hygienists in the United States must be graduates from a dental hygiene program, with either an associate degree (most common), a certificate, a bachelor's degree or a master's degree from a dental hygienist school that is accredited by the American Dental Association (ADA). All dental hygienists in the United States must be licensed by the state in which they practice, after completing a minimum of two years of school and passing a written board known as the National Board Dental Hygiene Examination as well as a clinical board exam. After completing these exams and licenses, dental hygienists may use "R.D.H" after their names to signify that they are a registered dental hygienist. Dental hygienists also have to become licensed in the state in which they intend to practice. State licensure requirements vary, however most