Dealing With Pessimism

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I'm wondering if anyone else is dealing with a similar problem, and how they might be handling it: when many of my old friends from high school or people close to me in my family ask me what I'm currently doing, I tell them I'm a pre-dental student. Much of what they say is along the lines of "You want to become a dentist?" followed by a sarcastic "right." Many individuals have told me that "doctors are stupid. They don't make that much money anyway." I live in a middle to lower-middle class area and the people there are largely blue-collar workers and this has gotten very annoying. How do I deal with people like this?

Smile and nod

Yes. I deal with that every time I am home. I just stay positive around people like that and try to make the best of it. Its not our fault they feel that way...their pessimism is a personality trait that will only hold them back, don't let it effect you.

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Only my closest friends and select others know I'm predent. I'm a chem major to everyone else.

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In a few years win your making 200k+ easily and they are working more hours to only make 50k just go up to one of them and say.. WHO'S THE BYATCH NEOWWWWWW!!!

Remind em who's boss when they come asking for a discount on a root canal a few years down the road.

This is the reason why very few people know I'm applying to dental school. I don't feel like describing to people why being a dentist is awesome, and because if I don't get in, I don't want a ton of people asking me "so what happened??"

A lot of people have the mindset that dentists are subpar when compared to "real doctors". At first, when I was setting down this dental path, this actually mattered to me, as if this was actually important. I learned to forget about it really fast. So now when people ask "why not be an MD?", I just reply because that's not what I want to do. Or when they ask "you actually want to look in people's dirty mouths?", I just nod and say YUP!

Don't live your life in someone else's shoes. And don't live to meet other people's expectations. Be you. Do what you want. For me, that's being a dentist.

It just sucks that even most of my family (excluding my dad and usually mother) have this sort of attitude about regarding me. I was very enthusiastic at first when I told them, as I was expecting them to be happy, but now I try to avoid it as much as possible. Even my brother-in-law who I worked with as an electrician for a while and convinced me to pursue a better education has turned this way and a couple of days ago told me to give up school and come back to work with him. What's more annoying is that when I used to spend hours at home studying in high school and not making any money they were all of very positive and and kind to me.

I hope when I move up in life I can associate with other doctors and higher-income people that won't have this same attitude around me. Good to hear I'm not alone here .

Frank let me be very specific with you because I feel like we're alot alike in terms of our families and socio-economic class.

Breaking through barriers is hard because of everything you have said. The culture that pushes kids forward in "learned" or middle-upper class families isn't there in low/ some lower-middle class families. In fact, for many, it's the opposite. No one in my family understood why I would forego years of (low) wages to go to college. They thought it was stupid. But that lack of vision has kept my family poor dating all the way back to my great gradfather... maybe longer but that's as far back as I know. The legacy has always been find a job after HS and work - maybe break 40k and you're doing awesome. College is for chumps with no common sense, etc.

I think those assumptions are wrong but I would never expect my family to agree with me. All I can do is do what is right for my future family. My goal is to drive a huge wedge into my familes history that will break the mold. That is to say I want my kids to have more options and their kids have more options and so on...

So stick with it, study hard, and get an awesome GPA. Dont expect anyone to support your goals because they may not see or care about your vision.

Try to take it all lightly and remain humble. This may be one area where you cannot obtain good advice from your family so find some good mentors or people in the know to help you out as you navigate higher learning.

Originally Posted by Frank22

It just sucks that even most of my family (excluding my dad and usually mother) have this sort of attitude about regarding me. I was very enthusiastic at first when I told them, as I was expecting them to be happy, but now I try to avoid it as much as possible. Even my brother-in-law who I worked with as an electrician for a while and convinced me to pursue a better education has turned this way and a couple of days ago told me to give up school and come back to work with him. What's more annoying is that when I used to spend hours at home studying in high school and not making any money they were all of very positive and and kind to me.

I hope when I move up in life I can associate with other doctors and higher-income people that won't have this same attitude around me. Good to hear I'm not alone here .

Thanks Yappy and everyone else: I certainly needed this to remind myself that I'm doing the right thing.

I have the very same vision you do Yappy: my family came to America in 1996 and had to live in Highland Park, MI (an area with worse crime and poverty than Detroit), but we slowly progressed to a middle-class living. The ideology that there's nothing better out there is engrained into my family's line for generation after generation and I can only change the future of my children if I do for myself without any support.

make better friends

Frank,

I'm really surprised at this reaction from your friends and family! I'm also from a middle class family (probably lower middle class) and although my parents want me to become a pharmacist (yuck), they still support my decision to become a dentist and think it's a great idea. My brothers couldn't really care less, but they haven't criticized me either. O_o I don't have extended family that I personally talk to, but when my parents tell their friends and family members, they all say, "Well, she's on the right track".

I have also never heard anyone say that "doctors are stupid". Shouldn't they feel the opposite? Doctors are professionals who went through a lot of training and school to get where they are today!

Don't be discouraged by what anyone says. If you feel it's right for yourself, then you work towards it. In the end, you're doing it for you, not for them. I'm sure after reading several replies from this thread, you have already realized that. Just get out there, do whatchu gotta do, smile big while doing it, and prove all them doubters wrong!

Thank you: I'm happy to hear you aren't going through the same thing. I'll just stop mentioning dentistry all together to my friends and family and focus on what I have to do. That way I won't offend anyone and if I want to converse about it I can simply post here .

I'm so glad to have been blessed with such supportive parents, they weren't always this way, but after I went through this rough patch and i started to see a psychiatrist just to help me deal with the stress they realized the impact they were having on me and eased up, now they're super awesome about it and just want me to be happy.

The only problem I deal with is telling friends I want to be a dentist, they just give me this look and say its gross lol.

fact that their telling you this, doesn't it make you work that much harder, just to prove them wrong?

For the last couple of years, I've ran into some of my old classmates and they're telling me why are you going in to dentistry, don't they have the highest suicidal rate.. blah blah blah. In addition to that, b/c I never took school too seriously back then, a majority of them don't think I will make it and should be more realistic about my career choice. It's this doubt that pushes me to work harder!

Don't let anyone belittle what you think is important to you. Everyone has their own opinion on thing and if you can't always worry about what others say. Just do you.

You need confidence like this guy, Frank. Going into this fight Ali was facing a consensus that he had slowed down and may not have "it" anymore...

"SCREW ALL Y'ALL!"

[QUOTE=NDPitch;12552690]
A lot of people have the mindset that dentists are subpar when compared to "real doctors".

Greetings,

I completely disagree with you in this. This kind of perception only comes from a very small group of arrogant premeds or naieve ignorant people. This is the exception rather than the norm. Normal, intelligent people with common sense see dental professionals as a selected group of society and are on par with any other health care professionals. DP

How many times have any of you been told this exact phrase: "You know Dentists have the highest suicide rates?" I swear if I hear that one more time I may just go ADA on someone!!!

OP, stick with what you want to do in life and you will be happy. Some people you may interact with could have given that ability up and therefore have a jelousy complex about hearing you go into something you really want to do.
Keep on keeping on!

Good luck!

Every time I mention going to dental school I get the: "I've heard dentists have the highest suicide rate of all professions."



I haven't mentioned it much anymore. In fact, I don't even talk about it. It really doesn't matter what other people think. Dentistry is an undeniably valuable skill, but many people, especially among lower/middle classes may not see it that way. Most of my family is lower/middle class, and those who don't appreciate dentistry also don't have many teeth.

I am sorry some of you don't have support of friends and family. That must be very hard, but remember it is only temporary. Once you are done with school and have a great career going they will more easily understand that you made a great choice. Its a lack of education, and as you progress as a dentist you will be more able to educate them.



In my own life, by far the most critical people have been pre-meds/med students that are immature and lack self confidence. They have barely squeaked into the bottom tier medical schools or not made it at all, and it appears they just trash on dentists to make themselves feel better. They crave respect and will attempt to get it at the expense of others, which always backfires and it makes people not like them.

Originally Posted by Frank22

I'm wondering if anyone else is dealing with a similar problem, and how they might be handling it: when many of my old friends from high school or people close to me in my family ask me what I'm currently doing, I tell them I'm a pre-dental student. Much of what they say is along the lines of "You want to become a dentist?" followed by a sarcastic "right." Many individuals have told me that "doctors are stupid. They don't make that much money anyway." I live in a middle to lower-middle class area and the people there are largely blue-collar workers and this has gotten very annoying. How do I deal with people like this?

Yes those people are mostly just ignorant. Dentist make a great amount of money, specialist make even more! I would just nod my head and ignore them, be proud of your ambitions, because not everyone can cut it to get to dental school. The pessimistic views your getting are from people who don't know what they are talking about!

My manager at the campground I work at will joke around like "I don't want you working on my teeth" or "you work girl hours during school time" but then I look at him, someone who has had back breaking jobs his whole life and still does because he didn't go to college. I always see people in their 40's and 50's working at fast food restaurants, which there are definitely worse jobs that they could be doing, but just personally I could never picture myself doing that. If you listen to the people that put you down, you are bound to end up like them. The same people will be asking to borrow money and get free dental care from you if you become a dentist

One girl I know told me she was switching from taking the DAT to the MCAT. I was like why? She was like,"I'd rather be saving lives."

People are dumb. Good oral hygiene practices can and does save lives. Why do people think being a physician is better than being a dentist?

And those people who are always like how can you stand to put your hands in someone's mouth! That's gross!
Well, we kiss people all the time don't we? How come that's fun but dentistry is gross?

Just a thought I guess.

Originally Posted by MOUTHLOVER

Smile and nod

I don't know how many times this has happened

Stranger/friends/family: So what do you do?
Me: I'm about to go to dental school
Them: Really? I hate the dentist. Why would you want to be in mouths all day?

I literally just zone out and nod at this point..it's kind of funny actually. I wouldn't expect to impress anyone. If it's what you want to do then it shouldn't bug you too much unless they are pretty persistent about it. Then maybe ask them why they chose their job?

To OP, in ur post u asked how to deal w/ these kinds of people...I don't think there is a practical approach to confronting these people. It's best to grow a thicker skin, become de-sensitized to the negative vibes and simply go about ur business. I def. agree w/ the poster saying to adopt the "smile and nod" approach. Avoid people like that and try to weed out people like this in your social circle (or at least keep them at a distance).

You raise a good point. I've had the same interactions when I told my family and a few friends that I was getting ready to take the "DAT" (I had to blow them off big time to study) last year. I've even had people tell me straight up "I dont trust dentists". What do you say to that lol?

In situations like these I always think of moral equivalence. What would be an equal response?

"What do you do?"

I work in business.
So you screw honest people out of money and work in a small cubicle at a corp that doesn't care about you?

I am an engineer
Dont they have huge problems with ageism and outsourcing?

I work at [insert big box grocery store].
Didn't you want to do more with your life? Isn't it dead end and low pay?

I work in construction or X trade.
Dont you worry about doing that hard work as you age? Isn't it pretty slow after the housing bubble? Did you do well in school?

etc. etc.

Those would be some rude comments that are based on ignorant assumptions. So I wonder why it is acceptable to say ignorant things about dentistry? I've also gotten the suicide thing from my Aunt lol.

Originally Posted by timwatley

I don't know how many times this has happened

Stranger/friends/family: So what do you do?
Me: I'm about to go to dental school
Them: Really? I hate the dentist. Why would you want to be in mouths all day?

I literally just zone out and nod at this point..it's kind of funny actually. I wouldn't expect to impress anyone. If it's what you want to do then it shouldn't bug you too much unless they are pretty persistent about it. Then maybe ask them why they chose their job?

I agree. Ignorance ain't bliss. lol

I remember a girl in a nursing program at a CC that was in biology with me. She asked me to help her study and despite hours of it managed to get about a 55% to 60% on every test she took. She later dropped the course. When she asked me what I was getting into I told her dentistry. Her response was the following: "You know doctors don't make any money right? It all goes to bills. They're really dumb too. I'm going to become a nurse practitioner and make more then most doctors." lol.

I think that it's become evident that the original problem relates to practically every member of this forum: from the responses and what we know about our future careers I think it's reasonable to say that whether we become neurosurgeons or pharmacists we will be criticized for our career choice.

Originally Posted by Frank22

I remember a girl in a nursing program at a CC that was in biology with me. She asked me to help her study and despite hours of it managed to get about a 55% to 60% on every test she took. She later dropped the course. When she asked me what I was getting into I told her dentistry. Her response was the following: "You know doctors don't make any money right? It all goes to bills. They're really dumb too. I'm going to become a nurse practitioner and make more then most doctors." lol.

I think that it's become evident that the original problem relates to practically every member of this forum: from the responses and what we know about our future careers I think it's reasonable to say that whether we become neurosurgeons or pharmacists we will be criticized for our career choice.

She's not exactly wrong. With dentistry, since it's sort of a business, you have the potential to make a lot but you can also end up making the minimum. If you are unfortunate and make the minimum, a nurse practitioner could end up making more than you b/c he/she will have a lot less in loans than you. However, also note that nurse practitioner's don't really have an opportunity for higher income, but dentists have a huge potential to make a lot. So, if you are risk averse, nurse practitioner is the better choice.

Originally Posted by iralex801

She's not exactly wrong. With dentistry, since it's sort of a business, you have the potential to make a lot but you can also end up making the minimum. If you are unfortunate and make the minimum, a nurse practitioner could end up making more than you b/c he/she will have a lot less in loans than you. However, also note that nurse practitioner's don't really have an opportunity for higher income, but dentists have a huge potential to make a lot. So, if you are risk averse, nurse practitioner is the better choice.

The only reason she's not exactly wrong is because she's an idiot and the boundaries that measure how correct she is are stretched atypically. If someone intelligent were to say something like that they would be laughed out of the forum.

The average income of a dentist is about $155,000 a year, which is far higher than the average for a nurse practitioner. Dentists that own all or part of their practice average about $200,000 a year--even military dentists that that have finished their mandatory working period usually make more than a nurse practitioner.

Dentists also are fully qualified to preform their profession--nurse practitioners are sometimes hired when a physician of internal medicine is not available. Quite clearly, nurse practitioners don't make more and aren't more qualified to do their than dentists.

wrong post

Originally Posted by Frank22

I remember a girl in a nursing program at a CC that was in biology with me. She asked me to help her study and despite hours of it managed to get about a 55% to 60% on every test she took. She later dropped the course. When she asked me what I was getting into I told her dentistry. Her response was the following: "You know doctors don't make any money right? It all goes to bills. They're really dumb too. I'm going to become a nurse practitioner and make more then most doctors." lol.

I think that it's become evident that the original problem relates to practically every member of this forum: from the responses and what we know about our future careers I think it's reasonable to say that whether we become neurosurgeons or pharmacists we will be criticized for our career choice.

Sounds like a great lady. All the nurse practitioners I've been too haven't been that great. To me they just seemed to regurgitate a bunch of useless crap they learned in their textbooks instead of using any sort of intelligent thought process/reasoning. I would agree that they tend to be a substitute for the lack of physicians in certain areas. I also think some clinics hire them to save money.

Originally Posted by Frank22

The only reason she's not exactly wrong is because she's an idiot and the boundaries that measure how correct she is are stretched atypically. If someone intelligent were to say something like that they would be laughed out of the forum.

The average income of a dentist is about $155,000 a year, which is far higher than the average for a nurse practitioner. Dentists that own all or part of their practice average about $200,000 a year--even military dentists that that have finished their mandatory working period usually make more than a nurse practitioner.

Dentists also are fully qualified to preform their profession--nurse practitioners are sometimes hired when a physician of internal medicine is not available. Quite clearly, nurse practitioners don't make more and aren't more qualified to do their than dentists.

Newly graduate dentists will make around 90-100K. Add in monthly payments from your 350K+ loan (assuming you aren't attending your state school) and you are really not making that much. I don't know the figures of a NP, but I'll assume like 60-70K. They have less schooling and less debt. So, when I'm saying she's not "completely" wrong I mean NPs will be ahead of newly graduated dentists until they pay off your school loan and gain some experience. Eventually, when newly graduate dentists have enough experience and pay off their loans, they will make more than NPs. Even then, if you practice in saturated areas such as NYC or CA, you might be one of the unlucky ones and have trouble finding patients. BTW, I'm not trying to say don't do dentistry b/c I am going to be a D1 soon, I just don't like the mentality that you will automatically be rich as a dentist. Lots of factors play into it b/c it is essentially a business.

This is not really related to the topic, but I would like to add that in the future dentist's income might even go down further. The reason why physicians (family doctors) don't make as much general dentists is the ADA is a lot more powerful than the AMA. The ADA has been able to somewhat stop dental insurance. However, it's slowly becoming more prevalent and then the dentists who only take fee for service will be force to take insurance also to compete. My point is that it is that doctors/dentists face increasing school debt with lower compensation in the future. So, the people who come into the profession expecting to be multimillionaires might be sorely disappointed.

Notice that I am talking purely from a financial standpoint, not intelligence/prestige/respect or whatever.

.

Originally Posted by iralex801

Newly graduate dentists will make around 90-100K. Add in monthly payments from your 350K+ loan (assuming you aren't attending your state school) and you are really not making that much. I don't know the figures of a NP, but I'll assume like 60-70K. They have less schooling and less debt. So, when I'm saying she's not "completely" wrong I mean NPs will be ahead of newly graduated dentists until they pay off your school loan and gain some experience. Eventually, when newly graduate dentists have enough experience and pay off their loans, they will make more than NPs. Even then, if you practice in saturated areas such as NYC or CA, you might be one of the unlucky ones and have trouble finding patients. BTW, I'm not trying to say don't do dentistry b/c I am going to be a D1 soon, I just don't like the mentality that you will automatically be rich as a dentist. Lots of factors play into it b/c it is essentially a business.

Firstly, the average dental graduate doesn't have over $350,000 worth of loans. Student loans are generally about $200,000 to $250,000 for a new graduate over 20 years at 7% interest. Secondly, opening up a dental practice or buying into a practice is not nearly as risky as opening up a standard business: dental offices are exceptionally reliable due to the high shortage of dentists. The average dentist that buys into their practice averages a pre-tax net income of $144,000 their first year (that's after they've payed their yearly debt for the practice). Still far higher than a nurse practitioner.

In other words, even before dentists pay off their loans, if they buy a practice they will make more than a nurse practitioner. Many dentists also choose to go into a military program all together and not have any loans.

Originally Posted by iralex801

This is not really related to the topic, but I would like to add that in the future dentist's income might even go down further. The reason why physicians (family doctors) don't make as much general dentists is the ADA is a lot more powerful than the AMA. The ADA has been able to somewhat stop dental insurance. However, it's slowly becoming more prevalent and then the dentists who only take fee for service will be force to take insurance also to compete. My point is that it is that doctors/dentists face increasing school debt with lower compensation in the future. So, the people who come into the profession expecting to be multimillionaires might be sorely disappointed.

Notice that I am talking purely from a financial standpoint, not intelligence/prestige/respect or whatever.

The average for physicians is not far from that of a dentist, and in some instances they do earn higher. The reason dentists have more financial freedom than physicians has nothing to do with the power of the AMA or the ADA: the fall of medicine is partially attributed to physicians agreeing to allow the government determine their compensation in the 1980s. This means that medical doctors may be forced to work for pennies on the dollar due to requiring medicaid patients to pay expenses that they only make 15% off of. Physicians are still very well-compensated (often earning more than $300,000 a year), they simply don't make as much per patient as they used to. The ADA has made sure not to agree with any such bills that allow third-parties to determine their prices.

The arguments you are posing do not warrant the reason you are arguing for them: You don't like the idea that immediately becoming a dentist means you will be rich. This is reasonable, and it is true: dentistry requires competence as a businessperson and a clinician, but this doesn't mean that they will instantly be millionaires. However, claiming that dentists will make less than nurse practitioners on that basis is simply wrong and has nothing to do with your initial reason. I agree, one does not immediately become rich because they are a dentist, but the fact is that dentists do make a good deal of money, almost always far more than nurse practitioners, whether anyone likes the idea or not.

Two things:

1) I have yet to have someone take a pessimistic POV about me going into dentistry... I am very sorry that the OP is getting this kind of response. Like others have said, smile and nod.

2) People will believe what they want when choosing a profession. Some people will prefer to believe that NPs are better off, some dentists, some MDs, etc. People like to think they are smarter than everyone else, and are making a better decision than everyone else. Its part of human nature. This girl is obviously wanting to feel like she is making the better choice...

Originally Posted by Bereno

Two things:

1) I have yet to have someone take a pessimistic POV about me going into dentistry... I am very sorry that the OP is getting this kind of response. Like others have said, smile and nod.

2) People will believe what they want when choosing a profession. Some people will prefer to believe that NPs are better off, some dentists, some MDs, etc. People like to think they are smarter than everyone else, and are making a better decision than everyone else. Its part of human nature. This girl is obviously wanting to feel like she is making the better choice...

I don't think this girl will be a nurse, let alone a nurse practitioner: she couldn't score over a 60 on any biology test at a CC. I think that some people like to convince themselves that they will achieve a possible goal in life whether they're making progress at it or not. Even becoming a nurse nowadays is fairly competitive.

Originally Posted by Frank22

I don't think this girl will be a nurse, let alone a nurse practitioner: she couldn't score over a 60 on any biology test at a CC. I think that some people like to convince themselves that they will achieve a possible goal in life whether they're making progress at it or not. Even becoming a nurse nowadays is fairly competitive.

Fair. But regardless of what this girl ends up doing, my observations still holds (seemingly) that people want to believe the profession they choose is the best for whatever reason haha.

Originally Posted by Frank22

I don't think this girl will be a nurse, let alone a nurse practitioner: she couldn't score over a 60 on any biology test at a CC. I think that some people like to convince themselves that they will achieve a possible goal in life whether they're making progress at it or not. Even becoming a nurse nowadays is fairly competitive.

You'd be surprised. Nursing isn't that hard to get in to and it is not understanding of biology or any other science that separates NP from RN...

Originally Posted by Bereno

Fair. But regardless of what this girl ends up doing, my observations still holds (seemingly) that people want to believe the profession they choose is the best for whatever reason haha.

I don't think anyone motivated enough to get a masters or doctorate would get it in anything they didn't feel was best for them. It only makes sense people believe in what they do or they wouldn't have chose it. The problem comes when reality hits and lots of people realize what they thought they were getting into is really different from what they really end up doing.

I'm not sure I would say the average debt is between 200-250, but I could be wrong. There are definitely some good deals out there still but keep in mind a price tag of 250 can be a little bit over 300 when you start looking for a job. The USC folks pay just over 400 for their degree but the interest rates on the loans make it over $500,000 by the time they graduate and start looking for a job! There are tons of similar price tags popping up all around the country and many state schools have been steadily increasing their tuition as well.

iralex801, I think your assumptions about what new dentists make is wrong. Most of my friends were guaranteed at least 120K and many made a lot more than that as new dentists.

I can't speak for the rest of the country but in Texas if you make less than 100K as a private practice dentist you made a poor choice of a job.

Originally Posted by uthscsaalum

iralex801, I think your assumptions about what new dentists make is wrong. Most of my friends were guaranteed at least 120K and many made a lot more than that as new dentists.

I can't speak for the rest of the country but in Texas if you make less than 100K as a private practice dentist you made a poor choice of a job.

Another reason why you should base your opinion on your reasons, and not your reasons on your opinion.

Originally Posted by timwatley

I'm not sure I would say the average debt is between 200-250, but I could be wrong. There are definitely some good deals out there still but keep in mind a price tag of 250 can be a little bit over 300 when you start looking for a job. The USC folks pay just over 400 for their degree but the interest rates on the loans make it over $500,000 by the time they graduate and start looking for a job! There are tons of similar price tags popping up all around the country and many state schools have been steadily increasing their tuition as well.

+1. Average debt is probably around 200-250K if u include people who go to state schools also. Most non-state schools are at least 300K+ now and interest accumulates the 4 years your in school. So that's why I say 350K.

Originally Posted by uthscsaalum

iralex801, I think your assumptions about what new dentists make is wrong. Most of my friends were guaranteed at least 120K and many made a lot more than that as new dentists.

I can't speak for the rest of the country but in Texas if you make less than 100K as a private practice dentist you made a poor choice of a job.

Wow. I guess Texas is the place to go lol. The salary varies from region to region depending on saturation.

To Bereno:

So what's your opinion on this matter . Just curious. Oh btw. If you're statement is true, how come I've met medical doctors that said go dentistry instead lol. I know what you're saying though. Just making your life difficult.

To Frank:

I guess you are right. I'm being too pessimistic and using numbers on the lower end instead of the average. I'm just trying to say if you are one of the unfortunate ones, you could be making less than a NP. I'm looking at worse case scenarios, such as you graduate from USC with 400K debt + interest and you decide to practice in California (which is very saturated). But I shouldn't be comparing worse case scenario of a dentist to the best case scenario of a NP so you are technically right.

Oh, I will say that the reason why physicians let that happen is because the AMA has low membership and they didn't stand united. The ADA is a lot stronger because it has higher membership and if all dentists stand united, then fees won't be dictated by insurance companies/government, but by the dentists themselves. But this isn't really related to what we are talking about lol.

One consideration with NP's is that they pump out new grads like crazy. They even have online schools and programs you can do part time lol. I've heard that employment can be really tight as offices may have plenty of midlevels (NP or PA) and not be in such a need for another NP rather than a physician who can do 100% of the job. IMO dentists have alot more autonomy and mastery over their niche of the human body than NP.

I've had people ask my why I wanted to go into dentistry before. To everyone that isn't on your admissions committee to get into d-school, just tell them that it's for the money. People do much less desirable jobs than dentists do. Many doctors I know are jealous of our salary because of the amount of hours we work and how many vacation days we have. This is assuming you have your own practice of course. The first few years are going to be rough, but oh well. Coming from a family that fled a war-torn country, with my dad working as a gardener for 25+ years and my mom as a hair stylist for 20+ years, I think dentistry is a fine occupation.