What did your shadowing schedules typically look like?

[ZZZzzzzzzzzzzz]

Were they once a week type things? 8 hours per day? 4 hours? What would you recommend?

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[JLT223]

You're going to never want to be a dentist if you're shadowing 8 hours a day. Once or twice a week for 4 hours or so each time is more than enough. You're going to want ~100 hours by the time you apply.

Edit: The only reason I'd ever recommend staying 8 hours or so is to gauge what the typical full day of a dentist entails. Other than that, it gets boring standing around really fast.

 

[Soleus715]

Were they once a week type things? 8 hours per day? 4 hours? What would you recommend?

I shadowed full time every single weekday for about a month and then worked as an assistant for 2 years.
Although it maybe overkill for some people, I was able to learn a great deal each day.

I think that shadowing a full day at least a couple times really put things into perspective, but it really depends on who you shadow.
If the dentist doesn't let you ask many questions or freely look around, it'll be extremely boring shadowing a full day.

After you get an overall impression of the day-to-day at the office, I would go over the schedule and choose dates with specific procedures that you would like to see.
I also recommend shadowing when the schedule is overbooked and when it is very easy going.

Just to give you a bit of perspective, my dentist explained to me not just the steps of the procedure, but why it's done that way and tips/tricks that will help me as I go through dental school.

I had a lot of fun shadowing/working at the office and hope that this is how it goes for you as well.

 

[ZZZzzzzzzzzzzz]

I shadowed full time every single weekday for about a month and then worked as an assistant for 2 years.
Although it maybe overkill for some people, I was able to learn a great deal each day.

I think that shadowing a full day at least a couple times really put things into perspective, but it really depends on who you shadow.
If the dentist doesn't let you ask many questions or freely look around, it'll be extremely boring shadowing a full day.

After you get an overall impression of the day-to-day at the office, I would go over the schedule and choose dates with specific procedures that you would like to see.
I also recommend shadowing when the schedule is overbooked and when it is very easy going.

Just to give you a bit of perspective, my dentist explained to me not just the steps of the procedure, but why it's done that way and tips/tricks that will help me as I go through dental school.

I had a lot of fun shadowing/working at the office and hope that this is how it goes for you as well.

Did you have some working knowledge of dentistry before? Do you have any tips to get the most out of this experience? I am considering asking my dentist to shadow FT for 1-2 weeks. I have already had one shadowing experience but tbh, everything pretty much went over my head. During that month were you on your feet the whole time or did you have downtime and what did you do during that downtime? I don't want to get on my dentist's nerves too bad, so I figure I should bring something to keep myself occupied some of the time? When your dentist was seeing patients, were you mostly just observing?

Sorry for all of these questions!! It just sounds like you had a beyond positive experience and I want that too.

 

[JLT223]

Did you have some working knowledge of dentistry before? Do you have any tips to get the most out of this experience? I am considering asking my dentist to shadow FT for 1-2 weeks. I have already had one shadowing experience but tbh, everything pretty much went over my head. During that month were you on your feet the whole time or did you have downtime and what did you do during that downtime? I don't want to get on my dentist's nerves too bad, so I figure I should bring something to keep myself occupied some of the time? When your dentist was seeing patients, were you mostly just observing?

Sorry for all of these questions!! It just sounds like you had a beyond positive experience and I want that too.

Ask questions. Be engaged. That's what you're there to do.

 

[Tman26]

Were they once a week type things? 8 hours per day? 4 hours? What would you recommend?

I recommend shadowing 1-4 hours a day and do that several days a week, once a week, or whatever else aligns with both your schedule and the dentists. At first, I had no idea what they were talking about while shadowing--I was really lost. It does get extremely boring if you're just standing there oblivious to everything, which is what happened to me. However, if you research some of the basics, you'll have some conversational topics to discuss. It's not necessary to do research, but it does make it more engaging and enjoyable from my experience.

 

[Soleus715]

I think every dental school applicant should try and get a positive experience out of shadowing. I feel like even the most passionate ones can get turned off by shadowing the wrong office. Don't let one bad experience spoil your dream!

I'll answer the questions in your response:

Did you have some working knowledge of dentistry before?

I had zero clinical knowledge. I met great assistants (they later became my coworkers). They taught me the order in which every equipment was used for each procedure and I took lots of notes while they explained. When the assistants couldn't help me figure out what the material did in a procedure, I asked the dentist and he was happy to explain its function. Once I had the overall picture down, I was able to read more details from dental textbooks out of curiosity. One of the assistants let me borrow a "Dental Assistant Handbook" which had all the tools and their parts labeled along with typical tray set ups/outline for various procedures. It helped a lot!

Do you have any tips to get the most out of this experience?

Ok so here's the trick. When you shadow, don't just set and commit the amount of time you're gonna shadow with them. You need to evaluate the value of each shadowing opportunity.
If you can't get much out of it or feel like you're getting in their way, it's the wrong office to shadow.
I wouldn't shadow at an office where the assistants are not happy about helping you learn. The dentist is often times busy with patients and assistants are the ones you can ask many questions.

During that month were you on your feet the whole time or did you have downtime and what did you do during that downtime?

I was almost always on my feet, either standing behind the shoulder of an assistant or dentist. When we all had downtime, we went out for lunch

I don't want to get on my dentist's nerves too bad, so I figure I should bring something to keep myself occupied some of the time?

If you need to do something else at the office because you're bugging them, that's not a good use of your time. Not worth shadowing there if this becomes the case.

When your dentist was seeing patients, were you mostly just observing?

I observed for about a week and half. Then the dentist decided to give the assistants a cleaning and had me assist him for the first time. After that, I slowly eased into assisting while shadowing. It was kind of a smooth transition from shadowing to getting hired as an assistant.

 

[DC206R]

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[JLT223]

^^ I can't find one dentist who is willing to let me get hands on. I guess I haven't found that person yet. Every place has been just standing and asking questions and the occasional "Grab me a pair of gloves would ya?"

No dentist will let you get hands on while shadowing, at least with a patient. It's a liability issue. You'd have to work for them for it to be considered okay.

 

[DC206R]

Exactly, that why I was surprised that the post above mine mentioned that the dentist let that person assist.

 

[ncide]

Soleus175's experience mirrors my own. I have also worked full time in the field as an assistant, but I took classes so entered the field with a little bit of knowledge. You don't need to though. I've worked for generalists, periodontists, prosthodontists, endodontists, and oral surgeons to get a broad scope of the field and encounter all sorts of cases. Having a network of doctors can help you land more jobs in other offices or let you see some interesting cases with other doctors. Going to observe some in-hospital oral surgeries soon. We send this surgeon our orthognathic cases and I have been able to see them proceed to completion ortho, but never the actual Le Fort osteotomies.

Ask questions and they are more than happy to explain things to you! Go network!

 

[Soleus715]

No dentist will let you get hands on while shadowing, at least with a patient. It's a liability issue. You'd have to work for them for it to be considered okay.

Definitely true. I got lucky and found a really great dentist to shadow. And no license is required for dental assistants in my state so that worked out well.

 

[ncide]

Definitely true. I got lucky and found a really great dentist to shadow. And no license is required for dental assistants in my state so that worked out well.

This is true. Some of my former coworkers who went off to dental school were not formally trained in DA school. They got on-the-job training as assistants.

 

[JLT223]

I was a DA in NY and never took a course/got certification. It depends on the state.

 

[enamel88]

I'm currently shadowing a GP and Endodontist, alternating each week, 4 hrs a week. 8 hrs is way too much.

 

[Soleus715]

I'm currently shadowing a GP and Endodontist, alternating each week, 4 hrs a week. 8 hrs is way too much.

Alternating between GP/ specialist sounds like a great idea!

 

[DC206R]

I would do 2-4 hours a week at a single office. If you need to rack up hours, then go everyday (if office is cool with it) but no more than 4 hours a day IMO.

 

[Socolaphile]

Were they once a week type things? 8 hours per day? 4 hours? What would you recommend?

EDITED
For me, the purpose of shadowing is the exposure of dentistry and get a LOR.

The amount of hours of shadowing is not as significant for my situation. I shadowed a large facility, where they had ortho, perio, endo, and GP. I spent 6 hours/day every week and learned nothing. Total shadow hours was 72 hours with zero knowledge and zero letter of recommendation.
Then I found another dental office with just a GP and learned so much in one hour compare to hours at the previous place. It's not how long you spend there at the office, it's how willingly the dentist want to take the time and explain the procedures to you. Total shadow hours was 48 hours with tons of knowledge (latest technologies used in dentistry, advices, business side of the industry, etc...) one great letter of recommendation and 5 new Facebook friends.
In short, do you want quantities over qualities?
I advise that you befriend with the assistants because they can tell you more about the business sides of dentistry rather than just procedures. Do offer to take out the trash or sanitized the stations (if permitted) or get water for the patients. Doing this will help you tremendously when the dentist writes you a letter of recommendation.
Note: personal experience, nothing proven.

 

[Socolaphile]

Did you have some working knowledge of dentistry before? Do you have any tips to get the most out of this experience? I am considering asking my dentist to shadow FT for 1-2 weeks. I have already had one shadowing experience but tbh, everything pretty much went over my head. During that month were you on your feet the whole time or did you have downtime and what did you do during that downtime? I don't want to get on my dentist's nerves too bad, so I figure I should bring something to keep myself occupied some of the time? When your dentist was seeing patients, were you mostly just observing?

Sorry for all of these questions!! It just sounds like you had a beyond positive experience and I want that too.

Did you have some working knowledge of dentistry before?
-None.

Do you have any tips to get the most out of this experience?
I am considering asking my dentist to shadow FT for 1-2 weeks. I have already had one shadowing experience but tbh, everything pretty much went over my head.
-You can learn everything on one day. If going every day for week, you'll see the repetition of procedures such as fillings, fillings, fillings, and more fillings. Instead, ask the receptionist or assistant if they'll have special cases in the future and show up on that day. Pick one day of the week to shadow, but in the week that there is a special case, show up on that day instead. Receptionist in charge of dealing with the customers, you can learn some human interaction from her/him on how to deal with difficult patients who refused to come back for important procedures. You'll spend more time with the assistants, so ask them if they have seen any interesting or special cases. For dentist, seek for advice on how they apply for dental schools, prepare for exams, stateboard exams. DO bring cupcakes or food to the office, it's a nice gesture to show them that they're appreciated. Write thank you notes to each individual at the end of the shadowing, because you might want a LOR again if you don't get in the first cycle.

During that month were you on your feet the whole time or did you have downtime and what did you do during that downtime?
- None for me. The place that I shadowed at was busy.

I don't want to get on my dentist's nerves too bad, so I figure I should bring something to keep myself occupied some of the time?
- Offer to help out around the office. Organize magazines, restock water, sterilize tools, or strike a conversation.

When your dentist was seeing patients, were you mostly just observing?
- Yes. Do initiate to ask permission from patients to observe them. It will show that you care about the dentist's reputation of confidentiality. I usually save my questions once the patients are out of the room, but my dentist explained the procedures as he was doing it.

Hope it helps.

 

[FrenchyM.D/D.O]

Mine was from 7am to 7pm every tuesdays!! Long days!!