What made you decide on dentistry?

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Kef318

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I am currently a first semester freshman in Pitt's school of nursing. My goal (or so I thought) was to become a nurse practitioner. I've come to the realization that I do not have what it takes to be a nurse. I truly want to be a doctor, but as a female, I'm not willing to sacrifice my future family by working long hours, etc. I also do not like hospitals! Makes being a nurse or doctor kind of difficult! I love biology, A&P and thought that dentistry might be a good mix. I'm shadowing a dentist in a few days, but how will I know for sure?

I really want a career in medicine, but I'm unsure of where to turn. Research doesn't really appeal to me, as I would like some people contact.

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I chose dentistry because I just love looking into random dirty mouths and smelling their rancid breath. No brainer for me.
 
I chose dentistry because I just love looking into random dirty mouths and smelling their rancid breath. No brainer for me.

Yeah, I liked looking at and smelling nasty things all day, so I narrowed it down to dentistry and proctology. My parents threatened to cut off my funding if I chose proctology because they wouldn't know how to explain to their friends, so dentistry was the only option left for me.
 
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Yeah, I liked looking at and smelling nasty things all day, so I narrowed it down to dentistry and proctology. My parents threatened to cut off my funding if I chose proctology because they wouldn't know how to explain to their friends, so dentistry was the only option left for me.

For me it came down to being a rapper or dentist. My parents said no way to rapping because they were convinced no parent would want to tell their friends that their son-in-law is a rapper.
 
Just see how it goes first when you shadow. You should shadow at least a few times. It also helps to shadow different dentists, since each dentist has his/her own personality.


You'll know when you see it being a good fit of your character and your lifestyle. :)
 
I don't want to be a nurse either. I was in the same boat as you a couple of years ago, deciding between pretty much all healthcare professions. The reasons I chose dentistry over the others are 1) I'll be my own boss in a very secure business. 2) I'll be able to make enough money to comfortably support a family by working 40 hrs per week. 3) I won't have to be on call. 4) I'll get to choose the people I work with. 5) I'll be able to start without doing a residency if I want to. Those are the main reasons. I don't have a weird obsession with teeth or anything, but I wouldn't mind working on them for a career either. The people contact will be nice, you will really be able to get to know people seeing them every six months. When comparing it to all other healthcare professions, it just seemed to come on top. It seems the type of career that I could make into my ideal career if that makes sense. If when I'm 45 I'm miserable with it, then I can pretty much blame that on myself. I couldn't blame it on a crappy boss or poor working conditions because I will be the boss and I will be determining the working conditions. From the jobs that I've held so far, I've found that, when it comes to being happy with a job, the actual job is less important than the environment and the people you are working with. With dentistry both of those things will be up to you. I've had jobs where I'm doing crappy things, but if I'm doing it with people I look forward to seeing everyday, and I don't have a boss breathing down my neck, then I love my job.
 
I don't want to be a nurse either. I was in the same boat as you a couple of years ago, deciding between pretty much all healthcare professions. The reasons I chose dentistry over the others are 1) I'll be my own boss in a very secure business. 2) I'll be able to make enough money to comfortably support a family by working 40 hrs per week. 3) I won't have to be on call. 4) I'll get to choose the people I work with. 5) I'll be able to start without doing a residency if I want to. Those are the main reasons. I don't have a weird obsession with teeth or anything, but I wouldn't mind working on them for a career either. The people contact will be nice, you will really be able to get to know people seeing them every six months. When comparing it to all other healthcare professions, it just seemed to come on top. It seems the type of career that I could make into my ideal career if that makes sense. If when I'm 45 I'm miserable with it, then I can pretty much blame that on myself. I couldn't blame it on a crappy boss or poor working conditions because I will be the boss and I will be determining the working conditions. From the jobs that I've held so far, I've found that, when it comes to being happy with a job, the actual job is less important than the environment and the people you are working with. With dentistry both of those things will be up to you. I've had jobs where I'm doing crappy things, but if I'm doing it with people I look forward to seeing everyday, and I don't have a boss breathing down my neck, then I love my job.

Preach.
 
i don't want to be a nurse either. I was in the same boat as you a couple of years ago, deciding between pretty much all healthcare professions. The reasons i chose dentistry over the others are 1) i'll be my own boss in a very secure business. 2) i'll be able to make enough money to comfortably support a family by working 40 hrs per week. 3) i won't have to be on call. 4) i'll get to choose the people i work with. 5) i'll be able to start without doing a residency if i want to. Those are the main reasons. I don't have a weird obsession with teeth or anything, but i wouldn't mind working on them for a career either. The people contact will be nice, you will really be able to get to know people seeing them every six months. When comparing it to all other healthcare professions, it just seemed to come on top. It seems the type of career that i could make into my ideal career if that makes sense. If when i'm 45 i'm miserable with it, then i can pretty much blame that on myself. I couldn't blame it on a crappy boss or poor working conditions because i will be the boss and i will be determining the working conditions. From the jobs that i've held so far, i've found that, when it comes to being happy with a job, the actual job is less important than the environment and the people you are working with. With dentistry both of those things will be up to you. I've had jobs where i'm doing crappy things, but if i'm doing it with people i look forward to seeing everyday, and i don't have a boss breathing down my neck, then i love my job.

+1
 
I don't want to be a nurse either. I was in the same boat as you a couple of years ago, deciding between pretty much all healthcare professions. The reasons I chose dentistry over the others are 1) I'll be my own boss in a very secure business. 2) I'll be able to make enough money to comfortably support a family by working 40 hrs per week. 3) I won't have to be on call. 4) I'll get to choose the people I work with. 5) I'll be able to start without doing a residency if I want to. Those are the main reasons. I don't have a weird obsession with teeth or anything, but I wouldn't mind working on them for a career either. The people contact will be nice, you will really be able to get to know people seeing them every six months. When comparing it to all other healthcare professions, it just seemed to come on top. It seems the type of career that I could make into my ideal career if that makes sense. If when I'm 45 I'm miserable with it, then I can pretty much blame that on myself. I couldn't blame it on a crappy boss or poor working conditions because I will be the boss and I will be determining the working conditions. From the jobs that I've held so far, I've found that, when it comes to being happy with a job, the actual job is less important than the environment and the people you are working with. With dentistry both of those things will be up to you. I've had jobs where I'm doing crappy things, but if I'm doing it with people I look forward to seeing everyday, and I don't have a boss breathing down my neck, then I love my job.

:thumbup: ive always felt this. at my first full time job, I knew a janitor who was the happiest man in the world and it was because he had a good team to work with, he loved life, and he had the luxury to go home early to spend with his family. Nowadays people are too fixated on things that dont matter. While money is very good and you need it to live, you need a good support base like a loving wife/husband and kids that can grow up to be happy and have the best life possible.

I picked dentistry, (i'm a non-trad student, working for about six years in another profession) because I wanted to be my own boss, set my own schedule, maintain and build relationships with patients based on trust and communication, and be satisfied with my career options. Plus I'm a nice and caring person and I feel that I will keep my patients informed about their options and keep them happy about coming back to me. The worst thing is a a rude or lazy doctor or dentist. I hate those professionals who can't offer an opinion in the proper manner.
 
For me it came down to being a rapper or dentist. My parents said no way to rapping because they were convinced no parent would want to tell their friends that their son-in-law is a rapper.

my boyfriend actually is a rapper.... lol
 
my boyfriend actually is a rapper.... lol

Pleaseeeeeeee tell me he's asian! Is it Jin? I would love to picture some kid telling dragon mom... "I wanna be a rapper!"
 
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