Highschool Student Interested in Dentistry

[Antony_17]

Hi, currently a junior in high school who is interested in becoming a dentist. I am interested because its a very social job, i get to help people, I get to be called a doctor, good job security, and a good salary.

What do I not know about dentistry? How is pre-dental and dental school? Does it take a while to reach the average salary of a dentist? Thanks!

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[BluntForceTrauma]

Hi, currently a junior in high school who is interested in becoming a dentist. I am interested because its a very social job, i get to help people, I get to be called a doctor, good job security, and a good salary.

What do I not know about dentistry? How is pre-dental and dental school? Does it take a while to reach the average salary of a dentist? Thanks!

Search the forums. Worry about good grades and minimizing debt in all aspects of your life. Worry about working in a mouth, and less about "being called doctor". There are lots of other jobs that call you Doctor as well.

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk

 

[Rambunctious]

Hi, currently a junior in high school who is interested in becoming a dentist. I am interested because its a very social job, i get to help people, I get to be called a doctor, good job security, and a good salary.

What do I not know about dentistry? How is pre-dental and dental school? Does it take a while to reach the average salary of a dentist? Thanks!

If you want to be competitive, every single one of your reasonings to become a dentist will make you sound like the rest of the applicants. You have to make a personal connection to dentistry. I want to help people is probably the worst thing you could say regardless if its true or not.

 

[PreDentTechySon]

Hi, currently a junior in high school who is interested in becoming a dentist. I am interested because its a very social job, i get to help people, I get to be called a doctor, good job security, and a good salary.

What do I not know about dentistry? How is pre-dental and dental school? Does it take a while to reach the average salary of a dentist? Thanks!

There are plenty of jobs out there where you can help people, have a good title, job security and a good salary. Are you someone who likes working with tools? Do you like working with people? Do you enjoy science? Those are the questions I would ask.

Spend some time shadowing dentists. Not just so you can put it on an application, but spend a few days seeing what their day is like. Look at the kinds of procedures they’re doing and see if it’s for you.

Pre-dental and dental school are all about grades. If you’re a good student in high school, keep it up. To get in to dental school, the higher your undergrad grades are the easier it will be to get accepted to the school of your choice. Work hard, get involved with EC’s, find time to volunteer etc. and you’ll be a competitive applicant.

It’s a long road to being a dentist. Once you get there the starting salary is good, but your road to get there will determine how much of it you keep. If you get into a state school that is cheap or get some kind of scholarship, you can enjoy the majority of your salary. If you go to a private school or take extra years to complete undergrad, it will cost you more.

Good luck. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

 

[Antony_17]

There are plenty of jobs out there where you can help people, have a good title, job security and a good salary. Are you someone who likes working with tools? Do you like working with people? Do you enjoy science? Those are the questions I would ask.

Spend some time shadowing dentists. Not just so you can put it on an application, but spend a few days seeing what their day is like. Look at the kinds of procedures they’re doing and see if it’s for you.

Pre-dental and dental school are all about grades. If you’re a good student in high school, keep it up. To get in to dental school, the higher your undergrad grades are the easier it will be to get accepted to the school of your choice. Work hard, get involved with EC’s, find time to volunteer etc. and you’ll be a competitive applicant.

It’s a long road to being a dentist. Once you get there the starting salary is good, but your road to get there will determine how much of it you keep. If you get into a state school that is cheap or get some kind of scholarship, you can enjoy the majority of your salary. If you go to a private school or take extra years to complete undergrad, it will cost you more.

Good luck. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

Thanks for responding! My grades in highschool are above average but nothing super competitive (3.5~ gpa). So I won't be able to get into Tufts or something prestigious, does my undergrad school affect my chances of getting into a dental school?

 

[Antony_17]

If you want to be competitive, every single one of your reasonings to become a dentist will make you sound like the rest of the applicants. You have to make a personal connection to dentistry. I want to help people is probably the worst thing you could say regardless if its true or not.

Okay how about this, enjoy customer service/working with people, interest in the sciences, and implement my creativity in my own work.

 

[PreDentTechySon]

Thanks for responding! My grades in highschool are above average but nothing super competitive (3.5~ gpa). So I won't be able to get into Tufts or something prestigious, does my undergrad school affect my chances of getting into a dental school?

Your highschool grades are great, keep it up. Highschool grades will only matter to your undergrad institution. Dental schools will look exclusively at your undergraduate grades and your DAT score. If you’re able to keep above a 3.5 in undergrad (the higher the better) and score well on the DAT, you will be a competetive applicant. The undergraduate school itself doesn’t matter very much if at all. There are just some restrictions on things like how much community college work can count towards fulfilling the pre-requisites etc.

I would also be looking for some volunteer opportunities and looking for ways to shadow some of the dentists in your community. If there’s a family friend or someone you know through church or something, see if they wouldn’t mind letting you come in for a day to see what kinds of procedures they’re doing. If you can, find some opportunities to shadow some specialists too. See what areas of dentistry kind of pique your interest.

Be sure to keep track of all of your volunteer hours and shadowing hours too. Dental schools will want you to list all of those things on your application.