how can I be competitive for perio?

[greenluster]

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I've already graduated from dental school, finished a one yr residency, and have a brief work experience.

My grades and board scores weren't high. They're average at best. I couldn't get into oral surgery ( frankly, I never tried but I know my chances were practically zero. I also can't re-take my boards )so I decided that perio is the next best thing. I'm planning on doing a second gpr program to improve my perio application a bit.

Is there anything I can do to make myself competitive for perio programs that offer stipends or have an affordable tuition?

 

[aphistis]

I've already graduated from dental school, finished a one yr residency, and have a brief work experience.

My grades and board scores weren't high. They're average at best. I couldn't get into oral surgery ( frankly, I never tried but I know my chances were practically zero. I also can't re-take my boards )so I decided that perio is the next best thing. I'm planning on doing a second gpr program to improve my perio application a bit.

Is there anything I can do to make myself competitive for perio programs that offer stipends or have an affordable tuition?

A more appropriate question might be "how can you NOT be competitive for perio?" It's not a difficult specialty to enter. Apply widely and you should be fine.

 

[greenluster]

A more appropriate question might be "how can you NOT be competitive for perio?" It's not a difficult specialty to enter. Apply widely and you should be fine.

What about MS-combined perio programs that offer stipends or charge low tuitions?

I know that perio is there with prostho in terms of difficulty getting in. Surely they're easier than endo but I still thought competition is stiff because many foreign dentists apply. I would appreciate some more info.

 

[Flappy McSuture]

At my school, they interviewed only 8 people for 2 spots and filled neither. Not sure if they ever found anyone. Like mentioned before it is not very competitive. I know that the one person from my class that filled a spot at another school had like an 87 on her boards and was not in the top 15 of the class.

However, all residencies are busy and usually very intensive. The difference for specialities like perio is that there isn't a whole lot of stuff to keep them busy, so they fill up the residents time by making them read useless stuff and do unnecessary work. Of course I can only speak of my school and what I have been told by perio residents and those in my class applying to perio.

My point of saying this is not to rag on perio (that's too easy) but to say that I think you have to really want to do the speciality to give up that much time of your life and put up with it all. It sounds like you don't really want to do perio as much as you just want to specialize. I would really make sure you want to do it enough to give up 2-3 years of your life and put up with some non-sense.

 

[greenluster]

It sounds like you don't really want to do perio as much as you just want to specialize.

Not entirely. As I originally said, I really wanted OS. I wanted to be something along the lines of being an implant specialist. I couldn't make it into OS and perio is my only alternative.

 

[Flappy McSuture]

Not entirely. As I originally said, I really wanted OS. I wanted to be something along the lines of being an implant specialist. I couldn't make it into OS and perio is my only alternative.

Ok, If you just want to be an implant specialist, then you could always do CE courses or become an associate with a dentist that does a lot of implants. Implants are being done by everyone nowadays, perio, OMS, General Dentists, Prosthodontists, Endodontists. Pretty soon Pedo will be doing them too (I kid).

My own personal opinion (which is worth nothing) is that if you are getting into perio for implants and have no interest in treating perio disease other than restoring periodontially involved teeth, then skip the residency and get paid while doing some general dentistry. Implants are not that difficult to do and with everyone doing them now, the future is not all that bright for "implant specialists." Plus, if you stay in general dentistry and don't become a specialist in periodontics, then you can make even more money by also restoring the implants.

Once again this is just my opinion and you probably actually know a lot more than I do.

 

[charlestweed]

Not entirely. As I originally said, I really wanted OS. I wanted to be something along the lines of being an implant specialist. I couldn't make it into OS and perio is my only alternative.

Then perio would be your next best choice. Make sure you choose the perio program that is also strong in prosth like USC and Uconn.

My wife, who is a periodontist, places implants at 7 different GP offices (as an in house periodontist)….two of these GPs used to take implant CE courses but they didn't feel comfortable to place implant on their own patients.

Some days, she place implants at 1 GP office in the morning and a couple more implants at another GP office in the afternoon. She also works at her own private office only 6 days/month….that's the beauty of being a specialist….you don't have to be at your office 8 hrs a day, 5-6 days/week and wait for walk-ins.

Ok, If you just want to be an implant specialist, then you could always do CE courses or become an associate with a dentist that does a lot of implants. Implants are being done by everyone nowadays, perio, OMS, General Dentists, Prosthodontists, Endodontists. Pretty soon Pedo will be doing them too (I kid).

Many GPs place implants, but the majority of the GPs don't. When the GPs refer patients to specialist for implant placement, they usually think of perio or OMFS (not endo, not prosth, not implant specialists).

 

[schmack]

So, in other words, you want to: do only the surgical procedures that pay well, dump all your complications & screw-ups on the oral surgeon, never treat an odontogenic infection, start taking out 3rd molars to prevent "pocket formation" distal to the 2nd molar, rapidly jump to the conclusion that a tooth is "non-restorable, so let's place an implant, without trying to scrape the crap out of it like periodontists of old," and enjoy 8+ hours of sleep per night?

Yup. sounds like perio is for you.

 

[greenluster]

So, in other words, you want to: do only the surgical procedures that pay well, dump all your complications & screw-ups on the oral surgeon, never treat an odontogenic infection, start taking out 3rd molars to prevent "pocket formation" distal to the 2nd molar, rapidly jump to the conclusion that a tooth is "non-restorable, so let's place an implant, without trying to scrape the crap out of it like periodontists of old," and enjoy 8+ hours of sleep per night?

I'm a licensed general dentist who did a one yr residency and has some work experience. I know what periodontists do.

 

[aphistis]

So, in other words, you want to: do only the surgical procedures that pay well, dump all your complications & screw-ups on the oral surgeon, never treat an odontogenic infection, start taking out 3rd molars to prevent "pocket formation" distal to the 2nd molar, rapidly jump to the conclusion that a tooth is "non-restorable, so let's place an implant, without trying to scrape the crap out of it like periodontists of old," and enjoy 8+ hours of sleep per night?

Yup. sounds like perio is for you.

Wow. Bitter much?