How much shadowing really matters?

[Impulse155]

Schools usually require 50 hours, 100, 150 tops usually. If you go over 150 does it really matter? If you have 250, 500 hours does it look better? 1000? etc.

Obviously having 100 would look better than 50, 150 >100, but I feel like after a certain point it doesnt matter lol.

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[dentalWorks]

I don't think more than 150 is needed really. Shadowing hours are just to show that you know what your getting yourself into. Weather its 50 or 150 or 1000, I don't think there is much difference.... certainly neither number makes you more "competitive"

 

[masscrash]

I don't think it is the quantity of the shadowing that really matters. It is what you learned. I don't think shadowing is meant to teach you much about medical. I think you are supposed to learn about hospital bureaucracy, owning your own practice, the home life of a doctor, moral and ethical delemas that your doctor runs into and how you would have handled them differently, ect. I would not do the bare minimum requirements, but I don't think going way above and beyond is better.

 

[Osity]

Hi there, shadowing is great. It helps yo get exposed to the profession" see what a dentist does each day, and see if you would like it. However, I know that a lot of people inflate the numbers they put on their application. Really, I am very skeptical when someone says they've done 1000 hours, because that would breakdown to 10 hours a week for two years. If they really do that much, awesome, because you can only do so much shadowing (it gets really boring because you're not doing anything). Anyway, you definitely need some shadowing, but once you hit 50-100 hours, that's more than enough. It all comes down to DAT and GPA to get interviews, and then how well you do in your interview will decide where and whether you get accepted.

 

[Impulse155]

Hi there, shadowing is great. It helps yo get exposed to the profession" see what a dentist does each day, and see if you would like it. However, I know that a lot of people inflate the numbers they put on their application. Really, I am very skeptical when someone says they've done 1000 hours, because that would breakdown to 10 hours a week for two years. If they really do that much, awesome, because you can only do so much shadowing (it gets really boring because you're not doing anything). Anyway, you definitely need some shadowing, but once you hit 50-100 hours, that's more than enough. It all comes down to DAT and GPA to get interviews, and then how well you do in your interview will decide where and whether you get accepted.

Well ive been shadowing a cosmetic dentist since my freshman year (currently a junior) and I went over the summer every thursday for 3 hours or so. I also went to my moms office (general dentist) every now and then since I was about 5 lol. It wouldnt suprise me if I had at least 500 hours by the end of my senior year.

 

[Osity]

Well ive been shadowing a cosmetic dentist since my freshman year (currently a junior) and I went over the summer every thursday for 3 hours or so. I also went to my moms office (general dentist) every now and then since I was about 5 lol. It wouldnt suprise me if I had at least 500 hours by the end of my senior year.

That's great, 500 hours is awesome. Like I said, some people really do it, and it sounds like you're one of them. It definitely will look good on your resume. My point was that once you get to 100 you will have more than enough. Personally, I couldn't do that, but if you can, that's great.

 

[7 Iron]

Schools usually require 50 hours, 100, 150 tops usually. If you go over 150 does it really matter? If you have 250, 500 hours does it look better? 1000? etc.

Obviously having 100 would look better than 50, 150 >100, but I feel like after a certain point it doesnt matter lol.

I only did 40 hours and I felt it was plenty. Doing more than 150 is just wasting your time... I felt that too much more than 50 is pointless because it's one thing to shadow and it's another thing to actually help perform the work (assisting, etc). I'd say if you want to get 150+ hours, at least do them at different offices and in multiple specialties.

 

[toothfairyy]

100 hours should be your goal (minimum). There are schools that have a minimum requirement. For example: VCU
http://www.dentistry.vcu.edu/prospective/dds/faq.aspx#shadowing

 

[doc toothache]

Too few hours will have a great impact; too many will have virtually no effect.
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=527523

 

[yappy]

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[Kobebucsfan]

shadowing is great and all, but when i'm there i'm just standing watching the dentist do his work. I dont do anything else

am i supposed to be learning something about the procedures. will they in interview ask me about what i learned while shadowing

 

[iDreamofDent]

I did 85 hours and was accepted, however some schools felt it wasnt enough and as a result they didnt accept me. For example, the first question I was asked at a certain interview was.."so you haven't done any shadowing since your freshman summer..." I tried to talk about all the other things I had been doing, community service, volunteer teaching, but this guys wasnt having it, lol. In fact, after I described my activities, he retorted with, "but you haven't done any shadowing". Another school sent me an email asking me if I had done any more shadowing since submitting my application, I had to respond no and as a result didn't get an interview.

I do agree with the other responses describing the value of shadowing as understanding the daily activities of the dentist, moral dilemmas, knowledge of what a daily routine is, and that what one learns from shadowing can definitely plane off after so many hours. The reason I never sought more opportunities was simply because I felt I had a good base of knowledge as to what a dentist's day is like after 85 hours spent shadowing and doing various tasks in his office, and as a result was able to make an educated choice in pursuing dentistry. However for some dental schools they either just need another variable to analyze you with or they see a greater value in shadowing.

Another view is that they want to see your sooooo interested in dentistry that nothing can keep you away from an office and therefore they expect to see constant shadowing throughout college.

My personal view on shadowing is that, with too many hours, it can produce a sense that the student knows more than they really do. For example, a while back another pre-dent was glad to brag that he could fill a cavity after repeatedly watching the dentist do it. Such a sense of overconfidence could translate into botched procedures during dental school as the student neglects to follow the steps laid out by the professor, because he thinks he already knows them after shadowing.

Of course something like this is not the norm, and it's great to have a basic knowledge of the most common procedures.

In the end, although shadowing can only teach you up to a certain point, if two applicants with similar stats and qualifications are put side by side, who will they pick? the one with 100 or 1000 hours of shadowing? When you look at it this way the excess hours definitely could be seen as translating into a greater interest in dentistry. If I could go back I would definitely do more shadowing, just to be on the safe side.... Its their game, we might as well play it

 

[yappy]

Hey thanks for your advice. What was the schools view on shadowing vs dental experience? for example I've seen some schools say they want 100 hrs of dental shadowing... or exposure... could an applicant count both the shadowing and volunteering as an assistant toward these 100 or would it be wise to get 100 hrs of pure shadowing?

I did 85 hours and was accepted, however some schools felt it wasnt enough and as a result they didnt accept me. For example, the first question I was asked at a certain interview was.."so you haven't done any shadowing since your freshman summer..." I tried to talk about all the other things I had been doing, community service, volunteer teaching, but this guys wasnt having it, lol. In fact, after I described my activities, he retorted with, "but you haven't done any shadowing". Another school sent me an email asking me if I had done any more shadowing since submitting my application, I had to respond no and as a result didn't get an interview.

I do agree with the other responses describing the value of shadowing as understanding the daily activities of the dentist, moral dilemmas, knowledge of what a daily routine is, and that what one learns from shadowing can definitely plane off after so many hours. The reason I never sought more opportunities was simply because I felt I had a good base of knowledge as to what a dentist's day is like after 85 hours spent shadowing and doing various tasks in his office, and as a result was able to make an educated choice in pursuing dentistry. However for some dental schools they either just need another variable to analyze you with or they see a greater value in shadowing.

Another view is that they want to see your sooooo interested in dentistry that nothing can keep you away from an office and therefore they expect to see constant shadowing throughout college.

My personal view on shadowing is that, with too many hours, it can produce a sense that the student knows more than they really do. For example, a while back another pre-dent was glad to brag that he could fill a cavity after repeatedly watching the dentist do it. Such a sense of overconfidence could translate into botched procedures during dental school as the student neglects to follow the steps laid out by the professor, because he thinks he already knows them after shadowing.

Of course something like this is not the norm, and it's great to have a basic knowledge of the most common procedures.

In the end, although shadowing can only teach you up to a certain point, if two applicants with similar stats and qualifications are put side by side, who will they pick? the one with 100 or 1000 hours of shadowing? When you look at it this way the excess hours definitely could be seen as translating into a greater interest in dentistry. If I could go back I would definitely do more shadowing, just to be on the safe side.... Its their game, we might as well play it

 

[jmt1984]

I don't think it is the quantity of the shadowing that really matters. It is what you learned. I don't think shadowing is meant to teach you much about medical. I think you are supposed to learn about hospital bureaucracy, owning your own practice, the home life of a doctor, moral and ethical delemas that your doctor runs into and how you would have handled them differently, ect. I would not do the bare minimum requirements, but I don't think going way above and beyond is better.

Agree with this
I think it also applies to volunteer work, research, and extracurricular activities.

 

[yappy]

Some schools are very specific with the number of hrs they want you to shadow - so in those terms the number of hrs is very important. I think it is wise if we as predents are skeptical of the profession we will have to spend so much money/time to enter. There are alot of good professions out there for capible people; better make sure dentistry is one of them for you and not jump the gun because most people say "oh dentistry is a great profession". ie family members etc.

 

[LetsGo2DSchool]

I think it has more to with the QUALITY of shadowing vs. the QUANTITY. If you're purely just 'shadowing' meaning you're merely looking over a dentist's shoulder, then it's not as valuable as actually working as a dental assistant (which counts as shadowing hours) alongside a dentist in which you actually understand what's going on while honing your manual dexterity.