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Hi everyone. This is my first job out of dental school. How often do you negotiate a contract offer for an associate position?
How often do you negotiate a contract offer?
- Thread starter ChewyDrop
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If it’s your first job, then you will be considered a risky proposition to most employers. You will be very slow, needy, and will go through a steep learning curve.
Set your expectations low in the first year… This is not the year you focus on making a lot of money, but the year you will learn a lot in the real world.
Bring your contract offer to a dental forum for a review before you sign it, maybe a few seasoned dentists can guide you through it.
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I think that negotiating is not a bad thing at all.
What are the terms the contract? Are you paid a salary, no matter what you produce?
Are you paid a percentage of your charges?
Or you paid a percentage of your collections?
There is a big difference. I have a friend who worked for a practice that paid him based on collections, but they assigned him all of the Medicaid patients, which typically pays 10 to 15% of the charges.
In my own practice, I accept certain forms of Medicaid, but in one big surgical case, I was paid 9% of my fee. It cost me 75% of my fee just to be there, pay the light bill, pay the staff salaries, etc. That is, pay my overhead. That is, pay my expenses, before I ever get paid.
So, if it cost me $0.75 to charge every dollar, and Medicaid is paying me 10% of my charges, I have to make up the other 65%. I am paying these patients to come see me.
The devil is in the details.
At the same time, it is correct to say that you can do anything for a year.
What are the terms the contract? Are you paid a salary, no matter what you produce?
Are you paid a percentage of your charges?
Or you paid a percentage of your collections?
There is a big difference. I have a friend who worked for a practice that paid him based on collections, but they assigned him all of the Medicaid patients, which typically pays 10 to 15% of the charges.
In my own practice, I accept certain forms of Medicaid, but in one big surgical case, I was paid 9% of my fee. It cost me 75% of my fee just to be there, pay the light bill, pay the staff salaries, etc. That is, pay my overhead. That is, pay my expenses, before I ever get paid.
So, if it cost me $0.75 to charge every dollar, and Medicaid is paying me 10% of my charges, I have to make up the other 65%. I am paying these patients to come see me.
The devil is in the details.
At the same time, it is correct to say that you can do anything for a year.
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I tried to negotiate every contract I could. In the end for my first and current job they wouldn't budge however it is worth a shot. I got pretty decent results with the other ones but they didn't feel like the best fit for me
