Is Dentistry worth it anymore? CRNA vs Dentistry

[victoriav18]

Hi guys, I’m a junior in high school and I wanted to be a dentist since I was 12. However, I feel like dentistry is not worth the investment anymore.
-The average debt is 400k plus interest.

-The saturation is CRAZY(people say to go to rural areas, but I personally do not want to live in the middle of nowhere.)

-I feel like demand is becoming less, since many people go out of the country to do their dental work.

So, I was opening my horizons, and found out about nurse anesthetists. It takes about 7-10 yrs and can make as much as a dentist. If not, more.

Any input/feedback is appreciated, I really am in a dilemma.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[OncePreDent]

NA is a great field to go into. I believe you can be a traveling NA in dental offices for complex cases. So you can do both NA and get involved with dentistry. NA will be significantly easier on your body.

There are some programs out there that are extremely affordable for dentistry. Yes, the debt is insane for a lot of programs. However, there are some programs out there that aren't as expensive. Additionally, there are certain scholarships through the military (HPSP) that will pay for 100% of your dental school cost.

What state are you from/do you have an in-state dental school?

 

[Ryxndek]

There definitely is a limit of how much in loans one should take out when getting a dental degree. And yes, it does cost an outrageous amount of money, look at it more so as an investment in yourself. You're getting a highly technical, and terminal degree. But I do agree, 400k is a lot, and around how much I will have to take out just to attend dental school not accounting for loans I took for undergrad. But I'm going to rebuttal and play devils advocate with a few comments based on what you've laid out:

- Saturation is purely dependent on where you are. California & the east coast have a ton of schools so the saturation will be higher than say the midwest or central USA where there aren't nearly as many schools in each state, if any at all. You don't exactly have to live in rural areas to make good money, but staying in the cities as a fresh grad is a recipe for getting paid less. I plan on living on the outskirts of the city and traveling further out to, yes, a more rural area to get paid better and get more experience. I'll be 45-60 min outside the city which is perfect for me. Suburban life is what I want.

- Demand is what you make of it, while dentistry is cheaper outside of the US, some of the quality isn't as good and I've seen horror stories on social media of patients leaving to get cheap work done and having to pay a ton of money back here to fix the mistakes of foreign dentistry. Some of it is good, some of it is pretty bad, and that's a huge risk. But the demand will always be there. The number 1 diseases for adults and kids are periodontitis and carries respectively, and who treats those? Dentists. And until patients start brushing and flossing, the demand will always be there for oral healthcare. A lot of the procedures done outside the US is moreso cosmetic and less prevatative care. I don't think a patient would fork out traveling thousands of miles to get a few fillings. But full mouth crowns, maybe...but bye-bye tooth structure, ouch.

- Also, you should think about the different aspects of the industry. Dentists are more autonomous, we can pick and choose cases, we can set our limits, we can perform to the full scope of practice. We also don't have to report to anyone, we are the highest educated person in the clinic. CRNA's aren't as autonomous, you will be in a hospital reporting to MD's. You won't necessarily have a say about your hours and playing devils advocate again, who knows how the outlook will be, by the time you're applying it could be saturated too. Right now it is a great field, but you still have to go to nursing school, graduate, and then work in a hospital setting for a few years before you can go back and apply and enroll in CRNA school. I don't think you can enter CRNA school directly after graduating as a nurse like you can apply to dental school before/after graduating undergrad.

Also, dentist salary isn't capped like I'd imagine CRNA's is. You will reach a ceiling, dentists can make a lot more by owning multiple practices and doing procedures that pay more and are more complex if they have the training to do them.

See if you can shadow a CRNA and shadow a few dentists to get a feel for both professions. Both are unique and different in their own right, and which one is best for you will have to be decided by you. Good luck on your journey!

 

[LFA20]

Hi guys, I’m a junior in high school and I wanted to be a dentist since I was 12. However, I feel like dentistry is not worth the investment anymore.
-The average debt is 400k plus interest.

-The saturation is CRAZY(people say to go to rural areas, but I personally do not want to live in the middle of nowhere.)

-I feel like demand is becoming less, since many people go out of the country to do their dental work.

So, I was opening my horizons, and found out about nurse anesthetists. It takes about 7-10 yrs and can make as much as a dentist. If not, more.

Any input/feedback is appreciated, I really am in a dilemma.

You shouldn't be pursuing dentistry if you are not willing to live in rural areas/joining the military/NHSC. The average COA for most state schools are upwards of 400k and private schools around 500k-600k. There are a few programs that are affordable like Texas/Georgia/UMKC, etc but getting accepted to ANY school is crapshoot.

I agree that you should look into NP/CRNA/PA(I am pretty sure you get paid more in the cities). If you notice they just released the new ranking for best health care jobs these careers are in the top 10-15. High starting salary/lower debt/shorter training/high growth.

Also, if you are good with computers/engineering why not pursue software engineering and possibly get a job at FAANG?

 

[D1Bound]

You are 10 years away from sitting in a clinic as a licensed dentist. Dentistry is trending downwards and does not have a bright future in my opinion. New schools are opening left and right, corporate dentistry is taking over, reimbursements from insurance are not going up, and it will probably cost 650k on average by the time you get to the end. It isn’t worth it. I was in your situation just a few years ago and if I were you I’d be looking at Anesthesiology assistant, something quick to make money fast in order to invest.

 

[charlestweed]

So it takes 7-10 yrs, which is the same amount of time as dentistry, to become a nurse anesthetist (NA). How much loans you have to borrow to become a NA? Is it as high as dentistry? I don’t know anything about NA (salary, work hours, paid time off, health benefit/retirement package etc). So I can only talk about dentistry. Dentistry gives you the opportunity to open a practice and being own boss, which is priceless to some. Nobody tells you what to do. You control your own work hours. Keep in mind that there’s no such thing as a perfect job. One of many downsides of dentistry is you don’t have any benefit….you have to buy your own health insurance, you have to set up your own 401k or other forms of retirement savings…..you don’t get paid for taking time off. Other downsides include hand/back pain, stress from dealing with patients, high debt (student loans and business loan) etc.

People don’t brush/floss their teeth regularly….and therefore, they have to see dentists to fix their dental problems. There are a lot more work than the dentists can handle. The question is are you willing to do them (and keep your appt book full) or not? Some dentists don’t accept medicaid. Some dentists don’t accept insurance plans that pay them very little. Some dentists (especially those who practice in saturated areas) accept most plans including medicaid…..and keep the overhead low.

It’s good that you have an interest in dentistry at very early age. You already know that becoming a dentist is a lengthy and expensive process. Therefore, you should set a goal to get your DDS degree as quickly and at lowest cost as possible. A lot of students are indecisive about what to do while in college and owe a lot in undergrad loans for staying there longer than 4 years. You should pick a cheapest state school near your house so you can live with your parent. Try to take all the prerequisite classes + the DAT in 3 (or less) years and then apply. Some dental schools don’t require you to have a BS degree. Becoming a dentist 2-3 years earlier than your classmates offers you a lot of advantages: you can pay off your debts sooner, you can start your own practice sooner, you can specialize, being young/healthy helps you treat your patients more efficiently etc.

For me, dentistry is a wonderful profession. I love it. Good luck!

 

[TanMan]

If you take a mediocre CRNA and a mediocre dentist, CRNA probably wins. As alluded above, dentistry isn't capped as badly as a CRNA. A solo practicing dentist in a solo practice is probably capped at a few million (take home). If you expand into multiple practices, your retirement plan isn't in the net income but in selling to a DSO, but we'll see how long that gravy train continues.

 

[Spahrtan]

Good that you’re looking at the cost benefit. And I agree with some of the points made above. CRNA do not work as autonomous and are at the mercy of hospitals, surgeons, etc…. Schooling is 4 years for nursing degree (BSN) then get experience and apply to a masters/doctorate level CRNA program which takes 2-4 years. You could practice rural or urban. Dentistry can take you further with being more autonomous and setting up practice rural or urban too.
I am a NP and currently retired from the USAF (no school debt BTW) and live rurally. Didn’t know if I’d like that but I do and love getting to know dentists and doctors and other medical professionals in our town. Most love being here and are vested in the community. Larger cities are within an hour.

Take your time and shadow different medical specialties of interest. Keep all options open including where you go to school and where you think you want to live afterwards.