Medical Student to Dental School

[waitinggame2020]

Hi everyone! I have been lurking on some of other SDN posts about moving from medical to dental school, and I wanted to give some insight into my situation. I am an M1 who just started about a month ago. However, I’ve been questioning medical school for a couple months. To be fair, I was not admitted to my top choice school from the waitlist which meant I had to move away from my fiancé to another town for about 10 months. I still see him on weekends and he is amazingly supportive, but it’s hard after living together for two years. I am only sharing this because I think it is an important consideration. I lightly toiled with deferring this year but felt like I needed to “get started so I could finish.” Other parts that have me questioning medicine is the overhead with insurance. I’ve heard it a lot from people I shadowed, and I worked my gap year in an orthopedic practice and insurance companies are frustrating and it was frequently disappointing to see them deny care for patients - while dental is less driven by insurance.

There were also a couple people I worked with who were going for PA school but were raised by doctors and their parents kind of guided them away from medical school due to the stress and hours of residency. There have just been multiple voices in the back of my mind that have been saying these things to me and they have gotten much louder in medical school. At orientation, we heard upperclassmen talk about the work they put in and the long hours during clinical rotations and then residency and frankly it’s all very daunting and overwhelming.

As for medical school itself, I am doing fine with the curriculum, so it’s not me wanting “easier curriculum” and I know it’s not “easier.” I also feel “bored” with just studying. To be fair, this is COVID times so we aren’t in clinics, so I am jealous of dental peers who have practical labs where they are working on their skills. I’m a kinesthetic learner so I feel like i need to be “doing” something.

Additionally, I just feel like I value my future time more now than I had previously considered. I shadowed both dentists and physicians in high school/early college, and I ultimately decided medicine because I thought my shadowing experiences were “cooler” I could see them doing things and more of the problem solving process. But I feel like with dentistry, it is harder to “shadow” and see what they are doing. Also, I did not do a good job of asking questions about the lifestyle. I even remember one dentist saying he considered medicine, was pre-med but switched to dentistry for the lifestyle - I shook it off at the time, but now the thought of residency is daunting.

As for ultimate interests, I see myself in primary care type clinic/private practice. I like the idea of “cosmetics” and improving confidence for people in dermatology, which I think translates to dentistry well with less of the insurance issues and possibly no residency.

So my question is, am I more so suffering from “grass is greener” or are these real concerns I need to take time to discover? I am not planning to drop out currently as I know I am still adjusting to medical school and things improve with time but I think I made it clear that it’s not just the “now” I am concerned with but the future with residency in particular. I know I should talk to some dentists and try to shadow if I really want to take next steps in this process, but I just feel the need to gauge the waters of if I should tell myself to stop overthinking everything or really spend time reevaluating my goals. There is a lot going on with long distance relationships, COVID, and new adaptations with medical school so I would love some input. Thanks in advance!

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[Alpha Centauri]

Grass is greener.

People would kill to be in your position, premed or non healthcare related at all. What are the chances you would get into a dental school near your fiance?

 

[waitinggame2020]

Grass is greener.

People would kill to be in your position, premed or non healthcare related at all. What are the chances you would get into a dental school near your fiance?

There is a state school near him - however, he will most likely be mobile after he finishes up his master's this coming May (meaning he would also be able to move to the city where I am currently in medical school as well). To speak to exact chances, I am not sure what they would be, but I would anticipate taking a year off for more experience and to take the DAT.

 

[non-traditional]

1) I would really think about the questions that would be asked for why you are switching when applying to a new program.
2) They are MD/DDS programs and I would research those vs just switching schools. You can study for the DAT (probably just the PA/QR sections. Then transfer to a school that would allow you. Or if your medical school has a dental program request to be apart of it.
3) You are young and you have tons of time/life ahead of you. Think truly about what is going to make you happy long term, not for the moment. Are you just missing your fiance?
4) Think about the cost. Indecisiveness can be expensive. Financially or in your educational future? Waste a year of tuition or get into dental school and realize you Hate it. Are you going to go back to med school?

 

[DDS2be123]

OP, normally I'm supportive of career switches, but in your case you should seriously stick with medicine. You worked SO hard to take the MCAT (which is WAY harder than any other standardized test), did well on it, did well in your classes, just stick with it. You have to give it a shot for way longer than 1 month. Medicine is all about sacrifices, but it is an extremely rewarding career. I think right now you are overwhelmed, which is totally normal, but take it one day at a time (one test at a time, one class at a time). Med schools prepare you for residency; you are not going to just be thrown in blindly and be totally unprepared for the workload. You will work your way up to that point, so for now, worry about getting through your day-to-day. Time is going to pass by so quickly and before you know it you will be DONE with both med school and residency.

The only time I would tell you to possibly consider switching is if you are in the Caribbean....
but if you are in a U.S MD program, you are arguably in the best type of program this country has to offer. And this is coming from someone who is in dental school and in love with my profession and school. Had I chosen medical school initially, I would NOT have dropped out - I would make it work with medicine because you can. You have SOOOOOO many options - you can even find something in medicine that resembles dentistry. You can even jump through some hoops and pursue oral surgery, or become a head and neck surgeon. In dentistry, you kind of are limited to the oral cavity for the most part. I love dentistry, but in no way would I ever tell a medical student to leave their path for ANY career.

I understand you feel unhappy right now, but give it time. Once you start rotations I think your perspective will change completely. And don't listen to the people who have parents who turned them away from medicine. These same people can be found in dentistry. There is always someone out there who chose a career for the wrong reasons and then spends their life telling others not to pursue that same career. Trust me, I've met and worked with dentists like this.

 

[Alpha Centauri]

There is a state school near him - however, he will most likely be mobile after he finishes up his master's this coming May (meaning he would also be able to move to the city where I am currently in medical school as well). To speak to exact chances, I am not sure what they would be, but I would anticipate taking a year off for more experience and to take the DAT.

That question was rhetorical and meant to be thought provoking. I did not even get an interview to my state school and I considered my application highly competitive.

 

[Likkriue]

Stick with medicine.

 

[dentalchamp98]

Don't take other people's answers to heart. Do what you feel is right. In my opinion what you said rings true. You will have a better lifestyle and have the ability to spend more time with your husband!

 

[dentalinthemental]

I will say, as a first year dental student you’ll find that it parallels medical school a lot in terms of studying, so if you’re bored now, you’ll be bored in dental school too. The first year is mostly didactic, and dental school tends to be a little more challenging because you have to not only get through your basic sciences, but also be proficient at hand skills. Both medicine/dentistry are really rewarding careers, but don’t be fooled into thinking dental school is less stressful or boring. The pace is quick in dental school and lab can be incredibly frustrating sometimes. It may look easy and fun through photos, but even a simple wax-up can make you really frustrated/stressed sometimes, let alone the more complex procedures in sim lab.

I think it’s really natural to feel a little anxious and doubtful first semester. I’m a first year dental student and even I have had a few moments here and there. However, I think financially and also for the time it would take (minimum 2 years to drop out a program, take your DAT, and then go through a cycle), you could be almost finished with residency by then. Not worth it.

I would say stick with it for the year. Medicine is a really broad career pathway and I’m sure you’ll find something you can enjoy. If you absolutely hate practicing, you can always go into academia or research. After all, when it boils down to it, Dentistry is just a subspecialty of medicine.

 

[Faris_]

The concerns are real, but not enough for what you’re trying to do. Others explained it very well. Don’t do it.

 

[lwergod]

honestly stick with medicine. Dentistry is actually very different from medicine and you will probably end up regretting dental school.

 

[scoopdaboop]

Stick it out. Several things you need to consider: One is financial. Dental schools will put you in a ton of debt, and unless you do OMFS it'll take you years to pay it off, and then you have to buy a practice take more loans for that etc. Also, IDK if your medical school will let you off without paying for this semester's tuition as well. From a pure financial perspective, medicine wins.

Second, you will legit be wasting a year of your life just because you were iffy on medical school because "some people told me this and this". Also, the insurance issue is also real in dentistry, IDK where you got that idea. A lot of dental practices don't accept medicare/medicaid etc. If you truly care about providing care for uninsured- then the best place to offer that care is in medicine: by specializing in emergency medicine, which offers a good work life balance btw, which is something you are looking for. Not as much as derm of course, which is what you are interested in but then again derm is OP in terms of everything. Hell, even residency; derm works close to ~45 hours a week.

Thirdly, it's no question that medicine is demanding of your body and life etc. But, several people in my class had their significant other move with them and they work a job etc. and they raise kids on top of that. It is doable, and something you should ask your fiance to consider.

Also, I can't help but to notice it's your first 2 months in medical school, and everyone hates their time in the first 2 months because anatomy rears its ugly head during that time, and it's hard to like anything. Stick it out when you get to pathology/system courses, and you will be "having fun" studying.

 

[luisfigo]

Give it time, covid has changed a lot but it will go back to normal. Both careers have very daunting aspects, time for medicine and cost for dental, which both are lifetime issues. There's no guarantee to get into dental, you could waste years and money and have to go spend $200k extra to go to that private school outta state. Work hard just don't kill yourself, be content with family medicine if you have to, and stick it out, the grass only seems greener, there are plenty of people with $500k debt from just dental school and regret every second of their decision.

 

[TanMan]

Unfortunately, you're in a little deep even as an M1. Going into dentistry may result in a loss of a year or two. I'll give you my opinion on what I think you should do based on your initial post. Stick to medicine. Your post exudes the thoroughness and OCD that goes well in the medical field. In dentistry, that line of thinking results in frustration and unprofitability, especially if you overanalyze things and get hung on up certain procedural aspects.

Contrary what others are saying here, getting into dentistry is cake compared to medicine. The debt that people are talking about isn't bad in the context of your dental earning power in the future. If you can get into med school, you can easily get into a good dental school. In my limited experience, I think dentistry > medicine in most things. Less school, less time, better hours, equivalent or better money, no hospitals or smell of hospitals, autonomy, just to name a few things. Also, dental insurance is easy compared to medical insurance.