New viewpoint

[David1991]

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Hey guys,

So I went to shadow an orthodontist in NYC today, he owned that practice and one by me in NJ for awhile but closed the one in NJ because he said he didn't need/want it. It was a great experience in my opinion but he said to me "let me make it simple for you, go into medicine". Then he and one of the orthodontists under him both separately told me that dentistry sucks and they would never want to go into it but that they love ortho and oral surgery is also good. Other than that, medicine.

For me, it's largely a decision based on lifestyle. Honestly the last 1+ years I've been set on dental (been set on the medical field for about 6 years now though since starting high school). I figured dental was great with about the same money but less hours and malpractice and even though I always score top of my classes now I figured B's/C's in dental school would be fine. However, i wouldn't mind (I guess...lol) continuing to score top of my class in dental school if it meant ortho which is ~twice as much money (right?), about the same hours, and apparently according to these guys its much better.

Any thoughts? I figured ortho was better in regards to money but these guys felt very strongly that dentistry sucks other than those 2 specialties. I like medicine as well but don't want to work 70+ hours/week for any real amount of time.

Thanks!

 

[jeffity]

~

 

[tayloreve]

I'd really love to know who those guys were that you heard that from..

I read this from someone else, but they said if you aren't going to be happy with just being a general dentist, don't go to dental school. Also, why are you worrying about specializing now? Your thoughts/opinions I'm sure will change once your actually in dental school.

 

[dentalWorks]

Hey guys,

So I went to shadow an orthodontist in NYC today, he owned that practice and one by me in NJ for awhile but closed the one in NJ because he said he didn't need/want it. It was a great experience in my opinion but he said to me "let me make it simple for you, go into medicine". Then he and one of the orthodontists under him both separately told me that dentistry sucks and they would never want to go into it but that they love ortho and oral surgery is also good. Other than that, medicine.

For me, it's largely a decision based on lifestyle. Honestly the last 1+ years I've been set on dental (been set on the medical field for about 6 years now though since starting high school). I figured dental was great with about the same money but less hours and malpractice and even though I always score top of my classes now I figured B's/C's in dental school would be fine. However, i wouldn't mind (I guess...lol) continuing to score top of my class in dental school if it meant ortho which is ~twice as much money (right?), about the same hours, and apparently according to these guys its much better.

Any thoughts? I figured ortho was better in regards to money but these guys felt very strongly that dentistry sucks other than those 2 specialties. I like medicine as well but don't want to work 70+ hours/week for any real amount of time.

Thanks!

Its hard for us to agree/disagree with these docs... wer not even in dental school yet.

But....they sound a little pompous to me "they love ortho and oral surgery is also good. Other than that, medicine"..... Please

Im sure there are thousands of GPs around who love what they do and how much they earn.

 

[bing12]

I know an orthodontist who said the same thing. The thing is his wife is a medical doctor, so thats prob why. I believe he is ungrateful. In my opinion, you hear FAR more doctors saying they wish they went into dentistry rather than the opposite.

 

[The Prologue]

Dentistry is a career, just like every other profession. And with that, you're going to have people who love what they do and are very passionate about it. You also going to meet people who tell you to run the other way. Shadowing gives you an insight what dentistry entails.

If you want, shadow someone else, maybe even a gp. My guy really ensured my decision and it was a wonderful experience.

 

[John Durian]

I gotta agree that there seems to be a lot more physicians unsatisfied with their jobs than dentists.

The dentists I shadowed joined for various reasons (I've heard everything from "dodging the draft to 'Nam" to "I didn't have anything better to do") ended up enjoying what they do and the perks that came with it. They seemed like a much happier/content crowd than their MD counterparts that I shadowed. Just my 0.02.

 

[Huskk]

Seems like all you care about are dollar signs, so yes, you do need a new viewpoint.

 

[slm266]

quit crapping in our yard. They were just blowing smoke up your butt to make you feel good about going med

I've never heard someone in the field say they wished they had gone med, but have many physicians admire the autonomy of dentistry.

 

[Maygyver]

Also, don't go into the career unless you would be happy being a general dentist. Don't go in with the sole idea of just being an ortho/omfs. There are a lot fewer specialists than GPs.

 

[THRILLOFDAFILL]

i know an orthodontist who said the same thing. The thing is his wife is a medical doctor, so thats prob why. I believe he is ungrateful. In my opinion, you hear far more doctors saying they wish they went into dentistry rather than the opposite.

+1

 

[David1991]

How old were these guys? I'm just curious. Maybe they should have done some shadowing...

If I were to meet a younger dentist/orthodontist with that 'attitude, I'd think he was a joker. With the older generations, I've met quite a few who seem like they spun a bottle and chose dentistry for no real reason. They enjoy what they do and aren't cursing the profession, but I'm pretty sure the applicants today are way different than what they used to be. And I think the profession itself and what schools will accept is different too. There will always be clowns who get in and just stick with it for the money. But there are some pretty legit applicants these days that I don't see hating the profession down the road.

The guy looks about 50, the woman maybe 40. They didn't say they hated their profession, just general dentistry. Apparently they really like orthodontics.

I'd really love to know who those guys were that you heard that from..

I read this from someone else, but they said if you aren't going to be happy with just being a general dentist, don't go to dental school. Also, why are you worrying about specializing now? Your thoughts/opinions I'm sure will change once your actually in dental school.

Well I feel like its important to know. If I want to be a general dentist then I'm fine with getting B's through dental school but if I want to go into ortho then I need to be top of the class. Also, maybe if general dentistry is so bad (again, this is somewhat of a new viewpoint for me) then I would reconsider medical school.

I know an orthodontist who said the same thing. The thing is his wife is a medical doctor, so thats prob why. I believe he is ungrateful. In my opinion, you hear FAR more doctors saying they wish they went into dentistry rather than the opposite.

Yea I mean all the doctors my dad has talked to for me and other friends of his 'in the know' have said dentistry almost all the way. These guys just felt really strongly about it, and honestly this guy was a boss lol. Good NYC practice, he told me by early 30's he had got rid of his school debt and had his first million in the bank. Maybe it was an act, idk, but he seemed on top of the world in his situation and his staff seems to really like him.

Dentistry is a career, just like every other profession. And with that, you're going to have people who love what they do and are very passionate about it. You also going to meet people who tell you to run the other way. Shadowing gives you an insight what dentistry entails.

If you want, shadow someone else, maybe even a gp. My guy really ensured my decision and it was a wonderful experience.

I think I should shadow a gp. Some guy ensured your decision of what exactly?

Honestly when I saw the dental assistants at my dentists office working on peoples mouths I don't see how its that different from ortho. And Tightening braces all day doesn't seem that much better/different than cleaning/drilling. Although if it really isn't that difference I guess why not go into what makes more money.

Also am I wrong or does it seem like ortho would be more pleasant because you're generally working with younger people on average, cleaner teeth, people choose to be there rather than "needing" to be there, etc..

I gotta agree that there seems to be a lot more physicians unsatisfied with their jobs than dentists.

The dentists I shadowed joined for various reasons (I've heard everything from "dodging the draft to 'Nam" to "I didn't have anything better to do") ended up enjoying what they do and the perks that came with it. They seemed like a much happier/content crowd than their MD counterparts that I shadowed. Just my 0.02.

Thanks for the insight, always nice to hear peoples experiences.

Seems like all you care about are dollar signs, so yes, you do need a new viewpoint.

Well it's obviously a large factor

quit crapping in our yard. They were just blowing smoke up your butt to make you feel good about going med

I've never heard someone in the field say they wished they had gone med, but have many physicians admire the autonomy of dentistry.

....what? "make me feel good about going med"? As mentioned in my first post, I've been pretty set on dental for awhile now. I'm trying to gather as much info as possible.

Also, don't go into the career unless you would be happy being a general dentist. Don't go in with the sole idea of just being an ortho/omfs. There are a lot fewer specialists than GPs.

Yea definitely true. Like I said I never thought of dentistry as 'bad' until these 2 seemed to feel so strongly about it. It made me wonder if my dentist that I shadowed really doesn't like what he does and is almost trying to convince himself that he does or something.

 

[Noble6]

General dentistry is not for everyone. Apparently it's not for these two you're talking about. That's all there is to their opinions

 

[dentalWorks]

Well I feel like its important to know. If I want to be a general dentist then I'm fine with getting B's through dental school but if I want to go into ortho then I need to be top of the class. Also, maybe if general dentistry is so bad (again, this is somewhat of a new viewpoint for me) then I would reconsider medical school.

Before considering med school... you should compare the 2 fields in the fairest way possible.

Don't compare a plastic or heart surgeon to a general dentist lol... 99% of the time your gonna wanna be the surgeon...

But instead, compare a primary care field (internal medicine, or peds, or OBGY, or family doc) vs General dentist..... I assure you, once you see how much these guys work (and how many times they get to be on-call) you WILL look at dentistry in a whole different view.

If you are looking at the most lucrative medical options (plastics, ENTs, Dermatology, Ophthalmology, etc) they are probably just as competitive to land as Ortho or OMFS..... So a fair comparison would be Ortho/OMFS vs one of the big meds.

 

[David1991]

Before considering med school... you should compare the 2 fields in the fairest way possible.

Don't compare a plastic or heart surgeon to a general dentist lol... 99% of the time your gonna wanna be the surgeon...

But instead, compare a primary care field (internal medicine, or peds, or OBGY, or family doc) vs General dentist..... I assure you, once you see how much these guys work (and how many times they get to be on-call) you WILL look at dentistry in a whole different view.

If you are looking at the most lucrative medical options (plastics, ENTs, Dermatology, Ophthalmology, etc) they are probably just as competitive to land as Ortho or OMFS..... So a fair comparison would be Ortho/OMFS vs one of the big meds.

Yea see thats exactly what I was thinking. If I did go back to medicine as my main option then I'd probably want one of the "nice gigs" like dermatology but that is as hard to get into as ortho as you mentioned. Also as you mentioned it seems like the equivalents of "general dentist" in the medical field are working way more hours and are on call(which I would hate). This ortho I shadowed said he thinks being a general practitioner would suck but being a family practitioner would be cool because 'you get to do everything'. Honestly I'm not sure how they're that different, and it seems family medicine has a lot of drawbacks with being on call/hours so idk.

Again I appreciate the help, this is what I'm looking for because his viewpoint really went against a lot of what I had heard but him and the other ortho there felt very strongly about this

 

[dentalWorks]

Yea see thats exactly what I was thinking. If I did go back to medicine as my main option then I'd probably want one of the "nice gigs" like dermatology but that is as hard to get into as ortho as you mentioned. Also as you mentioned it seems like the equivalents of "general dentist" in the medical field are working way more hours and are on call(which I would hate). This ortho I shadowed said he thinks being a general practitioner would suck but being a family practitioner would be cool because 'you get to do everything'. Honestly I'm not sure how they're that different, and it seems family medicine has a lot of drawbacks with being on call/hours so idk.

Again I appreciate the help, this is what I'm looking for because his viewpoint really went against a lot of what I had heard but him and the other ortho there felt very strongly about this

I find it strange that the orthodontist is telling you the ins-&-outs of a field he has no experience with.

You should actually talk to a family doctor about their daily activities... better yet, shadow one. And you'll see how much of "everything" they do.

 

[David1991]

I find it strange that the orthodontist is telling you the ins-&-outs of a field he has no experience with.

You should actually talk to a family doctor about their daily activities... better yet, shadow one. And you'll see how much of "everything" they do.

Maybe I should be shadowing more different specialists. I tried to shadow a dermatologist one time and he said it was a little too invasive given the nature of the work and suggested a hospital :/

 

[Maygyver]

Maybe I should be shadowing more different specialists. I tried to shadow a dermatologist one time and he said it was a little too invasive given the nature of the work and suggested a hospital :/

I feel like there is going to be more confidentiality issues with medicine, but it does seem like you aren't really set on dentistry. They really are pretty different careers so you need to make sure you make the right choice. Why did you decide dentistry in the first place? Your status says pre-medical. Did you just recently decide dentistry or have you always been on the fence?

 

[David1991]

I feel like there is going to be more confidentiality issues with medicine, but it does seem like you aren't really set on dentistry. They really are pretty different careers so you need to make sure you make the right choice. Why did you decide dentistry in the first place? Your status says pre-medical. Did you just recently decide dentistry or have you always been on the fence?

Well I made the account senior year of highschool, I guess I should switch it. I decided more on dental around fall of freshman year of college.

As for why I decided on dental....honestly, I find biology/anatomy&physiology very interesting and in particular health/exercise sciences, but personal training doesn't make a good living. I had the grades to be a doctor so decided on that freshman year of high school, although I never had a huge passion for any particular field. As I did more research I kept seeing more and more about how medicine has malpractice, rough insurance issues, lots of paperwork, too many hours, is going downhill while dental didn't have any of these problems. So I shadowed my dentist and it seemed fine (teeth seemed just as 'good' as knees, feet, ears or whatever specialty) so I figured it was a better option. I (and my parents) kind of saw me more as a doctor where people would come in and I would advise them but idk...

 

[dentalWorks]

Here is the bottom line:

Like previous posters suggested....If you want dental school, then you HAVE TO convince yourself to be okay with general dentistry cause thats the reality. Most dental graduates end up in GP.

This is a huge decision, you shouldn't base it on what a couple of orthodontists told you. I bet you for every orthodontist who hated GP, you can find just as many GPs who couldn't stand doing ortho cases all day everyday.

 

[Doc Smile]

Gah! Seems like you will always be second guessing your career choice! Whether it is medicine or dental, or Urology vs Plastics, or Ortho vs Oral surgery.

Like the Ortho guys told you: Let me make it real simple. Medicine has the prestige for less money but still more than 90% of Americans. Dentists are hated by the general public, made fun of in popular media always, work less hours for the same money, and have the ability to easily maintain a flourishing practice and family life.

Do you want the prestige and to 'save lives?' Or, do you want to have less prestige and still have that Dr-Pt relationship?

You dont have to love teeth to be a good dentists. You dont have to love a$s to be a good proctologist.

my $00.02

 

[Huskk]

Be an ibanker. That's always a trendy pick on these boards.

 

[David1991]

Here is the bottom line:

Like previous posters suggested....If you want dental school, then you HAVE TO convince yourself to be okay with general dentistry cause thats the reality. Most dental graduates end up in GP.

This is a huge decision, you shouldn't base it on what a couple of orthodontists told you. I bet you for every orthodontist who hated GP, you can find just as many GPs who couldn't stand doing ortho cases all day everyday.

Good point and I was always ok with general dentistry (and was looking to pursue it) until yesterday. Not that my own opinion is drastically changed, I just wanted to see what others thought and I'm glad I've gotten this much feedback.

Gah! Seems like you will always be second guessing your career choice! Whether it is medicine or dental, or Urology vs Plastics, or Ortho vs Oral surgery.

Like the Ortho guys told you: Let me make it real simple. Medicine has the prestige for less money but still more than 90% of Americans. Dentists are hated by the general public, made fun of in popular media always, work less hours for the same money, and have the ability to easily maintain a flourishing practice and family life.

Do you want the prestige and to 'save lives?' Or, do you want to have less prestige and still have that Dr-Pt relationship?

You dont have to love teeth to be a good dentists. You dont have to love a$s to be a good proctologist.

my $00.02

lol well that was basically my logic. I'd much rather have less prestige if it meant more/same money and less hours/issues. Screw what other people think and honestly past a college level only unintelligent people seem to think that dentistry is not a high-end career.

 

[UltimateHombre]

I once read on here that paramedics tell you to become nurses, nurses tell you to become doctors, doctors tell you to become dentists, and dentists tell you to start working on your swing early. 😀

I think that very similar job satisfaction can be obtained from both medicine and dentistry. But two important questions you should ask yourself:

1. How many hours a week on average do i want to work?

2. Do I want to own and run a business?

These are 2 very important factors to consider!

 

[Doc Smile]

2. Do I want to own and run a business?

These are 2 very important factors to consider!

That is a very good point. I wish we would get more business training in Dental School - even though we take one or two classes our D4 year.

But there is always the military and hospital dentistry if people cant manage people simultaneously as they manage patients!

EDIT: And being a dentists at a dental school/ teaching.

 

[David1991]

That is a very good point. I wish we would get more business training in Dental School - even though we take one or two classes our D4 year.

But there is always the military and hospital dentistry if people cant manage people simultaneously as they manage patients!

EDIT: And being a dentists at a dental school/ teaching.

My dad has brought up the idea that if I didn't like it I could always go back and teach. That is true I suppose.

As for the questions

1. As little as possible lol

2. I think I would like owning my own business, i would think it adds another interesting side to it all but idk maybe it would just be more stressful and less interesting than I'm thinking.