pre dental undergrad

[sublowe]

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im trying to figure out what to undergrad in, to set myself up for dental school in the future.
i was always interested in dentistry, and was just looking into working as a dental assistant. ive applyed to a couple schools that have a 11 week dental assisting program, but im in the military and for some reason they wouldnt cover them with tuition assistance. so i took it as a sign ... ive now deceided to go to school once i get out of the military and get my BA in dental hydiene ...

would that be a good idea do you think? would that education put me a step ahead in dental school? (knowing some things about dentistry, making it easier that is)

 

[Vicviper]

It could be a good thing, but maybe you'd rather do a Bio degree or something? I've heard some faculty say they actually don't like to see people doing hygiene programs as a stepping stone to dental school because you would have taken someone else's seat for something you're not going to actually do - but hey, who knows.

Also, I'm not sure how the classes for DH would match up with the pre-reqs for dental school. They might not take the calc based physics, or the entire ochem series or something like that. The pre-reqs for dental school more or less add up to the majority of a bio degree, so that's why many people take that route.

 

[sublowe]

It could be a good thing, but maybe you'd rather do a Bio degree or something? I've heard some faculty say they actually don't like to see people doing hygiene programs as a stepping stone to dental school because you would have taken someone else's seat for something you're not going to actually do - but hey, who knows.

Also, I'm not sure how the classes for DH would match up with the pre-reqs for dental school. They might not take the calc based physics, or the entire ochem series or something like that. The pre-reqs for dental school more or less add up to the majority of a bio degree, so that's why many people take that route.

i do plan on being a hygienist for a few years, have another kid during that time, and then go back to school to be a dentist.

 

[Kkae]

I did Dental Hygiene before doing my BS in Biology. The advantage to this is that I was able to earn a living from it while in undergrad and I do believe it helped a lot in getting me accepted into Dental School. It adds to the dentistry experience...
I just recently did a post on deciding on your major in undergrad in order to set yourself up for dental school. You can view it here: http://stu-dentdiaries.blogspot.com/

I'm not exactly sure of your situation but why not just do the pre-reqs required for dental school and apply straight there rather than going into hygiene and then dental school? I the end it's all up to you and what you think is best..for you.

Good Luck!