Shadowing 101

[pre-dentalguy]

Okay guys, I'm looking to shadow a dentist with in the next 30 days, but I don't know where or how to begin.

What is the procedure on requesting a dentist to allowing you to shadowing him/her? Do you write a letter to the office, make a phone to all of them, or just drop by a few office? I'm mainly just going down the phone book making calls to different offices, but I'm not getting any responses back.

How did some of you go about getting exposure by shadowing?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[dizzle23x]

Okay guys, I'm looking to shadow a dentist with in the next 30 days, but I don't know where or how to begin.

What is the procedure on requesting a dentist to allowing you to shadowing him/her? Do you write a letter to the office, make a phone to all of them, or just drop by a few office? I'm mainly just going down the phone book making calls to different offices, but I'm not getting any responses back.

How did some of you go about getting exposure by shadowing?

i looked up dental offices and called around. from my experiences, not many places were too keen on letting a random predent come in and shadow but there are exceptions. i ended up just going home and shadowing my general dentist and had no problems at all. i wouldn't write a letter cause that may take too long but stopping by isn't a bad idea.

 

[pre-dentalguy]

i looked up dental offices and called around. from my experiences, not many places were too keen on letting a random predent come in and shadow but there are exceptions. i ended up just going home and shadowing my general dentist and had no problems at all. i wouldn't write a letter cause that may take too long but stopping by isn't a bad idea.

Yeah, that's absolutely correct!! Not too many dentist I've called at too keen to allow me to shadow them. I don't even know how to get my foot in the door of a dental office.

 

[Nasem]

You can also call the ER for some hospitals... they allow for shadowing / other free services you might be able to provide.

 

[Dr IWannaBe]

I've had the same problem until I just kept trying and finally reached an Orthodontist who said he would be happy to have me come in and observe. Wow!! Can't wait. The funny thing is that my own dentist won't call me back, even after speaking to him in his office.

 

[koochooloo]

I've had the same problem until I just kept trying and finally reached an Orthodontist who said he would be happy to have me come in and observe. Wow!! Can't wait. The funny thing is that my own dentist won't call me back, even after speaking to him in his office.

specialties are good to shadow too...but make sure you have enough general dentistry shadowing hours on top of that

 

[teeth2]

Other than looking for volunteer/shadow opps at private dental offices, you should look into volunteering or shadowing at one of the dental clinics at your college's dental school if they have one (that's where I volunteer at my school). I don't know about other colleges but mine has a volunteer coordinator that will help you find a volunteering job within the dental school. If they don't, I would recommend going down to the dental school and stopping by a dental clinic there and asking them how you can become a volunteer.

I've also volunteered at a free dental clinic for the homeless so you might want to look for Christian/religious shelters/rehabilitation centers that might have a dental clinic. Public Health Depts are also a good place to find a volunteer position. I've also found that dental offices around universities are more likely to welcome in or even have dental assisting jobs available for predents.

It took me about 1 month to find solid volunteer positions that worked with my schedule but just be persistant and you'll be able to find one in no time. Good luck

 

[nazeeuh]

I just started working at a dental clinic in a hospital. You should try that.