Shadowing One or Multiple Dentists?

Started by alflley
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alflley

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I'm currently shadowing a pediatric dentist right now, it's been about a month. do you recommend shadowing multiple dentists for a short time, or one dentist for a long period of time? And if you recommend multiple dentists for a short time, how long for each dentist is good?
 
how 'bout: multiple at first, get a spectrum, then narrow it down to an office/dentist that you really like. Shadow there long enough to develop a relationship with the dentist/staff. Hopefully the dentist will get to know you well enough to write a great letter of evaluation.
smile and find ways to enjoy it!
 
Definitely many. The adcoms asked me which ones I had shadowed and liked seeing so much variety. It sounds like you've already worked with this one person long enough for them to write you a good rec.
 
Volunteer however long it will take to develop a good relationship with the dentist, and subsequently get a good LOR. You only need one rec from a dentist. Jumping around just for the sake of saying you've been to a lot of offices doesn't hold much water for me (unless that genuinely interests you). I volunteered for a year at one location, then for another year at another location.
 
I would shadow one guy the most, for a letter of rec. Then go out and look at some other offices. Everyone runs business different and you can see vaious aspects that you like or dislike. The more the merrier.
 
So after staying for a few months at one practice, I should ask them for a letter of rec, then just leave? Or should I ask them for a lor then stay for a little bit more?
 
one interviewer actually didn't like the fact that i only shadowed one dentist. she advised me to work with other dentists in other fields on my year off if i didn't get accept to her school... i didn't get accepted.
 
might be beneficial to try a multi-specialty practice. i've only shadowed the two GPs where i go, but i'm looking to log some hours with the ortho who comes around once/week or so.
 
i plan to shadow other dentists too, probably two general dentists and a few specialists. but my concern is how long to shadow each dentist for. a month? two months?
 
you really want your LOR to come from a GP. So focus on shadowing a GP or two and sprinkle in a day or two at some specialist offices.
 
A month or two? Are you nuts? Shadow them for 2-3 visits...1 if you know them and they will still write you a decent letter after 1 visit, only do 1. Shadowing dentists doesn't teach you anything about dentistry that you cannot learn in a few hours. You are there to get a general idea of what a day in the life of a dentist is like. You are not there to learn procedures or anything else...Don't waste your time. If the you find a dentist or surgeon who will let you sit in on procedures, by all means do it, it is fun...otherwise, study or do something else productive. Hell, do something fun and unproductive...just don't shadow a dentist for months on end.
 
I shadowed my GP for around 20-24 hours, my orthodontist for 12-16 hours, a periodontist for 4 hours, and volunteered in a local clinic for about 12 hours.

It's been a while since I did it, so keep in mind my figures might be a bit off, but spread your time out. You don't have to spend months on end sitting in a corner of the room or sucking spit, you just want to get a feel for the profession and see if it's for you.
 
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