Should I even think about a Speciality?

[ivanabe]

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I am a second year dental student and with a 3.2 GPA, should I even think about a speciality? Right now, I am not 100% sure if I want to specialize because of my grades. I feel 3.2 won't get me anything but I just wanted to ask people around here and see what they think.

I am an average person in Labs and I don't know how 3rd and 4th year will go for me. I had a slow start in labs but now I feel I am definitely much much better.

I feel I stress myself out trying to do well just in case I wanted to do a speciality. I know I can be a general dentist with straight Cs so what is the incentive to do well if you want to be a general dentist?


With that GPA, what kind of speciality can I think about?

Thanks

 

[Beatles0467]

I think what would be more helpful is knowing your class rank to help you answer that question. If 3.2 is top 20%, then you probably have a good shot at something somewhere. If it's only at 75%, then you aren't getting in anywhere. I know at Minnesota, a 3.5 is probably getting you top 20%, but there are other schools that a 3.5 would be much worse. Also, I know some schools don't give out class rank so I don't know what happens in those cases, but it would be helpful to know to help you out.

 

[UCSF2012]

I know I can be a general dentist with straight Cs so what is the incentive to do well if you want to be a general dentist?

So you can be good at what you do. Do you want to know what you're doing?

We shouldn't be trying to do well in school in order to specialize. We should be doing it to be good at what we do.

 

[license2kill]

I agree

 

[Plopper]

So you can be good at what you do. Do you want to know what you're doing?

We shouldn't be trying to do well in school in order to specialize. We should be doing it to be good at what we do.

3 words:
Pass Fail School

ideally i would assume you want to do the best to be a better dentist, but honestly i could see some of the book work not being terribly important, while hand skill being much more important

 

[UCSF2012]

3 words:
Pass Fail School

ideally i would assume you want to do the best to be a better dentist, but honestly i could see some of the book work not being terribly important, while hand skill being much more important

I had that mentality at one point. Now, I learned otherwise. I learned that we, as clinicians, are limited more by what we know and less so on hand skills (because most of us have or will develop over time at least the minimum hand skills for the job). Our knowledge base determines the types of patients we can see, since many of our patients will come in with existing medical conditions. It determines whether we can safely and effectively treat our patients.

For example, if a patient has a heart condition and are taking drugs A, B, and C, how do you safely prevent problems during a routine filling? Or gum surgery? Each drug presents a hurdle for you to jump over. Even more importantly, if you did encounter complications, how do you deal with it? I no longer rely on the pass/fail system for anything at all. I've discovered that the full scope of dentistry is so incredibly complex that even the A students will have trouble. Performing the procedures isn't hard, but the difficulty lies in the nuances of the complex cases and pre-existing medical conditions. If you want to be good at what you do, you have to know more than everything. Once you realize you could kill someone in the chair, your perspective changes.

 

[Plopper]

I had that mentality at one point. Now, I learned otherwise. I learned that we, as clinicians, are limited more by what we know and less so on hand skills (because most of us have or will develop over time at least the minimum hand skills for the job). Our knowledge base determines the types of patients we can see, since many of our patients will come in with existing medical conditions. It determines whether we can safely and effectively treat our patients.

For example, if a patient has a heart condition and are taking drugs A, B, and C, how do you safely prevent problems during a routine filling? Or gum surgery? Each drug presents a hurdle for you to jump over. Even more importantly, if you did encounter complications, how do you deal with it? I no longer rely on the pass/fail system for anything at all. I've discovered that the full scope of dentistry is so incredibly complex that even the A students will have trouble. Performing the procedures isn't hard, but the difficulty lies in the nuances of the complex cases and pre-existing medical conditions. If you want to be good at what you do, you have to know more than everything. Once you realize you could kill someone in the chair, your perspective changes.

very interesting points. Actually it's very similar to what i was told by a periodontist that i shadowed. He's very very successful, and he said something along the lines of what you mentioned about the drugs and complications etc.

Good thing i picked a school which has an intense academic curriculum!

Dentistry is IMO much more than just a drill and fill profession. I'm just so extremely happy that i was accepted, it's just a fabulous profession.

 

[DrReo]

Good thing i picked a school which has an intense academic curriculum!

Plopper, what school doesn't have rigorous academic curriculums??? 😉

 

[sajjy]

Plopper, what school doesn't have rigorous academic curriculums??? 😉

May be not like attending medical school for two years.

 

[ivanabe]

i agree that one shouldn't study just enough to get by. And believe me, that is not what I think when I think about general dentistry. I agree with you guys that dentistry is much more than drill and fill. but at the same time I can stress less If I knew I just wanted to be a general dentist.


on a side note, i hate to say it but I feel like I am out there to make a point. The fact is that I have one high school dropout cousin that lives in a million dollar house another is a college dropout that just got into business with my cousin and just bought a $350,000 house and $50,000 car.

I used to think RESPECT is better than MONEY but when I see them getting all the the respect because they have money, I sometimes wonder if education really means anything. I feel like it's all about the MONEY.

I have worked my butt off all my life to be where I am today but at the end of the day I'll graduate with over $200,000 in loans and who knows what I'll make.


Doesn't that make you mad?


Can anybody explain me why things like these happen?

 

[UCSF2012]

i agree that one shouldn't study just enough to get by. And believe me, that is not what I think when I think about general dentistry. I agree with you guys that dentistry is much more than drill and fill. but at the same time I can stress less If I knew I just wanted to be a general dentist.


on a side note, i hate to say it but I feel like I am out there to make a point. The fact is that I have one high school dropout cousin that lives in a million dollar house another is a college dropout that just got into business with my cousin and just bought a $350,000 house and $50,000 car.

I used to think RESPECT is better than MONEY but when I see them getting all the the respect because they have money, I sometimes wonder if education really means anything. I feel like it's all about the MONEY.

I have worked my butt off all my life to be where I am today but at the end of the day I'll graduate with over $200,000 in loans and who knows what I'll make.


Doesn't that make you mad?


Can anybody explain me why things like these happen?

Welcome to the real world. Being smart is less important than being clever. Doing well in school doesn't equate to being successful, and graduating top of your class in dental school doesn't mean you're good. The way of thinking and the skills set required in business and dentistry are totally different out there, and it's not taught in dental school.

Don't worry about people who buy expensive things. It doesn't mean they have money. More times than not, those who purchase really expensive things do so because they over-extend their purchasing ability. One bump in the recession and they may have trouble keeping up with the monthly payments. Most the time, it's the people who don't appear rich that have the most money, because they spend their money on things that aren't seen.

The guy who bought a 20k Piaget watch doesn't have much money in the bank, because he just spent 20k. The guy wearing a Timex still has his 20k in the bank. Those who appear rich are often the poorest.

 

[KOM]

on a side note, i hate to say it but I feel like I am out there to make a point. The fact is that I have one high school dropout cousin that lives in a million dollar house another is a college dropout that just got into business with my cousin and just bought a $350,000 house and $50,000 car.

I used to think RESPECT is better than MONEY but when I see them getting all the the respect because they have money, I sometimes wonder if education really means anything. I feel like it's all about the MONEY.

I have worked my butt off all my life to be where I am today but at the end of the day I'll graduate with over $200,000 in loans and who knows what I'll make.

Doesn't that make you mad?

Can anybody explain me why things like these happen?

Everyone out there has something to prove. Whether it's to themselves or to their peers, we all are driven in some shape or fashion.

In the US, respect is so often associated with money and it's so damn unfortunate in my mind. It's not going to change anytime soon so get used to your cousins using their money as leverage to prove something.

I grew up with lots of money. I never learned a damn thing until I went abroad and married a poor girl and lost the financial support of my parents because they disagreed with my choice. Only then did I find certain things that were "worth" fighting for.

In the meantime...your family members will go on "awe inspiring" vacations and attempt to rub it in your face. When you become satisfied in what YOU'VE accomplished as an individual then your jealousy will turn into something more constructive and that "enlightenment" will probably drive your bros insane. LOL.

Think about when you were really sick...how you would pay anything in the world just to feel better and it teaches you a couple things.

1) Your health is WAY more important than money.
2) You're in a profession where you can relieve people's pain and collect their money. 🙂

 

[Daurang]

The fact is that I have one high school dropout cousin that lives in a million dollar house another is a college dropout that just got into business with my cousin and just bought a $350,000 house and $50,000 car.

I used to think RESPECT is better than MONEY but when I see them getting all the the respect because they have money, I sometimes wonder if education really means anything. I feel like it's all about the MONEY.

I have worked my butt off all my life to be where I am today but at the end of the day I'll graduate with over $200,000 in loans and who knows what I'll make.

Can anybody explain me why things like these happen?

1. A vast majority of millionaires are small business owners living right next to you.

2. If you are always spending up to or above what you earn, you will never increase your net worth no matter how much you make.

3. Buying expensive imported vehicles is poor value and you will constantly need to buy the newest model. Buying status objects such as branded consumer goods is a never-ending cycle of depreciating assets. Living in a status neighbourhood is not only poor value, but you will feel the need to keep buying status objects to keep up with your neighbours.

4. Positive accumulator of wealth invest their money for good returns, and will consider riskier investments if they're worth the reward. Many put money not in the stock market, but invest in private businesses and venture capital. They do not gamble or speculate on long-odds stocks.

5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9-C1BwEz3I

 

[ItsGavinC]

Right now, I am not 100% sure if I want to specialize because of my grades.

Didn't read the whole thread, this may have been said already. You should specialize because you want to do something other than general dentistry or because you have a desire to continue your education in a specialized area. You shouldn't apply to a post-grad program because your grades are excellent and you are in the top of your class, and you shouldn't withhold an application because your grades aren't excellent. Some common sense comes into play (bottom of the class isn't going to get anywhere with applications), but it shouldn't be based solely on your marks.

Do you have an interest in a specialty? If you REALLY do, then apply. If you don't get in, do a GPR or AEGD and reapply. Sometimes that is what it takes.

 

[DrReo]

1. A vast majority of millionaires are small business owners living right next to you.

2. If you are always spending up to or above what you earn, you will never increase your net worth no matter how much you make.

3. Buying expensive imported vehicles is poor value and you will constantly need to buy the newest model. Buying status objects such as branded consumer goods is a never-ending cycle of depreciating assets. Living in a status neighbourhood is not only poor value, but you will feel the need to keep buying status objects to keep up with your neighbours.

4. Positive accumulator of wealth invest their money for good returns, and will consider riskier investments if they're worth the reward. Many put money not in the stock market, but invest in private businesses and venture capital. They do not gamble or speculate on long-odds stocks.

5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9-C1BwEz3I

Very interesting article. Was he greedy with 750k and thought he could pull off the hedge fund deal? Interesting how the economy tanked with their jobs. Did it ever mentioned what his wife did? Stay home mom?

 

[HookEmBP]

Everyone out there has something to prove. Whether it's to themselves or to their peers, we all are driven in some shape or fashion.

In the US, respect is so often associated with money and it's so damn unfortunate in my mind. It's not going to change anytime soon so get used to your cousins using their money as leverage to prove something.

I grew up with lots of money. I never learned a damn thing until I went abroad and married a poor girl and lost the financial support of my parents because they disagreed with my choice. Only then did I find certain things that were "worth" fighting for.

In the meantime...your family members will go on "awe inspiring" vacations and attempt to rub it in your face. When you become satisfied in what YOU'VE accomplished as an individual then your jealousy will turn into something more constructive and that "enlightenment" will probably drive your bros insane. LOL.

Think about when you were really sick...how you would pay anything in the world just to feel better and it teaches you a couple things.

1) Your health is WAY more important than money.
2) You're in a profession where you can relieve people's pain and collect their money. 🙂

This is one of the better posts I've read on this forum. This thread is like reading "The millionaire next door" all over again. I think that and Dale Carnegie's "How to win friends & influence people" should be required reading for life. Bottom line: people who focus their lives around money will NEVER be happy.

 

[Plopper]

1. A vast majority of millionaires are small business owners living right next to you.

and dentists are what type of business owners?? 😀

The fact is that I have one high school dropout cousin that lives in a million dollar house another is a college dropout that just got into business with my cousin and just bought a $350,000 house and $50,000 car.

I used to think RESPECT is better than MONEY but when I see them getting all the the respect because they have money, I sometimes wonder if education really means anything. I feel like it's all about the MONEY.

I have to ask, What does your cousin do for a living? What is his business?

oh and money makes the world go around

 

[mrlantern]

You shouldn't apply to a post-grad program because your grades are excellent and you are in the top of your class, and you shouldn't withhold an application because your grades aren't excellent.

By all means, I suggest dental students to consider specializing.

Specialists have better lifestyles, focus only within their scope of expertise, and earn 2x-3x easily more than general dentists in terms of salary and respect. Remember that all specialists are dentists but not all dentists are specialists. There's also definitely a shortage of specialists in many parts of the country. General dentists are dime a dozen to recruit.

Of course, you have to make sure that you'll enjoy being a specialist but that's a matter only you can answer for yourself. But economically, being a specialist is more than worth it in the long run.

 

[mrlantern]

on a side note, i hate to say it but I feel like I am out there to make a point. The fact is that I have one high school dropout cousin that lives in a million dollar house another is a college dropout that just got into business with my cousin and just bought a $350,000 house and $50,000 car.

In dentistry ( and other health professions ), there is a ceiling as to how much you can earn. For every dollar in income, the dentist has to physically do procedures.

But business is not manual labor and it is not based on how many people you see. Hence there is no ceiling in earnings for a businessman. Owners of McDonalds franchises are routinely guaranteed six figure income and a better physical lifestyle than any dentist or physician earning similiar income. Business is more about decision-making and catering to a larger market. But the problem is that many people do not succeed in business. The statistics aren't promising especially for startup businesses.

 

[robhmnt]

The bottomline is that besides loving this career (At least I do), 99% of us are in it to get a fat piece of the pie in the future. Everyone has been in it, is in it, and will be in it mostly for the money, unless one's parents make ten times the ammount of the money a dentist can potentially make a year and will be leaving a fat inheritance for them. I love dentistry, but tell me a career that will take the same or less effort as dentistry, and guarantee me a 50% higher income, and I will switch right away. I can certainly find a way to indulge myself in any career as long as it involves the utilization of some kind of scientific education. 99% of us wouldn't be going through 8 + possible 3 years of education, if the average salary of a dentist (specialist) was 50k/year, no matter how passionate we were about fixing people's smiles. None of us would go through this education either, if we could make 150k a year right out of high school.

 

[ivanabe]

In dentistry ( and other health professions ), there is a ceiling as to how much you can earn. For every dollar in income, the dentist has to physically do procedures.

But business is not manual labor and it is not based on how many people you see. Hence there is no ceiling in earnings for a businessman. Owners of McDonalds franchises are routinely guaranteed six figure income and a better physical lifestyle than any dentist or physician earning similiar income. Business is more about decision-making and catering to a larger market. But the problem is that many people do not succeed in business. The statistics aren't promising especially for startup businesses.

I'd have to disagree on the fact that as dentist you have a ceiling as to how much you can earn. I personally know 3 dentists that own 2-3 practices each and are always on the lookout for more practices.

A dentist can buy as many practices as he/she wishes to and have associates working for him. Many dentists have no desire to have their own practice because it is a big headache for them and they rather just work as an associate. With that in mind, if you're a good business person, you can earn a lot being a dentist. Correct me if I am wrong


on a side note, my cousin is in the business of running those "extravaganzas" that we all see on the tv all the time. Those things are usually 3-4 days long in different cities all over the US.

 

[NAVY DDS 2010]

The bottomline is that besides loving this career (At least I do), 99% of us are in it to get a fat piece of the pie in the future. Everyone has been in it, is in it, and will be in it mostly for the money, unless one's parents make ten times the ammount of the money a dentist can potentially make a year and will be leaving a fat inheritance for them. I love dentistry, but tell me a career that will take the same or less effort as dentistry, and guarantee me a 50% higher income, and I will switch right away. I can certainly find a way to indulge myself in any career as long as it involves the utilization of some kind of scientific education. 99% of us wouldn't be going through 8 + possible 3 years of education, if the average salary of a dentist (specialist) was 50k/year, no matter how passionate we were about fixing people's smiles. None of us would go through this education either, if we could make 150k a year right out of high school.

I disagree with your generalization of most people. I disagree with you that 99% of people are in dentistry to get a fat piece of the pie. Now, having a career that provides well for the familiy is attractive, I don' think that is a necessarily the driving factor for that large of people. It may be for a majority (over 50%, but not even close to almost everybody as you assume). There are a lot of people who chose dentistry for life it can provide for the family and well as enjoying the career. I initially chose to go into dentistry over medicine because I would rather have the family life of a dentist than a physician. Dentists in general get to enjoy more time with the family. (It is ironic that I choes to go into dentistry over medicine based on being able to spend more time with the family and then I end up being career military and have spent lots of time away.) There are plenty of people who would chose dentistry even if the paychecks weren't as "fat" as they were. If money was a driving factor for me, there is no way I would chose to do military as a career.

People do choose careers for other reasons. My wife is a pharmacist. She works 40 hrs a week and made well over $100K last year. But when she entered pharmacy school in 1998, the average pharmacist was making $50-60k per year. Based on your response, that is chump change for spending 4 years undergrad and 4 year getting her doctorate just to count pills for that salary. She thought what pharmacist got to do was great while $50-60k was a comfortable enough salary to provide for a family. By the way, she does a whole lot more than counting pills as a pharmacist. Actually, with the exception of the times she helps her friends out by covering a shift at a local Target, she doesn't count pills at all anymore.

My point is that there may be a lot of people who may driven my the attractiveness of the income potential, but there are still a lot of people out there who chose their careers based on the attractiveness of the job and the lifestyle associated with it. By far, a lot more than what the post above generalizes!

 

[aphistis]

By all means, I suggest dental students to consider specializing.

Specialists have better lifestyles, focus only within their scope of expertise, and earn 2x-3x easily more than general dentists in terms of salary and respect. Remember that all specialists are dentists but not all dentists are specialists. There's also definitely a shortage of specialists in many parts of the country. General dentists are dime a dozen to recruit.

Of course, you have to make sure that you'll enjoy being a specialist but that's a matter only you can answer for yourself. But economically, being a specialist is more than worth it in the long run.

In dentistry ( and other health professions ), there is a ceiling as to how much you can earn. For every dollar in income, the dentist has to physically do procedures.

But business is not manual labor and it is not based on how many people you see. Hence there is no ceiling in earnings for a businessman. Owners of McDonalds franchises are routinely guaranteed six figure income and a better physical lifestyle than any dentist or physician earning similiar income. Business is more about decision-making and catering to a larger market. But the problem is that many people do not succeed in business. The statistics aren't promising especially for startup businesses.

There are more factual errors in these two posts than I have time to point out right now. I'd encourage anyone reading this thread to view them very, very skeptically.

 

[gd152]

The bottomline is that besides loving this career (At least I do), 99% of us are in it to get a fat piece of the pie in the future. Everyone has been in it, is in it, and will be in it mostly for the money, unless one's parents make ten times the ammount of the money a dentist can potentially make a year and will be leaving a fat inheritance for them. I love dentistry, but tell me a career that will take the same or less effort as dentistry, and guarantee me a 50% higher income, and I will switch right away. I can certainly find a way to indulge myself in any career as long as it involves the utilization of some kind of scientific education. 99% of us wouldn't be going through 8 + possible 3 years of education, if the average salary of a dentist (specialist) was 50k/year, no matter how passionate we were about fixing people's smiles. None of us would go through this education either, if we could make 150k a year right out of high school.

Nope... I was making $300k/yr at age 22, and I'm going into dentistry.

 

[Shingo123]

Nope... I was making $300k/yr at age 22, and I'm going into dentistry.

I find that hard to believe. Who in the world would turn that down?

You could work for like 10 years and retire. 🙂

 

[gd152]

I find that hard to believe. Who in the world would turn that down?

You could work for like 10 years and retire. 🙂

Not true, and I was spending my life in front of a computer.

 

[Guy Smiley]

I find that hard to believe. Who in the world would turn that down?

You could work for like 10 years and retire. 🙂

If that were true, the majority of dentists would probably retire a little earlier.

 

[robhmnt]

I disagree with your generalization of most people. I disagree with you that 99% of people are in dentistry to get a fat piece of the pie. Now, having a career that provides well for the familiy is attractive, I don' think that is a necessarily the driving factor for that large of people. It may be for a majority (over 50%, but not even close to almost everybody as you assume). There are a lot of people who chose dentistry for life it can provide for the family and well as enjoying the career. I initially chose to go into dentistry over medicine because I would rather have the family life of a dentist than a physician. Dentists in general get to enjoy more time with the family. (It is ironic that I choes to go into dentistry over medicine based on being able to spend more time with the family and then I end up being career military and have spent lots of time away.) There are plenty of people who would chose dentistry even if the paychecks weren't as "fat" as they were. If money was a driving factor for me, there is no way I would chose to do military as a career.

People do choose careers for other reasons. My wife is a pharmacist. She works 40 hrs a week and made well over $100K last year. But when she entered pharmacy school in 1998, the average pharmacist was making $50-60k per year. Based on your response, that is chump change for spending 4 years undergrad and 4 year getting her doctorate just to count pills for that salary. She thought what pharmacist got to do was great while $50-60k was a comfortable enough salary to provide for a family. By the way, she does a whole lot more than counting pills as a pharmacist. Actually, with the exception of the times she helps her friends out by covering a shift at a local Target, she doesn't count pills at all anymore.

My point is that there may be a lot of people who may driven my the attractiveness of the income potential, but there are still a lot of people out there who chose their careers based on the attractiveness of the job and the lifestyle associated with it. By far, a lot more than what the post above generalizes!

You chose dentistry over medicine because you wanted to enjoy more time with your family + getting a check with a digit count close to those of the physicians.
I mentioned, "besides loving this career", when I was talking about the 99% figure. Is dentistry the only thing you enjoy? i.e. I enjoy skiing very much, and I would love making money by skiing, but not only I cannot make money that way, but also I should PAY money to ski. Once again, "Besidse loving this career" (because of providing well for family, etc as you mentioned), everyone (99%) has already taken the good income into consideration. Besides your love for dentistry, you could potentially love at least 10 other careers, which also provide well for the family (not talking bout medicine, as you don't like it); however, "besides loving this career" you are into dentistry because you don't have the potentials for those ten other careers (being a businessman, etc...).
*Note how many times I quoted my phrase, "besides enjoying this career."

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[robhmnt]

Nope... I was making $300k/yr at age 22, and I'm going into dentistry.

If you are telling the truth, then you are included in the 1%, which I didn't talk about.

 

[xhamburgersamx]

Nope... I was making $300k/yr at age 22, and I'm going into dentistry.

Either you're BSing a lot or you were a professional poker player or stock broker/trader with both professions have extremely big volatility.

 

[teeth63a]

Either you're BSing a lot or you were a professional poker player or stock broker/trader with both professions have extremely big volatility.

OoOoOooo
xhamburgersamx has thrown down the gauntlet!

he triple dog dares you to tell us what you did!

 

[NAVY DDS 2010]

OK ... I am man enough to admit I missed "besides loving this career". But, I still disagree that 99% of the people are in it for a "fat piece of the pie". Not everyone is that caught up in money. Being able to comfortably support a family is sufficient for many people. Now, people aren't stupid. They aren't going to turn down money and take less than the next dentist just to prove they aren't in it for the money. I will not turn any money that I earn, but in no way am I (and many others) in it for the fat piece of the pie. There is a difference in comfortably supporting and supporting well. Now, that statement can be interpreted in different ways, but to me supporting well is a career where the money made is well about what is needed. Comfortably supporting means to me that I make enough where I don't have to worry about my bills each month and don't have to worry about what would happen if.....

By the way, I was a snow ski instructor in highschool and college. Some of my friends taught skiing full time from Nov to Apr and then did other jobs during non-skiing months. They did fine and enjoyed their lives. At one point in my marriage, I was talking to my wife about how it would be great to move near a resort again. My wife told me I could go back to teaching snow skiing lessons if that would give me a sense of fulfillment in my life. IF I couldn't have gottent into d-school, i would have considered it. Ski instructors have fun lives.

Who are you to say what my potentials are? That I don't have 10 potential careers? There are a lot of things that interest me. It just happens that the health professions have appealed to me the most ( besides being a baseball player) since I grew up around hospitals since about 1980 (8 yrs old). Other careers (in no particular order) that I know I could do and enjoy:

- custom house painting
- custom home remodeling
- architecture
- Winter - snow skiing / summer - farm hand
- most health fields other than dentistry
- Motorcycle mechanic
- Landscaping
- Military (which I am in)
- Baseball - pre-1990's when baseball way played the way Abner Doubleday mean designed it to be played (I cannot stand the steroid era baseball)
- College professor - chemistry or biology

Do I need to continue? My point is that these are all careers I would enjoy had I chosen them. I went with healthcare which is where my heart was.

You chose dentistry over medicine because you wanted to enjoy more time with your family + getting a check with a digit count close to those of the physicians.
I mentioned, "besides loving this career", when I was talking about the 99% figure. Is dentistry the only thing you enjoy? i.e. I enjoy skiing very much, and I would love making money by skiing, but not only I cannot make money that way, but also I should PAY money to ski. Once again, "Besidse loving this career" (because of providing well for family, etc as you mentioned), everyone (99%) has already taken the good income into consideration. Besides your love for dentistry, you could potentially love at least 10 other careers, which also provide well for the family (not talking bout medicine, as you don't like it); however, "besides loving this career" you are into dentistry because you don't have the potentials for those ten other careers (being a businessman, etc...).
*Note how many times I quoted my phrase, "besides enjoying this career."

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[Shingo123]

Either you're BSing a lot or you were a professional poker player or stock broker/trader with both professions have extremely big volatility.

Exactly, what type of job pays 300k to a 22 year old? This would have to be something like you mentioned.

 

[robhmnt]

OK ... I am man enough to admit I missed "besides loving this career". But, I still disagree that 99% of the people are in it for a "fat piece of the pie". Not everyone is that caught up in money. Being able to comfortably support a family is sufficient for many people. Now, people aren't stupid. They aren't going to turn down money and take less than the next dentist just to prove they aren't in it for the money. I will not turn any money that I earn, but in no way am I (and many others) in it for the fat piece of the pie. There is a difference in comfortably supporting and supporting well. Now, that statement can be interpreted in different ways, but to me supporting well is a career where the money made is well about what is needed. Comfortably supporting means to me that I make enough where I don't have to worry about my bills each month and don't have to worry about what would happen if.....

By the way, I was a snow ski instructor in highschool and college. Some of my friends taught skiing full time from Nov to Apr and then did other jobs during non-skiing months. They did fine and enjoyed their lives. At one point in my marriage, I was talking to my wife about how it would be great to move near a resort again. My wife told me I could go back to teaching snow skiing lessons if that would give me a sense of fulfillment in my life. IF I couldn't have gottent into d-school, i would have considered it. Ski instructors have fun lives.

Who are you to say what my potentials are? That I don't have 10 potential careers? There are a lot of things that interest me. It just happens that the health professions have appealed to me the most ( besides being a baseball player) since I grew up around hospitals since about 1980 (8 yrs old). Other careers (in no particular order) that I know I could do and enjoy:

- custom house painting
- custom home remodeling
- architecture
- Winter - snow skiing / summer - farm hand
- most health fields other than dentistry
- Motorcycle mechanic
- Landscaping
- Military (which I am in)
- Baseball - pre-1990's when baseball way played the way Abner Doubleday mean designed it to be played (I cannot stand the steroid era baseball)
- College professor - chemistry or biology

Do I need to continue? My point is that these are all careers I would enjoy had I chosen them. I went with healthcare which is where my heart was.

In my opinion, you either lack a sense of logic, or have a proclivity for arguing with people who share very similar stances with you. "A fat piece of the pie" can easily be comprehended as a metaphor for supporting a family or oneself "comfortably, and not just well'', as you mentioned. When you are not even satisfied by supporting your family well, and want to move to the level of comfort, then you are in it for the fat piece of the pie. You are basically proving my point, so I am grateful for that👍.
Last time I checked, teaching as a ski instructor cannot let you have a "comfortable" life, so your whole paragraph about being a ski instructor was totally irrelevant, and somewhat contradictory to what you just said before that. If I could have the income of a dentist as a ski instructor, I would go for it. I love skiing, even more than dentistry. However, we both know ski instructors don't make anywhere close to dentist, and I mean anywhere!

You started ranting before reading my post again. I did not question your potentials. If you were able to get into dentisty, you certainly have high potentials, but I doubt those potentials are in fields "which also provide well (=comfort by your definition) for the family " (did you read this part?). It can easily be understood from this quotations that I am only questioning your and my potentials in careers outside of healthcare, that would guarantee you a love for the job and a dentist's income. I cannot see any profession in the list you just brought up, that can provide comfort for the family, except the "most health-care fields...". and yes, I know you chose dentistry over those other health fields because you love this job, as I said first.
I think me, you, and many others are in dentistry for very similar reasons, however, for some reason, you are trying to argue with me just to prove my points.
With regards to your last paragraph, I finally could not figure out whether you are looking for comfort for your family, or enjoying the job? had you chosen those listed careers, you would definitely not find the comfort you are looking for ("Comfortably supporting means to me that I make enough where I don't have to worry about my bills each month and don't have to worry about what would happen if..... ") (contradiction). If you are in it for both your love for healthcare or dentistry, and also comfort, then you are proving my point, cause that's why I am in it as well.
Chill

 

[xhamburgersamx]

Exactly, what type of job pays 300k to a 22 year old? This would have to be something like you mentioned.

Anyone turning away from 300k a year to "stare at a computer" and go through 4 years of dental school hell is either really "idiotic" to put in a good way or happens to "loves people" and wants to service others through oral medicine.

 

[license2kill]

We are in it for the money, atleast "partially" or better yet "significantly". From all the reasons that motivated all of us to continue with dentistry, money had to be a significant factor. As already stated, if we made only 60K a year from going to school 8+ years, how many of us will still be in dentistry?

Helping people keep up with their oral health is great. I am very fortunate to be in this field. But probably would have sorted to some other career if I couldn't live "comfortably" and "take care of my wife and son financially".
My post is not to cause argument but to give a true confession.

"living comfortably + taking care of the family financially" = "a fat piece of the pie"

In my opinion, you either lack a sense of logic, or have a proclivity for arguing with people who share very similar stances with you. "A fat piece of the pie" can easily be comprehended as a metaphor for supporting a family or oneself "comfortably, and not just well'', as you mentioned. When you are not even satisfied by supporting your family well, and want to move to the level of comfort, then you are in it for the fat piece of the pie. You are basically proving my point, so I am grateful for that👍.
Last time I checked, teaching as a ski instructor cannot let you have a "comfortable" life, so your whole paragraph about being a ski instructor was totally irrelevant, and somewhat contradictory to what you just said before that. If I could have the income of a dentist as a ski instructor, I would go for it. I love skiing, even more than dentistry. However, we both know ski instructors don't make anywhere close to dentist, and I mean anywhere!

You started ranting before reading my post again. I did not question your potentials. If you were able to get into dentisty, you certainly have high potentials, but I doubt those potentials are in fields "which also provide well (=comfort by your definition) for the family " (did you read this part?). It can easily be understood from this quotations that I am only questioning your and my potentials in careers outside of healthcare, that would guarantee you a love for the job and a dentist's income. I cannot see any profession in the list you just brought up, that can provide comfort for the family, except the "most health-care fields...". and yes, I know you chose dentistry over those other health fields because you love this job, as I said first.
I think me, you, and many others are in dentistry for very similar reasons, however, for some reason, you are trying to argue with me just to prove my points.
With regards to your last paragraph, I finally could not figure out whether you are looking for comfort for your family, or enjoying the job? had you chosen those listed careers, you would definitely not find the comfort you are looking for ("Comfortably supporting means to me that I make enough where I don't have to worry about my bills each month and don't have to worry about what would happen if..... ") (contradiction). If you are in it for both your love for healthcare or dentistry, and also comfort, then you are proving my point, cause that's why I am in it as well.
Chill

 

[robhmnt]

We are in it for the money, atleast "partially" or better yet "significantly". From all the reasons that motivated all of us to continue with dentistry, money had to be a significant factor. As already stated, if we made only 60K a year from going to school 8+ years, how many of us will still be in dentistry?

Helping people keep up with their oral health is great. I am very fortunate to be in this field. But probably would have sorted to some other career if I couldn't live "comfortably" and "take care of my wife and son financially".
My post is not to cause argument but to give a true confession.

"living comfortably + taking care of the family financially" = "a fat piece of the pie"

SHAME ON YOU!!!................................
Well, That's all I'm saying. Bless for your honesty.