Stick with dentistry or do something else?

[contemplating2005]

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I wanted to be a dentist for the longest time. One thing that bothers me is the loans and the debt. I just picture it would be hard to make it here since I live in cali. I don't know if the numbers make sense like it used to. I have a relative who is a dentist is fairly young mid 30s and is struggling financially at the moment which furthers my doubts. She had to borrow money from her parents to keep up with bills which is sad since by your mid 30s you should be financially independent. At the end of the day most of us want a career with plenty of job availabilities, great future out look, and of course allow us to be financially successful.

For the sake of this post lets talk about the objective side of career choice. What is considered a good return on your investment. I am still doing research and will continue shadowing to figure out which will best suit my subject and objective aspects for what I look for in a career. I graduated with a biochem degree with a high gpa so I cover a lot of pre-reqs. I have been looking into nurse to NP, PA, pharmacy, dentistry, and of course just going all the way to MD/DO. Out of those rank them in terms of best career investments taking into consideration job out look, future progression, good debt to income ratio and why you believe that is so? Right now I am still in the researching phase so type away!

 

[Jueves]

If you go to a school that costs 600k and live in an area where Dentists get paid 120k, it’s a terrible investment. If you go to a school that costs 300k and live in an area where Dentists get paid 200k, it’s quite a good investment.

 

[sobertiger]

If you're business savvy, you can be extremely successful as a dentist in a right area.

If you're looking to work as an associate all your career, don't want to do private practice, and are unwilling to move to less saturated areas, dentistry is not that great if you're coming out with a high debt.

 

[LFA20]

I wanted to be a dentist for the longest time. One thing that bothers me is the loans and the debt. I just picture it would be hard to make it here since I live in cali. I don't know if the numbers make sense like it used to. I have a relative who is a dentist is fairly young mid 30s and is struggling financially at the moment which furthers my doubts. She had to borrow money from her parents to keep up with bills which is sad since by your mid 30s you should be financially independent. At the end of the day most of us want a career with plenty of job availabilities, great future out look, and of course allow us to be financially successful.

For the sake of this post lets talk about the objective side of career choice. What is considered a good return on your investment. I am still doing research and will continue shadowing to figure out which will best suit my subject and objective aspects for what I look for in a career. I graduated with a biochem degree with a high gpa so I cover a lot of pre-reqs. I have been looking into nurse to NP, PA, pharmacy, dentistry, and of course just going all the way to MD/DO. Out of those rank them in terms of best career investments taking into consideration job out look, future progression, good debt to income ratio and why you believe that is so? Right now I am still in the researching phase so type away!

I wouldn't even bother looking at pharmacy nowadays. The job outlook is miserable from what I have heard. PA is not a bad option and It is definitely a better return on your investment compared to dentistry since their tuition is a lot lower. You can also specialize in many different fields (derm, cardiothoracic, etc. MD/DO is also good since your income will be much higher.
Unless you can keep your debt very minimal (100-200k) I don't think dentistry is worth pursuing. Some folks on sdn don’t mind working for 10+ years and with only 40-50k to live on after paying their loans and long as they get to be a dentist. I honestly think there many other ways you can earn decent income without being in the hole for so many years. I want to buy a house some day, have a family, go on vacation, and have money in the bank. And no I dont want to depend on my spouse’s income.

 

[contemplating2005]

I wouldn't even bother looking at pharmacy nowadays. The job outlook is miserable from what I have heard. PA is not a bad option and It is definitely a better return on your investment compared to dentistry since their tuition is a lot lower. You can also specialize in many different fields (derm, cardiothoracic, etc. MD/DO is also good since your income will be much higher.
Unless you can keep your debt very minimal (100-200k) I don't think dentistry is worth pursuing. Some folks on sdn don’t mind working for 10+ years and with only 40-50k to live on after paying their loans and long as they get to be a dentist. I honestly think there many other ways you can earn decent income without being in the hole for so many years. I want to buy a house some day, have a family, go on vacation, and have money in the bank. And no I do want to depend on my spouse’s income.

same, what are your thoughts on the nurse to np route?

 

[LFA20]

same, what are your thoughts on the nurse to np route?

I think NP is a good field to get into as well.

 

[doc toothache]

Does the cost benefit analysis apply to choosing a life partner?