thinking of dental school

[cluelessdr]

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i am planning on applying to dental school 2018 cycle. what if i were to get accepted and graduate from dental school, but end up hating being a dentist or what if i hate dental school. what are my options? it sucks knowing that you work all these years to get that good gpa, dat, ec's, but it might not even pay off.
dont tell me to shadow.... i have been shadowing and i like it, but im only standing there its not like im doing to procedures.

 

[#cariology]

Don’t apply if you’re not committed to general dentistry for the long haul. Dental school is rough and expensive. Try shadowing some other profession or perhaps get a job.

 

[The Anhedonia]

stop what you are doing and apply to CRNA school.
Best. Job. Ever

 

[Faux]

Don’t apply if you’re not committed to general dentistry for the long haul. Dental school is rough and expensive. Try shadowing some other profession or perhaps get a job.

Man even shadowing was boring to me.

I feel like dentistry is one of those fields you really don't know you'll like until you're in the chair doing it.

 

[sgv]

stop what you are doing and apply to CRNA school.
Best. Job. Ever

lmao...you get a chair, sit around and press buttons, minimal responsibility, cover only easy cases, minimal schooling, take coffee breaks, and still make like $180k...

 

[allantois]

lmao...you get a chair, sit around and press buttons, minimal responsibility, cover only easy cases, minimal schooling, take coffee breaks, and still make like $180k...

I don’t know anything about CRNAs, but that’s quite a reductionist and offensive view of fellow health professionals.

 

[sgv]

I don’t know anything about CRNAs, but that’s quite a reductionist and offensive view of fellow health professionals.

If you don't know anything about crnas maybe your judgement of what is or is not reductionist is worthless...

 

[clutchfans]

And work the overnight shifts

You get that shift compensation though right 😉

 

[doc toothache]

i am planning on applying to dental school 2018 cycle. what if i were to get accepted and graduate from dental school, but end up hating being a dentist or what if i hate dental school. what are my options? it sucks knowing that you work all these years to get that good gpa, dat, ec's, but it might not even pay off.
dont tell me to shadow.... i have been shadowing and i like it, but im only standing there its not like im doing to procedures.

Here are some options:
1. put your applications on hold until you decide on your future career(s)
2. apply to ds, get accepted (assuming you are a good actor and adcoms will not detect your ambivalence), and if you hate ds:
a. quit ds and start paying off the 100K/year you will owe in loans
b. bite the bullet and finish ds
3. after graduation, you can move from hating ds to hating dentistry, then
a. go into teaching
b. quit dentistry altogether

If you feel that shadowing isn't a spectator sport for you, maybe you need to look for something that will pique your interest.

 

[cluelessdr]

Here are some options:
1. put your applications on hold until you decide on your future career(s)
2. apply to ds, get accepted (assuming you are a good actor and adcoms will not detect your ambivalence), and if you hate ds:
a. quit ds and start paying off the 100K/year you will owe in loans
b. bite the bullet and finish ds
3. after graduation, you can move from hating ds to hating dentistry, then
a. go into teaching
b. quit dentistry altogether

If you feel that shadowing isn't a spectator sport for you, maybe you need to look for something that will pique your interest.

i feel like most applicants are in my position though, right? I mean who really is going to know dentistry is really for them until they are actually in that chair doing the actual work. whats your input?

 

[PreDentTechySon]

You should know whether or not your enjoy it before you get into it. Do some shadowing, see if it looks like something that would be fun to learn. You’ll definitely appreciate it more the further you get into it, but you should have an idea of whether or not you like it before pursuing it.

 

[The Anhedonia]

lmao...you get a chair, sit around and press buttons, minimal responsibility, cover only easy cases, minimal schooling, take coffee breaks, and still make like $180k...

exactly. dream job.

 

[2TH MVR]

You should know whether or not your enjoy it before you get into it. Do some shadowing, see if it looks like something that would be fun to learn. You’ll definitely appreciate it more the further you get into it, but you should have an idea of whether or not you like it before pursuing it.

You have to decide if medical/dental is even an option. When I was younger .... I KNEW I wanted to go into the medical/dental field even though no one in my entire family had ever done so. At first it was medical. Then I watched too many M.A.S.H episodes and decided dentistry. After a year of D1 .... decided I didn't care much for dentistry and decided to be an orthodontist. It was the best decision I ever made. If you can limit your decision to either medical or dental .... there are still options to pursue other than a primary care physician or GP dentist.

 

[cdd365]

I knew a lot of people who decided during or after dental school they hated being a General Dentist. Most of them ended up specializing in Orthodontics and one did Radiology. One was a General Dentist who ended up opening up a Dental Sleep Center and enjoyed that. I feel like a lot of the people who hated general dentistry had more drive for specializing and ended up putting more effort. There are also options of being a dental consultant or work in dental practice transactions if you like more of the business side or being a dental school faculty teaching. I personally enjoy teaching and plan on teaching alongside being in private practice.