Veterinary Medicine or Dentistry?

[olez]

Dear all!

I'm sorry for bothering you with such a dull question, but I just received the news that I've been accepted to both. Veterinary Med at the university of my choice, Dentistry at another one. I have to decide within a few weeks and some input would certainly be appreciated!

I've been fascinated by the medical field since I was about 16, I thought of medicine/veterinary medicine for about 6 years before discovering dentistry and found that I preferred it to medicine. However, veterinary medicine has always appealed, probably partly due to spending time more or less every single summer since I was born at my cousins farm taking care of animals, something I still do and love doing.

Following is a short list of my likes and dislikes in each field:

Dentistry Pros:

-Secure, pretty fantastic salary potential
-A lot of aesthetics/artistry involved(I appreciate making beautiful things)
-Incredible lifestyle
-The social life in the school of dentistry I've been accepted seems amazing
-One achieves perfection at times, gives a nice feeling to me
-Since dentists are sort of hated, many are really down-to-earth, humble and likeable, and have a tendency to support each other(only an impression, could be way off)

😡 Dentistry Cons:

-You get tired that seemingly 9/10 people considers your field to be sadist/incredibly boring/disgusting/full of greedy bastards/all of the above
-Patients can be very difficult
-The precision needed is constant and extreme(picky picky picky picky...)
-A lot of routine work
-Few opportunities to ever work outside of the mouth/face
-I have never met a dentist who fascinated me. However, I have read about several that do(the ones who are more artistic in approach and have artistic interests)

Veterinary Medicine Pros:

-Incredibly fascinating field to study
-My impressions from volunteering/talking to vets is overwhelmingly positive
-Research opportunities seem exciting
-A lot of variation in cases
-From what I experienced; patients/owners who were a pleasure to treat
-Your work/research can have a great say in many peoples lives
-I love animals and I am fascinated by them

😡 Veterinary Medicine Cons:

-Low pay
-The hours
-Limited aesthetics/artistry
-I like perfection.... less opportunity to achieve that(perhaps?)

In both fields I love the study of living things, the constant use of hands and interaction with people. I am also very attracted to the idea of running a business, employing a team of good people, perhaps even opening up several surgeries in the location of my choice at one point in time. I would also like to travel for research or work from time to time(I love travelling).

Long post, yes, but in a few weeks the decision will be made, and although each advice is considered with a grain of salt, every advice is considered.

Thank you for reading this and for all replies!

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[sofficat]

First of all- CONGRATS!!! You should be very proud of yourself for making both vet and dental school.
So I guess I will start by adding one thing to your vet con list that was also on your vet pro list: patients/owners and again owners who are NOT a pleasure to treat or work with. Many vets are not seen as 'real docs' and their clients treat them and their hospital that way. Also, to add to your pro list: a lot of vet med, esp surgeries require perfection, skill, artistry and the like. exs include nasal reconstruction in brachial cephalic dogs (esp pugs), cherry eye sx, ligament repairs, etc.
As for me, I couldn't imagine NOT being a vet. Not just b/c 'it's what i have always wanted' but b/c it is so fascinating and I am so passionate about it. For me, there is no other choice but vet med. My backup plan if I couldn't get into vet school was 'try again and get into vet school' because I couldn't imagine my life any other way.
One more thing, there are people who are next on the waitlist for the vet school you may decline that KNOW they want to be a vet and that this is their dream. If you are not sure but you go to vet school anyways, don't like it and go back to dental school you not only made one less vet in the field (can't afford that!) but you have changed the life of another person who was next in line. (I was on a wait list so that is why I want you to consider them 🙂)
Good Luck in your decision.

 

[Emio]

hey olez -
there are ways to make small animal practice very neat and tidy and "perfectionist," if you will. also in SA practice, you can set your hours if you choose not to do emergencies, and pay can be fairly high; especially for surgeons!

but again, like sofficat said, certainly not all owners nor pets will be pleasures to work for/with.

can i ask what made you shift from human med to dentistry? keep in mind that veterinary medicine is still "medicine" so if there's something there that's keeping you back, the "love of animals" part isn't going to keep you going.

 

[VeganSoprano]

Have you considered going to vet school and then becoming a board certified dental specialist?

Only downside to that from your perspective might be that you will be more likely to extract a tooth than make it pretty again. But if you like working with mouths and like vet med, this might be an option for you to consider.

 

[jfitzpatri8]

Have you considered going to vet school and then becoming a board certified dental specialist?

Only downside to that from your perspective might be that you will be more likely to extract a tooth than make it pretty again. But if you like working with mouths and like vet med, this might be an option for you to consider.

Exactly what I was going to say. And more eloquently than I would have.

Jenn

 

[hirdDVM]

There is definitely a need for equine dental specialists...

Congrats on getting accepted to both 👍

 

[frozen_canadian]

I would just like to add that when you have made your decision and have started school, don't look back. Give it your all and in the tough times that will come over the next few years, don't start thinking 'if only I'd done xxx' instead. It will consume you. There are people in my class who say this every day - 'I wish I'd gone to med school' or 'dentists make a lot more money for a lot less work, why didn't i do that instead..' As a result they are miserable a lot of time. Make a decision, accept it, be happy that you have the chance to join an awesome profession and put your heart and soul into it. No regrets! 🙂 Good luck, I truly believe that deep down most people know what is the right decision for them.

 

[olez]

Wow... Thank you very much for your replies!

Let me start off by saying that to me, having a choice between two medical fields leading to enviable professional lives is quite the privilege. And even though immediately it might seem I lack dedication to the fields, given that I am considering two, I do not feel this is the case. I have great desires in both areas, and I feel my impressions and thoughts around them are quite realistic, and I do feel I could be happy at both. But, I have a feeling dentistry is the "safe" option, giving that tickly feel of guaranteed income, allowing for other pursuits in life etc. Whereas veterinary medicine feels like the exciting, the rougher, the more challenging path, the one that might lead to poverty and endless hours or to exactly the life I want! And since I tend to love taking a few risks for a great payoff, it should be a match, but somehow, in this case I am hesitant

To answer comments concerning my switch from medicine to dentistry; it was not at all medicine as an academic field, something to study and research, but rather the professional environment which just did not appeal to me. And I still do feel dentistry is a medical field, but I also feel there are more options to be intellectually stimulated through veterinary medicine.

As for becoming a veterinary dental specialist; this was actually an option I played around with if I did dentistry... I imagined that I could do some work on animals as a dentist with further training. But the fields that really interest me in dentistry are unfortunately fields that tend to be more cosmetic(ie. in my view more visual/artistic), and therefore rarely demanded by owners. Hence, a veterinary dental specialist certification will only partly satisfy my wishes.

It does not help to the decision-making that my girl will be studying architecture where I have been accepted to dentistry! Of course, I try to overlook this.

Again,
let me thank you very much for all your replies, I would love to hear more musings concerning the issue. As for "neat and tidy" veterinary practices... could someone give me a hint on who to look up online(I haven't found that type around where I live), in addition.... are there any websites where cases are discussed(with pictures etc.)? I am sure I won't understand much, but I like to lurk and watch.

 

[Angelo84]

Veterinary Information Network has interesting discussions of cases. Access is free to vet students as long as you have set up your e-mail but they also have a free 30 day trial for anyone.

As far as your decision goes I don't know if you are interested in small or large animals but equine dentists can make a lot of money. As far as small animal if you are involved with military or police dogs they generally will go for the more expensive, "artistic repairs", as opposed to extraction becuase those dogs need their teeth to perform their jobs.

If you are makin gyour decision based on future earnings I would go with dentistry. If you like more variety in your practice I would go with vet med. Good luck in your decision!

 

[CookieBear]

What would you rather get bit by: a dog, or a person?

Sorry if I'm over-simplifying.