What do you wish you knew when starting your D1 year?

[Michdent]

Hi everyone already in dental school. I will be starting at Iowa this fall and I was wondering what you all wish you knew before you started school? (i.e. what computer/tablet to buy, etc.)

Thank you!

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[free99]

Great thread, looking forward to reading some responses.

 

[CMistry]

Work as hard as you possibly can. You never know if you'll want to end up a specialist.

 

[Screwtape]

Don't worry about what other people are doing. Everyone has their own special formula to succeed, don't change your own just because your peers are doing things differently. Some of your classmates are going to be neurotic worry warts, keep your head down and do what you gotta do. This may seem simple to you now, but you will understand it a bit more during a big exam week when people around you are freaking out. Stay cool and stay relaxed, trust me.

 

[csafizadeh]

Most importantly enjoy your time before school starts.

But I remember being very bored before school started and given that I had absolutely zero anatomy experience it wouldn't have hurt to read a book like Clinically Oriented Anatomy by Moore (If you know zero anatomy just start at page 1 and it will literally explain everything) or even buying a Netter's Anatomy Atlas to familiarize yourself with structures.

This being said I did not prepare for anatomy at all, or even school in general before I started (I was working fulltime) and I have been just fine.

It also depends on the school, my school is very heavy on anatomy (as dental students we do a full body dissection minus the pelvis).

I am just saying this because when we started anatomy I had no idea what abduction/adduction movements were, or what a sagittal section was, and on and on. But after one month of anatomy there is no way you won't know these things so preparing early won't make too much of a difference down the line. If anything it would have probably just reduced my stress level a little as I was starting anatomy but that's all.

 

[yappy]

I wish I would have known just how arbitrary grades are in dental school. The difference between a B and an A is often subjective (in lab) or comes down to reading some random paragraph or memorizing a random chart from hundreds of pages spread across multiple book/powerpoints. Often, the tests are not written as well I was accustom to in UG; sometimes multi choice questions haven no correct answer or the question itself isn't totally clear. No, they will not change grades to account for these poorly written questions.

So, I've become more relaxed about the tests and am trusting (hoping) that getting a few B's here and there on exams won't limit my career opportunities later... /cry

 

[diasIItema]

1) Understand the meaning of professionalism and what it means for dentistry to be a profession (acd.org)
2) You're only young once. Don't spend Friday nights and Saturdays in a library. Go to all the social events. Make meaningful relationships. Everything else will work itself out. People seriously stress out too much about their grades and not enough about actually being a good doctor.

 

[str8ner]

People can be petty. Stay on the good side of your classmates and teachers. Being on good terms with a teacher can mean the difference between an A and a B. Never forget the dental community is small. Instructors can develop a negative opinion about you because of a comment you made when you thought they weren't listening.

 

[sacapuntas]

Don't get caught up in how other people study or what resources they use, just stick to your methods that already got you this far.

 

[Erhatstil]

Get involved in something completely unrelated to dental school. i ended up playing for an amateur/semipro soccer team and its been a great way to separate myself from school and make other friendships. during tough weeks at school these things give you something to look forward to.