dentistry?

Question

How long does one need to go to school for a degree in dentistry...I mean in general...Do you need a Bachelors, Masters, both,ext...

Answer 1

I'm a dentist.

First off, let me assume that you're also interested in medicine. I'll discuss both.

Dental schools (like medical schools) are themselves four-year programs, and do not require a bachelors degree for entrance. Three years is technically enough to get into dental and medical school, provided you have completed the prerequisite courses. They are: 1 year general chemistry, 1 year organich chemistry, 1 year physics, 1 year biology, 1 year english, and usually 1 year math (these are identical to the requirements for medical school). In order to be admitted to dental school without having completed your bachelors degree, you have to be an exceptional student with qualifications well-beyond those of the typically competitive applicant.

Unlike medical school, which requires the MCAT, dental schools require the DAT (Dental Admissions Test), administered by the American Dental Association. The test is quite difficult (albeit not quite as difficult as the MCAT). Unlike the MCAT, where you are given passages to read that contain much of the information you'll need to answer the questions, the DAT is simply question and answer. If you don't know the material, you are completely out of luck, and will need to randomly guess. Basically, the MCAT is a tougher test, but the DAT requires a more thorough knowledge of the actual materials. Additionally, the DAT contains a perceptual ability test (i.e. PAT), which contains questions about shapes. As far as I know, few schools pay a lot of attention to your score on it, provided you don't do poorly on it.

Dental school is organized much like medical school. The first two years are didactic, and the second two years are clinically oriented. In the first year of dental school, you will take most of the same classes taken by medical students, i.e. the basic sciences (biochemistry, physiology, gross anatomy, of course, histology, among others). Unlike medical school, however, you will also take some dental-specific courses. In the second year, the curriculums start to diverge a bit. In dental school, you still take some medically-related courses, but you get bombarded with dental courses (e.g. fixed prosthodontics, removable prosthodontics, periodontics, orthodontics, etc. etc.) as well as the notorious dental-related laboratory courses where you learn to perform dental work on fake teeth. This is, in my opinion, the most miserable part of dental school. You take all these medical courses, and yet at the same time have to take these relatively unrelated dental courses AND dental labs. The medical curriculum in the second year focuses more on diseases and diagnosis. Make no mistake about it, though, as a dental student you will learn a hell of a lot about medicine. They learn the specifics (i.e. diagnosis and treatment of diseases), but you will certainly know what most of these diseases are....provided you learn what you're supposed to learn.

In the 3rd and 4th years of dental school (especially the 3rd), you still take some courses, but are primarily in the clinic treating patients. I hated this aspect of dental school even more than the didactic portion.

People who have been to both medical and dental school (i.e. dentists who decided they wanted to become physicians OR oral surgery residents who are in 6-year MD-granting programs) say that medical schools requires a bit more studying, but dental school is tougher simply because of the number of things on your plate you have to deal with.

Once graduated, you can enter private practice as a general dentist or continue your education. If you wish to be a general dentist, you can enter AEGD (Advanced Education in General Dentistry) or GPR (General Practice Residency) programs. AEGD's are little more than a 5th year of dental school, and in my opinion, absolutely worthless. GPR's, however, are very worthwhile because it is a hospital-based residency where you will have the opportunity to briefly rotate through different services (including anesthesiology, medicine, pediatrics, and possibly even OBGYN).

If you choose to specialize, there are nine specialties (which is too many, in my opinion). They are: 1. orthodontics, which is two to three years residency, 2. oral and maxillofacial pathology, which is three years, 3. oral and maxillofacial radiology, which is two years, 4. endodontics, two years, 5. pediatric dentistry, two years, 6. periodontics, three years, 7. dental public health, who cares? 8. prosthodontics (a useless specialty), three years, and 9. oral and maxillofacial surgery, four to six years (six years if you're in a program that awards an M.D. degree).

Keep in mind that as a general dentist, you are legally eligible to perform any procedure performed by any of the specialties, but are held to the same standards. Oral/maxillofacial surgery is a bit different, as they are truly surgeons who perform a wide range of procedures ranging from treating traumatic facial injuries to nose-jobs and facelifts.

As far as income goes, it varies. Dental specialists make on average an additional $100k beyond what general dentists make, which is a lot to begin with.

Enjoy!

Answer 2

Most dentist are in Dental school for at least 4 years for general dentistry. You can get a masters which would take longer and if you decide to specialize you can add at least 1-2 years of extra school on for the specialty.

Answer 3

Dental school requires at least eight years. Four years undergrad, and four years dental school. It they want to specialize it takes an additional two years. That is a lot of schooling, and a lot of money if you have student loans. Add this to setting up your own practice and many are seriously in debt their first five years, some even longer. You have to do what you love, so for many there is no other choice.

Answer 4

You generally need to be going to school to get a bachelors to be able to apply to dental school, if you are accepted after your third year of college you can in most dental school finish your bachelors along with you dental degree. It generally takes you 8 years.

Answer 5

Well, we refer to dentists as doctors. So understand then, that this would involve going to a four year university, then after that, at least 2-4 years of schooling afterwards, depending on whether or not that a particular dentist was pursuing a speciality.

Answer 6

This is NOT the best answer, but just some related information. Pick someone who said (usually) 4 years for a Bacheclors degree and then 4 years for the dental degree.
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It helps to look into the requirements for admission to a dental school and work backwards. This will help you choose your college major and it might even help you choose your college. Typically, it is easier to match up the requirements for dental school admission with the requirements of a science major and biology seems to be the closest match. You could be a history major if you wanted to be, but then all of your electives would probably be used up trying to take courses required for dental school admission.

Typically, you graduate from college with a bachelor's degree and then start dental school, which is a whole separate entity from college. Some colleges offer combined programs where the really bright and focused student might be able to combine some credits and actually enter dental school before receiving the undergraduate degree. Obviously, you would have to know this well in advance, as it might even determine where you apply to college. You do not have to disclose this intention as you are applying to the college, but you need to look into the program almost immediately, because it will determine quite a bit about what courses you need to take as soon as possible in college.

Dental school treats different students differently. My experience was at least 98% positive, but some would tell you otherwise. I found that the best way to survive the rite of passage through dental school, which is still sort of a "Good Old Boy" network, is to just study and know your stuff. If you do NOT know your stuff, do not try to bluff your way through. Just say that you don't know the answer or need some help with the technique and you will find most instructors are interested in helping. Many instructors are part-time faculty with private practices in the real world. Nobody is forcing them to teach and they like to work with students who do not have a bad attitude and are ready to learn. There is more than one means to an end and students have to understand that they should not argue with an instructor who likes some different technique.

It's not as difficult as the life of a surgical resident or anything, but dental school was the hardest school I attended. The class day was scheduled from 8 to 5 with an hour for lunch. I needed to spend a few hours at home every night just to be sure that I was current. That's the secret to getting through. (As if you have not heard this, even in high school...) Be sure that you know TODAY'S work before you move on. Review every lecture and look up things that you don't understand. If you get lost in the second week, you will be hopelessly lost in the third and spinning your wheels uselessly after that.

In the clinical years, it can be difficult to match up your availability with clinic time availability, let alone your patients' time, but it can be done. In clinic, you have to do one step (or two) and wait to have it checked before you proceed. This can be frustrating for both you and your patient, as your instructor might be busy with another student who is having trouble. Some instructors like to hear their own voice and talk way too long, also. You will soon learn who they are and just avoid working with them in the clinic.

As far as what it is like to practice dentistry, I enjoy it. You need to have ability with your hands, sure, but you also need to really like people. All kinds of people. There are some difficult aspects of practice, including people who waited three weeks with a toothache before they give up and call for help, but this is what keeps it interesting. If you own your own practice, dealing with staff can be troublesome. Hiring and firing... (They don't mention business AT ALL in dental school, so you will have to learn a lot from others or try to take a couple of business courses as electives in your undergraduate years.) If you like to help people and don't mind some technical challeneges along the way, you will like dentistry. Sometimes it hurts and I still hate to hurt anyone. In the early years, I told my dad (also a dentist) that it bothered me sometimes when I knew someone was in pain or that their treatment was going to cost a lot of money. He said, "Listen. You did not give them cavities and you did not cause their pain. You are the one who is going to help them and get them out of pain." You have to remember that at all times.