Becoming a Dentist?

Question

Well I am a 10th grader and my grades are 90 and above. I am trying to keep my grades very high because I want to become a dentist. I don't want to be a dental hygenist because I prefer to be a dentist.

Well today at carreer day, I got to meet a dental hygenist and she told me it was a very competetive field. She also told me the only top 2% of the dentistry class get to become a dentist outta the rest of the students in the class. That is a very narrowing field to go in and she told me peopel end up changing their majors because of this.

I want to know how hard is it to become a dentist? Did you experiance this narrowing proccess to get your dream job you have today as a dentist.

Also she said she only works 40 hours a week and gets paid around 60,000. SHe said she loves the time and pay of her job. Also I wanted to know how many hours does the dentist work?

Answer 1

Getting into dental school is not easy. She is right they only accept about 2% of those that apply, ok maybe a little more than that, but it's not very much. You need a good science background in college and job experience such as shadowing is preferable. Being rich and out of state never hurts either.

Dentists who start out will work at least 30-40 hours a week. YOu probably won't make that much money, but you'll have to work a lot. Student loans aren't cheap. When you get your own practice and get established then you can hire people to do the work and only work about 15-20 hours a week.

Answer 2

Don't become discouraged. Get real world advice from a young dentist. The dentistry field has changed from when I was a young patient. In the old days, dentists seem to be mostly concerned in filling teeth as a way to make a living. My dentist would have a number of chairs working at the same time to maximize profits. This guy had an antique Rolls-Royce parked out front. My new dentist is young and very concerned in the care and art of dental care. Keep up your grades to become a great dentist and not a "hack".

Answer 3

Go for the gold! Be a dentist. You will have a path to being your own boss. My niece just became a dentist and she didn't have the type of grades you have! She ended up going to a very prestigious dental school too. I would really recommend trying to meet some dentists and get their advice on how to get into dental school! The recommendations of actual dentists help you get in along with good grades. You might also try to take some classes in business and finance since eventually you'll want to be on your own and this is something that all too often isn't addressed in dental school! If you are willing to move to a state that has fewer dentists you can get your loans paid off in no time at all if you are careful.

There is no doubt that dental hygiene is a good career but you'll never be your own boss, no one will ever call you doctor, and you'll not be able to rake in the profits that a dentist gets.

Answer 4

I am not in that professional field. But I can tell you that you should keep your dream. Dentists are needed all over the world. There is a shortage of very good dentist. What you need to do is not just to become a dentist but specialize in a particular part of dentistry. e.g re-creative work. I don't agree with the dental assistant. There is great need for that profession. Go for the Gold. I hope a true dentist answer your query and encourage you not to give up.

Answer 5

I'm a dentist.

Surprisingly, prior to the early 90's, getting into dental school wasn't too difficult (as far as I know). Nowadays, getting into dental school is very tough. It's almost as competive as getting into medical school.

In terms of numbers, realistically, a 3.3 and a 19 will make your application competitive, but not strong.

As for dental school, it's miserably hard. And unlike medical schools, they are more than happy to fail people out.

Dentists typically work 4 to 4.5 days a week. Despite the potential for earning a lot of money without having to deal with many of the hassles from which physicians suffer, the work a dentist does can be frustrating at times--almost always because of patients. In fact, I'd say that the nature of the work offsets the easy work hours and significant pay.

Answer 6

:) I am a dentist in Australia and is so nice to hear of someone wanting so much to be a dentist .. all I can say to you because i am Australian and I dont know how different things are there ,is it takes alot of hard work and discipline if you have that you will be great !! Do not ever get discouraged ever in your dreams go and talk to a real dentist or someone studying dentistry they could probably give you better answers !! here in Australia it isnt hard getting into university to do Dentistry its just alot of hard work once you are there !!And really when you do a job you want to do and love it there isnt even enough money in the world that can be better then that !