There are a lot of reasons why you should consider dentistry. Here are some of the very best reasons why to choose a dental profession.
1. Ability to Help People with Dental Skills
Dentistry is a service oriented profession. As a dentist you will spend all of your time helping people. This can make your work very rewarding, especially as you make significant improvements in people’s lives. There can be instant gratification when you end a bad tooth ache or place a beautiful crown.
2. Highly Respected Profession
Dentistry is a high respected profession. A dentist holds the title of doctor and is given the responsibility to prescribe drugs, review personal health histories and perform oral surgeries. With this responsibility comes a strong respect from the community. According to the 2008 Gallup Survey, “The majority of the American public has a positive opinion of dentists.” (http://www.cds.org/for_your_practice/online_columnists/practice_management/polls.html)3.
3. Stable Dental Career
There is a strong demand for good dentists all over the world. In the US, the baby boomers are aging and their dental needs are likely to increase. Also, there are a limited number of seats per year in the dental schools and as the baby boomer dentists retire there will be more voids that need to be filled.
In the past most dentists were men, but this has changed and now the number of female dental students is closer to 50%.
This means that in the future there will be closer to a 50% female ratio of dentists in the workplace. Statistically these women are less likely to work full time because some will choose a family life raising children. This means the demands for dental care will increase per dentist, making the profession very stable.
4. Dentists Have Great Pay
According to Forbes Magazine, the average dentist makes $122,883 a year. The great thing about being a dentist is that you can determine how much you want to make based on how hard you work. Some dentists work 3 or 4 days a week and earn less, but work less.
Others will work long days and even some Saturdays; these are the dentists that may earn above $300,000 a year. In dental school large dental corporations often come and recruit, these companies may offer starting salaries to new dentists that average $100,000.
There are also lots of other great things about the profession of dentistry but these are my top reasons. Hopefully they will help you make the right choice, but remember there are also downsides to the profession. Here are some of my reasons not to become a dentist.
I’m only in 10th grade and I have been thinking about what I want to do and I have been researching a lot about pursuing this career, but I’m just not sure what I need to work on in high school to build up to what I want to be.
Hi Ben,am still in grade 11 and am starting to think dentistry was’nt made for me it feel like there is lot of work to be done and thinking that am not an A student makes me more afraid so i need inspiration do you think i should follow my dreams or i should just find a simple career that will be suitable for me
i hope you got what am trying to say and have a solution for me
Thank you. That article really helped me understanding about dentistry and kinda encourage me about it too. But I am not really sure about the subjects I should be focusing on. What are the subjects required for dentistry in high school? Is math required too?
Sumaiya
Hello Ben, I wanted to know my chances of getting into school. I graduated with a BS in Biology and I took all the science pre-reqs, but I graduated 5-6 years ago and I basically took my pre-reqs 5-7 years ago. If I want to get into dental school, do I have to retake all of my prereqs? I did well in them, I got a 3.54 GPA overall. I have yet to take the DAT, what do you recommend?
I’m starting my first year of college this fall, what classes should I take to become a dentist?
I would talk to the preprofessional advisement center in your college, they can help you setup a plan. But just to briefly answer this question, get your physics, chemistry and biology done. Those are required for all dental schools.
Hello Ben.
So i don’t really think i should be thinking of becoming a dentist yet since i am only 14 years old or should i be?
and one more question how hard can things get when taking dental classes in about 4-6 years?
also could you tell me what classes i should be focusing on in high school and im also wondering what types of math classes i should be taking my math teacher told me that i can skip workplace math i think for grade 10 should i do that or not?
Thanks for Your time and i hope i made sense!
Hello, I’m currently in the military and will be getting out within the next two years but while I’m in, I’m looking to start taking college classes in order to become a dentist. I know that I need to get my prereqs done but I have no idea what to major in or what associates degree to get. I’ll be taking classes online since I’m active duty. Any recommendations on classes?
Hi Janice,
My suggestion would be to get a major you enjoy. My reasoning is getting a major you enjoy plus the prereq classes will maybe add 1 year to your education, but it will give you an awesome fallback degree and set you apart from all the other “biology” applicants. But if you do just know you want to be a dentist, no questions asked, maybe try a biology related major.
Hey thanks for the insight there on dentistry Ben, it was pretty helpful!
I’m currently a junior in college who is wanting to eventually make it into dental school, however, I’m slightly discouraged if whether my gpa will suffice when it comes to what dental schools are looking for. I did start off well with a 3.8 after my freshmen year, yet I ended up letting other obstacles get in the way and have gotten some bad grades along the way as a result, but I am making up for them and am working hard to get straight A’s this term; my gpa is currently 3.1. I still though have several other classes I need to take this term as well as in my senior year, in which I plan on working my butt off. I’ve also withdrawn from some classes during my college career I’ll admit. I’m kind of afraid of whether the schools I’m applying to will take that into account.
*Two questions:
-What would you say regarding my situation, do you think I still have a chance getting into dental school?
-Is it ever too late to become a dentist?
Alex
Hey Alex,
You certainly have a chance at getting into dental school. You’re just going to have to work harder for it. Make sure you get all A’s for the remainder of your undergraduate schooling. That will show the admissions committee that you changed.
And also start doing things to set your self apart from other applicants. Maybe you can get a part-time job assisting a dentist, or maybe you can volunteer at a local community clinic.
Finally, start thinking about getting great letters of reccomendation from science faculty. You need them to amazing, check out my article on dental letters of recommendation for some tips.
Is it ever too late to become a dentist? My answer would be yes and no. It depends on your life situation, family, finances, and age. But certainly the longer you wait, the harder it will become.
Hope that helps!
I am not a straight A student, well I can get A’s if I study really hard and a lot but with kids and work it is pretty hard. I am mostly a B student and that is not even trying as hard as I should. So I do believe in myself that I can make this possible. I was having a hard time in either becoming a Dental Hygientist or the Dentist. I really want to be my own boss so I chose Dentist.
The educational requirements to become a dentist are challenging. Test yourself and set a goal to make all A’s. If you find you can do it, then you will feel more confident about your ability to succeed in dental school.
way better understanding of how Dentistry is really like. I am 26yrs old a mom of 2, I have a supportive husband and I am definitely interested in becoming a General Dentist. going to be a long way to go but totally worth it. Thank you for taking your time and sharing this.
Thanks for the kind words about my website. Being a dentist is great, the pathway is long the destination is worth it.
I love Dentistry & Im also studying all the subjects to get me into it makes me feel a better person knowing that its a stable career but not only that your helping people with insecurities & making them have a beautiful smile .
it is useful for me because it makes to love my study more and more.
Thank you for this, this has helped me have a better understanding for dentistry.
My pleasure, glad it helped you.
This is very helpful. I am leaning on going into dental school and this has helped me