So you want to be a dentist. You love teeth and want a career with a great lifestyle and high earning potential. Let’s debunk the public perception myths and give it to you straight. This is the reality of dentistry.
What is Dentistry?
Dentistry is the field of medicine focused on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of conditions, disorders, and diseases of the teeth, gums, and jaws.
Although many dental issues are largely preventable, they’re also incredibly prevalent. According to the 2019 Global Burden of Disease Report, untreated tooth decay in permanent teeth is the most common health condition in the world and is estimated to affect over 3 billion people annually. As such, dentists play an integral role in global health.
Dentists also perform a wide variety of procedures, from the routine to the complex. This includes minor surgeries of the teeth and jaws as well as other conditions such as temporomandibular joint, or TMJ, disorder. That being said, the specific conditions you see on a day-to-day basis will depend heavily on your geographic location, area of focus, and practice type.
This brings us to an important method of differentiating a dentist’s practice: private practice vs dental service organization vs public service.
Private Practice vs Dental Service Organization vs Public Service
Private practice is the most common practice type among dentists. Dentists working in this setting will typically work in small, independent offices providing dental care for patients. Although earning potential is often higher in private practice, it comes with the additional financial and administrative burdens of running a business.
Next, there are Dental Service Organizations or DSOs. These are corporations that oversee multiple dental clinics. Dentists working in these clinics are employees and tend to see higher volumes of patients than their private practice colleagues. That being said, patient volumes will vary from practice to practice based on the size and structure of the specific DSO.
Lastly, some dentists work in public service. This includes working for the military, in prisons or underserved areas, or in the academic setting. In general, dentists working in the public service setting will earn less than their colleagues in private or DSO practices.
Misconceptions About Dentistry
Next, let’s clear up some misconceptions about dentistry.
First, there’s the belief that students only go into dentistry because they weren’t “smart enough” to get into medical school. This is false.
Although getting into medical school is more difficult on average than getting into dental school – which we discuss in our article covering the competitiveness of medical school vs dental school – there are distinct pros and cons to each career path. There are countless reasons why someone may choose a career in dentistry over a career in medicine.
Next, people often perceive dentistry as a cushy, lifestyle profession. Although it’s true that most dentists own their own practice and work typical 9-5 business hours, they also have to deal with the financial and administrative burdens of running a business meaning there’s a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes that you don’t see.
In addition, people see what dentists charge for various services and procedures and think that they’re rolling in money. This isn’t necessarily the case as there’s also a significant overhead that comes with running a business. The number of new dentists going into private practice has also been steadily declining in recent years as the dental specialty becomes more saturated in some areas and as Dental Service Organizations take over an increasing number of practices.
How to Become a Dentist
To become a dentist in the U.S., you must complete four years of college followed by four years of dental school. There are some fast-track programs lasting five to seven years where you can earn your bachelor’s degree and your dental degree at the same time; however, these are less common.
During college, you will need to complete the required prerequisites for dental school and take the Dental Admissions Test, or DAT for short. According to the American Dental Education Association, the general requirements for dental school are two semesters of biology with lab, two semesters of general chemistry with lab, two semesters of organic chemistry with lab, and two semesters of physics with lab.
Some dental schools may require additional courses, however, including English, anatomy and physiology, microbiology, and/or biochemistry, so you’ll need to check the requirements for the specific schools that you’re interested in to ensure you meet the requirements.
Next, you’ll have to take the dental admission test. This is a four-and-a-half-hour test consisting of four sections: a survey of the natural sciences, which includes topics from biology, general chemistry, and organic chemistry, perceptual ability, which assesses an individual’s ability to perceive object dimensions and mentally manipulate objects in space, reading comprehension, and quantitative reasoning.
Similar to medical school admissions, your GPA and DAT score are arguably the two most important metrics in determining your competitiveness for dental school. Although there are candidates who get into dental school with low GPAs or DAT scores, they are the exception – not the rule. That being said, many dental schools use a holistic approach to reviewing applicants and assess things like experiences and personal attributes as well.
After dental school, each state has its own requirements for dental licensure. Depending on where you plan to practice, you may have to complete additional requirements before you can practice.
In terms of competitiveness, getting into dental school can be incredibly challenging. In 2021, there were 11,800 applicants, out of which only about 6,300 became first-year dental students, which is a matriculation rate of about 54%. In terms of hard metrics, the average dental school applicant in 2021 had a GPA of 3.45 and a DAT score of 19.7, and the average dental school matriculant had a GPA of 3.59 and DAT score of 20.7 – which is around a 75th-80th percentile score.
Subspecialties within Dentistry
After completing dental school, there are currently 12 options for additional subspecialization that are recognized by the American Dental Education Association. We’ll cover the most common ones briefly. For a more comprehensive list, be sure to check out our blog post – link in the description.
Orthodontics
Orthodontics is the dental subspecialty concerned with the diagnosis, prevention, and correction of malpositioned teeth or jaws. These are the specialists that you’d typically go to for braces or other malalignment issues. Advanced dental education programs in orthodontics generally take between 2-3 years to complete.
Endodontics
Endodontics is the dental subspecialty concerned with the inside of the tooth including the dental pulp and the tissues surrounding the roots of a tooth. These dentists are best known for performing root canals and other procedures to help patients retain their natural teeth. Endodontic program lengths vary; however, the average program length is around 26 months.
Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
Oral and maxillofacial surgery, or OMFS for short, is the subspecialty of dentistry that focuses on the surgical management of the face, jaw, and oral cavity. There are two pathways to becoming an OMFS after dental school: the four-year program and the six-year dual degree program. Both will certify you to practice as an oral and maxillofacial surgeon; however, the six-year program will also grant you a Doctor of Medicine degree, or MD.
Prosthodontics
Prosthodontics is concerned with the replacement of natural teeth with fixed or removable appliances, including dentures, bridges, and implants. The average prosthodontics program is roughly 3 years long.
Periodontics
Periodontics is the dental subspecialty concerned with the gums and underlying bones and tissues that support the teeth. Most periodontal programs are 3 years in duration; however, program lengths can vary.
For additional dental subspecialties, be sure to check out the full post over on the Med School Insiders blog – link in the description.
Dental Anesthesiology
Dental anesthesiology is the field of dentistry that provides advanced sedation and general anesthesia care for patients requiring dental procedures. Dental anesthesiologists can practice in a wide variety of settings including private practices, surgery centers, hospitals, and educational institutions. Dental anesthesiology programs are 3 years in duration.
Dental Public Health
Dental public health is the specialty of dentistry that focuses on developing policies and programs that help the community at large. There are a variety of dental public health programs ranging from master’s to doctoral programs so the length of training can vary widely depending on the specific program; however, the average program is approximately 14 months in duration.
Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology
Oral and maxillofacial radiology is the subspecialty of dentistry focused on all types of imaging of the teeth and jaws. Oral and maxillofacial radiologists take and interpret a wide variety of imaging studies including x-rays, CT scans, and MRIs to help diagnose and treat oral and maxillofacial diseases and conditions. Training programs for this subspecialty generally last two to three years.
Oral Medicine
Oral medicine is a relatively new dental specialty that focuses on the diagnosis and management of medically related diseases, disorders, and conditions affecting the oral and maxillofacial region. It is primarily a non-surgical specialty with procedures consisting of diagnostic biopsies, small excisions, and therapeutic injections, among others. Oral medicine programs range from 2-3 years in duration.
Orofacial Pain
Orofacial pain, or OFP, is the subspecialty of dentistry that focuses on the diagnosis, management, and treatment of pain disorders of the jaw, mouth, face, head, and neck. Common conditions that an OFP dentist will see include temporomandibular muscle and joint, or TMJ, disorders, jaw movement disorders, neuropathic and neurovascular pain disorders, headaches, and sleep disorders. Orofacial pain programs vary between one and three years in duration.
Pediatric Dentistry
Lastly, there’s pediatric dentistry which focuses on the treatment of a wide variety of conditions and diseases related to oral health in children. Pediatric dentistry programs vary between two and three years in duration.
What You’ll Love About Dentistry
There’s a lot to love about dentistry.
To start, the majority of dentists own their own practice. This means you have complete control over the quality of your work, the types of insurance that you take, and how many days per week you want to work. That being said, there are some drawbacks to owning a business.
Dentistry also offers the ability to give people immediate relief from their pain. Someone can be in excruciating pain due to an infected tooth and you can give near-immediate relief by extracting the tooth and starting them on pain medications and antibiotics.
In addition to pain, you have the opportunity to help people improve their smile – which is a common insecurity for many people. A recent 2022 poll of over 2,000 Americans found that nearly two-thirds of people don’t like how their smile looks in photos. As a dentist, you have the ability to improve someone’s self-confidence in mere hours.
If you enjoy working with your hands, dentistry also has plenty of procedures to keep you busy. There are also no life-threatening emergencies within dentistry. Although the work can still be stressful, you don’t have to worry about someone’s life in your hands.
Lastly, the average dentist earns roughly $189,000 per year. Given that the majority of dentists own their own practice, there is also no limit on how much you can earn as a dentist. That being said, if you decide that you no longer want the burdens of running your own practice, there’s always the option to work for a dental service organization as well.
What You Won’t Love About Dentistry
While dentistry is an awesome profession, it’s not for everyone.
To start, there is a large opportunity cost associated with becoming a dentist, albeit smaller than going the physician route. On average, it takes about eight years after high school to become a dentist in the United States. That’s four years of college followed by four years of dental school to earn your Doctor of Dental Surgery, DDS, or Doctor of Dental Medicine, DMD.
In addition, the average debt per dental school graduate in 2020 was approximately $305,000 with many students having significantly greater loan burdens. For reference, the average medical student graduates with approximately $250,000 in debt. Even for high-earning dentists, it can take several years, sometimes even several decades to repay these student loans.
Furthermore, there’s been a trend in recent years of decreasing insurance reimbursements and increasing overhead for private practices. As such, running a profitable dental practice in certain higher-cost-of-living areas can feel near impossible.
This is perhaps why we’re seeing a decrease in the number of dentists who own their practice. According to the American Dental Association, approximately 85% of dentists owned their own practice in 2005, compared to only 73% in 2021.
Despite the large number of dentists who own their own practice, dental school does not train you how to run a business. As such, there can be a steep learning curve associated with running a business and managing employees.
This is further compounded when you consider the significant loan burden that many students graduate with and the financial pressures of running a profitable business. Although you can work for a dental service organization, these jobs tend to see high patient volumes which can contribute heavily to burnout.
Dentistry is also a much more physically demanding job than you might think. Hunching over patients day in and day out regularly causes chronic back and neck issues. When you consider that a dentist’s salary is based on seeing patients and doing procedures, the longevity of their career is heavily dependent on their physical health.
Lastly, the amount that you make will be heavily dictated by the type and number of procedures that you did. If you don’t do enough procedures or enough high-profit procedures, you may break even or potentially lose money for the day. In short, just because you physically went to work doesn’t mean you actually made money.
Should You Become a Dentist?
How can you decide if dentistry is right for you?
If you want a career that gives you the opportunity to combine science, creativity, and entrepreneurship into one, dentistry has you covered.
You should be passionate about teeth and willing to spend long hours each day, hunched over a chair if it means helping your patients have healthier, more attractive smiles.
And if you want a job that won’t make you work nights and weekends, dentistry won’t make you choose between work and family.
If you enjoyed this article, be sure to check out So You Want to Be an Orthodontist or So You Want to Be an Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon.
