Don't go to Dental School

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
chains can be good for building your speed and learning some procedures (almost like a GPR), but you have to be a *certain* kind of person to want to stay there for too long.
Members don't see this ad.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Hyunin1210 said:
Most likely 500k+ debt club member reporting in. I believe that it will still be worth it. Maybe not if you only care about the money, but dentistry is a rewarding profession which you can improve the lives of people every day. It is going to be rough but I don't know a profession that wouldn't be. The plan right now is to work in a rural area at a corporation maybe in order to be able to pay off my loans on schedule within 10 years. Loan repayment programs would be great too but those are tough to get accepted to. Grass is always greener.
Click to expand...
You'll burn out quickly if you aren't making any money. Then if you open a private practice, the first 5 years are going to be rough. Are you ready to start writing $3000+ (after taxes) student loan checks?
 
bzahedi said:
Is there even any private schools that charge over 500k for tuition?? Maybe if you're an international student..
Click to expand...
You have to factor in cost of living too. I personally know many dentists with over $500,000 in debt. It is crippling for them.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Members don't see this ad :)
Firm said:
You'll burn out quickly if you aren't making any money. Then if you open a private practice, the first 5 years are going to be rough. Are you ready to start writing $3000+ (after taxes) student loan checks?
Click to expand...

Well I don't plan on opening a practice that early with that much debt. I will at least cut my debt in half before I even consider it. I am expecting $4,000+ after taxes. To be honest it is too early to calculate everything to the dollar because I don't know the cost of living of where I will work and my salary etc. But I did a rough calculation and I believe it is good enough for me. I do not expect a grand life after dental school or even 5-10 years after. To my understanding a corporate position salary is around $120,000 plus a production percentage if the contract is negotiated well enough. At that point the amount of money is dependent on how quickly I work, but I understand burning out will occur. I will have to find hobbies that take away the stress and keep my body and mind healthy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 4 users
ClosetNerd828 said:
Exactly. Come here acting like an arrogant troll and some of us (@ClosetNerd828 ) will flame you shamelessly until you change your tune or leave.
Click to expand...
I wonder if you would be this aggressive had he said these things to you in real life
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
rxdmx372 said:
This is a legitimate problem but I don't think it is enough to make me not want to go to dental school. If you are right 30 years from now I will personally apologize to you with a mouthful of Red Sox hat.
Click to expand...
Unless you like massive debt and an income lower than a policeman or fireman, you will be disappointed. I really don't look forward to saying "I told you so." I wish you would just do your research. You'll see that The Firm is right. If you are smart and motivated, there are easier ways to make money and achieve the lifestyle you want. Perhaps you can tell us why you think things will be better?
 
lol young hungry pre-dent vs. retired weary dentist for dominance, it would be like something off of animal planet
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
I am hoping to have the IHS pay for my school. Then I will go work for them for about 4 years making around 120K. After that and saving, not having write checks for student loans, I plan to then enter into the private sector.
 
rxdmx372 said:
This is actually hilarious. Before I begin my rant, I want to thank you for what you think my best interests are at heart. I know you're just trying to help us new people out. I don't know how people blame "millennials who are ruining this country" for thinking that everything should be handed to them and that they don't have to work for anything. It couldn't be further than the truth. Unlike people born in the baby boomer generation and 70's and 80's, we understand that dentistry isn't a cash cow, and that we won't be making 300k working 4 days a week. We don't give a **** about that, and we want to be dentists because we genuinely want to help people, want an intellectually rewarding career, and would enjoy seeing someone walk out the door after we've changed their appearance or alleviated their pain, no matter how much money we get for it. We are cut from a different cloth than older people. Our classes are full of people whose families came to this country with nothing and who kick our asses in school in their second language because the chance to become a dentist means everything to them. And instead of bitching about how they are making this country worse, we emulate them and befriend them because they inspire us. Our friends are all moving in with their parents if they're lucky enough to graduate from college, and we're thankful for the chance to take out the loans because it's better than the alternative. Competition for everything, especially admissions into professional school and the employment market, is far more fierce than it was "back in the day". You won't hear me or anyone else complaining about it. I will be quite happy if I'm making 90k per year working 40 hours a week because A) I'll be doing what I love and B) I'll be better off than the vast majority of people in this country.

I'm sorry that the new generation of dentists don't aspire to drive Audis and take expensive vacations. We just want rewarding careers and keep things in prospective.
Click to expand...
I love this.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
I could not believe my eyes, when I saw another do not go to d school thread. You are kidding, right? Cleaning the path for your child? Trying to reduce the competition?
I might be wrong, but I heard that 50% of DS pay tuition without taking loans.
So an engineer gets raise of 4K in 5 years and a dentist increases his income a 100K in 3. Those are people I know. So where should one go?
It's pretty useless to come here and tell people who already invested years and a lot of effort into becoming a dentist, that it is no longer as cushy as it used to be. I already wrote, that everything is becoming more and more difficult. We just need to find ways to be more efficient. So advise people here that, not "give up and die" BS
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
rxdmx372 said:
This is actually hilarious. Before I begin my rant, I want to thank you for what you think my best interests are at heart. I know you're just trying to help us new people out. I don't know how people blame "millennials who are ruining this country" for thinking that everything should be handed to them and that they don't have to work for anything. It couldn't be further than the truth. Unlike people born in the baby boomer generation and 70's and 80's, we understand that dentistry isn't a cash cow, and that we won't be making 300k working 4 days a week. We don't give a **** about that, and we want to be dentists because we genuinely want to help people, want an intellectually rewarding career, and would enjoy seeing someone walk out the door after we've changed their appearance or alleviated their pain, no matter how much money we get for it. We are cut from a different cloth than older people. Our classes are full of people whose families came to this country with nothing and who kick our asses in school in their second language because the chance to become a dentist means everything to them. And instead of bitching about how they are making this country worse, we emulate them and befriend them because they inspire us. Our friends are all moving in with their parents if they're lucky enough to graduate from college, and we're thankful for the chance to take out the loans because it's better than the alternative. Competition for everything, especially admissions into professional school and the employment market, is far more fierce than it was "back in the day". You won't hear me or anyone else complaining about it. I will be quite happy if I'm making 90k per year working 40 hours a week because A) I'll be doing what I love and B) I'll be better off than the vast majority of people in this country.

I'm sorry that the new generation of dentists don't aspire to drive Audis and take expensive vacations. We just want rewarding careers and keep things in prospective.
Click to expand...
AUDI is not that expensive
 
Members don't see this ad :)
rxdmx372 said:
This is actually hilarious. Before I begin my rant, I want to thank you for what you think my best interests are at heart. I know you're just trying to help us new people out. I don't know how people blame "millennials who are ruining this country" for thinking that everything should be handed to them and that they don't have to work for anything. It couldn't be further than the truth. Unlike people born in the baby boomer generation and 70's and 80's, we understand that dentistry isn't a cash cow, and that we won't be making 300k working 4 days a week. We don't give a **** about that, and we want to be dentists because we genuinely want to help people, want an intellectually rewarding career, and would enjoy seeing someone walk out the door after we've changed their appearance or alleviated their pain, no matter how much money we get for it. We are cut from a different cloth than older people. Our classes are full of people whose families came to this country with nothing and who kick our asses in school in their second language because the chance to become a dentist means everything to them. And instead of bitching about how they are making this country worse, we emulate them and befriend them because they inspire us. Our friends are all moving in with their parents if they're lucky enough to graduate from college, and we're thankful for the chance to take out the loans because it's better than the alternative. Competition for everything, especially admissions into professional school and the employment market, is far more fierce than it was "back in the day". You won't hear me or anyone else complaining about it. I will be quite happy if I'm making 90k per year working 40 hours a week because A) I'll be doing what I love and B) I'll be better off than the vast majority of people in this country.

I'm sorry that the new generation of dentists don't aspire to drive Audis and take expensive vacations. We just want rewarding careers and keep things in prospective.
Click to expand...

This post reminds me of that GE commercial "Don't worry, you are going to change the world! You can't pick up the hammer can you"?
 
Firm said:
This post reminds me of that GE commercial "Don't worry, you are going to change the world! You can't pick up the hammer can you"?
Click to expand...
Not that busy in the office today?
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
oralcare123 said:
I am not as young as you. Anyway, the point is it is not a luxury car
Click to expand...

Really? I always thought Audi, lexus, BMW, and Mercedes Benz were on a similar tier even though some are more expensive than others.
 
Hyunin1210 said:
Really? I always thought Audi, lexus, BMW, and Mercedes Benz were on a similar tier even though some are more expensive than others.
Click to expand...
Lexus and Mercedes - yes. AUDI and BMW - no. Just very good cars for a professional. They are not out of reach for a dentist or even an engineer
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
rxdmx372 said:
I've met him in person. He's a pretty solid dude. He'd prob be down to fight some people.
Click to expand...
not trying to fight anyone. I just find it asinine, arrogant and insulting that some random internet guy would come here to "warn" us.. as if we haven't all spent years studying the profession, talking with dentists, doctors and health care professionals, studying and working towards this goal. All this time thinking "this is an easy get rich quick scheme". I doubt very many of us just one decided "Im gonna try out this DAT thing and go be a dentist #yolo"....
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
Lol hilarious pre-dental mentality. Would love to see the same kids discussing in 15 yrs.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
ClosetNerd828 said:
not trying to fight anyone. I just find it asinine, arrogant and insulting that some random internet guy would come here to "warn" us.. as if we haven't all spent years studying the profession, talking with dentists, doctors and health care professionals, studying and working towards this goal. All this time thinking "this is an easy get rich quick scheme". I doubt very many of us just one decided "Im gonna try out this DAT thing and go be a dentist #yolo"....
Click to expand...
You don't know what you don't know.
 
Who cares what OP thinks. At this point we have all heard this warning before and still have made the decision to do it. The fact that he comes on here saying "you have been warned" talking down to us like he is some kind of prophet from the future is obnoxious. We have all heard the success stories, and the failures. It comes down to the individual and what he/she makes of his/her own opportunities and education. How many jobs in America are better then being a dentist? Most dentists incomes are in the 1-2%, we can work as much or little as we want, YES we will have debt, there are pros and cons to every profession. I don't want to be some finance or sales slave working for a fortune 500 company working as a desk monkey 50-60 hours a week knowing I can NEVER be my own boss. I don't want to be a blue collar worker in the cold winters or in the blazing summers. I don't want to program computers and analyze numbers and coding all day. I want to work with people, alleviate pain, have a somewhat wealthy life style, and support a beautiful family. THIS is what dentistry can do for us. And if that means I have 350K of debt and a 120K starting salary then FINE. I will get through that and be happy. OP is warning that dentistry is not the 600k salary 30 hours a week gig it was 30 years ago and on that he is right. But that is obvious, we all have come to this point and should all be very well researched. The truth is, there are almost no jobs that exist like that in America. 120K a year, even with debt, working 30-40 hours a week is better than almost any job in the country.

No disrespect OP, but had to get that off my chest.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 9 users
Finance my friends... That's where the real money is. Healthcare is the wrong field for $, however it is not unreasonable for to expect a decent salary after years of training and sacrifice.

Unfortunately, on average, I don't think that dentists make that much money relative to other highly trained professionals and I can only see it getting worse and worse in the years to come.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
The profession is still good and fun. Caries still the #1 chronic disease world wide. it's just matter of where you go to dental school ($ state vs. $$$$$$$ private school in a big city) and where you will practice after you graduate ($$$$$ midwest for example vs. LA/SF avg $450 per day). I am sure our salary is not gonna go up at the same rate as inflation. nonetheless, it's still a good profession.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
Very important to be practical in today's world.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
rxdmx372 said:
Exactly. If we cared about money we would have gone into finance. We understand this and don't need to be told it because we've put a lot of time into deciding what we want to do and that money isn't as big of a factor for some people as it is for others.
Click to expand...

Although a portion of predents may think the way you do, from my experience, the majority don't. The people I have met and those I know that are currently in dental schools (I know quite a few being from NY) don't share that same thought process.
 
rxdmx372 said:
Exactly. If we cared about money we would have gone into finance. We understand this and don't need to be told it because we've put a lot of time into deciding what we want to do and that money isn't as big of a factor for some people as it is for others.
Click to expand...
Amen.
If you're smart /motivated enough to be competitive enough to gain admissions and complete dental school i'd argue you have the intellectual capacity to become anything in the STEM field. We chose this because this is what we want to do. I wasn't raised living a lavish lifestyle nor do I desire to.
 
Guess we live in different worlds bud.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
rxdmx372 said:
This is actually hilarious. Before I begin my rant, I want to thank you for what you think my best interests are at heart. I know you're just trying to help us new people out. I don't know how people blame "millennials who are ruining this country" for thinking that everything should be handed to them and that they don't have to work for anything. It couldn't be further than the truth. Unlike people born in the baby boomer generation and 70's and 80's, we understand that dentistry isn't a cash cow, and that we won't be making 300k working 4 days a week. We don't give a **** about that, and we want to be dentists because we genuinely want to help people, want an intellectually rewarding career, and would enjoy seeing someone walk out the door after we've changed their appearance or alleviated their pain, no matter how much money we get for it. We are cut from a different cloth than older people. Our classes are full of people whose families came to this country with nothing and who kick our asses in school in their second language because the chance to become a dentist means everything to them. And instead of bitching about how they are making this country worse, we emulate them and befriend them because they inspire us. Our friends are all moving in with their parents if they're lucky enough to graduate from college, and we're thankful for the chance to take out the loans because it's better than the alternative. Competition for everything, especially admissions into professional school and the employment market, is far more fierce than it was "back in the day". You won't hear me or anyone else complaining about it. I will be quite happy if I'm making 90k per year working 40 hours a week because A) I'll be doing what I love and B) I'll be better off than the vast majority of people in this country.

I'm sorry that the new generation of dentists don't aspire to drive Audis and take expensive vacations. We just want rewarding careers and keep things in prospective.
Click to expand...
I'm sorry that you feel that this is a comment on your generation. It's not. And for the record, I'm not a baby boomer. Perhaps we should do the math. If you make $90,000 per year, your not likely to take home more than $70,000 of that after taxes. That works out to $5,833/month. With $500,000 in debt at 4.5% you'll be paying a minimum of $2,500/month for 30 years. You'll have $2,800/month left over to pay all your bills, save for retirement, raise your children, etc. You're a saint for wanting to work for free and wanting to risk not being able to retire. God bless you. However, I don't think you speak for most people in your generation. It's not selfish or wrong to want a comfortable lifestyle.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
faceman said:
Finance my friends... That's where the real money is. Healthcare is the wrong field for $, however it is not unreasonable for to expect a decent salary after years of training and sacrifice.

Unfortunately, on average, I don't think that dentists make that much money relative to other highly trained professionals and I can only see it getting worse and worse in the years to come.
Click to expand...
Isn't it kind of strange to have those thoughts and be a pre-dental?
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
It boggles my mind how people are attending schools with a 100k/yr price tag. The interest alone is out of this world. Guess some will have it much easier than others.

The student loan bubble is right around the corner.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
faceman said:
It boggles my mind how people are attending schools with a 100k/yr price tag. The interest alone is out of this world. Guess some will have it much easier than others.

The student loan bubble is right around the corner.
Click to expand...

did you get into any dental schools yet? i remember reading somewhere u got waitlisted at all interviews correct?
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
str8ner said:
If you make $90,000 per year, your not likely to take home more than $70,000 of that after taxes.
Click to expand...

To my knowledge even corporate positions depending on the contract are more around $100,000-120,000+ a year even in saturated areas. Why do you say $90,000? Has the salary gone down that much? I would definitely not accept a job that pays that little especially if I have 500k in debt. I would move and find anywhere that will offer me a better deal.
 
faceman said:
It boggles my mind how people are attending schools with a 100k/yr price tag. The interest alone is out of this world. Guess some will have it much easier than others.

The student loan bubble is right around the corner.
Click to expand...
Some people have the money or are not afraid of a challenge
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

T
  • Question
If some dental school's don't have a ranking of waitlist students, how do they choose the students to be accepted?
Replies
5
Views
901
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
Jimmy Cheng
Advice about what to do for undergraduate international student planning to go to dental school
Replies
1
Views
208
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
J
Why don't they send out the rejection email already?
Replies
5
Views
666
throwawayacc2
T
F
Is it bad that I don't remember much from DAT?
Replies
9
Views
954
btou113
B
D
Which Dental Schools don't accept out-of-state residents?
Replies
21
Views
9K
AppalachianDentalBoy
AppalachianDentalBoy
Top