My future career plans

After high school, I plan to attend COS and transfer to a CSU after my I finish my two years at that junior college. I am still a bit skeptical about starting at College of Sequoias because of the research I’ve been doing on the school. They have a total of 10, 720 enrolled but only 4% transfer-out and their graduation rate is 26%. I believe the price is convenient considering the in-state tuition and fees from 2013-14 were $1, 362, and out-of-state tuition and fees were $5, 922. This would be a good choice for someone who wants to attend college but still doesn’t know what they want to do with the rest of their life, wants to explore other options, or doesn’t have the grades or money to get into a University. Nonetheless, I will be attending College of Sequoias (due to requirements that were not met) and plan on majoring in chemistry or biology for transfer.

During college, I will only focus on classes that are within dental hygiene. A RDH (registered dental hygienist) cleans teeth, examines patients for signs of oral diseases such as gingivitis, and to provide other preventive dental care. They also educate patients on ways to improve and obtain a good oral health. They work closely with dentists and dental assistants which can become a problem when looking for a job. Being a dental hygienist is more of a hobby than a profession. They get you interested in that career by saying you get paid $963-1, 913 a week when in reality that only applies to full-timers. Part-timers only work 2-3 days a week at best. It is rare for a new dental hygienist to be hired full time when a dentist already has a loyal dental hygienist that they can comfortably communicate with. Part-time RDH are like substitute teachers; they take over only when full-time RDH are not in for the job. You are also pressured to work at high speeds but I believe that almost every job is like that. There is roughly 7, 500 graduate hygienist each year from 354 dental hygiene schools across the nation. Most of them are working with a large group practice, are becoming associates in offices that already have staff, or are going back to school for a dental specialty.

To become a dental hygienist I would have to get my associates degree in dental hygiene. Usually, they require a bachelor’s degree but they are required to have an associates degree. To become registered in dental hygiene I need to complete a dental hygienist program and become licensed. College overall will definitely be a challenge but I’m willing to put the effort if it means I’ll be able to improve and live a better life. I’m also including the bad things about this profession so I know what to expect. There isn’t a single job that doesn’t disappoint so why waste my time find a different job that I wasn’t already set on? After reading many articles on why I shouldn’t go into dental school, I still feel like that is the best option for me. Despite all that, there were a few who were already RDH that mention that they spent a lot of their time looking at their books and assignments instead of doing them. Procrastination is a skill I have to know by now in order to succeed with my goals. Furthermore, I would have to work with the public, which is something I find very difficult for me to become accustomed to. No one really knows what to expect from the public. To be quite honest, no one wants to be at a dental office when he or she could be eating junk food while watching TV. This is where my knowledge will come in handy and where I’m expected to educate my patient on what they need to be doing. There will also be people who get crazy anxious and I will have to be the one who calms them down by building a safe environment.

The future is undecided so I can’t say I’m going to become this when I might want to do something different while I’m in college. For example, every article is telling me how much of a waste dental hygiene overall is so i decided last night that maybe I should aim higher and become a dentist. Dentists are devoted to maintaining oral health as well as a patient’s overall health. In their practices, dentists treat and work with people from all age groups requiring good communication skills. They make sure to examine the head, neck, and oral cavity in order to restore and replace teeth damage from decay, trauma, or disease. They work with advanced technology like radiography and computer generated imaging.

Becoming a dentist takes about 4 years of attending a professional dental school program following your undergraduate degree. From there you complete a bachelor’s degree in any major along with prerequisite courses. Then, I will obtain a DDS (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or a DMD (Doctor of Medical Dentistry) degree. Finally, I will completed dental school by passing a licensing exam. On top of that list, observing a general dentist is great for making sure I know what it takes to become a dentist or if I’m set on choosing this path by planning at least 100 hours of obvservation time. To apply to dental school i need to take the DAT (Dental Aptitude Test) to apply to dental school. The DAT is a standarized online exam taken almost 15 months before beginning dental school. Other dental programs may offer slightly different requirements that could later help. Every profession has its positivies and negatives so i’ll be listing some just to remind myself that everything is sugercoated. Dentistry is believed to be a stable career but is one of the lowest unemploymeny rates in the country. Their income is aproxamitly s median salary of $146, 340 in 2013. It provides a family with a blanced lifestyle but I will have to spend at least 7-8 years in school speanding 4 years earning my Bachelor’s degree. I will be living in debt no matter what. What i most often see from dentists would be the amount of debt the are put into. On average, almost every dentist is $260, 000 deep into debt. However, Most dentists who have been practicing for years say that the cost of dental school is worth the benefits and you can make a good living out of it. The median pay for dentists is $153, 900, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Nonetheless, new dental school graduates do not earn this much right away.