3 answers
Hala
Student
Sauk Village, IL
1
Question
Asked
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I want to be an orthodontist, do I have to relate any classes to dentistry during my 4 years of college?
I know I would have to major in a science such as biology or chemistry, but is that it? I guess what I'm trying to say is, I can go from not learning anything about teeth in 4 years, to dental school for another 4 years? #dentistry #college #orthodontist #confusedstudent #helpwouldbenice
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3 answers
Maya Ibelaidene
42
Answers
Riverside, California
Updated
Maya’s Answer
Hi Hala!
I know it may be weird but technically yes, you can go from knowing nothing about teeth to going to dental school. However, whatever you decide to major in, the college you attend may have electives in your major relating to dentistry. Like I said this is going to depend on your school and major but dental schools don't expect you to know everything about dentistry before you go there. Just like medical students don't really learn anything about medicine before medical school, dental students don't really learn too much about teeth before dental school. Once you are in college and you are starting to look for dental schools to apply to, those schools are going to each have a list of required courses to apply to the school and so as long as you fulfill those requirements, you can go ahead and apply to dental school. Again I know it feels weird that you will be going into school without any of that dental knowledge but your undergraduate education is meant to teach you the basics that way you can apply that knowledge to more specialized/ difficult topics in graduate schools.
I know it may be weird but technically yes, you can go from knowing nothing about teeth to going to dental school. However, whatever you decide to major in, the college you attend may have electives in your major relating to dentistry. Like I said this is going to depend on your school and major but dental schools don't expect you to know everything about dentistry before you go there. Just like medical students don't really learn anything about medicine before medical school, dental students don't really learn too much about teeth before dental school. Once you are in college and you are starting to look for dental schools to apply to, those schools are going to each have a list of required courses to apply to the school and so as long as you fulfill those requirements, you can go ahead and apply to dental school. Again I know it feels weird that you will be going into school without any of that dental knowledge but your undergraduate education is meant to teach you the basics that way you can apply that knowledge to more specialized/ difficult topics in graduate schools.
Thank you for taking time to answer! I greatly appreciate your wisdom and feel much better about my future goals
Hala
Lisa Famularo
Career Coach
16
Answers
Hartford, Connecticut
Updated
Lisa’s Answer
Dear Hala,
It’s great that you are considering becoming an orthodontist! It’s a very rewarding career.
The link below includes a great article about what it takes to become an orthodontist. To briefly summarize, you’ll first need to go to dental school and then complete an orthodontic-related residency. You can major in anything you’d like in college as long as you take the courses that are required to get into dental school. So it may be beneficial for you to start looking into dental school as the next phase of your research so you know what that looks like and plan accordingly. I would recommend the American Student Dental Association (ASDA) for that!
https://orthodonticassoc.com/dentistry-articles/becoming-an-orthodontist/
I hope this helps!
Lisa
It’s great that you are considering becoming an orthodontist! It’s a very rewarding career.
The link below includes a great article about what it takes to become an orthodontist. To briefly summarize, you’ll first need to go to dental school and then complete an orthodontic-related residency. You can major in anything you’d like in college as long as you take the courses that are required to get into dental school. So it may be beneficial for you to start looking into dental school as the next phase of your research so you know what that looks like and plan accordingly. I would recommend the American Student Dental Association (ASDA) for that!
https://orthodonticassoc.com/dentistry-articles/becoming-an-orthodontist/
I hope this helps!
Lisa
Amy Bryer
Dentist
5
Answers
Lemoore, California
Updated
Amy’s Answer
Great answer Lisa and Maya!
Physiology is a great class to take and is related. If your school has any research they are doing in bone physiology, then I recommend getting on that team. Doing research will help you stand out in not only your application to dental school, but also your application to orthodontic school.
You can supplement your education, when you are off in the summer, at NIH or NIDCR, in Washington DC. They offer summer research program opportunities. You have to apply for them and you are working for free, in general. However, it is a great networking tool, resume builder, educator and it may land you an excellent recommendation. You may even see if they could give you scholarship money to pay for your ticket to get there. Take into consideration that you would likely have to find a place to live while you were there, need money for food and transportation and need money for nights out. The Howard Hughes Foundation also offers some reasearch opportunities. You need to google the things I am telling you to get their websites and look for opportunities. Look often, as things come up quickly and get snapped up quickly.
Another class you could take that is related is neurology and neurophysiology. They sound intimidating, but once you start to learn the terminology, it becomes more second nature.
Another class I do recommend is painting. You will learn colors, including hues of colors. It helps to understand these concepts when doing resins/composites/white fillings in your 4 years of general dentistry school.
I also recommend a 3-D art class, whether is be computer art or something like ceramics. It helps with thinking three dimensionally, a requirement for both dental and orthodontic schools.
Please note: like Lisa and Maya stated, the classes I am recommending will not "prepare you" for dental school. They will simply help you. The 3-D will help you on the DAT, the painting and physiology classes will help you in dental school to a degree. The research will help you get noticed, potentially open up the possibility for scholarships and help you in dental and orthodontic school to a small degree.
I hope this helps. Good luck!
Contact or view NIH website and look for research opportunities
Contact or view NIDCR website and look for research opportunities
Contact or view the Howard Hughes Grant Foundation website for research and scholarship opportunities.
Physiology is a great class to take and is related. If your school has any research they are doing in bone physiology, then I recommend getting on that team. Doing research will help you stand out in not only your application to dental school, but also your application to orthodontic school.
You can supplement your education, when you are off in the summer, at NIH or NIDCR, in Washington DC. They offer summer research program opportunities. You have to apply for them and you are working for free, in general. However, it is a great networking tool, resume builder, educator and it may land you an excellent recommendation. You may even see if they could give you scholarship money to pay for your ticket to get there. Take into consideration that you would likely have to find a place to live while you were there, need money for food and transportation and need money for nights out. The Howard Hughes Foundation also offers some reasearch opportunities. You need to google the things I am telling you to get their websites and look for opportunities. Look often, as things come up quickly and get snapped up quickly.
Another class you could take that is related is neurology and neurophysiology. They sound intimidating, but once you start to learn the terminology, it becomes more second nature.
Another class I do recommend is painting. You will learn colors, including hues of colors. It helps to understand these concepts when doing resins/composites/white fillings in your 4 years of general dentistry school.
I also recommend a 3-D art class, whether is be computer art or something like ceramics. It helps with thinking three dimensionally, a requirement for both dental and orthodontic schools.
Please note: like Lisa and Maya stated, the classes I am recommending will not "prepare you" for dental school. They will simply help you. The 3-D will help you on the DAT, the painting and physiology classes will help you in dental school to a degree. The research will help you get noticed, potentially open up the possibility for scholarships and help you in dental and orthodontic school to a small degree.
I hope this helps. Good luck!
Amy recommends the following next steps: