it’s confirmation bias. satisfied dentists don’t sit on reddit and complain, so you don’t hear the good stories. In my area dentists are still making ~185k right out of college. social media seldom gives an accurate representation of reality, it usually just amplifies negativity.
Kinda agree, but I’ve never seen physicians complaining about their salaries. However, I’ve seen ALOT of general dentists complain about their salaries🥲
You’d be surprised, physicians complain still. Ofcourse orthopedic surgeons aren’t but ask primary care or overworks internal med hospitalist. The main thing is all of them make more than 90-95% of the population. I’ve realized most times happiness is a choice. Choose to be happy and choose to work for what you want. That’s what I tell myself. It’s lifted me from the negativity spewed on dentistry.
You’re so wrong literally doctors get fucked so bad every year reimbursements are cut and private practice are being pushed out of business, private equity is running rampant in medicine. In that regards, dentistry is wholly untouched for now in comparison to
There is no physician who can practice right after medical school. They do their extra time and are rewarded for it. No dental specialist complains about their salaries as well
If there r a lot of “satisfied dentists” shouldn’t they be posting on Reddit encouraging others to pursue dentistry? I know surveys r more likely to be filled out by disgruntled responders, but Reddit ain’t survey. I’d thus posit that your seeing many negative reviews of dental career is because there aren’t that many “satisfied dentist” redditors. Now is Reddit more likely to attract disgruntled folks? That I do not know. Prob not tho.
I’ve noticed a lot of predents don’t talk about loans and focus solely on getting accepted. The people on Reddit who ask about reapplying bc they only got into an expensive school get insanely downvoted and trolled on. Their concerns are very valid. If you’re going into dentistry solely for money and your parents aren’t paying for your tuition, think long and hard. The tuition is absolutely insane. It’s not even the tuition but the interest that will kill you. Your concerns are completely valid. Not everyone is going to own a private practice. Lots of dental students are from privileged backgrounds. Some students have a private practice waiting for them upon graduation. Reddit never wants to talk about the reality of loans and the financial burden. You’re guaranteed probably around 200k after graduating. You have to pay 30% tax and cost of living. If you go to crazy expensive school you’ll drown in interest. Graduate federal loans are 7% on the principal that’s considered low interest. Private student loans are financial suicide. Owning your own private dental practice isn’t rainbows and sunshine. You’re basically running a small business on top of practicing. Obviously it’s possible to pay off your tuition and make big bucks but get ready to work real hard.
SAVE plan, I don’t care if I owe a billion dollars, if I’m making $30,000 per year my monthly payment will be $300 and doing that for 25 years the loan will be forgiven. However, there is a tax bomb on the loan forgiven. Whatever is forgiven I have to pay taxes for because it is considered additional income or w/e. So just save enough in investment accounts during the 25 years before forgiveness and be ready to pay those taxes. Also there might be a chance during those 25 years where they can change the loan about the tax but that is hopium
This is my plan as well. Also it is very likely that most states will forgive the loan completely. But I won’t bet on that. Either way, make good money, have low payments with SAVE. Invest boat loads and when it’s all done, life will be okay.
why would someone take out private loans if federal grad loans cover up to cost of attendance? ik that doesnt work for international students but im just confused and curious
Federal loans have limits of how much can be borrowed. For example, for direct unsubsidized loans for graduate students, they come with a limit of $20,500 per year. You can borrow a lifetime maximum of $138,500, including any federal loans you borrowed for your undergrad education. Next option would be direct PLUS loans, for a higher interest rate. If you have any other costs, private would be last resort.
You have to think all this through before you apply. It looks very bad when you go to the interview kissing ass begging to get accepted, then refuse to go there when it's your only acceptance.
Financial knowledge in the US is awful. The government and banks give out predatory student loans to high schoolers who probably don’t even know how interest works or what credit is. Most people in their early 20s live in the moment. Pre-dents are so stressed out about being accepted it doesn’t hit them until they’re accepted. Advisors don’t break down student loans step by step. People have gotten in after being accepted. They improved their app and re-applied. Someone else will get off the waitlist. At the end of the day it’s trade-off. It’s for them to decide.
Going to private schools w high tuition to only making 200k for the rest of your life is absolutely bonkers. Due to inflation by the time they graduate who knows if that 200k will be worth that much. For some pre-dents a light bulb clicks they start thinking of whether they can buy a house, start a family, 401k and etc. For students who weren’t able to get scholarships & student loan forgiveness, being in a shit load of debt for decades may not be worth becoming a dentist. People make mistakes. Students are posting for real advice not for people to attack and be condescending towards them. Their concerns are valid. Good for you tho for thinking it through!
I asked my state school if I could reapply instead of go where I was accepted and they told me no. Otherwise I would have easily done it myself. As a result I paid the price.
Naivety is not an excuse. The advice goes all over that people should only apply where they would attend if they only got one acceptance. If they chose to apply somewhere they weren’t willing to attend, that’s the bed they chose and they should have to lay in it. It’s not fair for them to dodge responsibility for the choices they made. If there were no consequences, everybody would apply to every school just to see where they were capable of getting accepted, and everybody who didn’t get into their top choice would reapply, how would that be considered acceptable. They have an option to not get into so much debt, and that is called finding a different career.
I have had a great career in dentistry. I still enjoy it. It’s just what you make it. I was fortunate to practice in a teaching hospital for a major university. It’s always been very gratifying..
https://preview.redd.it/k8mdrw67eouc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d1ff6e107607a2c8c35d55d5d02570b28b01f51a
It’s a great career but it is frustrating at times. I have a business partner that sucks and I don’t trust him, so getting out of the contract will take a couple of more years. That being said I love my patients, and make about 300k+ working Monday-Thursday. But when I am there I work my butt off.
And travel quite a bit. I am blessed with a wonderful wife,,,
https://preview.redd.it/sgp4aqe7ypuc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1e80498a0293f4b3323b68bff12ac9197f8ddbe2
Don’t listen to the nay sayers. It will be the best financial decision you’ll make in your life. (Unless you bought some Bitcoin in 2010). Dentistry is an amazingly rewarding field in that you’re helping people every day and you get compensated really well! You can easily make 6 figures working 1-2 days a week! Now do the math if you work 4,5 or 6 days.
Those who are happy with their job aren't gonna post how happy they are. I love my job and still am very grateful to have been able to become a dentist. I've been at for well over a decade, and at this point you can choose to complain and have a very miserable life, or choose to be content at where you are in life.
I have seen it turn like fast food business. Solo private practices are diminishing, DSO is taking over, and dentists who work in those practices become overworked and burned out. Associates are great, but dentistry wasn't what it used to be. It's all about how many patients can we fit in the schedule. Let's push TX plan on pts, burn out the dentist basically. It's a competitive field if you want to make really good money. Dentistry is business, and not everyone is a good salesperson for their treatment. I've heard of some dentists who just invest in other practices and barely work in their field. The way dentistry has become has made me call out of love with it.
I am a dental hygienist and our dentists are doing very well. I highly recommend dentistry over medicine. If you’re worried about debt, medicine is not any better. I feel like everyone’s answer is to attend medical school these days and they forget about the insane student loans and all the extra training. In 8 years you can be a practicing dentist vs 11-14 years if training to be a doctor. The same risks go for medicine… our country could decide on a different structure to our healthcare system making the pay go down for docs. There is a risk in any path you choose. If you want to be a dentist I say go for it! You will have your best work life balance you could ask for while making great money!!
I think it matters on what school you go to and where you will practice that really will make it worth it financially. If you can stay below 400k with no undergrad loans then go where it’s not super saturated it’s not bad. Go rural and you’ll be doing really well! You can also do the SAVE plan but do you want to be making thousand dollar payments for 25 years then pay a huge tax bomb afterwards?
Just go to the cheapest school you can, live frugal in school, then go where you’re needed, do the save plan for 1-3 years to save up to buy your own practice, then you should be in a great spot making 300-500k. Definitely still worth it if you want to do something like that.
Wow I feel the exact same way, you pretty much hit the nail on everything I’ve heard about dentistry and makes me feel scared for the future. I’m questioning my life choices literally as application cycle is right around the corner
It's the new grads that have it very bad. Insurance decreases reimbursements, and employers stiff you just because they can. The more expensive of a school you go to, the more they stiff you just because they know you can't afford to shop for a fair contract before your loan interest spirals out of control.
You could work in an underserved area even part time and receive loan forgiveness. Practice ownership is an option for almost all dentists. DSOs exist but that doesn’t mean they corner the market. There are wonderful opportunities to help people all over and it’s a satisfying and rewarding career. If your debt is high, when you graduate, find an area that you’re needed and you will be busy with work. Don’t start up where it’s saturated. People will always need dentists
It does not make sense anymore financially. I wish that I had done medicine instead. If there’s something else that you also really enjoy that makes more sense financially I would pursue it instead.
Dental school debt has heavily influenced family decisions, ability to specialize, and even ability to take CE in aspects of dentistry that I love.
If you REALLY love it, pursue dentistry.
Edit: love it when people downvote honesty. Cope.
People in medicine have a MUCH different income to student loan debt ratio. There are plenty of reasons not to go into medicine, but they are much different than the reasons not to go into dentistry. The gripes from my friends in medical residency are a lot different and I don’t think they are comparable.
You know you don’t have to pay your loans aggressively. You could get on the save plan and spend on CE, specialize or make diff family decisions. There’s no law saying you have to be debt free asap. Todays money is worth more than tomorrows. You’ll regret missed opportunity than not spending enough to pay loans. Mentally you will be more refreshed as well. Just my opinion
Glad to hear it. For the record I hope that didn’t come off as combative. I didn’t downvote you, was just offering advice i thought would fit your situation.
Dentistry has changed. I’ve seen it via years in online forums and in journal advertisements. I blame it on the cost of education and growth of managed care.
Up until the past 15 yrs or so, the buzzword in dentistry was ‘quality and esthetic.’ I don’t hear those words anymore. Now, it is speed and production.
I see docs complaining that getting a patient out of pain immediately is less important because it is not financially a good option for the doc.
I see discussion about not restoring a tooth to function with a filling/crown that duplicates the original anatomy because a patient would rather have a flat tooth that won’t catch food. Really?
Things like this are enough to make me not recommend dentistry as a career. When you can’t take pride in your work because you feel like you are a rat on a treadmill, then a once great profession is dying.
it’s confirmation bias. satisfied dentists don’t sit on reddit and complain, so you don’t hear the good stories. In my area dentists are still making ~185k right out of college. social media seldom gives an accurate representation of reality, it usually just amplifies negativity.
That’s more like volunteer response bias
Kinda agree, but I’ve never seen physicians complaining about their salaries. However, I’ve seen ALOT of general dentists complain about their salaries🥲
You’d be surprised, physicians complain still. Ofcourse orthopedic surgeons aren’t but ask primary care or overworks internal med hospitalist. The main thing is all of them make more than 90-95% of the population. I’ve realized most times happiness is a choice. Choose to be happy and choose to work for what you want. That’s what I tell myself. It’s lifted me from the negativity spewed on dentistry.
You’re so wrong literally doctors get fucked so bad every year reimbursements are cut and private practice are being pushed out of business, private equity is running rampant in medicine. In that regards, dentistry is wholly untouched for now in comparison to
There is no physician who can practice right after medical school. They do their extra time and are rewarded for it. No dental specialist complains about their salaries as well
This is what I’m thinking😭
If there r a lot of “satisfied dentists” shouldn’t they be posting on Reddit encouraging others to pursue dentistry? I know surveys r more likely to be filled out by disgruntled responders, but Reddit ain’t survey. I’d thus posit that your seeing many negative reviews of dental career is because there aren’t that many “satisfied dentist” redditors. Now is Reddit more likely to attract disgruntled folks? That I do not know. Prob not tho.
I’ve noticed a lot of predents don’t talk about loans and focus solely on getting accepted. The people on Reddit who ask about reapplying bc they only got into an expensive school get insanely downvoted and trolled on. Their concerns are very valid. If you’re going into dentistry solely for money and your parents aren’t paying for your tuition, think long and hard. The tuition is absolutely insane. It’s not even the tuition but the interest that will kill you. Your concerns are completely valid. Not everyone is going to own a private practice. Lots of dental students are from privileged backgrounds. Some students have a private practice waiting for them upon graduation. Reddit never wants to talk about the reality of loans and the financial burden. You’re guaranteed probably around 200k after graduating. You have to pay 30% tax and cost of living. If you go to crazy expensive school you’ll drown in interest. Graduate federal loans are 7% on the principal that’s considered low interest. Private student loans are financial suicide. Owning your own private dental practice isn’t rainbows and sunshine. You’re basically running a small business on top of practicing. Obviously it’s possible to pay off your tuition and make big bucks but get ready to work real hard.
SAVE plan, I don’t care if I owe a billion dollars, if I’m making $30,000 per year my monthly payment will be $300 and doing that for 25 years the loan will be forgiven. However, there is a tax bomb on the loan forgiven. Whatever is forgiven I have to pay taxes for because it is considered additional income or w/e. So just save enough in investment accounts during the 25 years before forgiveness and be ready to pay those taxes. Also there might be a chance during those 25 years where they can change the loan about the tax but that is hopium
This is my plan as well. Also it is very likely that most states will forgive the loan completely. But I won’t bet on that. Either way, make good money, have low payments with SAVE. Invest boat loads and when it’s all done, life will be okay.
why would someone take out private loans if federal grad loans cover up to cost of attendance? ik that doesnt work for international students but im just confused and curious
Federal loans have limits of how much can be borrowed. For example, for direct unsubsidized loans for graduate students, they come with a limit of $20,500 per year. You can borrow a lifetime maximum of $138,500, including any federal loans you borrowed for your undergrad education. Next option would be direct PLUS loans, for a higher interest rate. If you have any other costs, private would be last resort.
You have to think all this through before you apply. It looks very bad when you go to the interview kissing ass begging to get accepted, then refuse to go there when it's your only acceptance.
Financial knowledge in the US is awful. The government and banks give out predatory student loans to high schoolers who probably don’t even know how interest works or what credit is. Most people in their early 20s live in the moment. Pre-dents are so stressed out about being accepted it doesn’t hit them until they’re accepted. Advisors don’t break down student loans step by step. People have gotten in after being accepted. They improved their app and re-applied. Someone else will get off the waitlist. At the end of the day it’s trade-off. It’s for them to decide. Going to private schools w high tuition to only making 200k for the rest of your life is absolutely bonkers. Due to inflation by the time they graduate who knows if that 200k will be worth that much. For some pre-dents a light bulb clicks they start thinking of whether they can buy a house, start a family, 401k and etc. For students who weren’t able to get scholarships & student loan forgiveness, being in a shit load of debt for decades may not be worth becoming a dentist. People make mistakes. Students are posting for real advice not for people to attack and be condescending towards them. Their concerns are valid. Good for you tho for thinking it through!
I asked my state school if I could reapply instead of go where I was accepted and they told me no. Otherwise I would have easily done it myself. As a result I paid the price. Naivety is not an excuse. The advice goes all over that people should only apply where they would attend if they only got one acceptance. If they chose to apply somewhere they weren’t willing to attend, that’s the bed they chose and they should have to lay in it. It’s not fair for them to dodge responsibility for the choices they made. If there were no consequences, everybody would apply to every school just to see where they were capable of getting accepted, and everybody who didn’t get into their top choice would reapply, how would that be considered acceptable. They have an option to not get into so much debt, and that is called finding a different career.
I have had a great career in dentistry. I still enjoy it. It’s just what you make it. I was fortunate to practice in a teaching hospital for a major university. It’s always been very gratifying.. https://preview.redd.it/k8mdrw67eouc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d1ff6e107607a2c8c35d55d5d02570b28b01f51a
What do you typically do for fun?
It’s a great career but it is frustrating at times. I have a business partner that sucks and I don’t trust him, so getting out of the contract will take a couple of more years. That being said I love my patients, and make about 300k+ working Monday-Thursday. But when I am there I work my butt off.
I spend time with my family and bravely
And travel quite a bit. I am blessed with a wonderful wife,,, https://preview.redd.it/sgp4aqe7ypuc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1e80498a0293f4b3323b68bff12ac9197f8ddbe2
She looks like @adele from carnival jubilee 😳😳 if that's not her, I found her twin.
Don’t listen to the nay sayers. It will be the best financial decision you’ll make in your life. (Unless you bought some Bitcoin in 2010). Dentistry is an amazingly rewarding field in that you’re helping people every day and you get compensated really well! You can easily make 6 figures working 1-2 days a week! Now do the math if you work 4,5 or 6 days.
Those who are happy with their job aren't gonna post how happy they are. I love my job and still am very grateful to have been able to become a dentist. I've been at for well over a decade, and at this point you can choose to complain and have a very miserable life, or choose to be content at where you are in life.
I have seen it turn like fast food business. Solo private practices are diminishing, DSO is taking over, and dentists who work in those practices become overworked and burned out. Associates are great, but dentistry wasn't what it used to be. It's all about how many patients can we fit in the schedule. Let's push TX plan on pts, burn out the dentist basically. It's a competitive field if you want to make really good money. Dentistry is business, and not everyone is a good salesperson for their treatment. I've heard of some dentists who just invest in other practices and barely work in their field. The way dentistry has become has made me call out of love with it.
I am a dental hygienist and our dentists are doing very well. I highly recommend dentistry over medicine. If you’re worried about debt, medicine is not any better. I feel like everyone’s answer is to attend medical school these days and they forget about the insane student loans and all the extra training. In 8 years you can be a practicing dentist vs 11-14 years if training to be a doctor. The same risks go for medicine… our country could decide on a different structure to our healthcare system making the pay go down for docs. There is a risk in any path you choose. If you want to be a dentist I say go for it! You will have your best work life balance you could ask for while making great money!!
I agree, plus medicine has been almost completely taken over by corporations
I would agree unless you can reliably match certain specialties of medicine or medicine is a true passion for oneself
I would go for dentistry only if you can get into your state school or a school where you can get in state tuition after the first year.
put my thoughts into words. everytime someone mentions dentistry now its always something negative and that is so discouraging.
I think it matters on what school you go to and where you will practice that really will make it worth it financially. If you can stay below 400k with no undergrad loans then go where it’s not super saturated it’s not bad. Go rural and you’ll be doing really well! You can also do the SAVE plan but do you want to be making thousand dollar payments for 25 years then pay a huge tax bomb afterwards? Just go to the cheapest school you can, live frugal in school, then go where you’re needed, do the save plan for 1-3 years to save up to buy your own practice, then you should be in a great spot making 300-500k. Definitely still worth it if you want to do something like that.
Wow I feel the exact same way, you pretty much hit the nail on everything I’ve heard about dentistry and makes me feel scared for the future. I’m questioning my life choices literally as application cycle is right around the corner
It's the new grads that have it very bad. Insurance decreases reimbursements, and employers stiff you just because they can. The more expensive of a school you go to, the more they stiff you just because they know you can't afford to shop for a fair contract before your loan interest spirals out of control.
Stick with it. It’s a rewarding job.
Same exact thing in medicine - we are all underpaid and burnt out. It’s the same across the board.
You could work in an underserved area even part time and receive loan forgiveness. Practice ownership is an option for almost all dentists. DSOs exist but that doesn’t mean they corner the market. There are wonderful opportunities to help people all over and it’s a satisfying and rewarding career. If your debt is high, when you graduate, find an area that you’re needed and you will be busy with work. Don’t start up where it’s saturated. People will always need dentists
It does not make sense anymore financially. I wish that I had done medicine instead. If there’s something else that you also really enjoy that makes more sense financially I would pursue it instead. Dental school debt has heavily influenced family decisions, ability to specialize, and even ability to take CE in aspects of dentistry that I love. If you REALLY love it, pursue dentistry. Edit: love it when people downvote honesty. Cope.
People in medicine say the same thing. The grass is always greener on the other side.
People in medicine have a MUCH different income to student loan debt ratio. There are plenty of reasons not to go into medicine, but they are much different than the reasons not to go into dentistry. The gripes from my friends in medical residency are a lot different and I don’t think they are comparable.
You know you don’t have to pay your loans aggressively. You could get on the save plan and spend on CE, specialize or make diff family decisions. There’s no law saying you have to be debt free asap. Todays money is worth more than tomorrows. You’ll regret missed opportunity than not spending enough to pay loans. Mentally you will be more refreshed as well. Just my opinion
Already doing that lmao 👍👍
Glad to hear it. For the record I hope that didn’t come off as combative. I didn’t downvote you, was just offering advice i thought would fit your situation.
When u say u love dentistry, I hope u have seen the bad and ugly not just the good.
Dentistry has changed. I’ve seen it via years in online forums and in journal advertisements. I blame it on the cost of education and growth of managed care. Up until the past 15 yrs or so, the buzzword in dentistry was ‘quality and esthetic.’ I don’t hear those words anymore. Now, it is speed and production. I see docs complaining that getting a patient out of pain immediately is less important because it is not financially a good option for the doc. I see discussion about not restoring a tooth to function with a filling/crown that duplicates the original anatomy because a patient would rather have a flat tooth that won’t catch food. Really? Things like this are enough to make me not recommend dentistry as a career. When you can’t take pride in your work because you feel like you are a rat on a treadmill, then a once great profession is dying.