Career Paths In Dentistry

As with any medical field, choosing a career in dentistry opens the door to a variety of opportunities and paths for your future. While attending dental school, you will have the education and course study to train to be a dentist, but there are various practice settings and career opportunities you can pursue once you have graduated. There are a number of dentists who practice for some time and then decide where their passion for dentistry truly lies and move on to a different area of dentistry. 

If you are deciding if you would like to pursue a career in dentistry and apply to dental school, the thought of a focused career in the future can seem overwhelming. It is important to note that, while in school, you will learn about the various specialization opportunities to give you a better understanding of what may interest you in the future. Additionally, there are a number of practicing dentists who also have a specialization and work in other areas of dentistry in addition to their work as clinicians in a practice setting. 

For students already in dental school or those about to graduate, it is wise to assess your strengths, weaknesses, preferences, goals, and where you see yourself in your future. This step can be beneficial to anyone who is looking to make a change to their career or future plans. 

Aside from a career as a dentist, you may be interested in a more specialized dentistry field such as:

  • Oral surgery

  • Pediatrics

  • Orthodontics

  • Endodontics

  • Prosthodontics

If you are looking to move outside of clinical dentistry, you may be interested in these dental career paths:

  • Dental education

  • Research

  • Consulting

  • Dental product development

If you are still in the beginning stages of the dental school application process, this information gives you something to consider for your future. This is an opportunity that may be relevant to you currently. If you are an undergraduate student and are interested in applying to dental school be sure to consider applying to the scholarship opportunity provided by Dr. Michael Krochak:

2023 Scholarship Award Details

The Dr. Michael Krochak Pre-Dental Scholarship was developed to encourage young men and women to enter the field of dentistry. The scholarship helps students pursuing careers in dentistry to meet the rising cost of college tuition. The 2023 award applications will be accepted from June 2022 through January 2023. If you are a college junior or senior enrolled in a U.S. accredited college or university and are engaged in pre-dental studies with a 3.3 GPA or better by the end of your sophomore year, you are eligible to apply for this one-time $1,000 scholarship.

Michael Krochak