As the time to finish school comes up and students are wrapping up their examinations, one major issue crops up, deciding on a course. The right course must not only align with the student’s aspirations and passions but also have a clear career path and salary range. Among the various choices, medical degrees particularly dentistry is a popular field.

Dentists are able to work at some of the top hospitals in the country or set up their own practice, treat patients, and also lead a relatively comfortable life. However, it is a hard field to get into. The medical entrance test is highly competitive and witnesses many hopeful applicants each year. If one does manage to pass the test, next comes studying and earning the degree. Medical institutes like the Mansarovar Dental College are difficult and also exhausting.

With the above stated, how does one decide to work and earn a dentistry degree? Let’s read to find out if working as a dentist is the right choice?

Dental School Requirements

Like with any industry and job profile, one must have certain skills to succeed. These skills are not a requirement but if a candidate has them, they would have higher chances of standing out from the crowd and completing the degree with laurels. Stated below are some such skills for dental students.

Persistence: Dentistry courses are quite demanding and take a long time to complete. The course curriculum requires a lot of effort, with multiple things to do. One must also have a positive mindset to improve on teacher feedback. Even after completing the course, there are more hurdles to cross like long work hours and postgraduate studies. 

Communication skills: Dentists and doctors, in general, must have good communication skills. A high level of English proficiency is necessary to talk with patients and fellow doctors. Along with the spoken skills, a certain degree of empathy is also required.

Attention to detail: Dentistry requires a high level of attention to detail. The ability to look deep and detect issues in the patient and give a correct diagnosis with precision is important. This is one skill that will develop with time and experience over the duration of the course.

Motor skills: Although motor skills are one type of skill that people do not have any control over, it is pertinent to have perfect motor skills. The sensory and motor functions should be working at full capacity so that diagnosis and treatments can be done accurately.

Dentistry Career Requirements

While the above section mentions skills necessary in most BDS college in MP, let us discuss what are some skills a dentist should have.

Judgement: Dentists should have sound judgement while also being humble about it. Accepting that mistakes can be made but also working on the mistakes for the future is a must. This quality is also needed when the dentist leads a team of dental assistants and junior dentists.

Networking: Networking skills are also required for dentists and other doctors. Talking with fellow medical professionals, both seniors and juniors can be done to improve reputation, get more clients and more. One good networking tip is to always ask about the other person first and get to know them better.

Organized: Being organized is a skill that will benefit not just the professional work life but also the personal work life. Creating daily and weekly goals and a plan to achieve those goals is the way to go. Being organized at the workplace will bring in more productivity, the work will get done quicker and the individual would also be more motivated.

Negotiation Skills: Negotiation skills is one skill that is surprising but helpful in the workplace. If the dentist is working in a hospital, negotiation skills are needed for salary negotiation, managing teammates etc. On the other hand, dentists who manage their work in clinics require negotiation skills for many responsibilities besides medical duties like for administrative tasks.

High Education: Medical professionals need to keep learning and updating their existing knowledge base. This new knowledge would help immensely towards advancing their career to a higher level. Dentists must also aim to earn higher education degrees in order to provide higher and better patient care.

Why should one be a dentist?

Choosing to pursue a dentistry degree at a BDS college in Bhopal is a personal choice. There are many reasons why a dentistry degree can stand to benefit a prospective medical student. Some such benefits have been elaborated on below.

Restoring Health: The primary and major benefit of working as a dentist is that they are able to correct medical issues in patients. Being able to correct dental problems and restore their confidence by correcting their smiles is what many doctors enjoy. From unbearable toothache to being able to drink cold drinks, a dentist can help patients achieve smiles and the teeth of their dreams.

High Salaries: Dentistry job profiles like similar medical professionals, are well paid out. These career paths are highly demanding with hard work hours. Hospitals and medical institutes, therefore, compensate them accordingly. The average salary for dentists in India is INR 6.06 LPA. On the lower end, the average pay is INR 4.02 LPA while on the higher end it is INR 10 LPA. Specialisation-wise, dentists that perform oral surgeries earn the highest salaries at INR 3.75 LPA.

Respectable Job: Some professions are held in higher regard in society due to the fact that the courses for said professions are harder to finish. Medical and dentistry are one such professions. They are lauded for the efforts they put into their courses and work. This in turn shapes up an envy-worthy reputation among fellow family members and friends. Soon higher motivation levels and happiness follows suit.

Challenging and creative: People who are creative and who like working in challenging conditions, and finding solutions would love to work as dentists. No two patients are alike and each dental issue is also not the same. Dentists have to be constantly coming up with creative solutions for their patients and other work. If working a monotonous 9 to 5 job sounds boring, dentistry is far from that.

India has a number of students graduating from one of the many best dental colleges in Bhopal and India. There is a reason why dentistry is a well-loved medical specialization. It is a well-paid, highly creative field and is also quite respectable. Students who are interested in medical professions should take care in reading through what a dentistry career demands to understand if it is the right career for them.