My Dental Journey: Academia and Private Practice
Most teenagers dream of being astronauts, CEO’s, or celebrities. The notion of looking inside a person’s mouth who tends to express mixed emotions when in the chair is not something I had initially envisioned for myself. The harder truth lied in having parents as dentists knowing I wanted to avoid becoming a cliché. It wasn’t until a series of life events that made me realize that Dentistry would not only be my passion but lead to other fulfilling avenues that would define my character and career for the next 9 years.
As a home grown native of Newton Massachusetts, I was fortunate to stay somewhat local and attend the University of New Hampshire in 2006, after which I attended Boston Unviersity for Dental School and then Lincoln Medical Center for my GPR.
My experience was like most students my age at the time. Dental school was rigorous, and the bar was set high to succeed. There were days I questioned whether I was cut out for this profession. Emotions ran high. Will I graduate? Will I know everything to succeed? What If I don’t get into my specialty program of my choice? While all these feelings ran rampant, it was humbling to be in a community of students, faculty and staff who would always offer an open ear and create a safe space for discussion and growth.
As I approached the end of my Pre-Doctoral education I started to see a change in my attitude and perspective towards my career goals. For starters I knew there were aspects of my education I felt comfortable with, while others required more attention. I realized that while my Dental School established a strong foundation, I needed repetition and autonomy (in a controlled environment) to make me a competitive clinician. For me, personally, I knew I needed an additional year to cement more of those concepts I learned as a Dental Student.
No Dental School will ever prepare you to know everything. The plus side is, it’s a profession where we can choose what we want to be in our wheelhouse when treating patients. It’s called private practice for a reason after-all. Every practice set up in how it treats patients is different. I know personally I wanted as much exposure possible to all specialties. To do this, I realized my next move would involve attending a General Practice Residency in New York City.
I made the difficult, but obvious decision to move to New York City and attend Lincoln Medical Center for my GPR. It was the furthest I had moved away from home in a city that had a sports rivalry for over a generation. I was thrown into the deep end of the pool and re-lived familiar struggles and new. But also saw old challenges as easy ones. Boston University, the institution that granted me admission, prepared me to be an effective resident in a high energy, and fast paced environment. What I didn’t expect was that during my time at Lincoln would expose me to the opportunity to teach. I was fortunate to have this exposure when I was a Dental Student, but my love for academia didn’t really take off until I was in my residency year. I found dentistry to be a collaborative endeavor. I had cases to present and discussions regarding various treatment decisions with my peers. I found these discussions to be helpful and towards the end of my training I had reached out to my Department Chair at my alma mater asking if she needed any instructors. She was kind enough to interview me and ask about my aspirations. I was transparent and explained I wanted to bridge the gap of teaching between an old generation and new. To take everything I was taught and add my own twist. Two weeks later I was hired.
Getting into academics is not as complicated as many may think. Generally having either post graduate education or a few years out of school will usually help. After all there are students who are looking to you for advice and guidance. This often takes shape when you have exposure to a variety of clinical situations. If there isn’t a job opening online don’t think your help isn’t warranted. Sometimes all it takes is a thoughtful email to a program chair or to a faculty member. University’s may not give you a paying job right out the gate but will never say no to a volunteer. It’s not ideal but a good first step to get your foot in the door if you’re looking to start a career in education. When I first was hired I started off as a volunteer and within a year and a half I was working three days a week; all while working in clinical practice another 3 days. Was this a lot? Absolutely! But when you’re young you want to be able to practice and work as much as you can as it’s the only way you can sharpen your skills and experience.
Being able to balance the two is not as difficult as one might imagine. There are many benefits to teaching as it keeps you current with the field, and also allows you to participate in the next generation’s education. Teaching wasn’t something I ever imagined myself doing, but I thought being younger had its advantages. I knew I’d be able to relate to students better and conversely, they might be able to relate to me. Very few can say they enjoy what they do for a living. That’s not to say that the world of academics and private practice are not without its challenges. However, I can say with utmost confidence, that Dentistry has been a profession I love and I can’t wait to see what future opportunities and experiences lie ahead.