Continue pursuing dentistry?
I am going to try and keep this as concise as possible, sticking to several factors. I am a rising sophomore at a large state university in NC. I have been wanting to pursue healthcare my entire life, but more specifically gained interest in the field of dentistry a few years ago while shadowing in high school. I have always been the type to plan as much as possible and research, and this has led me to lots and lots of posts about how dentistry is dying and that its too oversaturated, paired with the insane 400k-600k debt (Hopefully possibly attending UNC or ECU would keep this lower). All these factors make it seem like dentistry isn't the dream career everyone (especially my South Asian parents) had painted it as.
I really just want a career that has good work-life balance, and is financially secure enough to set up my family well (including parents). Will pursuing dentistry during this oversaturated time mean I can't live in a suburb of a large metro (NY, Boston, Chicago, etc.) or in an area such as Charlotte, NC without sacrificing a lot of potential success? I've also been seeing that the retirement age of dentists is pushing 70, are all these dentists actually fully practicing or do they have associates primarily working the practice? I've just been over thinking my life, and have been getting told that the better jobs and income are in compsci and finance careers. They seem rather lucrative, but I’m not sure how safe they are. I feel like it’s a much safer path to earn 250k in dentistry as opposed to in finance. I'm still early enough in my Biology degree that I could switch if needed. Thanks for the input!
You might be able to find a bit more knowledge/feedback on SDN:
https://forums.studentdoctor.net/categories/dental-forums-dds-dmd.55/
Bud, you need to do what you ENJOY. If you go into dentistry, finance, or really anything and only consider the perks/pay/lifestyle of a job and not the job itself, you will have a bad time. If you like teeth, work with teeth. If you like capital raises, work on capital raises.
Both fields you mentioned have the ability (somewhat commonly) to be quite lucrative and more than able to sustain a happy life. Choose whatever interests you. (also, MD/DDS are in heavy demand rn, trust me on this one idk where you heard otherwise)
On another note, provided you are in state, how in the hell are you even ABLE to generate 400-600k in debt even with dental/medical school? 4 years at UNC-CH with room and board is less than 150K, and dental school in state again shoudn't run much more than that either.
Also, don't let your parents pressure you into a career. There have been a few really good comments about this that tackle the issue. @jzplayinggames" disillusionedasian
https://www.wallstreetoasis.com/forums/worklife-balance-also-i-resent-m…
Et libero cum eum qui ea. Reiciendis ut qui blanditiis aspernatur earum et ut. Illum occaecati perferendis voluptate corporis.
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