Here’s all you need to know about a pursuing a career in dentistry…
Healthcare professionals who provide preventive and restorative treatments for oral disorders are dentists. The scope for dentistry is much vaster now than it was a few years ago. While most dentists work as self-employed practioners, others work in salaried posts with a variety of specialism in hospital, community dentistry, corporate practices or university teaching and research. Incase you’re interested in pursuing dental sciences, we suggest you follow this. Here’s all you need to know about a pursuing a career in dentistry…
Entrance
Before applying to an institute, it is important that you check if you fulfill the eligibility criteria. Most institutes have these criteria in common:
– The candidate applying for dentistry should be of at least 17 years of age while applying.
– The candidate should have passed two years of intermediate or equivalent course with Science subjects, i.e. physics, chemistry and biology from a recognized Indian University.
The mentioned criteria are important for every institution. More details would be mentioned on the institute’s website.
Curriculum
Bachelor of Dental Surgery(BDS) is an undergraduate degree course pursued by people having keen interest in dentistry. After the Dental Council of India restructured the course in 2007, it was made a 5 year course without internship. The course comprises of lectures, demonstrations, seminars, clinical workshops and conferences. Aspiring candidates get to learn about various forms of treatment including surgical procedures, dental materials, dental anatomy and oral histology, orthodontics, pedodontics, Oral medicine and radiology. The bachelor course is divided into two or more semesters.
Internship
Just like the MBBS curriculum, students pursuing BDS, on completion of the four-year theoretical BDS course are supposed to undertake an year-long clinical programme or internship. The compulsory paid internship is aimed at improving training in different specialities of dentistry. The internship period in dentistry/mbbs provides better opportunities for practical training and skill development.
After graduation
Your graduation will be the happiest day of your life once you are done with your academics. Once you are done with your bachelor, you could either join as an assistant at a dental clinic or go for higher studies- i.e. Master of Dental Surgery(MDS). MDS is a three year degree course for which the candidate can apply for after registering with State Dental Council.
Scope
You generally pay a visit to this person because you miss your smile. The career profile in dental sciences is changing rapidly, creating more opportunities and challenges for seekers in this profession. This career offers high wages and flexible work schedule. Also, you get to be your own boss once you’ve started practicing yourself. Apart from this, as a dentist you can seek work in the research and advisory departments of pharmaceuticals. Opportunities are also open in companies producing oral care products like toothpaste and gum care products.
