cookiemonster99

I applied for GPR for UofT, Western, and some other GPR residencies across canada after coming back and working for a little bit. i graduated from an aussie school btw. I got interviews at UofT and frankly I found the interview process to be really weird at Sinai, Sunnybrook was panel. Long story short: I didn't get into the GPR program at any of the schools in Canada. The year i applied to was also the COVID shut down year so maybe that had to do with the applicant pool? I remember somone saying there's like 300 applicants for the 3 spots at sunnybrook which is stupid..... I think you're much better of applying for residency in the US instead. The competition in Canada for residency/GPR is crazy and IMHO not worth it.

This is one of the issues. What i'm seeing in Toronto is that some of the foreign grads are coming to Canada with money already from their home country. As soon as they get licensed they buy dental practices and run their own show. This is driving up the prices for dental practices. Corporate dentistry is another factor. I've heard that grads from UofT or Western aren't graduating with much experience (someone correct me if i'm wrong on this). As a practice owner especially in GTA, you want your associates to be producers due to the high cost of running a dental office. You gotta make $$ too. So would you hire a new grad from UofT? Or would you hire someone who's got 20 years experience as a specialist in their own country and can do some of the speciality work that you would generally refer out? I think it's a no brainer. I also see that some of these foreign dentists were also specialists in their own country. All they need to do is to pass the NDEB and they can practice their speciality. Of course they can only bill GP fees. So you'll see these foreign GPs actually practicing as a specialist and do great work. Some are trained as a prosthodontist in anther country likek dubai or england. Their education there is just as good as north america for post-grad(i know some ppl are gonna argue). So you'll see quite a few speciality Gps that go around GTA advertising their skills.

I'm about 2.5 years out of dental school and I can say the dental profession is not really what I expected it to be In terms of income: I barely broke 100k in the first 2 years. I worked in the GTA area and have found out that things are very tough for an associate dentist in a highly competitive market I found It's quite difficult to find a "good" position with mentorship and for the principles to invest into you. Most really don't care, and just want someone to work there so they generate more revenue for the practice which means more $$ in their own pockets. As an owner, your doors open up a lot more and that means more potential for a higher income. I've seen practice appraisals where after expenses are paid owner dentists are making around 300-400k per year in terms of take home income. So the profession really isn't dead if you want to make money. This is in the GTA btw.

I've heard of a few who were out 3-5 years, however they weren't practicing full time when they graduated and had other things in their life that made them not practice as much. I.e kids, marriage etc. Maybe that explains it. However, some of these grads just want a "chill" schedule, and just want to sit back and think "i made it" i'm entitled to high pay. Well...sorry to burst some people's bubble, dentistry is an entrepreneural professional. You have to find your own work and convince patients that what you're doing for them is in their best interest and make them want to pay for it.

I'll throw in my 2 cents here I went to a rural dental school in Australia and the clinical experience was excellent. It was a 5 year program and we saw so many patients in our last year as we had no classes and just saw patients. Essentially I completed a full working year before I came back to Canada and was kind of expecting private practice to be the same. However, I soon realized private practice is VERY different from school. Based on my experience, I've spoken to multiple practice owners and mostly will not hire a new grad because of a few reasons: 1. Lack of experience 2. Lack of communication skills 3. Doesn't really understand how the dental industry works and how a dental business runs A few owners are shocked that some grads who are 3-5 years out a reluctant to do crowns or root canals and would mostly refer. Nothing wrong with referring, however in a saturated market where most practices want to retain procedures in house this is where issues arise.

You're gonna find it tough for a clinic for you to come in and shadow and understand that most clinics right now just want to get back to pre-covid revenues. Someone who comes in and doesn't do anything except maybe gets in the way of things definitely are not going to be as welcomed post-covid due to an increase demand between PPE and fallow time. Unfortunately for now just hold off the shadowing experience. I don't think it's a make or break deal when it comes to your application. If asked just say it's covid and you weren't able to shadow, the admission panel will understand

I personally have zeiss 3.3x and luma dent light. I LOVEE my loupes, although they are on the heavier side but they are supppper good quality IMO i'm obviously bias XD

Anyone on here that have completed a GPR in Canada? I'm eager to hear about your experiences. I.e what the program was focused on, what type of things you did. i know most are focused on treating medically complex patients but did any of the programs have a focus on endo? implants? oral surg?

seems like the job market isn't that bad then

Well....I'm not sure about all of the dental schools in Canada but yes there are grads in Canada that graduated with very minimal clinical experience compared to some US or Aus schools. I do agree everything else you've said. The amount of practices in major cities that are looking for people who can just step in and complete "complex" work is increasing and mentorship in major cities may also be lacking due to competition. Not to say there aren't any opportunities available but it's becoming rarer and rarer.

That is a horrible way to pick your healthcare practitioners........... If you think that the Canadian or US system is superior, then I fear you are quite ignorant of the fact that there are many countries that produce very qualified doctors/dentists. Some of these people who are passing the equivalency process are actually specialist from their own respective countries. Now i'm not gonna say you're completely wrong as to there are some countries that produce lower-tier graduates or their graduates are just not trained as well as graduates from Canada/US/Aus/Uk/Ireland/Europe. Even within these countries there is a HUGEEEEEEEEEE variation between the amount of clinical work that their graduates do prior to being "let free" on the public. I've heard Canadian dental grads only doing 1 extraction and maybe 1 root canal before they graduated from dental school IN CANADA. Would you trust yourself with a dentist like that? Or would you prefer someone who graduated from a "non-accrediated program" who's completed the equivalancy process and has done thousands of these procedures? just my 2 cents

yes...a lot of toothpaste have baking soda

I'm not sure about those products. After a quick google search I saw that they use sodium bicarbonate which is not really what dentists use for whitening. We generally use carbamide peroxide but they are generally used in office through special methods where there is isolation of the teeth you want to bleach or whiten The whitening toothpaste just have more abrasion component in it that lets you scrub away a bit more surface staining so it can appear whiter Generally, whitening have side effects like gum sensitivity but it varies between individuals. Be careful when buying these type of products online as they aren't regulated and generally are a waste of money in my opinion. white teeth are a combination of your diet, age, and even race play a factor in it. if you want white teeth... stop drinking so much coffee tea and red wine. that's generally what i tell my patients lol....

This thread is exactly the reason why i went into dent LOL not to say dent is better but I think i'll be a bit happier than you guys we'll see though

Came across this by accident If you go into your profile on a tablet or iPad and tap on your profile picture it gives u an option to change it I don't know why my computer doesn't do it but my iPad allows me to change my profile pic