Guest dentisthopeful Posted May 17, 2004 Report Share Posted May 17, 2004 I'm a Gr.12 student thinking of becoming a dentist. What sort of careers are available if I don't get into dental school, with an undergrad degree in science?I know high school teacher is one because that's what my bio teacher did. any others? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest epzi Posted May 17, 2004 Report Share Posted May 17, 2004 Hey, Some people opt for masters and stuff and the ones that are more serious about dentistry apply after first year masters, second year etc. because the fact is that if you don't get in after your Bsc its not the end of the world. I mean whats 1-2 years extra for a career that you end up in for 20-30 years or more. If you don't get in right after 4yrs uni and don't want to pursue dent anymore you could do police work, lab tech, education etc. But your only in grade 12. Its good to be prepared but my advice would be more along the lines of shadowing a dentist for now, going to school and having fun, becuase you still have a while before your going to apply (at least 2-3 years). epzi Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest toothy jr Posted May 17, 2004 Report Share Posted May 17, 2004 don't you need to do a bachelor's of education to be a high school teacher? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TheDDSDude Posted May 17, 2004 Report Share Posted May 17, 2004 dentisthopeful, please don't fall into the trap of looking for a backup just yet. Now focus on your task at hand. YOu want to be a dentist, then do what's necessary. Shadow a dentist and keep your grades high and take your prereqs. In the event that you choose not to pursue dentistry because you lost interest or what not, with a B.Sc, there are many things you can do. Grad school, teacher's college (this is to answer your question toothy jr.), police work, all the things epzi listed etc. etc. Remember don't sell yourself short. Focus on your goal. There will be many people including yourself that will doubt you. Don't fall into that trap. Also, keep an open mind to change, just in case you find something better for you to pursue than dentistry. There may be great opportunity in crisis, like the old saying goes. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest per te Posted May 17, 2004 Report Share Posted May 17, 2004 yes.. to be a teacher you need to take an extra year to get a BEd. I agree with TheDDSDude. dentisthopeful, there are lots of options for a backup, and you'll find out about these along the way. But while you're still young, try your best to prepare and keep your focus if this is what you really want to do. ~*per te*~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dentisthopeful Posted May 26, 2004 Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 I was wondering is there any biotechonogy-related career for someone majoring in a sub-field of biology, but failed to/decided not to pursue dentistry? Like is it possible to complete a four year degree in say, biochemistry and get a job in a biotechnology company? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LestatZinnie Posted May 26, 2004 Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 of course it's possible to get a job in any dicipline of science. Just look at how many pre-professional students there are and how many actually get in. However, if you're in life sciences the odds are you'll need something more than an undergrad to get a decent job. Even being a lab tech often require a masters degree and a few years experience (starting pay 40-50k). If you're just a regular grad with no lab experience (like many of my classmates in biochem who had never even run a gel) then you're pretty much at a dead end. second to my choice of being a dentist i would choose pharmacy. it is very, very good money and good lifestyle too with just undergrad training. Dont study life science just because you're premed or predent. There are other degrees that offer better prospects in case dentistry doesn't work out. One of our patients' grandson just graduated from chemical engineering and is making 70k/yr in alberta. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gonzo23 Posted May 26, 2004 Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 If you are considering examining other careers alongside prepping for dentistry, you might want to consider a co-op program. I just finished co-op biochem at UW, and I highly recommend co-op if you want to gain work experience. As mentioned above there are many biochem grads I know with very little actual lab/research experience aside from their course labs. I was not one of them, and I think that's really important when you graduate and start looking for a job. At the same time, you can find a summer job in a lab fairly easily (as many on this board have), but with co-op you might also try a job that may be somewhat unrelated to your field that might open up more doors/options. hope that helps! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pearlywhitesBC Posted May 26, 2004 Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 Hey! I just saw that Lestat Zinnie posted a salary range for lab techs and thought I would share my personal experience on that one. I live in Vancouer and apparently the salaries are a bit higher than they are out east (although I don't have any concrete evidence to back this up - just what I've been told). Most companies in Vancouver will hire research assistants/lab techs into starting positions with a salary somewhere in the low 30K range. I was hired at a biotech company after I graduated from the UBC microbiology co-op program and made 32K/year. I was on a contract so I didn't get any benefits/health care/RRSP contributions. I have a friend who started at a smaller biotech company (she had 2 years of prior experience) and is only making 30K/year. It really depends on the company but it seems like most places in Vancouver will start you off pretty low. I was lucky to go back to the company that I did my co-op work at and am now making 42K/year - I think this is considered pretty sweet in the Vancouver biotech industry (from what I've learned in the past few years, it's on the higher end of what I could/should be making). Just thought I would post some personal experience incase anyone was interested! If money is important to you, it's probably not the best field to go into. But it can be really interesting! Again, it really depends on what company you end up working for!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest LestatZinnie Posted May 26, 2004 Report Share Posted May 26, 2004 hi pearlywhite thanks alot for the info, especially for salaries in the private industry. The figure of 40k i'm quoting came from job postings in UBC that I saw for lab techs. Of course, there are many different levels of technicians so the salary range will differ as well. What really surprised me was that the pay for life science jobs usually don't commisurate with the amount of knowledge and hardwork they warrant. I know people who work in UBC library and make 30k or more. So again, imo life science degree does not offer a very good backup to professional schools unless you enjoy it (which most don't. i bet at least half of the people in my class at UBC had professional school aspirations). One can do a lot better with the same amount of schooling in engineering, pharmacy, or even commerce. money is not #1 in my book either, but with less than 40k per year, it's kind of hard to live comfortably especially in a city as expensive as vancouver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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