knrosh93 Posted February 24, 2016 Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 Am I the only one who is bothered by this? I was talking to a premed today who had almost a perfect 4.0 GPA. He applied to several medical schools and he was saying how he's "safe" because he has dentistry as a backup. I was offended by this but didn't want to argue with him so I just left the conversation. I've always wanted to pursue either dentistry or pharmacy for good reasons and I've never considered either one to be a backup. I interact with dentists a lot and I've seen several cases where people get their DDS degree and regret it because it's not something that they really wanted to do. I've also been told by many dentists that students just apply to dentistry mistakenly thinking that they'll all work at a clinic that pays them 100k+ salary after they graduate. Obviously, we all have our fantasies of becoming a doctor but I think we should at least take some time to think about what we REALLY want to do... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NotASerialKiller Posted February 24, 2016 Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 A backup just means that someone would rather do something else, not that one is objectively lesser than the other. Someone could apply to dentistry but have a backup plan to be an engineer. Doesn't mean that engineering is looked down on by anyone, just that this particular person would prefer to be a dentist. No need to be personally offended that someone would rather do something else than pursue your desired career, people are different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntiSWOMEN Posted February 24, 2016 Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 Why are you disgusted that someone is giving consideration to a profession that is somewhat related to their profession of choice? You yourself say you are interested in pharmacy and dentistry, but you will probably choose to pursue one and have the other as your "backup" if you aren't able to gain admission to your first choice. Should I be disgusted that you don't know what you "REALLY" want to do? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knrosh93 Posted February 24, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 Why are you disgusted that someone is giving consideration to a profession that is somewhat related to their profession of choice? You yourself say you are interested in pharmacy and dentistry, but you will probably choose to pursue one and have the other as your "backup" if you aren't able to gain admission to your first choice. Should I be disgusted that you don't know what you "REALLY" want to do?I was disgusted by the conversation I had today, not by the fact that he didn't know what they really want to do. Of course I didn't describe the full details of the conversation here but I don't think any normal minded person should be disgusted by the fact that someone doesn't know what he/she wants to do lol. Also, like I said, I don't consider either one of the two as a backup. Both are what I really want to do and I have extensive shadowing experience for both professions. I really don't mind pursuing one or the other. In my opinion, if I equally want to pursue either one, it is not considered a backup (i.e. plan B. Both are plan As for me. The person I spoke to today clearly had zero passion for dentistry but was merely considering it as a backup, which is fine, but I still think the person should think over that carefully because the way he was addressing it suggested that he was rather immature about his plan. Edit: Removed the 'disgust' part because it may sound in an unintended way Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sidney Crosby Posted February 24, 2016 Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 I see where you're coming from. Only bc I applied to dentistry last year as a backup to med. It turns out that having an open mind and having considered dent in the first place allowed me to eventually realize I want to do dent, even when I got into med and rejected to dent. Trust me when I say keeping an OPEN MIND is key to finding out what you'll be happy doing. Am I disgusted by your friend? No, I'd applaud him/her Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knrosh93 Posted February 24, 2016 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 I see where you're coming from. Only bc I applied to dentistry last year as a backup to med. It turns out that having an open mind and having considered dent in the first place allowed me to eventually realize I want to do dent, even when I got into med and rejected to dent. Trust me when I say keeping an OPEN MIND is key to finding out what you'll be happy doing. Am I disgusted by your friend? No, I'd applaud him/her I agree with you on that one. Having an open mind is never wrong. However, I'm just bothered by the fact that some people consider dent as a med backup without giving much thought into it. Obviously, there's nothing wrong with having a backup, but before really moving on with your backup, I think you should definitely give some serious thoughts into that idea. I didn't mean to use disgust to address that people with a backup are disgusting. Rather, I meant to say that I had a very unpleasant and immature communication with someone who is so well-educated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AntiSWOMEN Posted February 24, 2016 Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 I was disgusted by the conversation I had today, not by the fact that he didn't know what they really want to do. Of course I didn't describe the full details of the conversation here but I don't think any normal minded person should be disgusted by the fact that someone doesn't know what he/she wants to do lol. Also, like I said, I don't consider either one of the two as a backup. Both are what I really want to do and I have extensive shadowing experience for both professions. I really don't mind pursuing one or the other. In my opinion, if I equally want to pursue either one, it is not considered a backup (i.e. plan B. Both are plan As for me. The person I spoke to today clearly had zero passion for dentistry but was merely considering it as a backup, which is fine, but I still think the person should think over that carefully because the way he was addressing it suggested that he was rather immature about his plan. So if you apply to both and are only accepted by one I am going going to assume (since you state they are both "plan A's") that you will accept the offer. The concept of applying to multiple professional schools to me is a what constitutes a "back up" in the case that you don't have the privilege of choosing for yourself. While I agree that it's important to be passionate about your prospective career I don't think there is anything wrong in seeking job security especially in this day and age. Medicine and dentistry are very similar careers, and in my opinion if this person is willing to go through dent school, they have clearly come to accept that they would be content with being a dentist should they not be accepted into medicine and I see no issue with this even if they are, as you claim, not passionate about dentistry now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_ _ Posted February 24, 2016 Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 His loss. If he views a totally different career as a 'backup' and appears to not have even remotely considered if he would actually like dentistry, he's the one who is going to suffer the (very) severe consequence of not enjoying what he does each and every single day for years to come. It's not that dentistry is 'easier' to get into by any means, they just have different criteria. Someone with a 4.0 but little ECs might have better luck applying to dent than med, where someone with a 3.8 might get into multiple schools but rejected from dentistry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InstantRamen Posted February 24, 2016 Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 It's not fair for anyone to question another person's motivation to pursue a career. Edit: Unless you're on the admissions committee!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CC36 Posted February 24, 2016 Report Share Posted February 24, 2016 I agree with you on that one. Having an open mind is never wrong. However, I'm just bothered by the fact that some people consider dent as a med backup without giving much thought into it. Obviously, there's nothing wrong with having a backup, but before really moving on with your backup, I think you should definitely give some serious thoughts into that idea. I didn't mean to use disgust to address that people with a backup are disgusting. Rather, I meant to say that I had a very unpleasant and immature communication with someone who is so well-educated. Just cause someone is well educated doesn't mean they can communicate......this happens with people from all professions and educational attainment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
46dr Posted February 25, 2016 Report Share Posted February 25, 2016 Just cause someone is well educated doesn't mean they can communicate......this happens with people from all professions and educational attainment. Or that they're mature. I've worked with a surgeon that would exclaim "ready the lasers!" and made a light sabre sound when he wanted the cauterizer . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bambi Posted February 25, 2016 Report Share Posted February 25, 2016 Having a backup for the preferred career is smart and necessary. Wait until you reach CaRMS if you are in medicine when there is a fork in the road for career choice - and the decision is made by others for you whether you do Plan A, Plan B or Plan C for the rest of your life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chronicconic Posted February 26, 2016 Report Share Posted February 26, 2016 I personally don't see anything wrong with this plan, other than perhaps this person patronizing your career aspiration. Dentistry seems like an excellent alternative career for an aspiring doctor for several reasons. I'd say Pharmacy is also a good alternative career. There are many similarities among all three fields that will attract similar applicants. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_ _ Posted February 26, 2016 Report Share Posted February 26, 2016 I personally don't see anything wrong with this plan, other than perhaps this person patronizing your career aspiration. Dentistry seems like an excellent alternative career for an aspiring doctor for several reasons. I'd say Pharmacy is also a good alternative career. There are many similarities among all three fields that will attract similar applicants. I think it wasn't the idea of having a backup that bothered the person here, but more so that the person they were talking to seems to have been a bit condescending/disrespectful of dentistry compared to medicine. It absolutely could be a great alternative career-but it seems like this person in question is 100% interested in medicine and talked about dent as a fallback to someone who is very interested in dentistry, which would be naturally very frustrating to deal with for the OP Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookiemonster99 Posted February 26, 2016 Report Share Posted February 26, 2016 Am I the only one who is bothered by this? I was talking to a premed today who had almost a perfect 4.0 GPA. He applied to several medical schools and he was saying how he's "safe" because he has dentistry as a backup. I was offended by this but didn't want to argue with him so I just left the conversation. I've always wanted to pursue either dentistry or pharmacy for good reasons and I've never considered either one to be a backup. I interact with dentists a lot and I've seen several cases where people get their DDS degree and regret it because it's not something that they really wanted to do. I've also been told by many dentists that students just apply to dentistry mistakenly thinking that they'll all work at a clinic that pays them 100k+ salary after they graduate. Obviously, we all have our fantasies of becoming a doctor but I think we should at least take some time to think about what we REALLY want to do... unfortunately you are going to meet these people in your class and in life, but hey that's life right? I know there's a girl at UofT dent who told me she didn't want to do dentistry but got in and didn't get into med so she ended up doing dentistry. what can you do...? Nothing..... it's like people saying: i never wanted to win the lottery but I still buy lottery tickets..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_ _ Posted February 26, 2016 Report Share Posted February 26, 2016 unfortunately you are going to meet these people in your class and in life, but hey that's life right? I know there's a girl at UofT dent who told me she didn't want to do dentistry but got in and didn't get into med so she ended up doing dentistry. what can you do...? Nothing..... it's like people saying: i never wanted to win the lottery but I still buy lottery tickets..... I see it as it's worse for them really, they're the ones who will suffer the (potential) consequences of jumping into a career they may or may not enjoy. Nothing like spending 100K on a degree you don't want.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sidney Crosby Posted February 26, 2016 Report Share Posted February 26, 2016 Honestly, to each their own. Whether it's better or worse for them is a decision they will have to make if/when the time comes. Not upto us to judge whether or not someone will like/dislike their profession based on having read one side of the story. That is based on many factors. And who knows what their situation is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cookiemonster99 Posted February 27, 2016 Report Share Posted February 27, 2016 I see it as it's worse for them really, they're the ones who will suffer the (potential) consequences of jumping into a career they may or may not enjoy. Nothing like spending 100K on a degree you don't want.... aha....most people on the premed forums are ones that want to medicine,dentistry because they believe it will give them an income and lifestyle that they are looking for. Isn't that the case in the end? It's about the amount that you take home. Now don't get me wrong, I'm sure there are people who's very interested in medicine and the healthcare field but let's be honest.....if money isn't a motivation for them they wouldn't even be looking this way. It's human nature......wanting something that we don't have Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_ _ Posted February 27, 2016 Report Share Posted February 27, 2016 aha....most people on the premed forums are ones that want to medicine,dentistry because they believe it will give them an income and lifestyle that they are looking for. Isn't that the case in the end? It's about the amount that you take home. Now don't get me wrong, I'm sure there are people who's very interested in medicine and the healthcare field but let's be honest.....if money isn't a motivation for them they wouldn't even be looking this way. It's human nature......wanting something that we don't have Honestly, I'm probably the wrong person to ask about that! haha I can truly say I am not at all in it for the money-in fact, wish I wanted anything but this. It's been brutal trying to cover costs of uni, applications, mcats, alone, and I don't even know how/if Ill be able to apply again if my interviews don't work out this cycle. I can't think about that. I do want to be able to pay my rent without worrying, but money is in no way my motivation to do this. There's a lot easier ways to make a high salary (say, 80K and up) in my opinion. I can't imagine doing all this if I honestly didn't want to be a doctor . I think prestige, and the idea of 'success' plays a pretty big role too for a lots of premeds/dents, from what I see Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chromatic Posted May 23, 2016 Report Share Posted May 23, 2016 I can see why you're frustrated - a condescending/patronising attitude towards another profession would annoy me as well. I don't condone any of that but after hearing perspectives from other healthcare professionals, I think many more students considering medicine SHOULD also be taking a hard look at dentistry and considering it as a potential career alternative. Dentistry is similar to medicine, and may offer additional advantages (ie: more independence, not restricted by the gov't system, potentially better work/life balance, ability to work with patients longitudinally while also having a surgical hands-on aspect). I would imagine a reason why dentistry may be that 'back-up option' (instead of 1st choice) is because it's rarer for people to be passionate and know off-the-bat that they want to work solely with teeth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr.Watson Posted May 24, 2016 Report Share Posted May 24, 2016 Dentistry is a great back up, if its not your first choice! For me, medicine was a back up plan and so was pharmacy. Its fine if people have dentistry as a second plan. It doesn't discredit the profession whatsoever. We all have our hierarchy of choices. If I didn't get into dent, it doesn't mean I would have been a failing pharmacist. Focus on yourself and your own aspirations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AncientDentist Posted May 24, 2016 Report Share Posted May 24, 2016 Dentistry is a great back up, if its not your first choice! For me, medicine was a back up plan and so was pharmacy. Its fine if people have dentistry as a second plan. It doesn't discredit the profession whatsoever. We all have our hierarchy of choices. If I didn't get into dent, it doesn't mean I would have been a failing pharmacist. Focus on yourself and your own aspirations. Very well put! I think the assumption is that Medicine is somehow a better profession because it is harder to get in to. If that's the case, there are a bunch of really competitive professional Master's programs which are just as difficult to get into as Medicine... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr.Watson Posted May 24, 2016 Report Share Posted May 24, 2016 Very well put! I think the assumption is that Medicine is somehow a better profession because it is harder to get in to. If that's the case, there are a bunch of really competitive professional Master's programs which are just as difficult to get into as Medicine... I could be wrong, but I think that dentistry has been harder to get into for the last few years than medicine at the University of Saskatchewan. I apologize if this is wrong, but from people I've spoken to recently, this seems to be the case... NOT that it really matters at all, but if we are talking about the prestige of medicine having to do with entrance qualifications etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_ _ Posted May 25, 2016 Report Share Posted May 25, 2016 I could be wrong, but I think that dentistry has been harder to get into for the last few years than medicine at the University of Saskatchewan. I apologize if this is wrong, but from people I've spoken to recently, this seems to be the case... NOT that it really matters at all, but if we are talking about the prestige of medicine having to do with entrance qualifications etc. That is a bit of a weak comparison to make-considering that would only be for the small, small, subset of med applicants who are residents of saskatchewan. Everyone else needed a 97th% or higher MCAT score to get an interview...... Not at all trying to start anything or any sort of comparison though! But that's a bit of a stretch, to say that applies to all medical schools Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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