Why Dentistry?

Choosing a career is one of the most important decisions you will ever make. The information below will help you explore one exciting career possibility — dentistry.

So, why should anyone choose a career in dentistry? Below are just a few basic points why.

·         There are many unique opportunities and benefits within your reach if you choose a dental career.

·         Take your questions to dentists, counselors and teachers in your community.   Remember that it’s your future, your career and your choice.

·         Dentistry provides many unique opportunities to treat patients who have a wide variety of dental needs.

·         It's a job that needs commitment; you will be a dentist for the rest of your life.

Dentistry — A Career for the Future

Most dentists practicing today made their career decision in late high school or early college. It is never too soon or too late to begin some serious thinking about your career in dentistry. To get started, you will need to know what dentistry offers. This section discusses dentistry’s many challenges and rewards.

Variety — Dentistry is a rapidly changing, expanding profession, involving:

·         Detection of diseases: Dentists are often the first health care professionals to recognize and identify a wide variety of diseases, ranging from hypertension to cancer.

·         Diagnosis: Dentists diagnose and treat problems affecting the teeth, gingival tissue, tongue, lips and jaws. To accomplish this, they utilize new technology such as computers and magnetic resonance imaging.

·         Esthetic improvement: Dentists improve patients’ appearance by using a wide variety of cosmetic dental procedures. These services can make patients feel better about their smiles.

·         Surgical restoration: To repair, restore and maintain the teeth, gums and oral tissues that have been lost or damaged by accidents or diseases, dentists perform trauma surgery, implants, tissue grafts and laser surgery.

·         Public education/prevention: Dentists teach good habits for good health.   They educate their patients, as well as the general public, on how to achieve oral health and prevent disease.

·         Dentists treat people, not just teeth and mouths. They interact with people of all ages, cultures and personalities. The dentist’s typical day is diverse and interesting.

Creativity — Dentists are artists as well as scientists. To brighten one tooth or realign an entire jaw, dentists must have an artist’s esthetic sense to help their patients look their best.

Prestige — Dentists provide an essential health care service. They are highly respected within the community. Dentists are skilled, conscientious, civic-minded individuals who work with community leaders, educators, other health professionals and government officials.  They often volunteer services to school health programs and to elderly, handicapped or poor citizens, demonstrating a selflessness that is a hallmark of professionalism.

Flexibility — Dentistry allows you to be your own boss. Dentists can balance their personal and professional lives to meet their individual needs and desires. Dentistry provides opportunities in a variety of private and public settings including private practice, teaching, research, public health and administration.

Security —The demand for dental care will continue to grow. The increasing numbers of older adults is keeping their teeth longer, are more aware of the importance of regular dental care and require more dental services. Geriatric dental care and the greatly increased demand for newer services, such as cosmetic dentistry, also will contribute to this growth.

Personal Satisfaction — A career in dentistry is personally fulfilling. Dentists perform an important public service to help people maintain their health and appearance. To serve the present and future oral health needs of their patients, dentists enjoy the challenge of a lifetime of learning. Tomorrow’s dentists will be at the cutting edge of high technology, making the practice of dentistry even more exciting and rewarding than it is today.

The Dental Specialties

Most dentists practice general dentistry, giving them the capability of providing comprehensive care to a wide variety of patients. Some dentists choose to limit their practices to one of the eight recognized dental specialties.

·         Dental Public Health includes the control and prevention of dental disease and the promotion of oral health through organized community efforts. It is that form of dental practice which treats the community rather than the individual as a patient.

·         Endodontics deals with the causes, diagnoses, prevention, and treatment of diseases of the pulp and other dental tissues which affect the vitality of the teeth.

·         Oral Pathology is concerned with diseases which affect the oral mucous membranes as well as other tissues which surround the teeth.

·         Oral Surgery includes a broad scope of diagnostic, operative, and related services dealing with diseases, injuries, and defects in the jaws and associated structures.

·         Orthodontics is the science of tooth and oral structure development. The orthodontist treats problems related to irregular dental development, missing teeth, and other abnormalities in order to establish normal functioning and appearance.

·         Pediatric Dentistry deals with the diagnosis and treatment of children, adolescents, and young adults whose dental development is not complete.

·         Periodontics deals with the treatment of the soft and hard tissues which surround and support the teeth.

·         Prosthodontics is the science and art of replacing missing natural teeth and associated structures with fixed or removable substitutes.

The Dental School Curriculum

A dental education requires a minimum of Three years of Basic and medical science and three and a half years of dental school. If you decide to go into one of the eight specialties, you’ll need a minimum of two years of additional schooling. The dental curriculum can be divided into three broad areas:

·         Basic health sciences, including anatomy, biochemistry, histology, microbiology, pathology, pharmacology and physiology, with emphasis on dental aspects.

·         Application of these health sciences, providing patient care in dental school clinics.

·         Practice management, including talking with patients, the use and management of dental office staff, business management, professional ethics and community health.

Admission Requirements to the Dental Program

All applicants to the Health Science Center (Faculties of Medicine, Dentistry & Pharmacy) are required to have completed high school with a minimum of 80%. In addition they are required to take an admission test which consists of English, Chemistry & Mathematics. During the first year, all students admitted to the Health Science Center will study together in the Paraprofessional programme.

Students who have successfully completed the one year Preprofessional program of the Kuwait University Health Sciences Center with a minimum GPA of 2.5 out of 4.00 points are eligible for admission to the Faculty. A merit list will be prepared by the Dean of Admission and Registration based on the Grade Point Averages attained in the Preprofessional courses.

Courses required to be completed in the Pre-professional Program are:

Course No.

Course

Credit Hours

181

English

5

182

English

5

140

Chemistry for Health Sciences

3

141

Biophysics

3

143

Biology for Health Sciences

4

101

Introduction to computers in Medicine

1

144

Biostatistics & Basic Epidemiology

3

Two Elective Courses

6

References: ADA.org and hsc.edu.kw