Dentistry to PA

[jhm23]

Hey guys. So I just graduated from undergrad with a degree in bio& psyc. I was pre-dental for most of my college career.
Now that college is over, I’ve had a bit more time to think. I’m not entirely sure if dentistry is right for me.
That being said, I have worked as a dental assistant for the past year part time and now full time now that I’m out of school for a bit.
However, because I am considering other career options, I’ve been looking at PA. I like that it is only 2 years, good income, and not as expensive as dental school. I’m beginning to think this is a better option for me for multiple reasons that I won’t get into.
PA school requires a decent amount of clinical exposure before applying. Does working as a dental assistant count? It would kind of suck to have all of that patient exposure & clinical experience go down the drain..

What are other good clinical opportunities for pa school?

Please let me know! Thank you!

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[pamac]

I know a lot of dentists that are in serious debt. The cash flow can be great, but there are lots of expenses. I changed course as well after spending most of my undergrad wanting to be a dentist. My scores were great, but one day I realized it wasn’t for me as well.

The PA school process is a bit eclectic compared to to the more standardized process of dental schools. The standards and application profile of dental applicants is fairly uniform, but Pa schools all have individual requirements across the board. I think that most good applicants can find a bunch of schools that want students that fit their profile, but it takes some research. You’ll need to look at websites and make calls. Some schools will take dental assisting, but the schools that are really focused on good quality health care experience probably won’t accept that. But there are tons of schools who are focused more on academics than HCE, and those would actually be where I’d start looking if I were you. The dental assisting might count as “other” experience for many schools rather than what they are looking for. I don’t want to steer you wrong on that though, so certainly look into it. My main point is that if you are used to the AADSAS, and how you can fill out your stuff and apply and be considered for almost all the dental schools, you’ll find the CASPA to be less of a one stop shop. Yes, you’ll be able to put your info there and have them shop it around for you, but some schools will have cutoffs and not consider folks without certain qualities.

 

[MidwestPAC]

Hey guys. So I just graduated from undergrad with a degree in bio& psyc. I was pre-dental for most of my college career.
Now that college is over, I’ve had a bit more time to think. I’m not entirely sure if dentistry is right for me.
That being said, I have worked as a dental assistant for the past year part time and now full time now that I’m out of school for a bit.
However, because I am considering other career options, I’ve been looking at PA. I like that it is only 2 years, good income, and not as expensive as dental school. I’m beginning to think this is a better option for me for multiple reasons that I won’t get into.
PA school requires a decent amount of clinical exposure before applying. Does working as a dental assistant count? It would kind of suck to have all of that patient exposure & clinical experience go down the drain..

What are other good clinical opportunities for pa school?

Please let me know! Thank you!

I would doubt any school would accept dental assisting as HCE. I would into MA, CNA if you don't want to do much schooling, but if you truly want to thrive as a PA you will get/work at a higher level of HCE such as EMT-P, RN, RT would be the top 3 I would pick. I see all the new pre-PAs want to get into PA school at 22-23 which is not smart, work in health care for at least 2-3 years prior (as a paramedic, RT, RN, etc) and then go to PA school. You will do so much better than working as a CNA/MA for 6 months and then going into PA school. You will thank me later.