Seeking advice, etc. regarding a career switch

[Sylvester]

Lots of TMDenizens are older than me and have probably gone through such questioning, so I'm posting this here. I'm in my 2nd year of dentistry (out of a total of 5), and I'm having doubts regarding my prospective career. It's a great job, and the research is really thrilling, but the classes are killing me. It seems to me that, unlike most of my classmates, I don't really care about the time we spend in the clinic. Actually, it scares me more than anything. I also definitely don't see myself working in a clinic. If I did that, I'd probably end up bulking up the already large # of suicides among dentists. On the other hand, some courses are really interesting (admittedly, these courses are all much more about basics science than clinic). I'm gonna consult a psychologist to try and figure out whether my lack of concentration and weird anxiety-esque feeling is due to the fact that I don't feel dentistry is my thing, or if there is another reason like depression or something (which would probably encourage me to try another semester with my new, improved and better-concentrated self).

As it is, I'm probably gonna take the next semester off (instead of flunking it anyway), and decide what I'm going to do during that time. I guess that'd be either go back in DMD (one year later) or switch to something more mathsy like operations research.

Any advice, tips, ways to temporise before having to make a decision, etc?

PS. I know that, objectively, leaving DMD would be one of the worst decision in my life ever, and that many people would really like to be in dentistry... I guess that's a warning for those of us considering to get a degree ot because you like the subject matter, but because you think you'll like the lifestyle or to use as a trampoline into, e.g., MD.

TIA

[Bram]

I'm in my 2nd year of dentistry (out of a total of 5), and I'm having doubts regarding my prospective career. It's a great job, and the research is really thrilling, but the classes are killing me.

If it were this alone, then my advise would be to start crackin' books. I've dragged a friend of mine who had similar doubts thourgh a semester. He picked up after than, and managed to finish almost a year ahead of me. Even though he's no longer interested in working in our field of study, he managed to land a well-paying temporary job in the field while he looks for other work. He's come to realise that the fact that he finished a decent university-level education is worth more to a random company than the actual field of research. And I should think dentistry is a decent educuation. Over here in The Netherlands, it's the one field that absolutely ensures you of a job, since we have WAY too few dentists.

I also definitely don't see myself working in a clinic. If I did that, I'd probably end up bulking up the already large # of suicides among dentists.

If this is really the case, however, then you should likely quit. If you think (even if it is partly in jest) that you might off yourself if you become a dentist, then it isn't worth it. It's better to be a happy low-paid streetsweeper than an unhappy high-paid dentist.

On the other hand, some courses are really interesting (admittedly, these courses are all much more about basics science than clinic).

This may provide some information about what type of studies you'd rather pursue, I think.

I'm gonna consult a psychologist to try and figure out whether my lack of concentration and weird anxiety-esque feeling is due to the fact that I don't feel dentistry is my thing, or if there is another reason like depression or something (which would probably encourage me to try another semester with my new, improved and better-concentrated self).

By all means, talk to one. Experience shows, however, that most of the time, you really already know the answer and just need the psychologist to get you to the point where you can be fair with yourself.

As it is, I'm probably gonna take the next semester off (instead of flunking it anyway), and decide what I'm going to do during that time.

This above all, sounds like a good plan.

PS. I know that, objectively, leaving DMD would be one of the worst decision in my life ever, and that many people would really like to be in dentistry

There is no objectivity in this matter. If you leave it, and become happy one way or another, how could it be ' objectively'  bad? The fact that many people would envy your current position, is hardly a reason to stay. I'm now forced to choose between several jobs myself, effectively plotting a course for the rest of my life. Realising that many people in Asia who work in sweatshops for a buck a day would literally kill to be in that position, doesn't make MY choice any easier. Forget about what other people think/say (or even worse: what you ASSUME they would think/say) and focus on YOU.

Summarising: None of us can tell you to quit or stay, but: do, within reason, the thing that you want to do, keeping in mind that you need to be able to provide for yourself with it eventually, and realise that every decision has its ups and downs (such as classes you hate) which you'll have to see through (even in you choose a different career).

Also: besides a psychologist, isn't there some student counceller or career coach you could talk to?

[kl0wn]

Lots of TMDenizens are older than me and have probably gone through such questioning, so I'm posting this here. I'm in my 2nd year of dentistry (out of a total of 5), and I'm having doubts regarding my prospective career. It's a great job, and the research is really thrilling, but the classes are killing me. It seems to me that, unlike most of my classmates, I don't really care about the time we spend in the clinic. Actually, it scares me more than anything. I also definitely don't see myself working in a clinic. If I did that, I'd probably end up bulking up the already large # of suicides among dentists. On the other hand, some courses are really interesting (admittedly, these courses are all much more about basics science than clinic).

Seems like you've already made up your mind from what I see.

[Sylvester]

Well, what's making this much harder than it seems is that research in dentistry is really, really, really interesting. I can't stress how cool dentistry will be in a couple decades. Think inducing the growth of new teeth, tissues, etc... So if I were to continue in this, it'd definitely be for the research (where getting grants, etc. is much easier once one has a professional diploma).

[Bram]

Well, there you go. Dentistry research. Isn't that, like, a specific graduation direction you can choose within the program?

[Limbo]

There is indeed some cool research possible in dentistry. I happen to know some people here on the university that research using plasma's as a scalpel (both for possible surgery or "drillling" holes in teeth). Both cleaner, and you don't have to go nuts by removing loads of healthy stuff.

And it indeed looks like you really thought about what to do and how. Best of luck persuing your choices.

[dandan]

Sounds to me like you have already decided but your choice is not the one you see as 'sensible'. I agree with Bram that getting a university education is a big plus so see if you can sort out a course switch (in my field of Mechanical Engineering, lots of people switched to Ergonomics after a year or even 2). I made it through my final year after losing all interest in the academic side of university life but I can't see you lasting 3 1/2 years without interest in your course.

[Dante]

I was in a similar situation - I was a Physics major in college.  Around the beginning of my junior year, I realized that all the research and topics that I'd seen so far, while interesting, was not something I'd want to be doing the rest of my life, so I went into something else (I finished my degree as this was only undergrad and a Physics degree from Carleton is a strong accomplishment) during the summers and after college (a bunch of us started our own company).

My last term of my senior year, we had a visiting professor come down who was finishing up his PHD at the University of Minnesota and he taught a Material Science class.  Now by material science I mean looking at polymers and the flaws in materials (i.e. what makes plastics do what they do, what makes certain things act well on hard drives and plasma TVs).  The class was mostly physics, but with a decent amount of Chemistry.

What it made me realize was that what I didn't like about most "traditional" areas of physics was that even "applied" physics wasn't that applied - you didn't have anything at the end of the day that you could say "I made that".  Everything was so big (Astrophysics) or small (particle physics), that it was hard to apply it to everyday life.  Whereas this new topic was relevant to things like hard drive technology, using organic molecules to conduct electricty so that you could have plasma TV's that you could roll up like a poster, etc.  I realized that what I really wanted was something more tangible to result from what I did.

Now I have ZERO regrets about choosing to leave physics and go another way (because I wouldn't have stayed in Chicago and met a lot of my friends or wife), if I had been exposed to that subject material and understood about different career choices coming out of physics other than the standard "go get PHD, do research either in astrophysics, particle physics, or teach", then I may very well have chosen something different.

My point to you is this - figure out WHY just opening a clinic and being a dentist doesn't appeal to you.  You obviously were interested at some point along the way in some aspect of dentistry.  Maybe you'd like to focus on dental surgery instead of just a "standard" dentist.  Maybe you'd like to focus on the cosmetic aspects, so you can see instant visual evidence of your work.  Or maybe, you're right and dentistry isn't for you and you should move on to something else.  But being this far down the road, you should figure out why before moving on (or at least figuring out why you don't like this so you don't move into something with those characteristics).

Bill

PS - I'm not sure if it matters, but I'm 28.

[Sylvester]

Thanks for the help everyone.

I decided that I just didn't feel like the clinic was where I was meant to be. Given that the last two years of the doc will mostly be treating patients, I don't think I could finish the program. I'm gonna go in Operations Research/CS. Hopefully, I'll still be able to keep a door open if I ever want to go back in dentistry

[Joel Rojo]

Well, if that's what will make you happy, congratulations Sylv. I, however, also agree that you should find answers to the subjacent questions that bring you to this point. At some point in your new career you'll have to face a similar choice again, and it would help you to make the best out of it.

On a completely unrelated topic, do you remember citing some syndrome as "baby autism", and probably the source of geekness in some post? I'm pretty sure it started with E, but I just can't remember it's name.

[Sylvester]

Yeah, it's Asperger's Syndrome. (Whose sufferers often call themselves Aspies, if you ever stumble on that word)

And I've tried finding what makes me feel that way towards dentistry. Basically, I think it comes down to the fact that I don't feel in my place in the clinic. I'm always scared of messing up, I never feel like I know what I should do, and working in it doesn't feel like a good achievement. Apart from that, I think I could have dragged myself through the less interesting courses and liked the rest, but the current ~6h/week of clinic-esque work are already killing me, and it'll only get longer each semester. I think the basic difference between me and the quasi-totality of the other students is that they went in dentistry because they either genuinely liked the job, or because they wanted the money; I went in dentistry by default (I chose the hardest program I could get into, figuring that I could always switch to another one later on). So, while I loved the first year of very general courses, and am having trouble liking this one, most of them just endured last year knowing that this year and the ones after would come soon. Of course, what sucks about this is that dentists usually don't have too much trouble finding a job, which would have made me much more mobile (and that could have been handy to follow my girlfriend, given that her degree is in anthropology, where there isn't that much demand).