Pre-Dental
Career and
Major Information
Related Career
Titles
Web Sites
Salary
Information
The Associate of Science Degree in Pre-Dental is intended to fulfill the
preadmission requirements for a school of dentistry. Many students who are
admitted to dental school have completed a bachelor’s degree. The curriculum
in the WSCC catalog is not designed for transfer to any specific school.
Students will need to talk with a faculty advisor about a particular college or
university’s courses and transfer. The link for the Natural Science Division
at Walters State is:
http://www.ws.edu/science/default.asp.
Career and Major Information:
Dentists
diagnose, prevent, and treat problems with teeth or mouth tissue. They remove
decay, fill cavities, examine x rays, place protective plastic sealants on
children’s teeth, straighten teeth, and repair fractured teeth. They also
perform corrective surgery on gums and supporting bones to treat gum diseases.
Dentists extract teeth and make models and measurements for dentures to replace
missing teeth. They provide instruction on diet, brushing, flossing, the use of
fluorides, and other aspects of dental care. They also administer anesthetics
and write prescriptions for antibiotics and other medications.
Dentists use a
variety of equipment, including x-ray machines, drills, and instruments such as
mouth mirrors, probes, forceps, brushes, and scalpels. They wear masks, gloves,
and safety glasses to protect themselves and their patients from infectious
diseases (Occupational Outlook Handbook 2004-2005).
Related Career Titles:
|
Chiropractors |
Physicians
and Surgeons |
Optometrists |
|
Podiatrists |
Psychologists |
Veterinarians |
Web Sites:
American Dental
Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation, 211 E. Chicago Ave., Chicago, IL 60611. Internet:
http://www.ada.org
American Dental
Education Association, 1625 Massachusetts Ave. NW., Suite 600, Washington, DC 20036. Internet:
http://www.adea.org
Occupational
Outlook Handbook 2004-2005:
http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos072.htm#related
Salary Information:
Median annual
earnings of salaried dentists were $123,210 in 2002. Earnings vary according to
number of years in practice, location, hours worked, and specialty.
Salary figures
quoted are based on national figures. Local or regional salaries may be lower.
Citation: Bureau of Labor Statistics,
U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook,
2004-05 Edition, Dentists, on the Internet at
http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos072.htm
