Normally dental treatment relates to oral cavity and dental surgery which is done for the treatment of dental problems. The filling of decayed teeth is done using dental admixture and porcelain and non-precious or precious metals like gold. Oral and maxillofacial surgery involves specialized dental surgery. There are variety of equipments that dentists use like x-ray machines, scalpels, brushes, mouth mirrors, forceps and probes. They wear masks, safety glass and gloves.
Before stepping into the career prospects of a Dental Care profession, a candidate is required to obtain a formal education and a license. There were 56 dental schools in the year 2006 in the US which were accredited by the American Dental Association's Commission on dental accreditation. Prior to admission in dental schools, a candidate is required to have a minimum of two years of college level pre-dental education. Most of the aspirants have a minimum bachelor's degree before admission to dental school. It requires at least four academic years to complete dental school education.
It is a compulsory requirement in all 50 States and the District of Columbia in the US for a dentist to be licensed before looking for career prospects in the dental care profession. For obtaining a license, he must be a graduate from an accredited dental school and must have passed written and practical exams.
As per estimates, it is projected that the employment of dentists will grow at the rate of 9 percent till 2016 which is equal to the growth rate of average for all occupations. The reason for this continuously increasing demand is due to the population growth and aging of a number of people that will require dental care. But most of the employment openings are the result of the retirement of a large number of dentists. For new dentists there are good job prospects to start their own practice or to take over an established practice. Today dentistry is recording a fast rate of growth providing excellent career prospects in the dental care profession.
The annual earnings of a dentist vary depending upon his number of years in practice, specialty, hours worked and location. The dentists who are self employed or in private practice are likely to earn more than salaried dentists. In May 2006, the annual earning of a salaried dentist was $136,960.
All of the information about career prospects in the dental care profession, list of state boards of dental examiners and list of accredited dental schools can be obtained from the American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation and American Dental Education Association, which provide information regarding admission to dental schools. The Board of Dental Examiners of the respective State provides license to the persons who are seeking career prospects in dental care profession in that state.
