<p>Ok, here's the thing.
I graduated with a degree in biology to pursue dentistry. I am filling out the necessary applications, I already took the DAT and stuff. But for a bit of a long time, I'm getting second thoughts about it. I'm not feeling too sure this is what I want. But there's also a bit of unspoken pressure from my family to reach a high degree, (you know how the economy is these days) and I feel like I have to do it because of what they'll say if I choose another career path, etc, like "You chose this yourself!" In case I don't get accepted to dental school, I was thinking of doing a master's degree in something health related. So having a biology degree won't be a waste of time if I don't go the dental way. </p>
<p>And most of all, I feel like I won't get accepted, like this is not for me. When I chose this path I was in high school and thoughts change right? Not everyone knows what they want right out of high school and during those university years, I was doing ok at first but then many concentration classes, no matter how much I studied were always C's and some B's. And those are important grades to look at when accepting candidates. This bummed me out because it's like my brain was not made for biochem and chemistry, particularly. I don't like math and even those grades are A's and B's. I've grown to hate chemistry most of all. I don't like doing mixtures and all those lab things. </p>
<p>But if I get accepted, I'll try my best right? It's only 4 years of not having a life, and it all pays off in the end. At the same time is mostly me preparing for the worst if I don't get accepted, but I want to think positive, but if I don't get accepted maybe it's for the best and better things will come my way. </p>
<p>I just want to know some of your thoughts if any. ANY advice would be appreciated and thanks for reading. :)</p>
<p>Do you want to be a dentist? Sitting over people the rest of your life and fixing teeth? That is the answer.</p>
<p>My advice is: you have to stay positive all through this process. Instead of focusing on why you should not pursue this career, focus on why you should! You just need some inspiration, this lack of motivation comes and go and usually when you are less motivated it is the best time to start looking up why people went after this career and how it payed off for each of them. The internet is a great resource for this, you can go to dental specific forums and ask people what their main goal is for the future and what they are hoping for.
One thing I can say for sure is that I can bet 1 billion dollars that no has ever doubted their own abilities before/during the process of sending in applications. It is alright to feel this way, it is totally natural, you are now in a position of being evaluated by people that don’t personally know you and you have to look good ‘on paper’, which we never really know how it will play out.
Although we change during college years (I still haven’t gone to college, but this might just be general knowledge), we never really change our goals. For example, my mother has always wished to go to culinary college and instead, because of the pressures of family, she ended up doing Law, then she got married and didn’t get her license, now, she is almost 50 years old, and she is in her last year at culinary college and hopefully going to open her own restaurant. What I mean is she is just another example that there must have been a reason for you to have chosen to follow this career in the first place.</p>
<p>Something else that I think might be ‘happening’ is that, as dentistry is a career that seems like a looong way to go just as soon as you have finished high school, now you have finally finished your undergrad studies and you have realized that it doesn’t seem like such a loooong way to go as it did before.
You should spend some time speaking with someone you trust, maybe your advisor if you have any at college… Just ask for their opinion.</p>
<p>I definitely think that the majority of people doing pre-dental that end up not even applying to dental school are because they start doubting themselves, but sometimes you just have to hit that long shot.
Here is a ‘motivational’ quote that I really love: </p>
<p>Tommy Lasorda “The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a man’s determination.”</p>