Becoming a dentist is a very honorable thing. What exams do you need to take to become a dentist? This is a good question to ask yourself as early as possible. After all, the chances of a school graduate entering a medical school are not very good.
The competition is always tough and only a small number of those willing to make it through. To ensure you are lucky, you will need to find out in advance what subjects you need to take to become a dentist and improve your knowledge.
The dentist profession is in great demand. And once again convincing people that being a dentist is honorable, prestigious, interesting and that it brings good income is not worth it. Therefore, it is not surprising that hundreds of graduates dream of becoming dentists and try to enter medical universities.
Of course, it is not easy to emerge victorious in such a competition. But if you prepare in advance, then nothing is impossible. Moreover, if you consider that for this you only need to know what exams you need to take to become a dentist.
At what institute do they study to become a dentist?
Dentists of all specialties receive education exclusively at higher medical educational institutions (universities and academies), like all other doctors.
If you think that studying to become a dentist is easier than other medical specialties, this is not so. Dentistry is an equally serious and difficult branch of medicine, requiring high professionalism and qualifications from the doctor.
There is also the option to start a career as a dental technician or dental assistant. These specialties can be obtained at medical schools and colleges by entering there after 9th grade. Graduates of these institutions have the opportunity to start a career in 2-3 years, and if desired, they can continue their studies at universities (although not everyone can bear such a load).
Without appropriate education it is prohibited to practice medicine
Attention! Without a diploma from a medical university, it is prohibited to practice medicine.
Career, places of employment
When the difficult period of study is over, the newly minted specialist awaits at least two more years of residency practice. This time is usually used to gain experience and outline options for future “adult” work. As a rule, young specialists go to paid clinics - general or highly specialized. Here the dentist is able to develop professionally and practically, improving his qualifications. Or he can go in the administrative direction and become the head or owner of his own clinic. Some also choose the scientific path: they remain teaching at a university with a small practice in some hospitals and go into theoretical and applied development.
What exams do you need to take to become a doctor?
In most medical universities, upon admission you must pass the Unified State Exam (USE) in the following subjects:
- Russian language
- Chemistry
- Biology or Physics
Also, to obtain a school certificate, you must pass the Unified State Examination in mathematics.
Attention! The competition for budget places in the specialty “Dentistry” is very high, so if you do not have the opportunity to study in a paid department, the points scored based on the Unified State Examination results should be maximum.
How many years to study?
A future dentist can begin independent work after studying at a university and completing a residency, that is, after 7–8 years.
After the 11th grade, the period of study at a university is 5 years. But such a diploma does not allow you to immediately start working. It is necessary to complete an internship or residency (depending on the specialization - 1-3 years). Thus, the total period of training for a specialist is 7-8 years.
Reference. Some 9th grade graduates prefer to first study at a secondary specialized medical educational institution (2-3 years), and upon completion they enter universities and academies. In this way, young people better master specialized subjects and have the opportunity to experience all the intricacies of the profession in advance and decide whether they want to devote their lives to medicine.
How to proceed
You should begin preparing for admission by choosing subjects to take in the form of the Unified State Exam or entrance tests. Requirements for different faculties differ, so you need to clarify the list of required disciplines in advance. Experienced teachers recommend starting preparation at least a year before taking the exams in order to have time to learn the theory and get better at solving problems. It is recommended to hire a tutor to increase your chances of admission, since not all applicants are able to independently master a large amount of information.
When the exams have been passed, you need to check the address of the admissions committee and collect the necessary documents. This usually includes a copy of ID, photographs, application, medical certificate and military ID for boys. You can check the admission regulations on the website of the selected institute. If you do not have time to visit an educational institution in another city on your own, it is permissible to send documents by courier or express, indicating the postal address of the admissions committee.
Advantages and disadvantages of the profession.
Like any other, the dental profession has its advantages and disadvantages, which should be carefully studied before entering. Studying and then working in dentistry requires great emotional, physical, and sometimes material costs, so it is better to avoid mistakes when choosing this activity.
Advantages:
- High demand for specialists in the labor market
- Decent salary
- Various options for professional development (medical, scientific career, own business, etc.)
- Prestige and respectability
- Satisfying the desire to be useful, to help people, to see the results of one’s work
- Possibility of self-realization, creative component
Flaws:
- Difficulty in applying for government-funded places due to high competition, high tuition fees
- Long-term training and regular professional development
- High emotional and physical stress
- Occupational diseases (osteochondrosis of the cervical vertebrae, etc.)
- Long working hours (especially at the beginning of a career).
- Work without room for error
What a dentist should know and be able to do - personal qualities and skills
First of all, have a great desire to help people. There is no person who has never had a dental problem.
The doctor must find an approach to everyone, convey the need for the procedures performed and set them up for a positive outcome. Calm and support.
The profession is associated with the ability to work with a large amount of information at the initial stage; in the future, it is important to be able to successfully combine knowledge with practice. This is the basis for making a diagnosis - a decisive role in dental treatment.
A lot of daily work awaits the future specialist. The profession implies constant improvement and training, because modern dentistry does not stand still, new types of treatment appear every year.
This is important: a modern doctor must not only know about innovations, but also be able to apply them in practice.
Main stages of training.
After entering a university, the student will have to study there for 5 years, of which the first 2 years are spent mastering theoretical knowledge, and medical practice begins in the third year. After defending the diploma, the graduate is required to continue his studies in an internship or residency, upon completion of which he is issued a specialist certificate giving the right to conduct practical activities.
Reference. Residency training takes place in the following specialties: dental therapist, dental surgeon, maxillofacial surgeon, orthodontist, orthopedic dentist, pediatric dentist.
After five years of studying at a university, the future dentist needs to decide on a specialization for residency training.
You can decide which direction to choose while studying at the university, assessing all the pros and cons, as well as compliance with the requirements for the specialty.
Activities, specializations
Dentist is a general name for doctors who are somehow connected with this field of activity. Ordinary patients are seen by a dentist-therapist; more serious problems are solved by specialized specialists. Specialties in dentistry:
- The therapist sees patients with carious cavities, treats the canals of dental tissue, restores dental defects using filling materials.
- The periodontist provides treatment for any inflammatory process in the oral cavity.
- The surgeon acts on dental tissues that cannot be treated, removing them. Performs surgical interventions if the installation of artificial teeth is required, or in case of diseases of the oral cavity that require surgical intervention.
- The orthopedist helps the patient choose the right prosthetic areas for the oral cavity.
- An orthodontist treats dental malocclusion.
- A pediatric dentist treats only minor patients, having a broader knowledge of the child's jaw.
- Hygienist - deals with the prevention and treatment of oral diseases, as well as protecting the overall health of patients.
- A general dentist deals with various activities that are performed by more specialized dentists. Such a doctor can treat a patient without resorting to anyone's help.
When thinking about these professions, young people consider how much a dentist earns. The salary of these specialists in the center of Russia is 37,000-200,000 thousand rubles, and everywhere else 25,000-120,000 thousand rubles.
Some people want to know what is the difference between a dentist and a dentist. Today, at least in Russia, there is no difference; there was in past centuries.
List of universities that teach dentists.
There are about 50 higher medical educational institutions (state and non-state) in Russia, where they teach in the field of Dentistry.
Important! Before applying to a non-state university, you need to make sure it has a license and accreditation, and also study its reputation in the labor market.
Listed below are the main and most significant metropolitan and regional universities, whose graduates are especially valued in the labor market. You can enroll in places financed from the budget or study on a commercial basis.
Moscow:
- First Moscow State Medical University named after I.M. Sechenov
- RNRMU named after N.I. Pirogov
- Peoples' Friendship University of Russia
- MGMSU named after A.I. Evdokimova
Saint Petersburg:
- First St. Petersburg State Medical University named after academician I.P. Pavlova
- Northwestern State Medical University named after I.I. Mechnikov
- St. Petersburg State Pediatric Medical University
Regions:
There are dozens of public medical universities in the regions, which makes it accessible to become a dentist even in the most remote areas of the country.
The highest positions in the rankings are occupied by:
- Northern State Medical University (Arkhangelsk)
- Kazan State Medical University
- Siberian State Medical University (Tomsk)
- Orenburg State Medical Academy
- Samara State Medical University
- Irkutsk State Medical University
- SSMU named after V.I. Razumovsky (Saratov)
- Nizhny Novgorod State Medical Academy of the Ministry of Health and Social Development of the Russian Federation
- Kemerovo State Medical Academy
- Tyumen State Medical University
- South Ural State Medical University (Chelyabinsk)
Professional oral hygiene
Studying at Baumanka: how to apply and is it difficult to study?
Are toothpaste and brush enough to take care of your teeth? Why do you need professional oral hygiene?
The story is told by Oles Vyacheslavovich Shevchenko, Candidate of Medical Sciences, Chairman of the Association of Dental Hygienists of Russia, Director of the Neodent Aesthetic Dentistry Clinic.
Shevchenko Oles Vyacheslavovich was born in 1970 in the city of Poltava in Ukraine. Graduated from the Ukrainian Medical Dental Academy with honors. Since 1995 he has lived and worked in Russia, in Moscow. Married. In 2004 he defended his Ph.D. thesis.
— Today they are increasingly saying that you need to visit a dental hygienist twice a year. But not everyone knows what kind of specialist he is.
- This is true. In our country, unfortunately, there was no such specialty for a very long time. More precisely, she was forgotten. Dental hygienists worked in Russia back in 1913.
Then in Moscow, Chinese healers who treated dental diseases used special hooks with a hollow wooden handle, which they filled with ordinary cabbage worms. Having picked with such a tool, they publicly extracted the worms from the tooth, after which the amazed public dispersed in full confidence that it was these worms that were the cause of the toothache. Hygienists had to fight such general illiteracy. But after the revolution, this wonderful specialty was lost.
According to research by domestic scientists, the prevalence of caries in permanent teeth in 12-year-old schoolchildren in Russia ranges from 61% to 96%. And in the adult population, the incidence of dental caries reaches 100%. On average, each elderly person in the group of 65 years and older has 5-6 teeth left in the oral cavity.
World experience and scientific research by scientists have convincingly proven that only a targeted, effective preventive program can have a significant impact on reducing the level of dental morbidity. In countries where preventive programs operate, dental morbidity has decreased by 2–4 times.
However, the widespread implementation of the hygienic training and education program is limited due to a number of reasons, the main one of which is the lack of a specialist who could devote his entire time to the prevention of dental diseases. Such a specialist, a dental hygienist, appeared in our country only in 2001.
Today in Russia there are about 3,000 qualified dental hygienists. Compare: in the USA there are 150 thousand of them, and this number is growing all the time. In America and Europe, visiting a dental hygienist is the norm, part of the philosophy of taking care of your health.
But in our country this philosophy is only just being formed. Unfortunately, most of our patients do not have a culture of oral care. Both doctors and patients are more accustomed to dealing with problems that have already arisen than to preventing them. Although prevention is much more beneficial both for each patient and for the state as a whole.
— What does a dental hygienist do?
— Its main task is to teach a person to properly care for his teeth and oral cavity, creating all the necessary conditions for this. Therefore, for a high-quality complex of professional oral hygiene, the hygienist will need 1 - 1.5 hours, depending on the clinical situation.
At the appointment, the hygienist carefully assesses the patient’s oral condition and invites him to brush his teeth with a brush and toothpaste, as he does this every day. After brushing the teeth, the hygienist shows the patient the mistakes that were made and teaches them to do it correctly.
Some of you may say: “...should I teach you how to brush my teeth?” Yes, the hygienist, using special coloring solutions, will clearly demonstrate to you how much plaque remains on the teeth after improper brushing. What you see makes an impression.
After correcting skills, the hygienist carries out a complex of professional oral hygiene. First, the soft plaque is removed from the teeth using an Air-Flow device. Cleaning is then continued using an ultrasonic device, which helps remove harder deposits. And if there is “neglected” tartar, special tools are used. This complex is recommended to be completed once every six months.
After all procedures, the hygienist selects dental care products that are suitable for a particular patient. Here, the lifestyle, existing problems, and social status of the person are taken into account. After all, today you can find high-quality brushes, pastes, flosses and rinses for quite reasonable money.
We invite you to familiarize yourself
