ADA offers resources for new dentists, dental students

By | March 2, 2015

Recognizing that dental students and new dentists have different needs, the ADA offers a plethora of services, resources and benefits to help them succeed in their professional and personal lives.

“As dentist, we are professionals, and the ADA is our professional organization,” said Dr. Chris Hasty, vice-chair of the ADA New Dentist Committee. “I see the ADA as the lighthouse of dentistry, guiding our profession to a safe and ethical future, and steering us away from the dangers of outside entities.  As new dentists, we have our whole career ahead of us, and the ADA is here to help and see us prosper.”

Dental students and new dentists receive benefits all other members get, including travel benefits, health and wellness information, continuing education programs and access to care initiatives. However, certain ADA products and services are tailored to their needs.

Financial planning

CalculatorAdjusted for inflation, the average dental school debt for the class of 2000 was $118,515. For the class of 2013, it was $215,145, according to the annual ADEA Survey of Dental School Seniors. Now add in the cost of starting a practice, and it can get overwhelming.

The ADA provides dental students and new dentists with resources to help them stay on track for a bright financial future.

Provided by Wells Fargo Practice Finance, and developed with dentists in mind, the Center for Professional Success provides business planning calculators, including a debt load calculator, which can help new dentists and dental students determine how much they can responsibly afford to borrow for personal and business use. Other calculators available are the loan payment calculator, which estimates monthly loan payment. The loan term calculator helps dentists see how much faster they can pay off an existing loan by adding an additional fixed amount to their monthly payments.

For students seeking financial assistance, the ADA Foundation has a scholarship program for those pursuing careers in dentistry, dental hygiene, dental assisting and dental laboratory technology. The number of ADA Foundation scholarships awarded is dependent upon available annual funds. To learn more about the ADA Foundation scholarships, visit adafoundation.org/en/how-to-apply/education. The ADA also provides information on various federally funded scholarships.

In addition, the ADA provides information on dental student loan repayment programs and resources, including federal and state programs, that offer student loan repayment assistance, often in exchange for services in a health care shortage area. To learn more, visit ADA.org/student or request more information from studentaffairs@ada.org.

Understanding licensure

Understanding LicensureDental licensure marks the transition between dental school and dental practice. The ADA provides a free guide called Understanding Licensure, a resource to help guide dental students through the licensure experience.

The guide takes new dentists through the application process, preparing for the clinical exam, notification and appeals, licensure by credentials, etc.

To view the Understanding Licensure guide, click here.

Finding a job

The ADA CareerCenter is the official online job board of the ADA, a resource for searching dental career opportunities or recruiting dental professionals.

The resource allows professionals to search or post job opportunities for dentists, oral surgeons, orthodontists and other qualified professionals who specialize in dentistry. Visit the ADA CareerCenter.

Staying up-to-date

The ADA can also help new dentists and dental students stay current on the latest dentistry news as well as scientific findings and studies.

The Journal of the American Dental Association and the ADA News are free to members. These publications are available on ADA.org/publications, along with the ADA Dental Product Guide, the ADA Catalog and ADA E-Communications, which include the ADA Morning Huddle, a daily bulletin of the latest news complied exclusively for ADA members.

New Dentist NewsIn addition, new dentists and dental students receive the ADA New Dentist News, a quarterly publication distributed as an insert in the ADA News as a member resource. To read the latest ADA New Dentist News, click here.

In 2013, the ADA New Dentist Committee launched New Dentist Now, a blog where new dentists can keep up with their colleagues, stay fresh on issues in dentistry and find out about events.

For scientific findings and studies, new dentist and dental student members can access full-text articles online with instant access to over 280 journals through the ADA Library & Archives website. About 95 percent are strictly dental journals. The other 5 percent have medical-dental crossover. This includes in-house access to the New England Journal of Medicine articles going all the way back to 1812. To access the ADA Library & Archives online, click here.

Leadership and Advocacy

Comprising 17 members representing each of the ADA’s regional districts, the New Dentist Committee is a national committee of the ADA Board of Trustees. Its mission: To serve as the voice of the new dentist within the ADA. The committee advises the Board on member benefits and the member experience from a new dentist perspective, as well as, on policy affecting new dentists, among other things. Committee members also provide insight on the issues and needs of new dentists through their liaison roles on the other 11 ADA agencies.

The New Dentist Network engages new dentists, develops leaders and contributes to and influences resources that add member value. It has over 800 contacts and is comprised of new dentist committees and volunteers, ASDA leaders and society staff at all levels of the ADA.

In addition, the New Dentist Committee oversees and actively participates in the Success Dental Student Programs conducted in dental schools around the country. The Success Dental Student Programs provide the next generation of dentists with ethical and practice management information and valuable ADA resources for the transition from dental school to dental practice.

“As a new dentist it is important to be a member of the ADA because we are the future of Dentistry,” said Dr. Michael LeBlanc, New Dentist Committee chair. “In order to help set policy we must have a voice. No better place than the ADA to help set policy and the success of dentistry now and in the future.”

To get involved or for more information, call your state or local dental society, or contact the ADA New Dentist Committee office at newdentist@ada.org or 1-312-440-2386.

10 thoughts on “ADA offers resources for new dentists, dental students

  1. Practice Swap

    A lot of dental school students (including graduate students) perceived loans as “free money” while in school. Financial responsibility does not start after school, but before school. You need to budget yourself from the very beginning.

    Reply
  2. martina salvador

    This program of the American Dental Association will absolutely be helpful in pursuing their career in Dentistry, these students have the responsibility to manage these finances well. An aspiring dentist in mcallen tx would truly benefit from this type of program because we all know that studying dentistry involves the use of various instruments and the use of a lot of reference books and most students drop out from school because of the cost.

    Reply
  3. Laila

    Staying up-to-date on all the latest procedures and everything must take a lot of time and be pretty tough because they probably change quite frequently. For the newer dental students, it wouldn’t be too tough because they wouldn’t be used to working a certain way. In the health field, you just have to learn to be more accepting of change especially when it can help a person better than the old method.

    Reply
  4. David Larson

    I’m taking the DAT on May, and have been studying a while now, but I have no practice tests nor do I have the funds to pay for any. Ive used free online resources to their fullest extent but have not found any full sample DAT tests, ADA says they have them, but i couldn’t find. Anyone know where I can get some practice tests? Much appreciated

    Thanks..
    Regards..

    Reply
  5. Materiales Dentales Online

    The ADA CareerCenter is the official online job board of the ADA, a resource for searching dental career opportunities or recruiting dental professionals. This program of the ADA will absolutely be helpful in pursuing their career in Dentistry

    Reply
  6. Alex Kantor

    One of the worst things you can do is defer payments on the student loan. Interest builds up real fast and it could take years to make a dent in the principal after starting to make payments again. Be careful!

    Reply
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  8. Henry Rodrigues

    Staying up-to-date on all the latest procedures and everything must take a lot of time and be pretty tough because they probably change quite frequently. For the newer dental students, it wouldn’t be too tough because they wouldn’t be used to working a certain way. In the health field, you just have to learn to be more accepting of change especially when it can help a person better than the old method. Dentzz Dental in India has professional panel of doctors where they provide best of the best dental services https://www.linkedin.com/company/dentzz-dental-care-centres

    Reply
  9. Paul Thompson

    This gives hope to all aspiring dentists in pursuing their dreams, gearing them up on the tough journey ahead. Not all are privileged enough to support their aspirations but with this program, they can and they will with flying colors.

    Reply
  10. Dr. Peter Nguyen

    This is a great opportunity for upcoming dental students and dentists. I want to hire dentists for my dental lab, will you tell me how to approach you via call or mail.

    Reply

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