[strangerme]

Hi, I really want to be a dentist. I am currently doing AS levels.
My grades are - GCSE - 3 A*s, 8 As, 2Bs.
- A levels - Biology, Chemistry, Maths, Psychology. I am predicted BBCC. I have done a week of work experience at my local pharmacist. I am doing a week in the coming halfterm at my dentist and more during the summer. I worked as a waitress for 8 months at a restaurant

After the exams in the summer, I dont know what to expect. Therefore I was wondering whether it would be possible to do something like Biochemistry first. Then after graduating in Biochemisty, would it be possible to do postgraduate (or undergraduate - i dont know which) study in dentistry.
{my friends friend did this but he did pharmacy first and then did dentistry..)

Would this be better path to go?
Would this mean I have better chance of getting in?
Would that be possible? Please tell me....

thanks for all you replies.

[Kartace]

(Original post by strangerme)
Hi, I really want to be a dentist. I am currently doing AS levels.
My grades are - GCSE - 3 A*s, 8 As, 2Bs.
- A levels - Biology, Chemistry, Maths, Psychology. I am predicted BBCC. I have done a week of work experience at my local pharmacist. I am doing a week in the coming halfterm at my dentist and more during the summer. I worked as a waitress for 8 months at a restaurant

After the exams in the summer, I dont know what to expect. Therefore I was wondering whether it would be possible to do something like Biochemistry first. Then after graduating in Biochemisty, would it be possible to do postgraduate (or undergraduate - i dont know which) study in dentistry.
{my friends friend did this but he did pharmacy first and then did dentistry..)

Would this be better path to go?
Would this mean I have better chance of getting in?
Would that be possible? Please tell me....

thanks for all you replies.

Ok first things first. Ask anyone on here who is a graduate. Becoming a dentist after doing a degree first is.

1) Way more competative, as there are less places and loads of applicants.
2) Way more expensive, as you are not entitled to a second student loan so you have to fund the entire 4/5 year degree yourself. Around £45,000 in tuition fees alone.
3)A very long road, at least 7/8 years before you start earning any money.

My advice to you would be, Resit your exams if you get BBCC. Get your AAA and apply as a first degree undergrad for dentistry. You might need to take a gap year, but it's a better idea than doing a degree first trust me.

You can do a degree and get in, but beware, there are still A level requirements for some unis and in some cases you will be in direct competition with undergraduates. So it isn't a get out clause if you do poorly in your A levels. You'll need a 2:1 / First in whatever degree you do aswell. Usually it needs to be a science related degree.

If you're serious about dentistry, you need to start doing lots of work experience and voluntary work, along with an activity to provide evidence of good manual dexterity. You also need to consider the fact that you will have to start revising for the UKCAT exam aswell.

Also with those grades BBCC, you might find it difficult to get onto a Pharmacy/ Biomedical science course aswell, i think most ask for A/B in Biol/Chem. I'm not very clued up in this area, you're better off talking to the people in the respective forums. But if you don't manage to get into one of those degrees either. Then this could begin to get quite difficult. However, having said that, you've done the right thing in coming on here to ask for advice and help. If you'd like to ask more. You can PM me, or anyone else on here. Most people are more than willing to help and most have already been through the process and so have a good idea about what it entails and what you need

Best of luck !!!

[strangerme]

if i put my as levels as what i get in the summer lets say BBCC - would i still not be able to do pharmacy??
even if i retake it and get ABB or something in january?

[Kartace]

(Original post by strangerme)
if i put my as levels as what i get in the summer lets say BBCC - would i still not be able to do pharmacy??
even if i retake it and get ABB or something in january?

Well, it would be difficult. Pharmacy is very competative too. And you'd probably need to be predicted AAB/AAA. Which would be between you and your teachers. But rememeber that the universities can see your AS grades. So if they don't think you're capable of the grades, then unfortunatley it could make things difficult.

But if you're resitting, why go for Pharmacy, you may aswell just go straight for Dentistry. It's quicker, cheaper and easier to get in than doing a pharmacy degree first.

However, you may have done much better than your predicted BBCC. So keep your hopes up

[Ayshizzle]

(Original post by Kartace)
Ok first things first. Ask anyone on here who is a graduate. Becoming a dentist after doing a degree first is.

1) Way more competative, as there are less places and loads of applicants.
2) Way more expensive, as you are not entitled to a second student loan so you have to fund the entire 4/5 year degree yourself. Around £45,000 in tuition fees alone.
3)A very long road, at least 7/8 years before you start earning any money.

My advice to you would be, Resit your exams if you get BBCC. Get your AAA and apply as a first degree undergrad for dentistry. You might need to take a gap year, but it's a better idea than doing a degree first trust me.

You can do a degree and get in, but beware, there are still A level requirements for some unis and in some cases you will be in direct competition with undergraduates. So it isn't a get out clause if you do poorly in your A levels. You'll need a 2:1 / First in whatever degree you do aswell. Usually it needs to be a science related degree.

If you're serious about dentistry, you need to start doing lots of work experience and voluntary work, along with an activity to provide evidence of good manual dexterity. You also need to consider the fact that you will have to start revising for the UKCAT exam aswell.

Also with those grades BBCC, you might find it difficult to get onto a Pharmacy/ Biomedical science course aswell, i think most ask for A/B in Biol/Chem. I'm not very clued up in this area, you're better off talking to the people in the respective forums. But if you don't manage to get into one of those degrees either. Then this could begin to get quite difficult. However, having said that, you've done the right thing in coming on here to ask for advice and help. If you'd like to ask more. You can PM me, or anyone else on here. Most people are more than willing to help and most have already been through the process and so have a good idea about what it entails and what you need

Best of luck !!!

OP, ^^ that is probably the best advice you will get.

Take it from someone who is now doing dentistry as a graduate, it's awfully hard to get in in the first place, and then money may become a problem. Student finance messed everything up for me this year, and it almost got to the point where I thought I'd definitely have to drop out because I couldn't afford to go back. It's all getting sorted now, but trust me, you do not need those sorts of worries when you've worked hard for 3 years getting a degree to get to that position in the first place are in the middle of your first year exams.

Like Kartace said above, work really hard, bring your grades up and apply for dentistry as an undergrad. You'll find it much easier (in terms of the process), cheaper, and waste less time.

Also whilst this isn't representative of everyone and I am only speaking from mine, and other friends' experience here, generally people who are only doing a degree to get into something else (medicine/dentistry) tend not to enjoy it very much. After the novelty of being at university wears off, you start to realise the implications (both time- wise and financially) of what you are doing.