Medicine vs Dentistry HELP

I have applied for medicine in the 2025 entry cycle and have received an interview out of my 4 universities so far, but I feel like I should take a gap year and reapply to study dentistry? So many people tell me of the bad work to life balance that comes with medicine and its really making me think about not pursuing it even though I wanted to pursue it really badly in the first place. I have work experience that's relevant to medicine and basically my whole application is all relevant to that. If I get my A level grades this year and reapply to dentistry next year will that affect my chances of getting in?

Also who thinks I should pursue dentistry? I'm all for resitting ucat and redoing interviews and getting the relevant work experience all over again. I just need guidance and reassurance on this risky decision.

follow your own journey. these "many people" are not studying the degree, you are. you wanted to "pursue it really badly" so do it. Do not let others take away from your dream - medicine is an amazing degree.

Thank you, I was super concerned because its actual junior doctors in my family telling me to pursue something else. Ig that's reasonable bcs they've witnessed it first hand. Thank u for the reassurance

Realistically, being a junior doctor only lasts for the 3 years of foundation years and then when you go on to specialise you will enjoy your career a bunch more. Every junior doctor talks about their pain but it is temporary on the journey to being a consultant. If you can't handle the bad bits, why should you receive the good bits?

THANK YOUUU! this is motivating

Medicine is a foundation degree to so many avenues for you to specialise in. Yes its hard work but much more rewarding than dentistry. Once you have your medicine degree you can then choose your specilism and follow your passion. If you choose dentistry, you are basically relugating your life to fillings and extractions for the next 35 years. Thats why dentistry pays so well - its f**king boring! You could become an orthodentist but that is about the only specialism open to you if you choose dentistry.

Medicine is a foundation degree to so many avenues for you to specialise in. Yes its hard work but much more rewarding than dentistry. Once you have your medicine degree you can then choose your specilism and follow your passion. If you choose dentistry, you are basically relugating your life to fillings and extractions for the next 35 years. Thats why dentistry pays so well - its f**king boring! You could become an orthodentist but that is about the only specialism open to you if you choose dentistry.

a lot of people would prefer a chilled 9-5 job that pays more (dentist) than a hectic job that pays less (doctor)

To anyone reading this who may be struggling to decide between the two careers, I would like to say that "boring" is subjective, as for me and many others, dentistry is a developing industry with lots of things to be excited about.
To be honest there's a lot more to dentistry than you seem to be making out here, but the career definitely isn't for everyone. There are actually 13 specialties you can go into as a dentist and although it may not be nearly as many as medicine, it's certainly a good opportunity and may be good for those who are looking for a bit more consistency within their work (13 specialties is a much nicer choice than 149 for me </3) while still making a difference to people's lives.
For example, dentistry is better for me since I like a good routine and I like the idea of mastering what you do every day while still having the chance to pursue other opportunities such as practice ownership.
I completely understand why you may think it's boring and I think a lot of people would be inclined to agree with you but it simply depends on what you're good at and where your priorities lie. The range of cases within dentistry is still very varied compared to what they are made out to be; not to get too into the facts but there are 6 classes of tooth decay alone and that doesn't account for the fact that every tooth is going to be different.
Overall I think certain individuals are naturally more drawn to dentistry for lots of reasons that make sense to them. Dentistry and medicine are arguably quite similar in the aspect that you're preventing, diagnosing and treating diseases all in one job and they both offer ways in which you can develop your career. They're great!

Thank you for the insight, can you please share what you like about dentistry particularly and why you want to pursue it? Why do you think it'd benefit you in the future?

Sure! I’ve always been a very creative person so I really enjoy the hands-on aspect of dentistry as it’s something I’m good at.
Also dental school seems much more appealing than med school to me. In dental school you’re given a lot of freedom very early on, with some schools offering practical experience in the first few weeks. As you go through the school process you’re given so much freedom that you “feel” like a dentist by the end of it since you would have performed everything from extractions to root canals on real people, whereas in med school, you may go on hospital placements but it’s generally just shadowing to avoid the risk of you doing anything wrong.
I also prefer dentistry due to the nature of the job. I’m a person who gets stressed out very easily and while dentistry definitely isn’t a relaxed job, I personally prefer the idea of only dealing with a handful of cases in one day and having the time to switch off from this once you get home, knowing that none of your patients are really in immediate danger and you are working together to make life easier for them in some way.
I kind of covered this in my last response but I’m really drawn to the aspect of starting your own business within dentistry as I’ve always wanted to do something similar to this so it’s nice to have the chance once I feel I’ve got better at what I’m doing under the supervision of others.
I think there’s a lot of stigma surrounding dentistry and it’s really not looked at with the brightness and excitement that other careers such as medicine are and I’d love to be a part of the people who can change this. So many people are absolutely terrified of going to the dentist which of course isn’t ideal since oral hygiene is linked to so many more things than people might think. Even from personal experience, looking after your teeth is something that is neglected by a lot of people and I think it’s really important that dentistry is made an industry with no judgement <3