Advice for recent graduates

Not long ago I was giving a talk to a practice and a recent graduate asked me for some advice on what they should be doing at the start of their career.

A very good and important question. So here goes…

1. Get out of your comfort zone
   At university you may have done only a handful of major procedures such as root fillings, crowns and onlays. If you’re going to be successful these procedures need to become a central part of your practice. Don’t get stuck in the rut of just doing routine dentistry all day long. Push yourself to do several crowns and endodontic treatments per week even though initially it will make you uncomfortable.

2. Do lots of CPD
   Regard what you learnt at university as being the bare minimum that you need to know in order to be a dentist. If you want to be good at dentistry then you need to add lots more knowledge. We’re mandated to take 20 hours a year of CPD but new graduates should take 30 to 40 hours. Don’t ignore learning about the soft skill of communication. It’s incredibly important if you want to be successful.

3. Try different ways of doing things
   At university you learnt one way of doing things. Think about what you learnt and don’t be afraid to try new methods. I’ll bet that you can find more efficient ways of doing every procedure you were taught, if you keep an open mind. For example, when I graduated single-visit endodontics wasn’t even a thing. Now it’s mainstream.

4. Ask for help
   Never be embarrassed to ask senior colleagues for help and advice. In my experience, senior dentists love to help younger dentists. Patients even appreciate it, if you frame it correctly: “This is a tricky problem. I’d like to get a colleague in so we can discuss it.”

5. Use magnification always
   If you want to do the best quality dentistry magnification is mandatory, not optional. Get into the habit of using it 100% of the time, no exceptions. Personally, I even used magnification for extractions and to take impressions.

6. Find a dental support group
   We all need friends to talk to. People who you can tell about your failures and difficulties. Special friends who you can trust completely. See if you can find 2 or 3 such people. By the way, under no circumstances mention your problems online or at a Dental Association meeting. That can be disastrous.

I hope you find the list useful. Good luck.

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