A dentist diagnoses and treats oral health problems, performs procedures like cleanings and extractions, and helps patients maintain healthy teeth and gums. It requires a doctoral degree and extensive preparation, but offers meaningful work in a field with strong demand.
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Dentists work directly with patients to assess dental health, identify problems, and provide treatment. You'll perform procedures ranging from routine cleanings to complex restorations. Your days involve getting information from patient histories and imaging, making decisions about treatment plans, documenting patient records, and staying current with advances in dental science. You'll also educate patients about oral hygiene and prevention, drawing on knowledge of medicine, biology, and patient psychology to deliver personalized care.
Core work activities
Career video courtesy of CareerOneStop.
Dentists, General earn a median of $170,950 a year, based on 2025 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and location.
The outlook is steady. Employment is projected to grow 4 percent from 2024 to 2034, about as fast as average for all occupations, with about 3,900 openings a year.
Top skills
Knowledge areas
Becoming a dentist requires a doctoral degree, which typically follows prerequisite coursework in sciences like biology and chemistry. The path is extensive and involves rigorous academic preparation, clinical training, and licensing requirements. You'll need strong critical thinking and reading comprehension skills to master complex material. Many dentists complete undergraduate prerequisites before pursuing their doctoral education. Throughout your preparation, you'll develop the scientific knowledge and hands-on clinical skills necessary to practice independently.
The path to dentistry is long and demanding, so it helps to map out your prerequisites, doctoral program options, and licensing steps with a clear plan. Use Pathly can map the dentist, general path that fits you to build a personalized timeline, and work with your counselor to stay on track.
Many dentist, generals must be licensed, and professional certifications can strengthen your resume.
Common certifications
Licensing is handled at the state level and the requirements vary, so check the licensing board in your state. Pathly shows your state's specific steps inside your roadmap.
If you're investigative by nature, you'll thrive in dentistry. You enjoy solving diagnostic problems, learning how biological systems work, and applying evidence-based approaches to patient care.
Reading about a career is the easy part. Turning it into a plan is where most students get stuck. Pathly takes you from curious to a clear next step, and gives your counselor the insight to champion you along the way.
Start with a quick quiz and assessments that surface your personality, your EQ, and what really motivates you, so your next steps are built around who you actually are.
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Last updated July 1, 2026.
Data sources. Career details from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Salary and outlook figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2025 wages; 2024–2034 projections), delivered via the CareerOneStop API. Certification, licensing, wage, and outlook data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by USDOL/ETA and the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).