ORTHODONTIST

 Orthodontists are specialized dentists who work to improve their patients' smiles through correcting teeth alignment and guiding proper facial development. Orthodontics, a specialty within the dental profession, involves straightening teeth and correcting bites. As an orthodontist, you are responsible for locating problems with the positioning of patients' teeth and with their oral development. You might use x-rays or plaster molds of your patients' teeth to do this. You will then use dental appliances, such as braces, retainers and space maintainers, to correct these problems for the purpose of providing better function, appearance and facial development. You will also be responsible for planning custom treatment plans that are tailored to treat each individual patient based on his or her dental records and specific anomalies. You may also be in charge of supervising and instructing orthodontic technicians and assistants in performing routine procedures. 

 Orthodontist’s make about $201,030 at the time annually.  Beginners start at about $60,000 per year and a reputed orthodontist can reach up to about $250,000 per year or even more. There are many reasons why experienced orthodontists get a higher raise but the most important reason is because of their established reputation and recurring clients. Also, experienced orthodontists gain easier their clients’ trust and make clients feel more at ease with the orthodontic procedures which need to be done.

 To become an orthodontist you must graduate from a dental school with a Doctor of Dental Surgery or Doctor of Dental Medicine.  However, you'll first need to earn a bachelor's degree in most cases. It doesn't matter what major you choose, but you'll need to take certain prerequisite courses, such as chemistry, biology, physics and organic chemistry. You’ll need to take the Dental Acceptance Test during your junior year of your undergraduate’s studies. Once you’re admitted to dental school you’ll receive both didactic and clinical training. Your courses might include histology, physiology, dental anatomy, pharmacology and oral radiology. You'll be exposed to the different dental specialties, such as periodontics, oral surgery, orthodontics and pediatric dentistry. During your clinical training, you'll work with patients and gain experience working in the different dental specialties.

After graduating from dental school, you'll need to enter a residency to receive specialized orthodontics training. These programs last 2-3 years and you may be awarded a certificate and/or master's degree upon completion. Your residency curriculum could consist of seminars, lectures and clinical practice. Some orthodontic residencies also require you to complete an advanced research project that may be published in an orthodontic journal.

 I wouldn’t like to become an orthodontist because I’m already focused on a career that is more complex such as this one. Yes this is a great career but I really don’t see myself admiring this career even though it seems fantastic.