Orthodontist

Duties and Responsibilities: An orthodontist is a specialized dentist in which they help to improve the patient’s teeth by with the use of braces and guiding proper facial development. Their main responsibility is to straighten the patient’s teeth and correcting bites or overbites. You are responsible to discover the problem of the patient. Some of their duties consists of taking x-rays or “plaster molds” to record the patient’s teeth and the development throughout the process. Than they will start any treatment that is needed such as applying braces, retainers and space retainers in order to correct their functions. You are also responsible for planning custom treatments that are applied for each patient. You are also responsible to be in charge of watching and supervising the orthodontic technicians in performing the process.

Salary: average of $201,030

Education: The education requirements in order to become an orthodontist is meticulous. You first need to graduate from dental school with a Doctor  of Dental Surgery. Although, you first need to earn a bachelor’s degree and it doesn’t really what major you choose. However, you need to take some courses such as chemistry, biology, physics, and organic chemistry. Later on, you must take the Dental Acceptance Test during your junior year of undergraduate studies. You then apply to dental school. After graduating to dental school, you will than need to complete training that specializes in orthodontic.

Demand or Need for this profession:   According to studies, it is shown that it is expected to increase of 10 percent between 2014-2024. This demonstrates that they more likely need dental services.  

Reflection: I don’t think I would like to be an orthodontist, because it seems too much pressure for the orthodontist to help a patient and also guide the orthodontic technician for assistance with another patient.