- What’s after dental school? Whether the student wants to go into a postgraduate residency program, or wants to practice, they will benefit from guidance from a mentor who once was in their shoes. This is especially true as residency programs have become more competitive, and the landscape of dental practices continues to change.
- I consider mentoring students and residents to be my duty towards the profession. I can attribute many leaps in my professional growth to contributions from my mentors. It is my responsibility therefore to pay it forward. If I mentor effectively and sincerely, my hope is that those who I mentor will themselves pay it forward.
- The burden of studying, finishing requirements, taking tests, finding patients, and building one’s own style of patient interaction is enormous. Through mentorship, I hope that my mentees can have a birds’ eye view of this craziness and can be reminded that all of these experiences count. More importantly, the students can be reminded to have fun as they are going through their daily routine.
- Talking about the future early on in dental school is invaluable. Through the guidance of mentorship, future goals can be established, a plan set, and challenges concurred. The mentor can provide guidance with networking, building a proper CV, where to interview, and how to be the best candidate for the desired position.
- Mentoring is also rewarding for me as a mentor. Interacting with students and learning what is new in the world of education and dentistry is very gratifying. More importantly, seeing a mentee succeed and achieve what they set out to achieve is precisely why I do this!
Interested in becoming a part of the Mentor Program? Contact WDA Continuing Education & Special Programs Coordinator Betsy Krekling at [email protected].
