Vocational dental practitioner — Emily Knight

Emily shares her experience of the dentistry foundation training year and talks about possible career options

How did you get your dental practitioner job?

To work in the NHS, you must complete a foundation year, as this is national recruitment standard. You must apply to different practices and there is a two-week interview period. Only set practices take part in the scheme.

I was given a list of places to which I could apply, and I selected based on preferred location. Trainers also have a profile you can look at online. You can interview in as many places as you wish.

At the end of the two-week period, I then had to give a list of seven preferences. The practices also rank candidates they interview from one to seven, and there is a complicated matching process. Once I was matched, I began my vocational dental training in the August after I graduated.

How relevant is your degree to your dental work?

You can't do the job without the training from a degree. I studied a Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) at the University of Aberdeen, and it gave me a good basis of the skills and knowledge necessary for qualifying.

I have learned a lot since graduating, but the degree also helps you develop communication skills that are a key part of being a dentist.

What are your main work activities in your dental role?

My work is always varied and very fast-paced. I do a mixture of check-ups, fillings, denture work and more complex dentistry such as extractions. The working hours depend on the practice. Mine are 8.30am to 4.30pm, though it's quite flexible. In the first year after graduating, you have set working hours and set days, but after you pass the foundation year you can generally pick and choose the hours you work.

As a normal dentist in a five-year cycle, you must also complete a set number of hours of continual professional development (CPD). There are specific topics you can cover, including things like medical emergencies, radiography, and contamination. As a qualified professional, you're also responsible if anything goes wrong during a procedure.

How has your role developed and what are your career ambitions?

It's been a steep learning curve, but I've learned a lot in the first six months, including how to manage patients while getting faster at performing procedures.

I'm not sure what I want to do. I can work as a dentist in a general practice, but I'm considering going into another year of training in a hospital setting, which is called Dental Core Training (DCT). In dentistry, you can always train to do another aspect of practice or try something new - you're constantly learning.

What do you enjoy most about being a dentist?

Definitely the patient interaction. Getting to know a lot of people and reducing dental anxiety in patients is rewarding. The practical aspects are also enjoyable, for example, the intricacies of procedures and concentrating hard on small movements is great.

What are the main challenges of dentistry?

The main challenges are around time management, patients' sometimes unrealistic expectations and general stress, which comes from a fast-paced role. You also must ensure all your notes are accurate and up to date, which can sometimes be tricky if you see up to 25 patients in a day. Often, for check-ups, you see that many patients per day but only for around 15 minutes at a time which can be challenging.

What advice can you give to others wanting to get into this job?

Get as much work experience as you can, especially in a general practice setting.

If you can, speak to dentists in the field to learn how it all works and to understand the 'system', which can seem strange from the outside.

It's essential to be an empathetic, compassionate person and you need to care about people and want to help them, as well as being quite practical and good with your hands. Leadership skills are also essential as you're a decision-maker and leader of a dental team. It's a very rewarding career, as long as you're patient-centred and want to help people.

Find out more

• Read all about being a dentist.
• Take a look at the healthcare sector.