The workplace tends to be a dental office or dental hospital and the environments tend to be typical clinical environments – clean and sterile and working with the same professionals every day. The variation will be in the patients and interaction with different people every day. As all towns and cities require dental offices, it should be possible for a dentist to find a workplace within easy commuting distance.Like most careers in the health industry, a dentist is required to be caring and compassionate as well as clever and competent. Since many people are afraid of visiting a dental office for treatment, it is beneficial for a dentist to be good with people and to be able to reassure them and explain procedures to them in a simple way.Academic qualifications vary around the world but generally require a bachelor of science degree and then further postgraduate studies. Most countries performing western medicine require a dentist to have completed four years of postgraduate study to qualify as either a DDS (Doctor of Dental Surgery) or DMD (Doctor of Dental Medicine). Other dental degrees valid in various countries include: BDent (Bachelor of Dentistry); BDSc (Bachelor of Dental Science); MDent (Master of Dentistry); and DD (Doctor of Dentistry).
