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If you want to study dentistry, you need manual skills (symbol image)
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Cleaning gum pockets, removing cysts, placing fillings, adjusting braces, X-raying the jaw, drilling teeth, placing implants: Dentists, orthodontists and oral surgeons take care of the well-being and woes of the mouth, jaw and and tooth area. This requires scientific understanding, empathy, manual dexterity – and a degree in dentistry.
Frederik Tröbs, 24, has just completed his training as a dental technician and is now in his seventh semester studying dentistry at the Justus Liebig University in Giessen. Here he explains why he had to pay more than 3,000 euros for his studies – and yet wouldn't exchange it for anything else.
The decision to study dentistry
»If I tell people at parties that I’m studying dentistry, the reaction is usually: ›Whoa, well, I couldn’t do that.‹ Sure, some patients have very unkempt teeth, I can understand their disgust – but teeth have always fascinated me .
As a child, I had extensive root canal treatments myself and was often at the orthodontist's, even then I eagerly asked about the details of the procedures.
As a dentist you have such an intimate relationship with the patient, he is totally at your mercy.
You have to be sensitive and empathetic, be able to deal well with people and, above all, have a lot of manual skills.
There's just not much room in the mouth.
In order to be able to act sensibly, manual dexterity is required.
I've always had a soft spot for stuff like that.
My grade was good, but unfortunately not good enough for the NC procedure in dentistry studies.
So I first trained as a dental technician in plastics technology and worked on dentures, crowns and bridges for three years.
Then I did the medical test, which was really tough, after all you were only allowed to take it once in your life back then.
Fortunately, I had a good result, was able to get credit for my training and test and got a place at university.«
Content and structure of the course
“I'm still studying according to the old licensing regulations, which divided the course into three phases: five semesters in the pre-clinical phase, five semesters in the clinical phase and then a full semester of state examinations.
Dentistry is quite challenging, it's like a full-time job in terms of the learning curve.
We are only 20 to 30 students per semester, it feels like in a school class.
In the pre-clinic we had to learn a lot of scientific basics.
In biochemistry, chemistry, biology or anatomy, learning by heart was the order of the day: beat knowledge in and forget it again.
Modules such as physiology and biochemistry deal with the entire human system, not just the teeth segment.
You sometimes ask yourself what you are learning all this for – if in the end you are only working in your mouth.
In the clinic it then became more specific, we dealt with tooth preservation, the periodontium and conservative dentistry such as fillings.
This semester I was allowed to treat real patients for the first time, guided by residents.
That was a big boost of motivation.
What I particularly like is the mix of science and practice: in the dissection course we dissected corpses, inspected muscles, nerves and bones, and looked at the internal organs under the microscope.
In phantom courses we treated plastic heads with plastic teeth, prepared teeth, took impressions, modeled crowns and formed bridges.
I benefited greatly from my previous training, I already knew a lot of dental technology and anatomical content.
Unfortunately, dentistry is quite expensive: we have to buy almost all textbooks, models, devices and consumables ourselves.
Drills and articulators, i.e. temporomandibular joint simulators, are expensive, and even plastic teeth at 1.80 euros each wear off if you practice taking countless impressions and grind teeth.
In total, I have easily paid over 3000 euros for my studies.
My part-time job helps me there, I've been working in the climbing forest for two years.«
Career prospects after graduation
“Most of my year group want to be dentists in their own practice.
However, I would like to continue my four-year training as an oral surgeon in order to be able to carry out more complicated wisdom tooth operations, larger implants and surgical interventions.
I am also very interested in pediatric and adolescent dentistry.
Patient contact is important to me, children are simply more exciting to deal with because they are more unpredictable.
But there is no independent training for this, I could simply specialize in it in my day-to-day work.
Who knows, maybe I'll combine both later in my job, and above all I'll do major surgeries on children.
The main thing is that I don't have to go to the university hospital.
Research and teaching just don't excite me so much - but craftsmanship and patient contact.«