Skills, Education and Experience
Skills
- strong interpersonal and communication skills as well as patience
- good hand-eye coordination
- aptitude for using mechanical equipment
- high degree of manual dexterity
- able to calm people who are scared or in pain
- in control and focused, even when tired
Source: Career Cruising
Education and Experience
Dentists require:
- One to four years of pre-dentistry university studies, and
- University degree from a recognized dental program – a Doctor of Dental Medicine degree is most common; however, a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree or Bachelor of Dental Surgery degree may be sufficient
- Registration with the BC College of Oral Health Professionals is mandatory
The Faculty of Dentistry at the University of British Columbia offers the province's only program that leads to a Doctor of Dental Medicine degree (DMD)
Further education is required in order to become a dental specialist.
For more information:
Qualifications & Licensing Requirements for Dentists
This occupation is regulated in British Columbia.
To practise dentistry in BC, you must:
- be registered and licensed with the BC College of Oral Health Professionals
- pass the National Dental Examining Board of Canada exam
To maintain a licence to practise in BC you must follow the BC College of Oral Health Professionals Quality Assurance program, which includes:
- evidence of continuing education on a regular basis
- evidence of Continuous Practice (CP) - number of practice hours required to hold practising registration
For more information see:
Internationally Educated Dentists
Registration with the BC College of Oral Health Professionals is required in order to be able to practise as a dentist in B.C.
The path to registration depends on whether your education is from an Accredited or Non-Accredited Dental Program.
- Graduates of an accredited dental program in Canadian, American, Australian (must have graduated on or after March 31, 2010),
New Zealand (must have graduated on or after December 14, 2011) or
Irish (must have graduated on or after December 5, 2012) schools are eligible to apply directly to sit the national examination administered by the National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB). - Non-accredited programs: If your dental training was obtained outside of the above-noted jurisdictions, you must successfully complete either an accredited full-time,
two-year Qualifying Program or the NDEB Equivalency Process.
These are the two paths by which you can become eligible to take the Canadian national examinations administered by
the National Dental Examining Board of Canada (NDEB) – a requirement for all candidates.
More information & assistance: