 Career
Path Forecast
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics,
employment of dentists is projected to grow nine percent through 2016,
about as fast as the average for all occupations. The demand for dental
services is expected to continue to increase. The overall population is
growing, particularly the number of older people, which will increase
the demand for dental care. As members of the baby-boom generation
advance into middle age, a large number will need complicated dental
work, such as bridges.
In addition, elderly
people are more likely to retain their teeth than were their
predecessors, so they will require much more care than in the past. The
younger generation will continue to need preventive checkups despite an
overall increase in the dental health of the public over the last few
decades. Recently, some private insurance providers have increased their
dental coverage. If this trend continues, those with new or expanded
dental insurance will be more likely to visit a dentist than in the
past. Also, while they are currently a small proportion of dental
expenditures, cosmetic dental services, such as fitting braces for
adults as well as children and providing teeth-whitening treatments,
have become increasingly popular.
 However,
employment of dentists is not expected to keep pace with the increased
demand for dental services. Productivity increases from new technology,
as well as having dental hygienists and assistants perform some tasks,
will allow dentists to perform more work than they have in the past. As
their practices expand, dentists are likely to hire more hygienists and
dental assistants to handle routine services.
Dentists will increasingly provide care and instruction aimed at
preventing the loss of teeth, rather than simply providing treatments
such as fillings. Improvements in dental technology also will allow
dentists to offer more effective and less painful treatment to their
patients.
 As
an increasing number of dentists from the baby-boom generation reach
retirement age, many of them will retire or work fewer hours. However,
the number of applicants to, and graduates from, dental schools has
increased in recent years. Therefore, younger dentists will be able to
take over the work from older dentists who retire or cut back on hours,
as well as provide dental services to accommodate the growing demand.
Demand for dental
services tends to follow the business cycle, primarily because these
services usually
are paid for either by the patient or by private insurance companies. As
a result, during slow times in the economy, demand for dental services
can decrease; dentists may have difficulty finding employment, or if
already in an established practice, they may work fewer hours because of
reduced demand.
Note: Some resources in this section are provided by the US Department
of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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