Hello from a fellow DDS1!
Regarding workload: For me the contact hours doubled and work load was significantly higher. But this is probably because I only did really easy subjects in undergrad and summer subjects helped reduce the load during normal semesters. I feel like first semester was only just the beginning, the timetable looks deceptively busy when it’s not actually. We are split into groups for many things other than lectures since you can’t fit 90 students into a single preclinical prac; you are assigned a number and have the same groups for everything. There were days when we didn’t have to go in at all because of the split groups. I’ve heard that upper years have 8-5pm every day though.
Mm, I agree with you on the timetabling part - I would definitely say we have fewer contact hours per week than undergrad med, and perhaps even some of the more hour-heavy engineering/science disciplines (in my undergrad science degree, having 20-25 contact hours especially due to labs was not uncommon). That being said, we do have 16 week semesters rather than the usual 12 (which is fine by me; I'd rather have more numerous but shorter weeks, even if it means sacrificing some holiday time
). I did probably spend more time at uni this semester than in my later undergrad years, simply because most of our lectures were not recorded by default.
There is a ridiculously easy subject in first semester of DDS1 called "Introduction to Professional Practice". I daresay it’s easier than most undergrad breadth subjects. It’s not that hard to pass the course, but you need to try a lot harder to get H1. Like memorise and learn the details of the studies mentioned in lectures as you will need to reference them in your exam answers. It's not like undergrad where only stuff from lecture slides are examinable. You will need to do extra research as lecture slides alone aren't even close to being adequate.
I personally don't think it's necessary to know all the studies mentioned in the lectures for this subject (my revision was based almost purely on lecture notes, which seemed to be sufficient in my opinion). Of course, doing extra research probably would have paid off quite well. That being said, when the lecturer attempts to get through 90 slides in a 50 minute lecture, basically reading off the slides for the most part, I think it can make the lectures seem a bit superficial. I guess the purpose of the unit is to gain exposure to ideas, have knowledge of the key trends that will affect the dental workforce/practice and develop a mindset that will allow us to practice effectively - which I think was reflected in the assessment, rather than examination of relatively minute detail. In some sense, I think that made the subject 'easier'. I still enjoyed the subject a reasonable amount though.
But you know what I absolutely love about DDS?? The comradery and how close everyone is. The environment is very different to undergrad. It’s almost like high school again seeing the same people every day and having the same classroom every day. We have 2 excellent class reps who basically handle everything except your laundry. Our facebook group is a wealth of knowledge, tips, jokes etc. Everyone shares their exam answers, asks questions, gives tips and provide updates.
I agree with this, 110% of the way. Our class reps are fantastic in pretty much every way. Their communication with the faculty and in passing our queries on was excellent. I can definitely say that I would not have done as well, without our Facebook group. The collaboration there was really helpful to learning. Without being particularly socially proactive, I still managed to exceed my goal of learning one person's name and face each week
. The supportive aspect of our cohort has definitely been a major plus.
You still want to try your hardest since everyone else is extremely motivated and intelligent, so you get swept up in the excitement. It’s a different kind of pressure from undergrad. In undergrad, I wanted to do good to get into DDS. In postgrad, I want to do good because I care about what im learning and this is something that will be my job for next 40 years so I better damn well be good at it. I don’t want to let my patients down and make mistakes because I skimmed through uni.
I have to agree with this as well. It reminds me of our problem-based learning exercise. From what I heard, the size of our flowcharts for our disease aetiology just kept increasing, because people wanted to make sure they were doing the same amount of work as the rest of the cohort! It's a good motivation to learn - even just knowing that those around you will hand in every piece of assessment provides incentive. And yes, we want to be professional and really care for our patients, and we've had that drummed into us from the start (which is a good thing IMO), even though we still obviously have a long way to go in our journey.
Hopefully! My first year of undergrad was my worst as well.
Ahh, I'm the complete opposite! I reckon I was most like a model student in 1st year, and gradually picked up worse study habits
.
I was hoping this wasn't the case in dentistry 
Do your marks affect your chances of getting a job? I thought they wouldn't ask about my marks. At least for med, you get an internship no matter what your marks are.
I'd like a bit more info about this too. Personally, while being eligible to practise upon graduation, I'm considering working in the public sector in order to gain a bit more experience before moving into private dentistry. I imagine we're still subject to the rules of demand and supply - if there's more applicants than positions, we have to be selected somehow. Maybe if you decide to work in a rural area, or other places where dentists might be underrepresented, it might be a bit easier to find a position. But I think your marks wouldn't stop you from opening your own private practice when you graduate (though obviously there'd be more factors going into such a decision). Just throwing a couple of ideas out there (no doubt inspired by Intro to Professional Dental Practice
).
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