Nine years, two kids and a green card: my path from India to a U.S. dental program
Seven years to get into the program, nine years in all. Shahana, an internationally trained dentist, shares the timeline, the choices that mattered and what she would tell someone starting today.
It took me seven years to get into a U.S. advanced standing dental program, and nine years in all. I want to share what I learned, because I wish someone had told me this at the start.
Start with the logistics
Before I got into the program, I did a lot of research. Most people who come from abroad arrive on one of three visas: H-1B, F-1 or H-4. F-1 and H-4 are the most common. If you come on H-4, your spouse should know at least the basics of how the system works, because everything is new when you arrive.
Logistics, student life, how things work here: none of it is obvious to a newcomer. The first question to ask yourself is whether you want to start a life here or a career here. For me it was both at once.
Stay close to dentistry
Somehow I found out about the dental hygiene program, and I would say stay in your field. If you want to be a dentist, stay close to dentistry. Get a dental assistant or dental hygienist certificate. In Florida I could earn a certificate in about six months. Other states have different rules, and in some you need two years of study plus prerequisites, so check the rules for your state. Overall it took me four years to finish my coursework.
The timeline, year by year
After I started working, the passion was still there, so I kept researching. I took the INBDE, the national dental board exam, and I spent one full year just preparing for it. If you take it early, you save time. For me it went like this:
- Years 1 to 4: education.
- Year 5: work while preparing for the INBDE.
- Year 6: the CAAPID application opens.
- Year 7: I applied and got into the program.
It's a process, and you can't rush all of it. You can shorten it if you take the INBDE early and know what you want when you choose your college courses.
Timing and competition
2020 to 2021 was a golden era. Fewer people applied, so more of us got in, and I was one of them. The competition has come back now. My classmates include people on H-1B and H-4 visas, and each of them plans differently.
Life doesn't wait
You need to prepare a lot, for sure. But life didn't stop while I did. I have two kids: the first was born during dental hygiene and the second before dental school. During this time my husband also got his green card. These life events can keep you going, and without them it would have been a struggle.
Even after dental school, the struggles continue, because we are not citizens. We can't join the military or do some other things. You have to think about money, immigration status and work status. If money isn't what's chasing you, you can do all of this. Be mindful and stay on course.
If you're reading this from India
I hope it helps. Many dentists want to come here from other countries, and I hope this makes the path clearer. Life is about learning from other people's paths and mistakes, and correcting course. Learn from mine.
Read the international dentist pathway: programs, eligibility and costsCompare advanced standing programs