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Things that shape the career

• Board certification

  Voluntary, but many group practices and hospitals expect it, and it is how patients find the word diplomate on your wall.

• Sedation and general anesthesia training

  Treating a terrified three-year-old or a child with autism often means sedation. Extra training here widens what you can take on.

• Special health care needs

  Children with disabilities are badly underserved by general dentistry, and pediatric specialists carry most of that care.

• A second specialty in orthodontics

  Some dentists hold both, which lets one practice follow a child from the first tooth to braces.