Finding an Associate Dentist Position – IC005

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yS6UAJmwz9A Need to Read it? Check out the Full Episode Transcript below! In this interference cast I discuss my opinions and experiences of finding associate positions and what strategies DF1s and Dentists looking for associate positions should consider. Is BDJ jobs obsolete? Can social media help? Is a dental portfolio over-rated? Surely, you need to know the right people? Questions and comments on the video welcome! Click below for full episode transcript: Opening Snippet: Hi, guys, and welcome to this interference cast today on a very important topic, something that I get asked about quite a bit from our younger colleagues... Main Podcast: And that is basically I'm in df one, how do I go about getting my first associate position? And actually, the things I'm going to share with you today are applicable to those if you're looking for your second, and God forbid your 18th associate position. So there are some things that are parallel or similar between all those stages of your career. So basically, if you're looking for an associate position. What's the best way nowadays? While I'm recording this, we're in lockdown. COVID-19. So yes, what I'm saying may not be applicable right this moment in time, because everything has been sort of disrupted by COVID-19. But the principles are hopefully apply for whenever you're about to find or look for your next associate position. And if you're in df one right now, this is probably something at the forefront of your mind right now, when we come out of COVID-19, you're going to be probably looking for that associate position, your first associate position. And having said that, I'm someone who's done DCT one and DCT two posts in Guys hospital and Charles Clifford Dental hospital respectively. And they're very useful for me, but I'm very much and I've said this before, in a previous episode I recorded with Dhru Shah is make sure you're doing a hospital job for the right reason, do it because you want to, because you enjoy that and not because you're afraid to go into the real world of GDP land, if you like. So make sure you do it for the right reasons. I've said that before. However, nowadays with the COVID-19, and the fact that who knows how long it will take for practice and certainly private practice to get back to normal, it might be another year. So now more than ever, I have to say a hospital DCT position is looking quite favorable for this extra reason of COVID-19. And just job security, income security. So if you're already on the fence about whether you should do a DCT post or go into an associate position, you know, it's not a bad time to be considering doing a DCT position. Even if your ultimate goal is to become a general dental practitioner or a specialist or whatever. It's not a bad thing to consider at this moment in time. So where do you go about looking for your job? Well, firstly, back when I was applying when we like, you know, seven years ago there about the BDJ Jobs was there and I used it. But what I found when I was applying on BDJ Jobs was that the principal would write back to me saying, sorry, we were inundated with applicants and we made our decision. And that's generally why I'm fine, you know, with the with BDJ jobs, those who post a job on there, they're quite often going to be swamped with hundreds of applications, especially if you're in London and south east. So I don't know how effective that is. Whether you're actually posting a associate position in your practice or as an associate when you're applying, you're actually competing against a lot of people. And it's difficult for principals to sort of go through and differentiate, especially if you're only been one year qualified, two years qualified, then I think it's very easy for the principal to say, Okay, I'm going to dismiss these 150 CVS, because these people don't have at least three or four years experience,