Dentists, General

AUTOMATION RISK
CALCULATED
0.0%
risk level
POLLING
32%
Based on 1,002 votes
LABOR DEMAND
GROWTH
6.1%
by year 2031
WAGES
$155,040
or $74.53 per hour
Volume
120,740
as of 2022
SUMMARY
JOB SCORE
8.0/10

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Automation risk

0.0% (Minimal Risk)

Minimal Risk (0-20%): Occupations in this category have a low probability of being automated, as they typically demand complex problem-solving, creativity, strong interpersonal skills, and a high degree of manual dexterity. These jobs often involve intricate hand movements and precise coordination, making it difficult for machines to replicate the required tasks.

More information on what this score is, and how it is calculated is available here.

Some very important qualities of the job are difficult to automate:

  • Assisting and Caring for Others

  • Finger Dexterity

Some quite important qualities of the job are difficult to automate:

  • Manual Dexterity

  • Social Perceptiveness

  • Persuasion

  • Cramped Work Space, Awkward Positions

  • Negotiation

  • Originality

User poll

32% chance of full automation within the next two decades

Our visitors have voted there's a low chance this occupation will be automated. This assessment is further supported by the calculated automation risk level, which estimates 0.0% chance of automation.

What do you think the risk of automation is?

What is the likelihood that Dentists, General will be replaced by robots or artificial intelligence within the next 20 years?






Sentiment

The following graph(s) are included wherever there is a substantial amount of votes to render meaningful data. These visual representations display user poll results over time, providing a significant indication of sentiment trends.

Sentiment over time (quarterly)

Sentiment over time (yearly)

Growth

Fast growth relative to other professions

The number of 'Dentists, General' job openings is expected to rise 6.1% by 2031

Total employment, and estimated job openings

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the period between 2021 and 2031
Updated projections are due 09-2023.

Wages

Very high paid relative to other professions

In 2022, the median annual wage for 'Dentists, General' was $155,040, or $74 per hour

'Dentists, General' were paid 234.8% higher than the national median wage, which stood at $46,310

Wages over time

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Volume

Greater range of job opportunities compared to other professions

As of 2022 there were 120,740 people employed as 'Dentists, General' within the United States.

This represents around 0.08% of the employed workforce across the country

Put another way, around 1 in 1 thousand people are employed as 'Dentists, General'.

Job description

Examine, diagnose, and treat diseases, injuries, and malformations of teeth and gums. May treat diseases of nerve, pulp, and other dental tissues affecting oral hygiene and retention of teeth. May fit dental appliances or provide preventive care.

SOC Code: 29-1021.00

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Comments

Leave a comment

Anon (Highly likely) says
Extremely easy to replace actually. What’s really required in this that a robot cannot do? Robots have manual dexterity just like robots that sew and do carpentry. They’re already experimenting with using robots in certain surgeries (obviously on decoys) and it’s been very successful and they’re just programmed. Robots remove the chance of human error when working in the mouth. And a robot can easily interpret data on the teeth, that’s just stats and numbers. I think it’s highly likely but also think it can go either way just like anything else.
Sep 28, 2021 at 10:49 PM
N (Moderate) says
Honestly, robots are more precise, and humans can't really top AI. Okay, so let's imagine something, imagine your local dentists' office. All you see are big machines, right? Yep. So just imagine a robot instead of a dentist.
May 28, 2021 at 04:57 PM
deez (No chance) says
Dentists are needed to be people as their patients might not like a more mechanical approach to an already mechanical job
May 10, 2021 at 05:04 PM
donald (Highly likely) says
Image recognition and precision work is what robots are good at
Oct 20, 2020 at 08:51 PM
Scott (Low) says
It will be awhile before robots replace dentists - but it will happen.
Oct 16, 2020 at 12:14 PM
T. Fairy (Highly likely) says
Dentistry is mainly about image recognition and operating machinery, machines excel at this.
Jan 30, 2020 at 02:47 PM
Muddy (No chance) says
While I can see robots eventually replacing dentists, the degree of analytical creativity and personalized service makes it unlikely within 20 years .
Jan 28, 2020 at 12:08 PM
Abdullah (Uncertain) says
Give Chinese people some time .
Jan 18, 2020 at 06:03 PM
eliazk says
I want to be a dentist and I'm so happy
Dec 13, 2019 at 06:09 PM
Allison Amodeo (Low) says
Dentists need to know what to do and need to give the child/or parent comfort. Robots wouldn't make anyone (including me) comfortable.
Nov 27, 2019 at 01:21 AM
Yes says
A robot has much better precision than a human hand and it doesn't have big fingers that get in the way, tremble or age, nor does it have poor vision.
Oct 18, 2019 at 10:53 AM
Albert Musco (Highly likely) says
The unaffordabilty of basic dental care will push the monetary greed out of the profession and replace humans with AI , robotics and lazers
Sep 21, 2019 at 06:57 AM
Shadock (Highly likely) says
Remember the one fact of life.
All humans are selfish.
Most Dentist will do un-safe and/or un-needed operations just to make a quick dollar.
Robots will have no need for money. Robots will be slaves that are perfect in the art of Dentistry. With that said, I hope robots take over the job.
Aug 05, 2019 at 04:04 PM
Leonid says
Agreed, bingo
Oct 05, 2019 at 04:49 AM
Nick says
Couldn’t be more wrong. You really think big business is gonna be less greedy than your dentist?

Robots don't make their own decisions, their owners do.
Jan 07, 2021 at 08:40 PM
Anon says
Exactly, I’d almost rather have a robot do it for this exact reason. No need to pay big dollars to the dentist if it’s a robot :)
Sep 28, 2021 at 10:58 PM
Jake (Moderate) says
China already had a procedure done by a robot. It is only a matter of time.

https://www.richmonddental.net/library/first-robotic-dental-implant/
Jul 09, 2019 at 11:43 PM
Joe says
I think a bigger threat to dentists are preventative measures that can be taken by people to reduce the probability that they will ever have to go to a dentist's office.

Of course, as AI and machine learning are integrated in business the probability that some business will provide a product to a customer that will serve that specific purpose is nearly 100%.
Nov 11, 2019 at 06:07 AM
Ron (Low) says
Mouths never change. AI could figure it out.
Jun 25, 2019 at 01:17 PM
bruh says
clearly you've never seen wisdom tooth x-ray
Sep 13, 2019 at 07:32 AM
Loompa says
they may change in the future with evolution and most peoples mouth and teeth placement are different
Sep 09, 2020 at 03:42 AM
delta (Uncertain) says
I am not sure about my future jobs, but if there an operation devices that could do surgery, then yeah.
Jun 06, 2019 at 08:56 AM

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