By: Michael Eid
One of the hardest parts of dental school isn’t the hand skills or the exams — it’s treatment planning. One thing I’ve learned is that every preceptor has their own philosophy.
At first, you want to take every word as gospel. But the deeper you get into clinic, the more you realize: if you rely too much on one preceptor’s style, you’ll never develop your own.
Here are the biggest lessons I learned:
1. Start Treatment Planning in Sim Lab (D1 & D2)
Don’t wait until clinic to practice treatment planning. When you’re cutting a Class II in sim lab, stop and think:
Why would a real patient need this? What are the alternatives? How does this restoration affect their long-term plan?
If you start building this thought process early, it becomes second nature in clinic.
2. Every Dentist Has a Different Style
Ask three preceptors about a fractured #30 and you’ll get three answers: full crown, onlay, or composite. None are “wrong.” That taught me that dentistry is as much philosophy as science.
Don’t copy one preceptor’s style as the “only way” — listen, compare, and learn.
Develop your own philosophy backed by science.
3. Plan First, Ask Second
Early on, I made the mistake of asking preceptors what to do before thinking through the case myself. Wrong move. Come up with your plan first. Then present it and get feedback.
That way, you’re training yourself to think like the dentist, not just the student.
4. Consistency Matters
If you change your prep style every time you get a new preceptor, your work — and your patient care — becomes inconsistent. Pick a philosophy you can stand behind, and stick to it.
Patients notice when your plan is solid versus when you’re winging it.
5. Preceptors Give Pearls, Not Rules
Good preceptors explain the why behind their recommendations. Focus on those principles — ferrule effect, material strength, occlusion — not just “do it this way.” That’s what will stick with you after graduation.
If you understand WHY you do something, you will be able to adapt to difficulties arising during cases.
6. Own the Plan
At some point, you have to stop saying, “Dr. X told me to…” and start saying, “Based on caries risk, occlusion, and restorability, I recommend…” Patients trust you when you own your decision.
That confidence doesn’t come from a preceptor — it comes from practice and preparation.
Final Thought
Preceptors will always differ — and that’s a good thing. The key is to filter their advice, learn the principles, and create your own consistent philosophy of care. Start thinking like a treatment planner in sim lab, sharpen it in clinic, and carry it into practice. At the end of the day, patients don’t care which preceptor said what. They care that you know what you’re doing.
As a D4 you must transition your mind that you will be a doctor with no “prep checks” in a year. Make the calls yourself and have the preceptors confirm your thought process. In this way, you sharpen your skills as a clinician but are also learning how to do science based dentistry.
Keep Reading: Lessons Learned From Doing Emax Crowns 6–11 as a D4 Student
