Career Advice by Randy

Dental assistants are expected to demonstrate acceptable attitudes of pride, enthusiasm, good work ethic, responsibility, respect for patient confidentiality and recognition of their importance as a member of the dental health team. Those interested in becoming a dental assistant may receive on the job training or could attend a training program offered in technical centers, community colleges or Armed Services. Dental assistants are often responsible for providing follow-up oral health care information to the patients. Dental Assistants are a valuable part of the dental care process. A career in Dental Assisting requires the job seeker to be people-oriented, have strong communication skills and enjoy working with their hands.

Dental assistants are responsible for working directly with dentists while patients receive treatment. They review and maintain patients’ charts, pass instruments to the dentist during procedures, sterilize instruments, make temporary crowns and impressions of teeth for study models, polish patients’ teeth, and take and develop X-rays. Dental assistants are hot commodities. They may be found working at solo, group and specialty practices, as well as hospitals, clinics and public and dental schools. Dental assistants are an integral part of daily office operations and administration, as well as patient care. The receptionist who greets you and schedules your appointments is oftentimes responsible for billing and insurance reimbursement.

Dental assistants are often selected over other candidates if they apply for Dental Hygienist training. Dental assistants are eligible to take the CDA examination if they have completed a dental assisting program accredited by the Commission on Dental Accreditation. Individuals who have been trained on the job or have graduated from non-accredited programs are eligible to take the nat Read the rest of this entry »

Education is a major part of life. It is a way to learn the information and the skills needed to perform a particular job. Without it, it is harder to get a job, especially in the music industry. Here are some options for education for sound editing and other areas of technical support within the music industry.

Your music industry education can begin in college. If you are sure that you want to be the person who edits the recorded sound to make it better, then a college with a specialized music program is your best bet. These programs offer intense study of music and hands-on training. Someone who graduates from one of these programs will have the advantage of actual knowledge of music equipment.

Technical schools are also in high demand. At one time, people shunned technical training as being second class. It ran a distant second place to getting a degree at a four-year institution. But, when it came to finding jobs after graduation, technical school graduates had one very important advantage-legitimate experience handling the latest equipment used in the music industry.

Technical schools provide a mix of book learning and lectures and time in the music lab. Students get to create music, edit sound, and produce their own music to see how the process works. Many technical degrees are two-year programs but a lot of fundamentals and advanced teaching goes on in those programs.

Internships are required at most technical schools. They evaluate their students and how they apply the skills learned in the classroom in a work setting. Some programs at four-year institutions require internships before graduation but not all. An internship at this stage with an instructor to back you up is a great initiation into the music industry.

When choosing a music school or a music program at a college or university, review the entire prog Read the rest of this entry »