NSU CDM Lasting Impressions Spring 2019

NOVA SOUTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY | 25 continued on page 28 pressing concern. “All new dental school graduates wonder how they’re going to pay it back. The second concern is finding a coach or a mentor,” he said. Debt can force new dentists who prefer to practice independently into corporate practice, Harper said, adding that, in some such offices, dentists are getting burned out putting in long hours. “I stress to dental students there are other options. Practices are being sold. People are looking for associates all the time. If you look, you can find those places and, potentially, have a mentor wrapped up into the practice,” he said. Harper is an advocate of surrounding oneself with successful people who will make you a better person in life and business. “The value of having a mentor, not only to teach clinical dentistry, but also the business side of dentistry, is invaluable. Dental school teaches the basics of good, solid dentistry, but there are a slew of questions students don’t even know to ask involving dentistry and personal finance,” he explained. “That is why having someone you can constantly ask questions, and who can show you the ropes, makes working in private practice that much more appealing,” he added. “Most of us go straight through school and graduate, so being a dentist is our first real job. The unknown of going to your first day on the job can be daunting. But knowing some mentors to help navigate those first few years is key.” Although he was accepted to four dental schools, Harper chose to attend NSU’s College of Dental Medicine to be closer to his wife, who, at the time, was attending Carlos Albizu University in Miami, Florida, for her doctor- ate in psychology. He also favored NSU CDM because it was a newer school “open to new technologies and newer ways of doing things,” Harper explained. “I saw an opportunity at the CDM to get hands-on learning I wouldn’t get at other dental schools. “I knew it was going to be important in my clinical education,” he added. “That’s what I really cared about. I wanted to leave dental school with the confidence I could prep the heck out of a crown and restore an implant.” u FAST FACTS JORDAN HARPER, D.M.D. Hometown Niceville, Florida Degrees D.M.D., Nova Southeastern University B.S. in Biology, University of Florida Professional Florida Dental Association (FDA) Council on the New Dentist (chair) Okaloosa-Walton Dental Society (treasurer) 58th Fighter Squadron (honorary commander) American Dental Association FDA (member) Niceville/Valparaiso Chamber of Commerce (member) Personal married for six years to Cayleigh Benny Harper Pets English bulldog, Nixon; French bulldog, Hamilton Hobbies flying, snowboarding, traveling, hiking, scuba diving, wakeboarding, and making short films Jordan Harper, left; his wife, Cayleigh Benny Harper; and an Operation Airdrop volunteer prepare to deliver supplies.