Dental student overcomes setback in career pursuit
Determined to be a dentist since she was 5, Briawna Dildy is making her dream come true.
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” For Briawna Dildy, ’24 (DDS), the answer has been the same since she was 5 years old — a dentist. Dildy, now 30, will receive her Doctor of Dental Surgery in May. She credits her pediatric dentist, mentor and Adams School of Dentistry alumna Dr. Roslyn Crisp with helping her achieve this goal.
“I knew I wanted to be a dentist since I was 5,” Dildy said. “I wanted to go to the dentist even when I didn’t need to go. My mother purchased a Play-Doh Drill ‘n Fill play set for me, and I said ‘I can do this. This is what I want to do.’”
Dildy was even fascinated by her grandparents’ dentures, telling them, “I’m going to get your teeth back.” And while the dream began at a young age, Dildy was mature enough to do everything she could to pursue her goal — working hard at school to prepare herself for a dental career and staying dedicated to it. She also had her sights set on Carolina’s Adams School of Dentistry.
Dildy attended the 2022 LAUNCH: Leadership Summit in Chicago in 2022.Dildy, right, recently matched at Ohio State University, where she will complete her residency in pediatric dentistry. With Dildy is Sarah Dobson, who matched at Indiana University. (submitted photo)
“I homed in on UNC because of the dental school and to get me to the next level,” she said. “I did everything I could to make myself qualify for UNC, including summer programs and staying immersed with UNC.”
Determined to succeed
Although Dildy wasn’t accepted at Carolina as an undergraduate, she didn’t let this setback derail her plans. She enrolled at East Carolina University, where she majored in exercise physiology.
Dildy continued to prepare for her career as a dentist, enrolling in a summer immersion program at UNC-Chapel Hill. The Medical Education Development Program offers an intensive educational experience and opportunity to gain insight into the realities of attending medical or dental school.
After earning a master’s degree in biology at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University through a program for pre-professional students, she enrolled in dental school at Adams in the fall of 2020. She has found a family of people at the dental school, strengthening connections she made during her undergrad years with the Student National Dental Association and forging new bonds with members of her class.
Focusing on pediatric dentistry
Dildy comes from Caswell County, North Carolina, and she said she always wanted to give back to that community. That passion helped her settle on pediatric dentistry as a specialty.
“I’ve never turned away from them; it was looking at what I could do and how I could benefit my community,” she said.
Dildy recently matched at Ohio State University, where she will spend the next two years in the school’s Pediatric Dentistry Residency Program, a partnership with Nationwide Children’s Hospital. She shared the good news with Crisp, who was fundamental in helping Dildy learn more about pediatric dentistry.
“It’s an amazing opportunity for me,” Dildy said. “I wanted to specialize, and [Crisp] allowed me to work with her for years, getting that clinical experience and offering guidance.”
Dildy, right, recently matched at Ohio State University, where she will complete her residency in pediatric dentistry. With Dildy is Sarah Dobson, who matched at Indiana University.
While Dildy will pursue her own career in pediatrics, she still hasn’t lost sight of herself and still makes time to spend with her family. When she’s not in clinic, you can find her hiking with her Shih-tzu, Orie, enjoying the outdoors or tending to a blueberry bush she planted in her garden.
“You can leave the country, but the country doesn’t leave you,” she said.
