It might not be a particularly glorious profession, but dentists more than make up for it with very good compensation. If you don’t mind working on people’s mouths, dentistry seems like an industry that will never really go away. Obviously there are a number of factors in determining salary potential, but the two biggest factors that I see are the location of your practice, and the manner of your practice. If you live in an affluent area, or simply high populous area, you’re going to be in a much better situation. Also, if you are practicing in an area with few rival dentists, you have a potential for larger income simply from good old-fashioned supply and demand. Your income potential also increases if you own your own practice.