Life On the Other Side: a Technician Goes to Dental School

By Dr. Eric Nunnally, DMD

Posted Apr 28, 2011 in Labs & Profiles


A year ago, Eric Nunnally was working in his father's laboratory. Today, he's a student at the University of Louisville School of Dentistry, wearing scrubs, dissecting a human body and learning to drill a cavity prep.



Life can be a crazy ride. A year ago, I was 30 years old and an implant/quality control technician and administrator of Derby Dental Lab in Louisville, Kentucky, owned by my father, David. Now I'm in dental school at the University of Louisville School of Dentistry, surrounded by 22 year olds, wearing scrubs every day, dissecting a human body and trying to figure out how to drill a cavity prep.


As a technician, I've always wondered about the dental educational experience--especially how the laboratory industry is viewed in the eyes of the schools. What are dental students learning about the dentist/technician relationship? How much lab work do they actually do? Why don't they understand they're not giving the lab what it needs...

Please Log In or Sign Up (it's free) to read the rest of this article
About The Author

  • Dr. Eric Nunnally, DMD

    Dentist at Triple Crown Dentistry · Prospect, KY

    I am a dental lab tech (of 15 years) who returned to school a age 30 to pursue my DMD degree which I obtained in May of 2013. I am a lab tech first and love to stay in touch and be a part of the dental lab industry.

Please Log In or Sign Up to post to this article