From being homeless in Southern California to learning to play golf on one of Chicago’s posh golf courses, Malachi Zeitner’s childhood was one of starkly different realities. Today, as a second-year dental student at the University of Iowa’s College of Dentistry, Zeitner says he’s grateful to be laying the groundwork for a future that is both service oriented and financially stable.

“I actually don’t have many memories of my early childhood, of that time when I was homeless with my mom in Southern California,” Zeitner says. “But when my mom went to jail, I went to live with my father in Chicago, and then when he died, I went to live with my grandparents in Sioux City.”

Before he died, Zeitner’s father was a golf professional at a private golf club in Schaumburg, Illinois, and it was there that Zeitner was introduced to the sport that eventually would win him a full-ride scholarship to Miami University in Oxford, Ohio—the Chick Evans Scholarship for Caddies. The scholarship, named for famed amateur golfer Charles “Chick” Evans, has provided a college education to more than 10,000 golf caddies since 1930.

When Zeitner arrived on the University of Miami, Ohio, campus as a freshman with a full-ride scholarship, he says he was tempted to put all of his energy into becoming a professional golfer, but he quickly realized that if he wanted a secure future—something he never had as a child—dentistry was a safer bet. It helped that Zeitner had gotten to know several dentists while caddying at a golf course in Columbus, Ohio, where his uncle was a golf pro.

But in addition to that exposure, Zeitner says he has long admired dentists.

“Dentists seem to always have an important role in the community,” he says. “And I guess that for me, especially given my childhood, I always liked the idea of people being able to look at me as a role model.”

Once his mind was made up, Zeitner chose to study zoology and biology so he could prepare for dental school applications. He says that because his grandparents in Sioux City had played such a big role in his life, he was drawn to the idea of returning to Iowa. He also was interested in studying at a top-rated dental school. Zeitner’s dream was realized with his acceptance to the UI College of Dentistry in 2016.

Now in his second year of dental school, Zeitner says he is confident that he made the right choice.

“At the University of Iowa, we get clinical experience very early on in our education,” Zeitner says. “I’ve already done four or five restorations, or fillings, and I’m only in my second year. When you talk to dental students at other schools, you find out that this is rare. In most dental schools, you don’t even drill until the third year.”

UI College of Dentistry Dean David Johnsen says this early experience in dental clinics forces students to learn quickly and build confidence. He says students also benefit from working with the college’s top-notch professors, and, in some cases, assisting them with research. For students, the opportunity to learn about the science behind dental techniques also is a way to stand out in the job market.

“Our students regularly outperform students from other dental colleges on national board exams, and all of them are highly sought after upon graduation, either for jobs in dental practices or for advanced programs such as residencies,” Johnsen says.

For now, Zeitner isn’t too focused on what he will do after he graduates in 2020, but says that if he can help his family—he has four half-siblings—he will.

“I’m only 24 years old, and at this time of my life, I feel like I need to be a little bit selfish,” he says. “You know, do what’s right for me to get my career off the ground. But obviously, if they need me, I will be there for them.”

About the UI College of Dentistry

• About 80 percent of Iowa dentists are alumni of the UI College of Dentistry, delivering an estimated $800 million in dental care to Iowa citizens.
• An estimated 98 percent of Iowans are within a 30-minute drive of practicing alumni.
• The college received 882 applications for 80 slots for the 2017 entering class.
• The College of Dentistry dental clinic had more than 170,000 patient visits in 2015–16.
• The college has 27 outreach programs that served 98 Iowa counties in 2015–16.