Karsen Springfield '19 is Redefining Dentistry as "The Tooth Fairy"

Karsen crossing her arms and smiling.

Karsen Springfield ’19 isn’t just making people smile in the dentist’s chair. She has brought smiles to 25 million people on her TikTok as “The Tooth Fairy”. Her page educates incoming and current dental students, as well as the general population. Karsen’s posts range from guides to dental school admissions to tips for healthy teeth; however, her most popular videos are the ones where she proves that “dental school is just professional arts and crafts.”

During her time at St. Mary’s, Karsen took countless art classes and served as Head of Photography for Carillon her senior year. Though she has always loved art, Mrs. Brundige’s sixth-grade science class sparked Karsen’s interest in healthcare. Karsen knew from these SMS experiences that she wanted her career to blend her two passions.  

“I would go home and recreate different experiments we performed in class. It was truly the first time I had ever been fully engaged and interested in knowing more about a topic,” she said.

Now, instead of recreating what she’s learned at home, she teaches her 51.5 thousand followers about dentistry on TikTok. After receiving 15.9 million views on her first viral post, she was shocked by the influx of questions people were asking her about dental school. 

“Most people had no idea that dental school was so hands-on or that it involved any sort of design aspect,” said Karsen. “Often, when people think of the dentist, they’re not thinking of us as sculptors or even architects of the mouth in a way, so some people who would be good at dentistry aren’t interested in the field at all.”

With this epiphany, Karsen decided to use her account as a platform to show others that a career in dentistry is creative, artistic, and fun as well as challenging. In an interview with the University of Tennessee Health Science College of Dentistry, Karsen emphasized her focus on educating others who are trying to break barriers in the dental profession. 

“Just making sure that people who look like me or people who might not be as fortunate as I was to be handed so many resources to get where I am, can still have a fighting chance. And, I also like to post content that relates to people,” she said. 

Karsen might not be putting dollars under pillows anytime soon, but her work as “The Tooth Fairy” on TikTok will continue on! We know her future will be nothing but bright. 

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Additional Images

Karsen Springfield '19 holding model teeth.

After graduating St. Mary’s, Karsen attended Christian Brothers University as the Trustee Scholarship winner. At CBU, Karsen received her B.S. in Biology with a minor in Psychology. She enrolled in the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Dentistry in 2023, following in the footsteps of her parents.