Andrew Emery is a lifelong New Englander who wouldn’t be surprised if his career path led him back to his native Maine.

That path would go through Boston first, and with it comes a lot of time to explore other options. This summer he starts a six-year residency in oral and maxillofacial surgery at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

Emery stayed in Maine through college, earning a degree in medical biology from the University of New England in Biddeford. It was about halfway through his undergraduate studies when he decided to pursue dentistry, influenced by his older sister, who is in private practice in Augusta.

With parents and relatives still in the Winthrop area, family is a big consideration for where he’ll end up practicing. But it’s not the only consideration.

“I’ve always thought Maine was an underserved state, so it would be nice to go back,” Emery says. “There’s obviously a lot of need, and the average age of a dentist is getting up there to the retirement age, so going back would be a pretty suitable option. I think I could maximize my contribution to dentistry by doing that.”