I'm only a D1 so I can only speak about the classes I've had so far. We're all required to purchase new Dell laptops so I would take that into account if you're thinking about buying a new computer now. You can certainly bring your Mac to class to take notes/use at home, but we take exams on the Dells. Lectures for most classes are recorded with a program called Echo360. This is pretty nice since you can change the pace at which the professor speaks and it shows the slides as the lecture progresses (as if you were in class).
For the first 6 weeks of D1 year, you take gross anatomy lab which is a 6.5 credit course. You also start using the DentSim technology (which is part of the 6.5 credit Operative lab) and Dental Anatomy lab (where you carve teeth from wax blocks). I believe they showed you the DentSim lab during the interview? If they didn't, they are mannequins hooked up to a computer that tracks the movement of your drill and shows you your work on the screen. After gross anatomy is finished in late September, you take Periodontics, Clinical Skills (learning about vital signs, medical history, asepsis, etc), and Immunology/Microbiology. Operative lab picks up and you move into the simulation lab where you work on mannequins (without computers telling you what you're doing) several times a week.
Overall, I've enjoyed my classes and have found them certainly manageable if you put time into studying! VCU is known for having a strong emphasis on clinical skills, and I have found that to be the case so far. On a typical week, I spend at the very minimum 12 hours (three 3 hour lab sessions) in the simulation lab. And that's not including time outside of class I come into practice my skills. Faculty can be pretty nit-picky grading your work, but that's because they want you to be good and really refine your skills.
Hope I've covered everything, and let me know if you have any other questions!
