Best Dental Schools In The Nation? Suggestions Needed!

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jaynealyda7

jaynealyda7

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Another one of these posts. But your help would be so appreciated!
I'm hoping to submit my app next week, but can't decide where!
Here's my info:

State: Michigan
Majors: Chemistry & Spanish (going to be a senior this fall)
GPA: 4.0
DAT: 26 Academic, 28 PAT
1000+ hours working as orthodontic assistant, ~110 hours of shadowing & volunteering at various places
Extracurriculars include playing volleyball at my college, which is my largest time commitment. I also studied abroad in Spain last semester.

Alright, here are my current ideas:
University of Michigan
UCLA
University of Washington
University of the Pacific
Case Western
Marquette
University of North Carolina
University of Iowa

What are your thoughts on these? I want to be applying to some of the best schools in the nation. Are these all top-notch programs in your opinion? Are there any great ones that I'm missing right now? Are there any that I should eliminate off this list?

THANKS!! & good luck to all!
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UCONN, Columbia, University of Florida. I would add those to the list. I don't know too much about Case, but is it generally considered a great dental school?
 
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jaynealyda7 said:
Another one of these posts. But your help would be so appreciated!
I'm hoping to submit my app next week, but can't decide where!
Here's my info:

State: Michigan
Majors: Chemistry & Spanish (going to be a senior this fall)
GPA: 4.0
DAT: 26 Academic, 28 PAT
1000+ hours working as orthodontic assistant, ~110 hours of shadowing & volunteering at various places
Extracurriculars include playing volleyball at my college, which is my largest time commitment. I also studied abroad in Spain last semester.

Alright, here are my current ideas:
University of Michigan
UCLA
University of Washington
University of the Pacific
Case Western
Marquette
University of North Carolina
University of Iowa

What are your thoughts on these? I want to be applying to some of the best schools in the nation. Are these all top-notch programs in your opinion? Are there any great ones that I'm missing right now? Are there any that I should eliminate off this list?

THANKS!! & good luck to all!
Click to expand...
UW is not OOS-friendly
 
Scratch Marquette, Add UCSF instead.
Also add Harvard.
 
Define best and top notch. There are no rankings for dental schools and each school is going to have it's own strengths and weaknesses. Harvard is research heavy, so, if you don't want to do research, it's not going to be the best fit. Then, what about cost? Are you willing to pay an extra $200,000 just to have Harvard on your diploma when Detroit has a better clinical setting? Assuming you have good interviewing skills, your stats will get you into anywhere you want to go, probably with some nice scholarships.
 
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Detroit costs about the same as Harvard, if not more.
 
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It all depends on what you define as top notch. As previously stated, Harvard is awesome if you want to go somewhere that is top notch in research. A school like Iowa might not be as research heavy, but is very strong clinically. As D1s were already seeing patients for prophys and do restorative on the patient pool in the fall of D2 year. You will certainly get a lot of chair time.

So what "top notch" is will depend on what you want.
 
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Shell_Eau said:
UCONN, Columbia, University of Florida. I would add those to the list. I don't know too much about Case, but is it generally considered a great dental school?
Click to expand...
I dont UF is as great as the other ones on her list
 
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The best dental school in the nation is the one that offers you an acceptance.
 
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UF is not OOS-friendly either, based on their track record. Just pick schools that give you more scholarship money or less debt. Otherwise, great stats.
 
Greyangel6 said:
UF is not OOS-friendly either, based on their track record. Just pick schools that give you more scholarship money or less debt. Otherwise, great stats.
Click to expand...
otherwise what? Otherwise, great stats doesnt make sense.
 
I would say Michigan would be the no brainer unless you get a substantial scholarship elsewhere.
 
Clinically, maybe UOP, MWU-AZ, Temple, Louisville
 
OSUkid said:
otherwise what? Otherwise, great stats doesnt make sense.
Click to expand...

Can't I compliment a guy on his stats? Otherwise/anyway/nevertheless, it means I see that UFCD will be a challenge since they're not OOS-friendly (they tell you this during orientation of the interview) and there are many other schools that fit his stats and are easier to gain admission. That's my opinion.
 
Best clinically, might I add Creighton?
 
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Case like many U.S. dental schools is very established, and is well-known for its clinical strength. D1s start seeing pediatric patients after 1st semester (right after Thanksgiving break). During your 2nd semester of 1st year, you will start giving prophylactic treatment to patients. There is NO shortage of patients ever, based on personal experience. The school is also speculated to move to a new site in 2018, along with the Nursing and Medical schools. The new site will be situated right next to Cleveland Clinic, where there is some form of collaboration between the 3 institutions and the clinic itself. Class is very diverse, and size is at 75 people per class; you are guaranteed your own station in lab. The faculty members are VERY accommodating, especially when it comes to consultation and/or rescheduling exams. Having 2 exams a day is pretty much unheard of. Course load for D1 at Case is most manageable. NBDE1 is taken after 1st semester of D2, which gives you the opportunity to do research/study/or do nothing during the 1st summer after D1. Downside of Case would be tuition (cost of living however, is VERY affordable. I would say that it is comparable to Buffalo), winter can be rough (we actually got 2 snow days). These are just my 2 cents about Case.
 
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Sorry for not having any suggestions...but I'm just blown away by your stats!
 
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