Midwestern IL or Nova

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costjose

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For those who have considered these schools in the past or who are currently attending, what are the advantages/disadvantages, in your opinion, of attending each school? I have been accepted at both and am trying to make an informed decision. I have read both school websites, browsed the SDN forums, and have spoken with a number of students and faculty at each school. Just need some more student input. Thanks!

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I interviewed at both of these schools. Although I personally am not attending either one, I will give you my opinions about each.

Midwestern is a new school and is extremely expensive. Why they think they have the right to charge so much when they have proven nothing at this point is beyond me. When I say proven nothing, I mean that no class has taken the boards yet, and they do not have clinics built yet. There are going to be issues when a brand new clinic is built.

I liked Nova when I interviewed there. You can't beat the weather that's for sure. However, that seemed to be a huge selling point for Nova. At most of my interviews, the schools tried very hard to say why they were unique and would be the best fit for most students. They tried to distinguish themselves. Nova though did the exact opposite which bothered me a bit. They continued to say that all dental schools are pretty much the same, you learn the same stuff. This may be true to some extent, but there are different ways to teach the same material and some schools better prepare students. Nova's location seems to be the biggest selling point for them. But telling applicants that all schools are the same is not the best approach unless you are not very confident in your own program.

In the end though I would pick Nova just because you would save a lot of money going there over MW. Clinically I would put both schools in the same category.
 
I wouldn't knock on Nova bc they said all dental schools were similar. Throughout my interview process, that was a common theme from all schools. A lot of the interviewer(not from Nova) said that the truth is.....you go where you get in bc the bottom line is they offer the same degree. I am picking Nova bc I like the state of Florida and can see myself practicing there long term. I also love South Florida as a geographical area.

MWU IL is a very new school, Nova is new but has been around for 15 years. They've graduated classes who have gotten out into the job market already. If you are okay with MWU IL's newness then this doesnt make Nova advantageous.

MWU IL is a Downers Grove, IL. Do you like this area vs South Florida? For me geographical environment does matter in the long term.

Nova does fine on their boards part I at least. Their average was similar to Tufts from a comparison of 2010-2011, and Nova had a pass rate of 99%.

Bottom line, go in where u fit in, ull get a dds/dmd degree from any dental school, and most schools will give u an education where u will have sufficient knowledge for boards.........but where are u the most happy? Where do u envision urself practicing dentistry? Where do you have better ties to the school or geographical area?

Nova was my choice based on what I wanted, but it could be different for you.
 
Interviewed at both schools. MWU is a better choice. Although it's still pretty new I can't imagine there being any major problems like what some other, more established schools have. I mean, they have MWU-AZ to model off of.

MWU: No sharing classes with med students, curriculum is systems-based, better preclinics, no expected chair issues in the main clinic, not crowded like Nova's main building. Housing is a bit cheaper near Downers Grove and area is much safer than Ft Lauderdale. Books are mandatory at Nova I believe, and they are electronic (double negative for me). At MWU the D1s say you dont need the books so you can shed a few grand off the CoA.
Plus people in Ft Lauderdale can't drive (my taxi was meters away from a collision), and traffic is awful there.

Do a cost breakdown and see whatever is the cheapest option. Note the extra costs Nova doesn't include, and if the cost is similar for both I would go to MWU.
Good luck
 
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