Pitt or USC?

[JTheHopeful]

Hello SDNers! I'm having trouble deciding which school would be best for me academically as well as financially. I'm a southern California native. I appreciate any words of wisdom and advice!

University of Pittsburgh

Pros:

• Cheap (the difference in total cost of attendance comes out to ~120k)
• Great research program (something I enjoyed while in undergrad and hope to continue in dental school)

Cons:

• Distance from home - I'll be across the country and basically starting an entire new life because I won't be surrounded by any family or friends. Visiting back home will be a very rare occurrence.
  
• Coming back to practice in California will also be a challenge because I won't be able to network back home.
• Possibility that I might not be able to move back to CA until I have comfortably paid off a good portion of my student loans
• Curriculum - one of the hardest out of all dental schools. The students I've talked to have said their coursework is intensive which unfortunately leaves less time to practice hand skills
  

USC

Pros:

• Clinic work starts early, I'll definitely get a head start at USC
• Close to home - I can easily network. I would much rather prefer working as a clinician in California
• Better atmosphere - I felt more comfortable and at-home at USC. I know for a fact I will feel most happy here
• Prestige - Here in SoCal, a USC dentist is held in high regard. This attracts more patients

Cons:

• Cost of attendance - the most expensive dental school in the nation
• Cost (again) - what if I decide to specialize in the future? I'll only be adding to the insane amount of student loans that I'll have to take out for residency

If anyone has been or is in a similar situation, I would greatly appreciate your constructive feedback and advice! Thank you all!

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[Confused321]

University of Pittsburgh

Pros:

• Cheap (the difference in total cost of attendance comes out to ~120k)

.......... go to pitt.

 

[ultimateballer07]

No. Go to USC. Moving across the country where you have no family/friends will be hard and it's not even where you want to practice. Remain in SoCal. It'll take a few extra years to pay off your loans but go where you'll be happy

 

[ultimateballer07]

No. Go to USC. Moving across the country where you have no family/friends will be hard and it's not even where you want to practice. Remain in SoCal. It'll take a few extra years to pay off your loans but go where you'll be happy

Also if you're worried about cost, sign up for the military scholarship

 

[jokersmiles]

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/usc-cost-of-attendance-is-130k-for-the-1st-year.1180314/

USC will be over 500K after 4 years, and that doesn't even include interest.

120K is literally a year and half of tuition from other schools.

 

[Scumbag_Steve]

.

 

[BobbyBeavis]

Although I didn't interview at USC, Pitt was phenomenal to me. I was accepted to my dream school and I STILL had to give Pitt some thought on whether I'd like to attend.

 

[dent--girl7]

I interviewed at both schools and I'm also from California, so I'll give you my thoughts.

I LOVED Pittsburgh--the city itself is really awesome, the school offers students a ton of opportunities (the dual MPH/ DMD and public health certificate programs were very appealing), small class size, and what seems like a great curriculum.

I didn't particularly enjoy my visit to USC--while the campus is beautiful, it couldn't make up for the curriculum (with PBL) and the general feel I got from the dental students.

However, everyone has different interviewing experiences and if you felt more at home at USC that's great. Regardless though, the price difference between Pitt and USC is significant and something to heavily consider. I would choose Pitt 10/10 times, even being from CA and understanding the "name" USC offers.

Best of luck in your decision!

 

[obscurlit]

I didn't apply to Pitt, so I have no input at that end, but I did interview at USC. I think if the cost isn't overly problematic and PBL isn't off putting or a challenge for you, I would truly consider USC. Not so much because family is there, but because their alumni network is insanely strong and wide and like you said, they are well known in California. This is assuming you want to go back to California to practice. Networking is key in any type of professional school and I would say that aside from the program itself, USC's tuition basically pays for your prestige and opportunity for networking/making connections in SoCal. USC's also known for having insane graduation requirements as well, so their curriculum can't be too bad I'm guessing. But obviously, it also has its flaws to consider.

If you are set on specializing, you could always go to Pitt/a cheaper option and then specialize in the place you want to ultimately end up, i.e. California.yoi could save money in that way. Kind of similar to how some people go to a public/state school undergrad and then a private professional/grad school of their choice since they've essentially saved a ton of money during college. Just depends on your goals and what you prioritize the most (i.e. family proximity vs connections vs location you want to end up vs specializing or not vs program curriculum etc etc). Good luck!