Advice for preparing to start at UoP

[Fulcrum77]

I will be starting D-School at UoP on July 7th of this year. It seems like this date is coming up fairly fast! I'm starting to get a bit anxious and I would like some preparation advice from current students and recent grads.

Here's my story: I am a non-trad student that applied last cycle and got wait-listed. UoP is where I really wanted to go so I decided to wait out the year and re-apply MUCH earlier for this cycle. Needless to say, I was accepted for this round. I've been working in the IT field for the past year just making money and enjoying my life. The problem is, I haven't done a lot of dental related stuff since then and not to mention I haven't touched a text book since May. I'm afraid that the UoP first-year juggernaut is going to pound me in the face!

For D-school I took the bare minimum classes needed to apply. These were G-chem 2, O-chem 1+2, Biochem 1, Human Anatomy, General Zoo, and Vertebrate Zoo.

I was wondering what others thought was the hardest classes for them during their first year? I'm specifically looking for UoP info, but experiences from any other D-school would be greatly appreciated also!

I've been hearing a lot about Gross Anatomy. I have the Netter book, as well as Gray's Anatomy for reference. Is there any other anatomy books/websites out there that people really like? What do you feel is the hardest area of anatomy?

Also, I had a question on whether I should start collecting teeth from my dentist buddy? I vaguely remember a post long ago about needing teeth for some schools, but it has been quite some time since then. Do I need to start collecting soon for UoP? Thanks to everyone in advance for the replies!

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[crazy_sherm]

Congrats on your acceptance! I'm sure I'll be seeing you around in a few months.

As far as classes go, it'll really depend on your strengths. I think most people agree that gross anatomy/histology was the hardest didactic class during first year. I did pretty well in it, but I also had to put a lot of time into it. Histo is a little more complicated the first quarter, but then gross gets really hard the second quarter because of all the head and neck structures you have to learn.

For me personally, I found the lab classes much harder, especially operative. I don't have a very artistic mind and I can work with my hands, but I can't make things pretty. Preclin operative is very exact and hard to recover from if you make a mistake.

A lot of it will mainly come down to time management. Make sure to keep up with everything and try not to fall behind. If you don't do so hot on the first couple exams, don't think it'll get better on its own. Go seek out help, there are plenty of opportunities. It might be that you have to change the way you study or prep for a test.

The didactic courses are not any harder than undergrad, and actually, I found most to be easier. The only problem is that the courseload is about 3 times higher and there never seems to be enough hours in the day to get everything done at first.

Make sure to concentrate more on the high unit classes, and also keep in mind which classes will lock in the grade for the quarter and which ones carry over to the next quarter. For example: Gross anatomy/histo is 7 units and locks the first quarter. Dental anatomy is 1 unit(lecture) and 1 unit (lab) each quarter, but the grade carries over 3 quarters. So don't spend 20 hours doing a wax carving when you should be studying for the gross/histo exam the next day.

There's so much stuff to talk about, but it might not make all that much sense until you start. The 1st years are currently working on intro packets for you guys, including tips and who your big bro/big sis will be. Hopefully it'll get sent out in the next month or so. In the mean time, try to enjoy your freedom. Make sure to spend time with your friends, family, loved ones...because once school starts, they won't understand why they don't see you as much or why you're always pre-occupied with other stuff.

 

[Fulcrum77]

I hope more people (from any school) respond to my thread. Although, I do realize there are a couple of threads out there with the same concerns.

Thanks for the great reply crazy_sherm! I will do my best to follow your advice. I think, more than anything, I'm just getting anxious to start D-school.

Also, what about the tooth collection issue? Should I be looking into that right now?

I'd also like to say that I'm really suprised about the big bro/sis idea. I saw something about this on a timeline form for turning stuff in around may, but I assumed that it was for me to sign up to be a big bro to an underprivileged neighborhood child. I guess I was completely off on that one. It sounds like an excellent idea.

 

[UOPDDS09]

I know a 3rd year at UOP and he was saying just to relax and make the most of your time. When we start school in a couple months, you will have PLENTY of time to study. If your going to review, I am going to buy a deck of netters anatomy cards, otherwise, enjoy your freedom while you have it! I'll see ya in a few months!