enginerd said:
I'm trying to decide between these two schools right now, and I am having a horrible time trying to decide which school would be better for me. I was wondering if any of you kind dental students from either school can tell me your experiences at your schools so far. 🙂 Eg. curriculum, student atmosphere, etc. And I just want to thank you guys in advance and ANY help would be great, because I feel so depressed even though I got into two great schools 🙁
You got into UCLA and Columbia, and you're depressed? Dude. You gotta explain that one to me. Some people on these forums would kill to be in your position.
My thoughts:
The courseload at UCLA is pretty heavy. During your first and second years your classes will keep you busy. I felt that our first year was much less intense than our second year. In winter quarter of 2nd year I believe we took 13 classes. Granted some of these are no-brainer courses like Patient Management, but still the load is undeniably heavy. However, this never prevented me from having a social life. I still managed to hang out with friends, and spend some weekends with my family, and I have a girlfriend that I spend a lot of time with. The number of classes initially sounds daunting, but once you learn the ropes it's not bad. Classes will, no doubt, keep you busy, but they won't make you go crazy. On the plus side, I think the strong didactic courseload prepares UCLA students very well for boards Part I. Studying for boards was more a review of material for me than it was learning new material. I thought this translated to less time studying but higher scores -- anecdotal evidence to be sure, but take it for what it's worth.
My classmates are an amazing group of people. From the start of our first year we made a commitment to work together rather than against each other. Study materials and class notes are freely shared among the entire class, and the level of competition is much less than I had anticipated. I think maybe the P/NP system has something to do with this, but still, my classmates have been great. There hasn't been any of the cut-throat 'gunner' behavior I was expecting. I was definitely pleasantly surprised. I am also pleased with the faculty thus far. The vast majority of professors and clinic instructors are helpful, friendly, and approachable.
Are curriculum and student atmosphere the primary determinants of your decision? If they are, I don't think you could go wrong with UCLA. If you have other specific concerns, let me know what they are and I'd be happy to address them. I never applied nor interviewed at Columbia, so I don't have anything to say about the school.
Good luck with your decision.
