Columbia Class of 2007 Questions

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Wassup!

I was wondering who was going to attend Columbia this fall. Has anyone heard anything from the Housing Department at Columbia? And how are most of you planning to finance school? Well, I'm from Cali and am beginning to freak out because school is starting in less than 4 months. Well hopefully I'll get to know most of you before school start.

Sam
 
sa177,
hi, I'll be going SDOS this fall. about a month ago, I received an application to request housing application. (application to get an application) I think most are assigned to Bard Hall... And yesterday, I received a bunch of stuff from financial aid office. (award letter, award acceptance form, and some other instructions)

anyways, i'm from georgia but went to undergrad in upstate ny. yea, only 4 months left. see you at orientation! have a great summer.
 
thats coo type-s. how do you like the weather in ny? i'm currently working right now to save enough to cover the rest of tuition/living expenses for this coming year. did a lot of people get any grants or is it just all loans?
 
hey...
make sure you enjoy your summer...and if you're one of them that needs to get A's... study anatomy...memorize April's anatomy book 😛 and study your histo and physio...no no but really... you guys will like it here (i think and hope)... just help each other out when you get here and none of that competitive talk! seriously! your class is suppose to be the next "competitive" one... (rumor has it, it's every other yr...) but try to break that tradition... it'll make life easier...
SA you should have gotten housing info already...and if you haven't turned it in...you're living in Bard 😀 hehe i remember cause i turned in mine late and was stuck here too....but it's not so bad...i'm staying here for another yr 🙂
if you guys have any questions contact me after may 23rd...gotta start studying since most of us haven't done anything since spring break...congrats...and if you're lucky you guys might be on a H/P/F system 🙂
 
Hey Star, it's great to see u here on the board. How funny the alternate year rumor. Here at ucsf has that rumor too. And we are also due for another bad year, according to the rumor. However, the dean of admissions told me that this will be one of the best class he has ever selected. Will see what happen. I guess that kind of rumor exists at every school, except for Arizona. :laugh: :laugh: Common sense: there is always a bad apple in the barrel.....

Drop me a line when u have free time
Tink
 
Hi Tinkerbell...
one of my classmmates told me he was reading what i wrote so it "reminded" me to come check this out...
anyways...well the last few years has kinda been true for us about the alternate yr stuff...but who knows, cause i feel a lot of competition w/ some of my classmmates as well...i just think it's silly...who cares...grades, research etc etc can only do so much...
anyways I might be stopping by SF first week of june...are you and Perline still there? I haven't seen her for a yr or so now...
alright back to cramming 🙂
 
Hi, I haven't been on this thing for a really long time.

But I've made my decision and I will see you guys at Columbia next august!!

Hope somebody is happy to get off the wait list at U Mich!! I quit my job next week, and then I am spending the summer preparing to move accross the country. Oh, and I still haven't recieved a housing application, although I got a confirmation for my request for a housing application about month ago.

BTW any laptop reccommendations? I am looking at purchasing either a Dell or the 15-inch Mac combo-drive laptop. What about wireless internet on campus??

Take care,
Carmel
 
there's wireless...
i don't use it...cause i am lazy and i already leave my lap top on all day anyways....it's more a lap top that doesn't leave my deak... 🙂
did you send in the request for housing? you have to send that in before they send you housing stuff...it's a pain...but that's how it is...
U of Mich Ann Arbor??? woah 🙂 hehe i hate that school (only cause they made me fly to the middle of nowhere to not accept any out of state people during my or the interview after...) but an awsome school still 🙂
columbia will be fun... 🙂
 
Portlander,
http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/dental/computers/recommendations.html

this website gives info. on mac/pc recommended specifications for laptops.

PC: they recommend P4 1.2+, 256MB+, 40GB, zip drive, cdrw/dvd combo, wireless (true mobile card), xircom modem, win2000, and 4hours of battery life. (also Ethernet, which is standard for most laptops)

i'm thinking of getting a dell c640...

Stargirl,
what kind of laptop do you use? the school strongly recommends windows 2000 over windows XP... does it really matter? i prefer using the xp.
 
nah it doesn't matter... i have a dell inspiron w/o a dvd player (not that it matters...but i wish it had one...) 😛
they hardly require you to use a computer....
the best thing probably to get is a laser printer 🙂
 
hi,
i'm starting Columbia dental in august.
i wanted to say hello to the fellow classmates.
anybody else from NJ?
until august
aaron
 
hi
i just received some papers from SDOS...
(lab coat size, info on orientation/white coat ceremony, health record)

to any columbia SDOS students:
is there anything special that i should prepare?
is laguardia airport the best choice? JFK? Newark?
 
lga is the closest airport

RUMOR HAS IT THAT THEY PASSED THE VOTE TO MAKE SDOS H/P/F

please don't ask me anything that's all i know... okie gotta study for finals have fun i'll be back after next friday 🙂
 
Hey portlander,
for computer, I wouldn't recommend a dell...
one of my friend's laptop just broke right after the 1 yr warranty ran up.
I have a sony laptop and it's worth that extra that you pay for it.
I wouldn't recommend a desktop: The room's in bard are a bit small and also you'll appreciate the ability to bring it home on the holidays.

Don't you guys worry about competition; my class and the yr. before us worked hard to get all our exams scanned in.
you can check out our website@
www.columbia.edu/~ph2070

so just worry about your own grades and just having a great time here. I know that my buddies and I would neither of picked a different school to go to or another dental class at columbia.

We're excited to meet you guys, and we'll always be there to help ya out.

terry
 
if you are from the west stay there.

the only people who likes columbia are people who want to specialize really bad and people originally from this ghetto dump new york.

for you californians, unless you got rejected by all 5 cal schools, don't even think about coming here

call UCLA or UCSF see what's going on with the waiting list.

it was the biggest mistake of my life coming here

worst decision
 
I agree with Mr. Blows this time.
I also think, if you have the luxury to, you should choose a school in your state or where you want to eventually practice, which is probably where you come from.

Well, there probably are people who want to practice somewhere other than their home state, but unless you know someone or go into military service, isn't hard to just settle down just anywhere?
But me and Mr. Blows could be wrong on this, we are human after all.
 
Hello Type-S,

Of the three airports that you mentioned, I'd say JFK would be my pick because one subway ride will take you all the way to the school and the flights at JFK are not delayed as frequently as the ones in LGA. The most ridiculous things happen at LGA (e.g. plane not arrived yet, there's another plane that is in your plane's terminal so you're waiting on the runway for over 30 min. etc). Getting to school from Newark costs a lot more if money is a concern. One thing with JFK though, if you're arriving late and will take the A train after 11pm, there's no express and getting to school will take you 3hrs, probably just as long as your flight was.

Really though, the best airports to arrive in are LAX, SJC, OAK, ONT, and SFO. You get the point.
 
Acrimonius,
just wondering what year are you? or better yet who are you? 😛
 
OMG! You guys are scaring me!! After so much fighting to get off the waitlist at Columbia the last thing I want to hear is that it is competitive and "hell." Stargirl, would you live in Bard? Do you have any tips or inside info? You seem to love P&S, are you in any clubs? Let me know how to make the most of it, I really want to be as happy there as I am about getting off this WL!
 
I be interested in knowing who you are too, StarGirl. I think I'll be able to find out tonight.
 
how are you going to find out? don't worry i'm no one important... so who are you? 🙂
 
IntlMD07

Have they accepted people from the waitlist?
I think what makes SDOS (P&S is the med school) so great is that I happen to be in a great class and the people are really awsome and just great to be around 🙂 We all try to help each other. We have fun together and do a ton of stuff. We're not as competitive as the upperclassmen (which makes it great). I have no idea if I want to specialize or not but I'm not going to kill myself to get an A or a B 🙂 I'll take whatever comes 🙂 I think those that aren't happy at SDOS is cause they expect to be at the top of their class and are so use to getting A+'s that getting an A- makes them depressed 🙂 But now we're on H/P/F so who knows what will happen.
I've always wanted to live in NYC also...I've been in Ca most of my life and this gives me a great chance to live in NYC temporaily...
I am living in bard again next year 🙂 go figure 🙂 I had a chance to move to the towers or georgian but I decided to stay in Bard. I might still move to the towers only cause the rooms are bigger but I don't mind living in Bard at all... everything's really close by 🙂
No matter where you go dental school will be a lot of work...it's the attitude you take that'll make your experiences happy and enjoyable 🙂 Good luck wherever you end up 🙂
 
Hello StarGirl,

I'm still conferring with my "connections", which now appears kind of limited. Give me till next year. 😉 You sure respond fast. Wish our professors would do the same.
 
i reply fast cause i feel obligated to do so... so what year are you...i'm not too sure when the 05/04 people switch over to being 3rd/4th years...

like I said, it won't matter cause i'm not anyone important at the school 🙂
are you from Ca?
 
hahaha you're funny 🙂 so who are you?
 
here's something even creepier...do you know me from SDOS?
 
I think it's better that I remain anonymous, for my own safety.🙂
 
what do you have to fear? You already know who i am... and i am sure you know i'm too small and wimpy to do anything to you 😉
 
Maybe, but at our school, everyone is more unfathomable than we like to believe.
 
you're just way too pessimistic about things... you really should change that!
 
story has that somewhere in hudson river hides a mer-man(as oppose to a mermaid). he sometimes creeps out from the river in the middle of the night into the bard student residence hall and eats incoming freshmens alive.

but another rumor says that if you are a big big Shaq O'Neil fan as a musician/rapper, by playing Shaq's music all night long at the loudest volume on your stereo you can avoid being eaten by this monsterous mer-man.
 
hey stargirl,

Did you wanted to go to columbia or was it because you did not get into a ca school. In all honesty, would you have picked USC over Columbia? This is not intended to imply anything, just want to get some opinion since I was and had my deposit down for columbia, but now that usc accepted me, i'm leaning more towards going to usc since i'm a cali resident and wish to practice in ca. Of all the people (dental students in ca, dentists) I talked to about this situation (of going to usc or columbia) 100% said i should stay in cali for conveniency purposes.

Is anyone out there facing this problem or have before? If so, could you shed some light? Thanks.

NSXDent
 
FutureNSXDent,
I had that problem last year. I got into Columbia and USC at the same time...and was forced to make a choice b/n the two (I didn't want to have two deposits down cause it didn't seem fair to other students...).
Initally when I applied I really wanted to stay in Ca or Columbia... I had a lot of mix feelings about staying in Ca. Being in SF was great cause it's close to home, but it was also the same reason that I didn't try hard to get into UOP or UCSF.
I wasn't sure if I wanted to stay at UCLA since I knew quite a few of the professors already and it didn't feel right to stay (so I guess it's a good thing I intervewied late and didn't make it off their waitlist) Then sometime during the year, I wanted to go to Penn or be in Philly (for personal reasons) but when I got in I realize that's not where I wanted to be so I stayed w/ Columbia.
I'm totally happy with the choice I made, and I realize it more each day 🙂
At first I thought I had made the wrong choice...I hated the weather (and I still do most of the time). But NY's so different. I feel like I've grown a lot this year. I don't think I'll have a problem going back to Ca...
The reasons that I didn't want to go to USC was cause I didn't like the PBL program all that much. They have the lowest pass rate for Ca Boards. They were really expensive and I talked to some of the students during my interview and they told me not to go there cause it was really unorganized and it was/is still somewhat experimental at that school.
It's hard to say where you'll be happiest.
My orthodontist went to USC for his dental trainning and he told me he hated it and that he refuses to donate money back cause USC made his life hell 🙂 I think he's just bitter...and doesn't realize that dental school is a lot of hard work anywhere you go.
I hope you make the right choice for you. Don't listen to what anyone tell you about the school cause your experiences will be different... (mine certainly are for Columbia...even before I came I heard a lot of negative stuff about it...but trust me I haven't experienced any of them).
Good luck and let me know if you have any more questions... I have a pretty kick back easy summer 🙂
 
Hello NSXDent,

If you're from Cal and eventually want to practice in Cal, stay in Cal. Columbia doesn't do very much, if any at all, in terms of helping one pass the CA licensing exam. I've heard of many East Coast dental school graduates struggle to get back only to find that they've failed. What's the point of getting your DDS if you can't practice where you want to practice? Who's going to pay for the loans that are eating you away daily?

Also, the quality of life at NYC is poor at best, if there's any quality at all. I used to exercise so that I may be in shape for the hiking trips that I enjoy. Now, I stay in shape so that I can lug all the food and an necessities home so that I simply will not starve. All the comfort and convenience that you know of will be a thing of the past (such as your NSX 🙂). Also, I love order and cleaniness but most of NYC is a dump. If you think people in CA are rude, gosh, will you be in for a big surprise in NYC. Yes, there's a lot to do in NYC, but will you be in the mood to do them? Why don't you just wait until you're a wealthy CA dentist and then take a vacation for a week to check this place out? The hardest part about coming here is having part with the family, friends, and maybe a pet, that you love so much. Each time you have leave them in order to come back to this dump will be like waiting for the death sentence to be carried out.

Yes, some will feel that my view about Columbia is biased, but this is exactly how many Californians feel after they've arrived here. Some like it here, many don't. You never know, you may find yourself falling into the latter group once you're here.

Sorry for the long letter, NSXDent, but I just wanted to tell you things that I wish someone would have honestly told me before I decided to come to this place. I want you to hear both sides of the story. If this place were really that wonderful, our CA graduates would not rush to leave here the instant they graduate. Some of them literally attend their graduation ceremonies with their suitcases.
 
I hope everyone is done w/ all the ranting. I have a question about housing and meal plans. Is Bard the best place to meet people the first year or are the other housing options better? Are people in Bard social or just loners? Do most people that live in the dorms get meal plans from the dining common? Is the food good?
 
Sorry to tell you this, but there's no such thing as a school cafeteria at Columbia and therefore, no meal plans to purchase. You need to cook by yourself, like most of us do, or go out and eat. Sadly, as you will realized when you get here, there's nothing to eat around our area. Better pick up some cooking skills before coming. Sounds terrible? Welcome to Columbia, where you're not only stressed, but also starved.
 
Stargirl and acrimonious,

Thanks for the reply, really appreciate your effort and sincerity. I thought I had my mind made up and convinced on going to USC, but now I am starting to have second doubt. Just like star, I loathe the pbl program and the only reason I am going to usc is because of the location and the fact that i want to practive here in cali afterwards. However, now that columbia has changed to h/p/f (for sure?), it seems all more attractive. To balance that, the fact that having to take the california board exam after grduation and having to worry about what's been tested that is not covered in columbia can be a hassle. In addition, having to start from scratch (patients, connections, finding practice, associates) can be mind boggling and frustrating. For those of you californians in east coast, has going to dental school in the east coast change your decision of wanting to practice there or has it made you realize more that cali is where you ultimately want to live and establish your practice? Any intake would be greatly appreciated!

ps-still in doubt btw columbia/usc, though leaning more towards usc now...

NSXDent
 
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
stay at USC
or you will regret

i'll pm you my thoughts
 
Hello NSXDent,

At least 9 out of 10 students from Cal that I know of are determined to go back to Cal after they graduate. I know of students that grew up in the East Coast that want to eventually go to Cal. You're on a good piece of real estate, guard it well.
 
Hello NSXDent,

One more piece of info that may interest you if you believe the trends:

Supposedly the the "competitiveness" of the classes at Columbia alternate each year. If one year is the cut-throat class, the next year's is usually the more easy-going class. The class that just graduated (SDOS 2003) and the class that will become third years (SDOS 2005) are the competitive ones. The more relaxed are ones are SDOS 2004 and 2006. If you enter in next year, you'll fall into the odd group and you better be ready to fight with all your might because it will be four long years.
 
you know a lot of that stuff's just total BS... you can't predict if a class will be competitive or not... It's all about the students that actually decide to go there...plus w/ all the resources that's already up there's very little chance that someone can actually be hiding old exams...and even if they are so what? YOU STILL have to learn the same stuff from the same Syllubus... who cares... are you guys so bogged down by grades that you can't enjoy life?
There's nothing wrong w/ USC and some people have told me they teach great dentistry...but my friend that's a first year there who I actually met at Columbia's interview (obviously we picked different schools) told me that the class of 05 (first PBL class) has to take mock board exams and get a certain score before they can take the real ones...and they're averaging 35 (this was about a month ago)...

You guys really have no idea how great Columbia really is... it's unfortunately that the AdCom didn't see how negative you guys really are during your interview... Why don't you guys cheer up... smile a little and just try and be happy and appreciate all that's been given to you?

You're at a school that's consistantly in the top 5 for the National Boards...you're at a school where you hardly have to go to lectures during first year (I can't say much about the rest of the years just yet)...you're at a school w/ ample free time...it's just all how you spend it... You're at a school where quality is desired over quantity. You're at a school where many changes will happen in the next few years for the betterment of the students. You're at a school that's always striving to be better.

There's no meal plans, but I haven't starve myself just yet...if anything I've probably gainned more weight this last year than my 4 years at UCLA.

There's a ton to do, and the dog poo doesn't stop me... Yes I have the intentions to go back to Ca when I finish Dental school...and I DEFINATELY WILL PASS THE CA BOARDS. I'm taking full advantage of these 4 years...that was my plan from the start...

and I've made a ton of lifelong friends 🙂
 
Hello StarGirl,

Don't believe the cycle? Talk to other upperclassmen of various years first before you make any comments. Too bad you just missed opportunity to ask the class of 2003.

Also, have you talked to graduates of non-Cal schools and asked them how much more difficult it is to get back to Cal VS the ones who graduated in Cal?

Yes, our students may be top five when it comes to the national board scores but does that mean anything when some of those same people don't have any morals or sympathy for others? We are in a profession committed to the well being of others! What makes you think that instant these people graduate they are going to become philanthropists when for most part of their lives they've attempted to destory others so that they may get ahead? Perhaps our school is top but does that mean we are all happy as a result? Sparta was one of the most powerfu city-states of ancient Greece, but does that automatically mean that its citizens have pleasant lives?

Do you think that I am bitter simply because do not excel academically? Yes, while it is very true that I am one of least studious people in my class, I still get more than my fair share of A's and B's. Why do assume that because someone is not content with their school it must be due to academic reasons? A lot more goes into determining the quality of our education here than just grades.
 
You can't automatically assume that the 07 people are going to be competitive...do you think that the AdCom actually alternates a certain criteria for admissions every other year? I truely believe that it's up to the students and how they want to treat their 4 years at Columbia.

"Yes, our students may be top five when it comes to the national board scores but does that mean anything when some of those same people don't have any morals or sympathy for others"
Maybe we should start this by changing the attitudes of people like you. You can't always look at something and think the worse of it. You can't expect EVERYONE to be moral and good, but it starts w/ the individual. I truely believe that those that I've met at SDOS are wonderful people. It's not everyday that you lose part of your slowspeed and someone (who happens to be in YOUR Class...and hardly knows me) offers you their 400 dollar toy. It's not everyday that someone will GIVE you their Locker combo where they store ALL their dental equipment so you can borrow their handpiece. These are the type of people I know at SDOS, I don't know what type of people you've met.

"Do you think that I am bitter simply because do not excel academically? Yes, while it is very true that I am one of least studious people in my class, I still get more than my fair share of A's and B's. Why do assume that because someone is not content with their school it must be due to academic reasons? A lot more goes into determining the quality of our education here than just grades."
No I don't think grades are the only thing that makes a person unhappy, but from the sounds of it, you must be bitter that you're not at the top. Maybe, you should re-evaluate your life at Columbia and figure out what it is that's bothering you? Maybe get a g/f or b/f? I don't know, I just wish there was something you can do to imporve your current life. Don't blame Columbia for whatever problems you have cause Columbia's there to help you...you just need to take advantage.

btw, of the 3 doctors I've worked with in Ca 2/3 went to Non-Ca schools. Many of the other ones I've encounter went to other schools such as Ohio and NYU. You just have to have some faith in yourself 🙂

Now are you going to tell me who you are?
 
if you don't care about the grades, then stop talking about how columbia does so well on the boards.

i am here at columbia to learn dentistry, not here so that some people can hand me lots of papers to read.

by the way, until you finish second year, you have no idea what it's really like at columbia.

so first years please chill

come back here in one year and tell us you love this place and you love second year.
 
Don't worry, I definately will still love it at Columbia... I have no time to waste by hating it...

Nope grades doesn't matter to me...and neither does the average board score really...what matters to me is my personal achievements... but it matters to a lot of other people...

shouldn't u be studying for your Endo exam and the Boards?
 
Wait a minute, guys. I don't mean to get into your debate about your own school.

But from what I have read, you guys don't have to go to lecture if you don't want to, have ample time to do whatever u want. And you guys still do well on the board? How's that? I heard that UCONN IS cruel because they have to study sooooo much, that's why they do well on the board.

If you guys don't have to sweat like UCONN kids and still do well, you guys must all be genius at taking those standardize tests? Or Columbia only teaches you guys what will appear on the board?
 
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