First off, I was accepted to the following SMDEP sites: Columbia, UCLA, and Howard.
For me, the choice is coming down to Columbia or UCLA. There are several other factors that go into my decision, but I wanted to get some unbiased (or maybe biased) opinions from you guys. So where should I go?!
I'm Pre-Dental, but everyone in SMDEP does pretty much the same thing (Pre-Med included).
Hello! I am an undergraduate at UCLA currently. I work at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and it is is amazingly beautiful. Now, since you're Pre-Dental, I don't know what you'll be touring or if you'll even be exposed to the medical center. Where are you from? Do you want to come to the West coast for the summer, or East? I'd check out Colombia Dental School's rankings. It may be better than UCLA's. I just got my acceptances yesterday. I chose Univ. of WA S.O.M., mainly in part because I want to stay on the West coast.
Columbia because the benefits of SMDEP will more likely help you with East Coast connections. Being from VA you have a better chance at Columbia than UCLA, with all things being equal in case you don't end up going to VCU.