Dental schools with the nicest students?
Started by ohana1
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it really depends on the class year more than the school itself imo
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Exactly. In no time, you would find yourself so busy with dental school that all these issues became so trivial.
Michigan had a bunch of great students too
I interviewed at 6 schools and everyone was extremely kind and welcoming at all of them. I'd imagine most schools are like this. Dental students seem like nice people in general. I really wouldn't worry about people not being kind. Don't pick schools by answers in this thread. All our answers are subjective (you can see people answering where they chose to go to school, so of course they think those people are nice lol). You'll get a feel for people on your interview day.
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OP you should've asked where the least friendly students are. That'd probably be more helpful, like changtw's comment
Given that this is an outsider's perspective during a very focused and limited time period, take what I say with a grain of salt. No offence was meant by any of my opinions. I'm also going to talk not just about the student body, but about my fellow interviewees, since I think it reflects what the school may be looking for in their students.
- Columbia:
- Columbia:
- Student body: The most relaxed and quirky people that I've met anywhere. They seemed genuinely passionate, driven, enthusiastic (should I go on?) We had a chance to talk with the current D1s, and they all looked quite happy to be there. We ate lunch with the D2/D3s, and they all seemed comfortable and secure in what they were doing. Overall, fantastic place.
- Fellow interviewees: Some of them seemed like gunners who were a bit overeager to present themselves well. Caught alone, they were a little awkward, but friendly enough.
- Would I have gone?: Hell yes!
- Student body: The undergrad is reputed to be a fairly friendly bunch, and the dental school had the same atmosphere. A bunch of students came in during lunch time to eat with us, and it was a little awkward... but they tried, at least.
- Fellow interviewees: There were a LOT of us. I did manage to somewhat click with the ones sitting around me however.
- Would I have gone?: If I didn't get in my top choices.
- Student body: I didn't like the students there much. They kept bragging about how they were a pass/fail school, and how that somehow made their school the best school. It seemed overly gratuitous of them.
- Fellow interviewees: Some hits, some misses. There were a few gunners (overeager to ask obnoxiously pointless questions, comparing DAT scores). It was also early enough in the cycle that it was the first interview for a lot of people; many of them seemed friendly enough, but were a bit too winded up to talk much.
- Would I have gone?: Only if I didn't get in anywhere else.
- Student body: Passably friendly bunch. I didn't interact too much with them outside of the guides and the D4 who interviewed me. Not much else to say.
- Fellow interviewees: They were amazing! They were relaxed and down-to-earth about their accomplishments. Their friendly nature really helped me get comfortable for the interviews.
- Would I have gone?: With that price tag? Definitely.
- Student body: Not impressed. They were friendly enough, but seemed tired and lacked drive. The students we had a Q&A session with gave extremely bland answers. When I asked a D2 what the best part about his school was, he paused, and then said "everyone here is really nice." (I mean... I guess, if friendliness is what you're looking for... you might want to look into here.)
- Fellow interviewees: Just like Tufts, there were a lot of us. But similar to Tufts, I actually got along quite well with the people around me. Can't say much else.
- Would I have gone?: Maybe if they gave me a full scholarship.
It's the whole cut throat "I'm asian and I'm elite mentality" which I have been trying to antagonize growing up as an Asian
P.S. I'm Asian, so I know how dirty the culture works.
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I think you're overthinking it
Grew up with Asians for the first 15 years of my life, then transitioned to a heavily populated white school, and I could strongly say, as a fact, that Asians are more cut throat than any other race. They don't have the caring humanity as much as other race do due to the fact that most of their parents came from a country where communism ruled.
I don't see the connection between political belief and being nice/caring
NYU, to me, was a joke.
Although I'd say it's dumb basing where you may spend 300+ thousand dollars and 4 years of life based off the objective opinions of a few people online say, it's your prerogative.
That being said, UNLV and Columbia were the friendliest to me. A couple schools were the exact opposite and pretty much killed any desire to ever go there.
That being said, UNLV and Columbia were the friendliest to me. A couple schools were the exact opposite and pretty much killed any desire to ever go there.
What? Most Asian parents are hard on their children because they don't want their children to grow up like they did. Poor and having to work nonstop to just make ends meet. They are trying to set their children up so that they can make it in America. Don't have caring humanity? BS. If anything it is that they care too much. White people are just as cut throat anyway. You have to look at the very top Caucasian students at your school not the mediocre ones. I agree that there is a belief that Asians have to work harder because they are minority, but you are saying the whole race is cut throat? Get out of here. You say it's fact but you have only been exposed to a small sample of Asians relative to the rest of the world.
But he said it's a fact!!
F
fogorvostan
Truth. My mother was a refugee from Hungary. She had to give up literally everything she owned to the government in Austria before they allowed her to board a plane to NY. All four of her kids were expected to achieve great things... and to be honest, we kinda did. One went to dental school, one went to West Point, one is about to start dental (hint, that's me!), and the other is a.... stay at home mom? But hey, at least she has a college degree and married well.
Is UCLA really that bad? I'll be starting there this fall, and now that I'm hearing about the cutthroat culture, I'm even more terrified now... the students I came across when I interviewed there seemed very kind, at least in my opinion, and i didn't see any of the unapproachable types during my time there. Is there anyone else that has some insight? Thanks!
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Your parents/families are AWESOME. This is why I love SDN- you get to meet so many down to earth people.
My own parents came to the U.S. with only $50 in their pockets, no place to live, and they've worked so hard here and have done a great job securing their futures and teaching me the meaning of hard work and perseverance.
BTW, @Scumbag_Steve is right. UConn students are awesome- very high-caliber and humble.
I met students from 4+ schools at a conference two years ago. UConn's students were the friendliest, most relaxed that I met that day.
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Don't worry, just become one and you'll fit right in. Jk, haha.
UCLA is a reputable school and it is very difficult get in for both undergrad and grad, so they have the right to be a little snobbish. But not everyone is the same. I have friends who graduated and current attending there, they're humble. So just choose the right crowd to hang with. They might be cutthroat because they try to specialized but if you're just want to stick general practice, then they probably will like you better.
What I said above are baseless claims.
Like you say, I may've just happened to end up in a group that rubbed me the wrong way. Or the fault may even lie within myself.
I should have mentioned that UConn was my first interview. I was definitely nervous, and my interview was a disaster, as I felt like I was being attacked by one of the interviewers. I'm sure this all colored my experience at UConn, which led to me, perhaps unfairly, casting the school in an undeserved negative light.
Nonetheless, in the end, the atmosphere of the school just did not feel right with me. (There were other minor things during the interview and orientation that I took personal issue with, but I will not mention them, as the same issues will not affect everyone.) And the dislike is mutual; UConn waitlisted me! I suppose we just weren't meant for each other.
You seem to be genuinely excited about your new school and your classmates, and I'm happy for you. Good luck.
@nateriver: My top choice... 🙂
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Err I mean I got into my top choice, haha.
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