Give Up Acceptance To Try Again Next Cycle?

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customx

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I applied to 15 schools and interviewed at UW, UNLV, Michigan, Nova, LECOM and MWU-AZ. Unfortunately the only 2 schools I have been accepted to are MWU-AZ and LECOM. MWU was my favorite school, but it is also the most expensive by at least $50k, once living expenses are factored in. My wife works, but I figure I will still be close to $350k in debt by the time I graduate. I thought that all my interviews went well, but obviously not well enough to secure an offer of admission from UW, UNLV or Michigan, schools which I was really hoping to attend. UW is my in-state school, and I am fairly certain the class is full and I have not been put on the waitlist. I have a 3.4 GPA with a 22 TS and AA.

I hate to have to go through this process all over again, spend thousands on applications and travel expenses, but the thought of carrying that much debt is scary. There are no guarantees, and I know that I could reapply next cycle and not get in anywhere. Am I being unrealistic, or should I take some upper level bio courses, maybe get some dental assisting experience, and try this again, with the hope of getting into a state school to save some money?
 
What would schools like Michigan and UNLV cost you OOS?
 
ICUrunning said:
What would schools like Michigan and UNLV cost you OOS?
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UNLV grants in state tuition after the first year, so it would end up costing about $330-350k w/living expenses for 4 years.

Michigan would be about $360k, and my wife would have far fewer job prospects in Ann Arbor and Detroit

MWU-AZ is at about $450k for 4 years w/living expenses

UW would be about $250-270k w/living expenses. The potential savings of $200k makes it very tempting to try again, but I know there are zero guarantees I would get in next cycle.
 
I think many people would do anything to be in your position right now. Go to the least expensive school that you got accepted into because it's not guaranteed that you will be accepted next year to your dream school or to any school at all and I don't know how other schools would interpret this decision.
 
As my advisor told me: It doesn't matter where you go you will be able to pay back the loans easily after you graduate. Most new dentists earn average of 120-180k right out of school. Life has no guarantees...take what you've been offered now.
 
im sorry but you would be crazy not to take it.... that one lost year will cost you around 100-200 k in lost income plus the chance that you may not get accepted next year... plus youd end up paying alot for applications... in the long run ud lose money staying back a year even if you got into your top choice next year
 
irishmom said:
As my advisor told me: It doesn't matter where you go you will be able to pay back the loans easily after you graduate. Most new dentists earn average of 120-180k right out of school. Life has no guarantees...take what you've been offered now.
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Most anecdotes on SDN from actual dental students and dentists have said that new grads earn an avg of 100-120k. Anything over is exceptionally rare.
 
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customx said:
I applied to 15 schools and interviewed at UW, UNLV, Michigan, Nova, LECOM and MWU-AZ. Unfortunately the only 2 schools I have been accepted to are MWU-AZ and LECOM. MWU was my favorite school, but it is also the most expensive by at least $50k, once living expenses are factored in. My wife works, but I figure I will still be close to $350k in debt by the time I graduate. I thought that all my interviews went well, but obviously not well enough to secure an offer of admission from UW, UNLV or Michigan, schools which I was really hoping to attend. UW is my in-state school, and I am fairly certain the class is full and I have not been put on the waitlist. I have a 3.4 GPA with a 22 TS and AA.

I hate to have to go through this process all over again, spend thousands on applications and travel expenses, but the thought of carrying that much debt is scary. There are no guarantees, and I know that I could reapply next cycle and not get in anywhere. Am I being unrealistic, or should I take some upper level bio courses, maybe get some dental assisting experience, and try this again, with the hope of getting into a state school to save some money?
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Please do not give up the opportunity in your lap. You've stated three important points: A. You've already spent literally thousands of dollars to be in this spot, B: You're IN 2 dental schools and C: There is no guarantee that UW, UNLV or UMich will accept you next year if you decide to deny your enrollment this year. The extra year you defer yourself from being in dental school is at least worth a year's salary as a dentist, easily enough to begin payback on not only your school loans but any and everything you'll spend to launch and maintain your future business. Your debt management is something you solve with frugal spending and an appointment with your financial adviser customx, not by scaring yourself out of dental school.
 
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I agree with superluminal's very rational argument.

I would assume that you are not making an income similar to what you would as a dentist, and therefore the extra year of waiting plus the cost of another round of apps could be far more detrimental than differences in tuition costs. Not to mention, there are many different ways to gain scholarships throughout dental school, which could balance out some of the price differences you've listed.

That being said, you are in a position where you have to consider a few extra factors such as job options for your wife. I would not neglect that consideration because her income could really help balance the cost of living and other expenses that might drive up the overall price of attending dental school.

But at the end of the day, congratulations on all of your interviews and your two acceptances! It is true that you may not get into a state school if you choose to apply all over again, but if you do make that choice, do not be discouraged because obviously you did something right this time around!

Best wishes!
 
I've heard great things about MWU-AZ (New everything/good weather/ friendly environment). Your smart to put weight on the price tag of the school but then again the application cycle is unpredictable, like you've experienced. If you choose a dental school that has accepted you, then make sure it's in an environment that you and your wife are most comfortable with. If you choose to re-apply, then you absolutely have to ask UW, UNLV, and Michigan what you can do to improve your application because they will have the most valuable answers.
 
gdm42 said:
I've heard great things about MWU-AZ (New everything/good weather/ friendly environment). Your smart to put weight on the price tag of the school but then again the application cycle is unpredictable, like you've experienced. If you choose a dental school that has accepted you, then make sure it's in an environment that you and your wife are most comfortable with. If you choose to re-apply, then you absolutely have to ask UW, UNLV, and Michigan what you can do to improve your application because they will have the most valuable answers.
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AZ is no where near good weather my friend. It burns like a pizza oven here.
 
Like others have stated, I would definitely not take a gamble and choose the cheaper of the two schools that you got into this cycle. There are no guarantees that you will get into your state school next cycle. This past cycle I read a post on here about someone who declined acceptances to schools he got into the previous cycle because he wanted to try to get into UCSF this past cycle. He was declined from UCSF again so it was pretty much a waste of an entire year.
 
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acemason said:
Like others have stated, I would definitely not take a gamble and choose the cheaper of the two schools that you got into this cycle. There are no guarantees that you will get into your state school next cycle. This past cycle I read a post on here about someone who declined acceptances to schools he got into because he wanted to try to get into UCSF this past cycle. He was declined from UCSF again so it was pretty a waste of an entire year.
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Did the schools he got accepted to before also accept him again?
 
hannah_hoac said:
I think many people would do anything to be in your position right now. Go to the least expensive school that you got accepted into because it's not guaranteed that you will be accepted next year to your dream school or to any school at all and I don't know how other schools would interpret this decision.
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Exactly this. Acceptance is in no way guaranteed next year - especially when explain to adcoms that you turned 2 acceptances the previous year because it was expensive. Guess what? Dental school is expensive. We will all be able to pay back your loans, even those who go to NYU. It just may take longer for some than others.
 
ICUrunning said:
Most anecdotes on SDN from actual dental students and dentists have said that new grads earn an avg of 100-120k. Anything over is exceptionally rare.
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Even so, that's $100,000 in lost income, minimum.

I am all about going to the least expensive school, but not at the sacrifice of not going at all. Take one of the offers this year and run with it.
 
Hey,

I understand where you are coming from. As a Texas resident, I would not want to apply out of state because of the high tuition. As of right now, I have not been accepted to any dental schools yet because I didn't apply out of state. Looking back at it, I should have. It really saves you all the eagerness of checking your email every single time. Best way to explain it, every morning is like December 1st to me. I am always checking my email to see if the school sends out an acceptance yet.

On a brighter note, if you ever feel like you want to go to a different school the year after, then it is definitely possible. I have a friend that transfer to Baylor after his first year at a different dental school. He literally is saving 200-300k!

Overall, don't decline the schools because it is not worth it.
 
BabyShades said:
Hey,

I understand where you are coming from. As a Texas resident, I would not want to apply out of state because of the high tuition. As of right now, I have not been accepted to any dental schools yet because I didn't apply out of state. Looking back at it, I should have. It really saves you all the eagerness of checking your email every single time. Best way to explain it, every morning is like December 1st to me. I am always checking my email to see if the school sends out an acceptance yet.

On a brighter note, if you ever feel like you want to go to a different school the year after, then it is definitely possible. I have a friend that transfer to Baylor after his first year at a different dental school. He literally is saving 200-300k!

Overall, don't decline the schools because it is not worth it.
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I dont blame you for not applying to any OOS schools. You have three state schools, all of them being the cheapest in the country. As much as it sucks waiting, you can afford the year if it ends up being the worst case.
 
My friend decline and reapply next year accepted to state school. It happen.
 
customx said:
I applied to 15 schools and interviewed at UW, UNLV, Michigan, Nova, LECOM and MWU-AZ. Unfortunately the only 2 schools I have been accepted to are MWU-AZ and LECOM. MWU was my favorite school, but it is also the most expensive by at least $50k, once living expenses are factored in. My wife works, but I figure I will still be close to $350k in debt by the time I graduate. I thought that all my interviews went well, but obviously not well enough to secure an offer of admission from UW, UNLV or Michigan, schools which I was really hoping to attend. UW is my in-state school, and I am fairly certain the class is full and I have not been put on the waitlist. I have a 3.4 GPA with a 22 TS and AA.

I hate to have to go through this process all over again, spend thousands on applications and travel expenses, but the thought of carrying that much debt is scary. There are no guarantees, and I know that I could reapply next cycle and not get in anywhere. Am I being unrealistic, or should I take some upper level bio courses, maybe get some dental assisting experience, and try this again, with the hope of getting into a state school to save some money?
Click to expand...
Dang man this is a tough choice. I'm also a WA resident and I'm really banking on getting in next cycle. Did UW say anything about why they didn't accept you, or what you could improve on?
 
youraverageasia said:
Dang man this is a tough choice. I'm also a WA resident and I'm really banking on getting in next cycle. Did UW say anything about why they didn't accept you, or what you could improve on?
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No. I haven't officially been rejected, but chances are very slim at this point. I'll probably call next week and see if there is anything I can do to improve my chances. The fact that I was given an interview means that I am competitive, I guess I just wasn't strong enough during the interview. At this point though I'm leaning towards sticking with MWU
 
customx said:
No. I haven't officially been rejected, but chances are very slim at this point. I'll probably call next week and see if there is anything I can do to improve my chances. The fact that I was given an interview means that I am competitive, I guess I just wasn't strong enough during the interview. At this point though I'm leaning towards sticking with MWU
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Take the acceptance, don't roll the dice
 
Wait it out. Either way, take the acceptance to MWU
 
customx said:
I applied to 15 schools and interviewed at UW, UNLV, Michigan, Nova, LECOM and MWU-AZ. Unfortunately the only 2 schools I have been accepted to are MWU-AZ and LECOM. MWU was my favorite school, but it is also the most expensive by at least $50k, once living expenses are factored in. My wife works, but I figure I will still be close to $350k in debt by the time I graduate. I thought that all my interviews went well, but obviously not well enough to secure an offer of admission from UW, UNLV or Michigan, schools which I was really hoping to attend. UW is my in-state school, and I am fairly certain the class is full and I have not been put on the waitlist. I have a 3.4 GPA with a 22 TS and AA.

I hate to have to go through this process all over again, spend thousands on applications and travel expenses, but the thought of carrying that much debt is scary. There are no guarantees, and I know that I could reapply next cycle and not get in anywhere. Am I being unrealistic, or should I take some upper level bio courses, maybe get some dental assisting experience, and try this again, with the hope of getting into a state school to save some money?
Click to expand...


@customx If I were you I would secure your seat for which school you got into, but you still have a chance with your state school. Just be patient because I'm sure someone from your state school in UW will withdraw (or they are probably holding seats for last minute securings) and you will end up getting in. Who knows, maybe in May you might get accepted at UW, so don't give up yet. Stay patient and hang in there buddy!
 
irishmom said:
As my advisor told me: It doesn't matter where you go you will be able to pay back the loans easily after you graduate. Most new dentists earn average of 120-180k right out of school. Life has no guarantees...take what you've been offered now.
Click to expand...
This is a gross overestimation of what dentists make right out of school. A new dentist is lucky to make 100k right out of school. The average salary for all dentists, including the veterans, is more in the range of 120k-180k. I still think you should take your acceptance this year and not risk losing a spot by applying next year. However, I don't agree that it will be easy to pay back your debt. It will be well worth it though!
 
Factor in the thousands to apply again. The time spent waiting, flying, interviewing. The stress of waiting to potentially get the same results. You got an acceptance already, that's impressive enough. I'd say go for it.

Granted UW is pretty cool.....I miss Seattle.
 
You're going to become a dentist regardless so good luck with your decision! I thought LECOM was amazing
 
when I first applied, I was pretty set that I wanted to go to my state school only (even though I applied to lots of schools as well), but as this humbling process of application cycle went on, I came to realize that if there is any school that I can get into, I will be happy to accept the fact that it is not my state school and I will be shelling out more dough than I would have with my state school.

To be fair, not everyone gets to go to their top choice (mostly their state schools because of cost), but at least you have two schools to choose from.

A lot of people who doesn't have any acceptance will kill to be in your position 🙂
 
2THDDS said:
when I first applied, I was pretty set that I wanted to go to my state school only (even though I applied to lots of schools as well), but as this humbling process of application cycle went on, I came to realize that if there is any school that I can get into, I will be happy to accept the fact that it is not my state school and I will be shelling out more dough than I would have with my state school.

To be fair, not everyone gets to go to their top choice (mostly their state schools because of cost), but at least you have two schools to choose from.

A lot of people who doesn't have any acceptance will kill to be in your position 🙂
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Have you gotten in yet?
 
I noticed almost everyone who commented on this thread is pre-dental. Please do yourself a favor and post your situation on Dentaltown and see what practicing dentists have to say. You can also post on the Practicing Dentists and Residents subgroup here. 450K is nuts. I would definitely reapply if I were in your position. Being a dentist is not worth being in debt till you're 45. You might lose an extra year, 120K or whatever it is but that 120K will only end up being like 80K after taxes and you'll need to live and eat so that'll probably leave you with like 60K maximum. If you think you can somehow really boost your application these next few months (maybe classes to boost the GPA or a dental mission trip or something) then you should reapply. There's always something you can do to boost your chances. Maybe even sit for the DAT again. If you don't think you can really add much more to your application then you might not have much of a choice. I would really take this post to some current students and practicing dentists though.
 
DoWork91 said:
I noticed almost everyone who commented on this thread is pre-dental. Please do yourself a favor and post your situation on Dentaltown and see what practicing dentists have to say. You can also post on the Practicing Dentists and Residents subgroup here. 450K is nuts. I would definitely reapply if I were in your position. Being a dentist is not worth being in debt till you're 45. You might lose an extra year, 120K or whatever it is but that 120K will only end up being like 80K after taxes and you'll need to live and eat so that'll probably leave you with like 60K maximum. If you think you can somehow really boost your application these next few months (maybe classes to boost the GPA or a dental mission trip or something) then you should reapply. There's always something you can do to boost your chances. Maybe even sit for the DAT again. If you don't think you can really add much more to your application then you might not have much of a choice. I would really take this post to some current students and practicing dentists though.
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I don't even want to imagine that...
It will require a lot of patience (1 year before applying again), messing with sanity (having to go through this entire waiting game again), putting the money in again to apply (without any guarantee to get into state school, having potential to have to reapply again WHILE for sure got 2 acceptances now), etc.
I understand that a few thousands to reapply is nothing comparing to the debt but there is a reason why students are willing to go to private schools even though it is pricey. Dental schools are competitive to get into. Otherwise, schools would lower their costs to attract more students already.
Anyway, it's just my opinion at 4:38 AM. OP, please ask the more professional and experienced individuals on this issue and let us all know what they recommended.
 
Heck I go to Dentaltown daily. I have for years. (I'm a hygienist) The fact of the matter is that all dental schools have increased in price. I'm going to my state school and when it is all said and done, including my undergrad I will have in excess of $300K in debt. An extra 100-150K isn't a big deal in the grand scheme of things. When you factor in the cost of applying, interviewing, and then lost wages for 1 year they kinda equal each other.

Many of the people on Dtown graduated when the total loan amount was 100K. For some schools now that is the cost of one year. But take into consideration that crowns now cost ~$1200, not ~$500 like they did back then too.
 
DoWork91 said:
I noticed almost everyone who commented on this thread is pre-dental. Please do yourself a favor and post your situation on Dentaltown and see what practicing dentists have to say. You can also post on the Practicing Dentists and Residents subgroup here. 450K is nuts. I would definitely reapply if I were in your position. Being a dentist is not worth being in debt till you're 45. You might lose an extra year, 120K or whatever it is but that 120K will only end up being like 80K after taxes and you'll need to live and eat so that'll probably leave you with like 60K maximum. If you think you can somehow really boost your application these next few months (maybe classes to boost the GPA or a dental mission trip or something) then you should reapply. There's always something you can do to boost your chances. Maybe even sit for the DAT again. If you don't think you can really add much more to your application then you might not have much of a choice. I would really take this post to some current students and practicing dentists though.
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you do not lose a first year dentist salary by delaying a year. you lose a year of your PRIME dental years where you make the most. you only have so many prime years, delaying a year will result in losing a years income at your highest potential.
 
irishmom said:
Heck I go to Dentaltown daily. I have for years. (I'm a hygienist) The fact of the matter is that all dental schools have increased in price. I'm going to my state school and when it is all said and done, including my undergrad I will have in excess of $300K in debt. An extra 100-150K isn't a big deal in the grand scheme of things. When you factor in the cost of applying, interviewing, and then lost wages for 1 year they kinda equal each other.

Many of the people on Dtown graduated when the total loan amount was 100K. For some schools now that is the cost of one year. But take into consideration that crowns now cost ~$1200, not ~$500 like they did back then too.
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An extra 150 k is a huge deal in the grand scheme of things. That is an astronomical burden compared to not having that extra 150k of debt. It is so easy for everyone to say these days that because they will already have hundreds of thousands in debt that another hundred thousand is nothing. It may seem like nothing on paper when you add it to the existing couple hundred thousand. However, people don't realize the magnitude of how much money that is especially with an interest rate of 6.7%. An extra 10 thousand is a huge difference let alone an extra 150k. The unfortunate thing is that this is the only option for some people so they have to decide if they want to take it or not. No one should make any financial decisions pretending that 300k is the same as 500k. Or 100k the same as 200k. I think that you should take DoWork91's advice in deciding whether to apply again or not. Good luck!
 
You shouldn't have wasted your money applying to 15 schools if you were gonna only consider going to 3 of those. From your list the only school that would be "worth" waiting a year for would be your in-state, but then when next cycle happens are you going to only apply to one school? If you plan on applying to 15 again then I think you know what you should do
 
lanzo said:
An extra 150 k is a huge deal in the grand scheme of things. That is an astronomical burden compared to not having that extra 150k of debt. It is so easy for everyone to say these days that because they will already have hundreds of thousands in debt that another hundred thousand is nothing. It may seem like nothing on paper when you add it to the existing couple hundred thousand. However, people don't realize the magnitude of how much money that is especially with an interest rate of 6.7%. An extra 10 thousand is a huge difference let alone an extra 150k. The unfortunate thing is that this is the only option for some people so they have to decide if they want to take it or not. No one should make any financial decisions pretending that 300k is the same as 500k. Or 100k the same as 200k. I think that you should take DoWork91's advice in deciding whether to apply again or not. Good luck!
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That is a valid argument when considering 2 schools, but not so valid considering a school or no school. There is no guarantee he will get in next year or ever...so, then what? That would not be a chance I would be willing to take over the potential loan of $100,000 more, when that will be off-set by starting work a year earlier.
 
to the OP: why didn't you put a depost for LECOM instead.... much cheaper then MWU. Seems like money is a main factor here ... so I'm not sure why you didn't go for the cheaper option with the acceptances you have. Goodluck!
 
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