Got into all three Texas schools...can't decide which to pick now. Any insight?

[Vitae]

Hi everyone. I received a 1st round acceptance from all three Texas schools. I really liked them all to be honest and am now having a tough time deciding which one to pick. I liked Baylor's reputation and strong emphasis on clinical training. I liked San Antonio's cutting edge approach to dentistry, their strong research program, and their laptop curriculum. And I liked Houston as a nice blend of the two schools (clinical training/research) and their location in the thriving Texas Medical Center. Does anyone have any additional insight on which school they prefer and why? I'm looking for additional insight that might help me make my decision. Thank you in advance.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[vipergts66]

Hi everyone. I received a 1st round acceptance from all three Texas schools. I really liked them all to be honest and am now having a tough time deciding which one to pick. I liked Baylor's reputation and strong emphasis on clinical training. I liked San Antonio's cutting edge approach to dentistry, their strong research program, and their laptop curriculum. And I liked Houston as a nice blend of the two schools (clinical training/research) and their location in the thriving Texas Medical Center. Does anyone have any additional insight on which school they prefer and why? I'm looking for additional insight that might help me make my decision. Thank you in advance.

everyone likes the medical center, and granted it is a glorious place. not for dental students, however. the whole area is very medical focused and i feel as if dental students get the short end of the stick. SA is excellent. great program and great research. if the laptop program doesn't scare you i say go for SA. it is the breadwinner of that health science center and as such will have a lot of funding and a lot of opportunities. baylor has newer facilities but i didn't like how they make you do ALL your own labwork. from what i hear it gets old fast and takes up a lot of unnecessary time. in addition, i hated their lecture hall.

just my $0.02, congrats on getting in to all 3.

 

[Vitae]

everyone likes the medical center, and granted it is a glorious place. not for dental students, however. the whole area is very medical focused and i feel as if dental students get the short end of the stick. SA is excellent. great program and great research. if the laptop program doesn't scare you i say go for SA. it is the breadwinner of that health science center and as such will have a lot of funding and a lot of opportunities. baylor has newer facilities but i didn't like how they make you do ALL your own labwork. from what i hear it gets old fast and takes up a lot of unnecessary time. in addition, i hated their lecture hall.

just my $0.02, congrats on getting in to all 3.

Thanks for the reply. One thing I did like about Baylor is that there isn't a medical school there too. So that means that the dental school is the big program there and doesn't have to share resources with a medical school. I also heard that at Baylor you do all your own labwork, is that really true?

As for Houston, I agree with you. The Medical Center is great, but it's easy to see how the dental school can be overshadowed there by the medical community.

As for the clinical facilities, I liked San Antonio's the best. It's nice having your own closed in operatory to practice in. The privacy really resembles a private practice setting...quite a contrast to Baylor's open floor clinic. And again, Houston seems to fall in between the other two schools with their 4-wing, 12 dental chairs per wing clinical setting.

 

[Vitae]

baylor has newer facilities but i didn't like how they make you do ALL your own labwork. from what i hear it gets old fast and takes up a lot of unnecessary time.

I was curious if you could expand on that. When I interviewed at Baylor I really didn't talk to the dental students there about how they liked doing their own lab work. Did you talk to people about it, and if so how did they feel?

 

[vipergts66]

I was curious if you could expand on that. When I interviewed at Baylor I really didn't talk to the dental students there about how they liked doing their own lab work. Did you talk to people about it, and if so how did they feel?

i am almost 100% positive you have to do ALL your own lab work...and i know at SA you only have to do part of it and you can send the rest out. as far as how the students feel i'd say it's a healthy mixture. the reasoning is that you learn a lot more and can judge good work from bad work for later on when you send out your labs stuff. they also argue that you learn to appreciate the time that it takes to finish all the work so that you are more mindful of scheduling and allow the labs more time to do work instead of expecting it right away. in terms of private practice it boils down to how you want it to work. some dentists do all their lab work and some send everything out. other students at baylor say that it's time consuming and wasteful, if they plan on sending lab work out anyway. for me personally i'd rather spend that extra time studying or maybe having fun. which also boils down to location. i live in austin and am keen to the bar scene, which dallas is full of. SA...seems boring to me, but again that is personal preference. gl

 

[sheross]

I have several friends that I attended undergrad with me and now they are at Baylor and all of them think doing your own lab work is a pain. Yes, the school gives the rationale by saying, " you can judge good work versus bad," but honestly that is a personal choice. Good luck and congratulations on all three acceptances.

I was curious if you could expand on that. When I interviewed at Baylor I really didn't talk to the dental students there about how they liked doing their own lab work. Did you talk to people about it, and if so how did they feel?

 

[Vitae]

I have several friends that I attended undergrad with me and now they are at Baylor and all of them think doing your own lab work is a pain. Yes, the school gives the rationale by saying, " you can judge good work versus bad," but honestly that is a personal choice. Good luck and congratulations on all three acceptances.

Doing your own lab work would seem time consuming. I could envision being very frustrated doing lab work all the while knowing you should be studying for some exams or studying for the board exams.

 

[1FutureDDS]

Doing your own lab work would seem time consuming. I could envision being very frustrated doing lab work all the while knowing you should be studying for some exams or studying for the board exams.

Waxing a crown of any tooth = 10 minutes.

Investing = 1 minute with like hours to study while you wait for it to dry.

Burn out = 1 minute- then more hours to study while it goes through its phases.

Casting = 2 minutes - with more study time while it cools down.

Breakout/Polish= .5-1 Hour.


Youre looking at 1-2 hours MAX working time, many hours waiting time.
This is no more time than some dumb elective class.
Also, while you're waiting through the different wait periods you will be inclined to study, AT school while you wait instead of "saying" you will study when you go home, and end up at a bar 3 o-clock in the morning screaming "YEAAAAAAA" to hotgirls like lil' john in Ushers song.


I know that was probably the longest runon sentence you have ever read, but life isn't always perfect

 

[Vitae]

Also, while you're waiting for the different wait periods you will be inclined to study, AT school while you wait instead of "saying" you will study when you go home, and end up at a bar 3 o-clock in the morning screaming "YEAAAAAAA" to hotgirls like lil' john in Ushers song.

 

[Stabe]

I'm in the same situation as you, Vitae, congrats by the way. It's a tough choice, but I'm leaning towards San Antonio right now, mostly because of the location. Interviewers from all three schools said, "No matter where you go in Texas, you're going to get a good education." Good to be in Texas, eh?
The lab work is also an issue I've thought about. I remember a student guide at Baylor telling me that in the fourth year(?), the students could send out lab work because "it's important for you to know how to work in cooperation with a dental lab". Irregardless, the general impression I have gotten is that you're going to do A LOT more lab work at Baylor. Like you said, I think that would be frustrating if you need to be spending your time otherwise. Good luck, let me know what you decide and if you have any other suggestions... I could use 'em!

 

[Babi3Ducki3]

I'm also in the same boat. I like SA more while I was there. I felt more comfortable there than Baylor. I also don't like that you have to do all the lab work at Baylor. However, they are the only one to give me a scholarship. So I don't know what to do. Let me know what you guys decide.

 

[BeachLuvr]

0.2 cents:

The medical environment of the TMC does not "overshadow" the dental program. To be honest, you are in the same classroom or two for 95% of the day except for the 5% when you step out for some lunch. So there's not just copious amounts of TMC interaction...with that said, I enjoy all the many resturaunts, libraries, research opportunities and whatnot that the nearby facilities have to offer. Choose where you feel you have the best "fit." And honestly, you probably already have an inkling as to where that is...you just want to give each equal consideration. As you've heard time and time again, all three schools will give you a fine education. Hope that helps!

Beach

UT-Houston c/o 2009

 

[UNLV OMS GUNNABE]

Waxing a crown of any tooth = 10 minutes.

Investing = 1 minute with like hours to study while you wait for it to dry.

Burn out = 1 minute- then more hours to study while it goes through its phases.

Casting = 2 minutes - with more study time while it cools down.

Breakout/Polish= .5-1 Hour.


Youre looking at 1-2 hours MAX working time, many hours waiting time.

You will spend a lot more time than this doing your own lab work. It is very time consuming. 10 minutes to wax up a crown? Yeah right, maybe if you're a lab tech.