NOVA and UF

[2thDoctor]

---

Members do not see this ad.

For all those dental students out there could you please tell me the pros and cons to NOVA and UF?? I currently go to UF and was verrrry set on going there, but now I am unsure and some people say that NOVA is a lot better b/c of their newer facilities and labs. What do you guys think??

 

[jackbauer!]

For all those dental students out there could you please tell me the pros and cons to NOVA and UF?? I currently go to UF and was verrrry set on going there, but now I am unsure and some people say that NOVA is a lot better b/c of their newer facilities and labs. What do you guys think??

why don't you wait to see IF you get in, then get back to us..

jb!🙂

 

[2thDoctor]

Well I hope I have a pretty good chance of getting in with my GPA and DAT. I just wanted to know if anyone has any personal experience there. I volunteered in the operative at UF and a lot of people liked it and a few really wish they had chosen a different school. From people that go to NOVA all I hear are good things.

 

[mg777]

No one has gone to both UF and Nova. Well, we lost a student that had been expelled and he's at nova now, that may be the best person to ask for a true comparison. You wont really have to worry about making the decision till you get into both, and by that point you'd have interviewed at both schools and had a feel for both of them.

 

[SuperC]

At the end of the day think $$$ UF is SO much cheaper than NOVA truthfully it is a no brainer. The other perks such as....
1. Football
2. Basketball
3. Better Board scores
4. cost of living is cheaper
5. class rooms are not standing room only (see post in pre-dent)
6. Reputation
7. UF is better

I personally have not met one student who got accepted to both and chose NOVA over UF.
-C

 

[Mackchops]

If I had gotten into UF I probably would have gone there over my other options simply because of cost. And, at this point I'm quite certain I would be very unhappy. It comes down to what you consider the most important factor -- you'll get a solid clinical education at both places, but are factors such as getting out of Gainesville and avoiding the elitism of UF worth paying twice the price at Nova? If so, pack your things and head south.

 

[JRogoff]

I personally have not met one student who got accepted to both and chose NOVA over UF.
-C

You just did.

 

[Sk8aBull]

I personally have not met one student who got accepted to both and chose NOVA over UF.
-C

Like JRogoff, I also chose NSU over UF.

There are many of them in our class, actually.

 

[mike3kgt]

No one has gone to both UF and Nova. Well, we lost a student that had been expelled and he's at nova now, that may be the best person to ask for a true comparison. You wont really have to worry about making the decision till you get into both, and by that point you'd have interviewed at both schools and had a feel for both of them.

Mg777,

Make sure you do you research before making a post such as this. In my class (CDM2007) we had a girl transfer after the first year to UF. She talked very highly of Nova while she was up there and people tended to not like that so your administrators may be repressing that. When I saw her a year or so ago, she stated to me that the science and pre-clinical education were more thorough at Nova. She did mention, however, that her clinical education was going well, but she did not have a comparison for clinical education because she did not experience Nova's clinic. We were in a group talking with her and her clinical experience at the time was more in depth at the time (she had done a lot more at the time)

As for the topic of which school is better, it does not matter. UF = cheaper and is the reason that many people choose UF over Nova. That's the ONLY significant difference between the two schools (well... if you're REALLY into sports, then that may be a factor as well!)

-Mike

 

[mike3kgt]

At the end of the day think $$$ UF is SO much cheaper than NOVA truthfully it is a no brainer. The other perks such as....
1. Football
2. Basketball
3. Better Board scores
4. cost of living is cheaper
5. class rooms are not standing room only (see post in pre-dent)
6. Reputation
7. UF is better

I personally have not met one student who got accepted to both and chose NOVA over UF.
-C

Well, I really should post this in the Nova hate thread in the pre-dental forum, but to sum it up:

1. I graduated on time (90% done with clinical requirements by Jan of senior year)
2. I passed the FL Boards (in March), WREB, got a 91 on NBDE I, and a 88 on NBDE II.
3. I now am extremely comfortable in private practice and am thankful for my education at Nova.

Now, I certainly do not wish to turn into a UF-Nova back-and-forth fighting thread but look at the following when you or anybody blatantly bash Nova and believe what you are spoon fed from pre-dents or admission officers. In response to the former numerical list:

1. Yep, I agree. <---- even though I am a Hurricane 😛!
2. Yep, I agree.

3. Nova had 39/40 (97.5%) pass rate 2007 March FL Boards and 18/18 (100%) pass rate 2007 June FL Boards. 38/40 (95%) CDM 2007 passed the WREB exam in March (both failed because of endo perforations). CDM2006 pass rates for FL Boards over the entire year was 100%.

- I cannot attest to the current status/ranking of Nova's NBDE Part I scores but I do believe everyone in this year's class passed (IMO the most important NBDE I statistic and not the average score). Now for UF's report of their FL Board scores? Yes, last year they did get 100% pass rate. Now for a little clarification... around 25 students (of ~88) took the March 2007 Board. The other 60 some students did not pass UF's rigorous mock board and were not eligible to sit for the March board and had to wait until the June board. What impact does this have?? Turns out that (and this was stated by students from previous UF clases) UF only allows students who are "prepared" to take the March boards which turns out to be the most talented of the class (to pass the mock board!). This allows a greater chance of getting high pass rates on the FL Board because, as graduation is in May, when students take the June boards, they are no longer UF students. When UF reports their FL Board pass rate is 100%, they can claim that 100% of UF students pass the FL Board. Just a thought.

4. Agree 100%. When it costs $1300 a month for an apartment in Davie, the same thing will cost you $500-600 in Gainesville!

5. Unfortunately I tried to fight a class size increase at all costs. Nova is really screwing this one up, but this is a topic for another thread.

6. UF has more of a reputation because it's been around for 35 years. Nova has been around for 10. Many of the political people of the state (dentally speaking) also have affiliations with UF, so this must be taken with a grain of salt.

7. Haha, sometimes when I was dealing with the politics at Nova I would think this. Ah, every dental school has politics so don't even try to compare this one.

Hope this helps. REMEMBER, I DO NOT WANT A NOVA-UF BASHING THREAD. I wrote this just because it makes more sense to get info from somebody who has been through all four years (and not a pre-dent or 2nd year dental student). I also was student government president at Nova and had interactions with MANY UF students at board prep courses.

Both schools are great in their own way. I would be extremely happy if my son/daughter/niece/nephew were to go to dental school and choose either school. Haha, if it were my son/daughter, I'd probably be happier to send them to UF because it's less $$$$$ 😉.

-Mike

P.S. Sk8aBull, we just may have to enlist you as the official butt-kicking SDN D2. Just tell them the truth, "I wear purple gloves and I mean business!!" 🙂

 

[mg777]

Mg777,

Make sure you do you research before making a post such as this. In my class (CDM2007) we had a girl transfer after the first year to UF.

Im talking about somebody else. I'm not getting anywhere close to specifying who, but what I said originally is accurate and from the words of faculty. It's fact. Dont know if the person ever completed the program there or not. Not a reflection on nova, I would've gone to nova most likely if I lived in south florida. I would consider Nova for grad , if these damn college kids continue to drive me up a tree.

 

[SuperC]

At the end of the day I guess you have to choose the school that is right for you. As accredited schools both will prepare you well for your career. With this in mind it seems kinda crazy to choose NOVA over UF simply from a financial point of view, but with that being said, I guess you cannot put a price on happiness.

The biggest "myth" that I hear about UF is the students here are very competitive, I personally have not dealt with this, and in NO WAY is it an issue here (at least for my class).

As you can tell I love UF and I chose UF because of the things that I stated before. UF was a better choice for me but I guess that does not apply to everyone.

As for classes I think that UF teaches subjects with depth. They prepare you for the boards, but they also provide and test on material NOT covered by the boards providing breadth and some level of comprehensiveness to your education. I like to think that this is a huge pro. There is more to life than board material.

Now, I may be speaking out of school, but I would think that the trade off of NOVA's system would be with taking the boards so soon, they would HAVE to teach for the boards. Am I right on this? Let me know.

-C