NYU v state school

[smithj143]

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So I've been accepted to both NYU and my state school and I'm in a bit of a predicament that I'm sure many of you have been in before. My state school is literally in the middle of nowhere. I went to undergrad in a fairly rural area also. While I'm very happy to get into my state school, I can't help but wish for a more exciting location. I figure how often do you get a chance to live in manhattan. I can't decide if the extra cost is worth living in NYC...what do you think?

 

[dent2be4]

So I've been accepted to both NYU and my state school and I'm in a bit of a predicament that I'm sure many of you have been in before. My state school is literally in the middle of nowhere. I went to undergrad in a fairly rural area also. While I'm very happy to get into my state school, I can't help but wish for a more exciting location. I figure how often do you get a chance to live in manhattan. I can't decide if the extra cost is worth living in NYC...what do you think?

Your options:

1) Go to your state school. Graduate with $200k less debt. Move to an exciting location to practice and live afterwards, where you have the time and money to enjoy for the rest of your life.

2) Go to NYU. Live somewhere "exciting" where you do not have the time, nor money to enjoy. Live with much greater debt for far longer because you went to school in an awesome place that you were studying too hard to enjoy, and were too poor of a student to enjoy.


The choice seems pretty clear to me.

 

[shamrock2006]

Go where you think you will be happiest and where you feel you will fit in best academically. Everyone always bad mouths NYU b/c of tuition, class size, etc. but you can go to NYU w/o accumulating tons and tons of debt if you budget yourself and live within your means. Yes, your state school will be less expensive..and if that's something that's important to you..the overall cost..then by all means go to your state school. You are going to have debt anywhere you go...and obviously some places more than others, but in my opinion that is not as important as getting a good education, which NYU does offer. You just have to decide which factors are most important to you in choosing a school....either way you will get a good education, congrats and best of luck!!

 

[dent2be4]

Go where you think you will be happiest and where you feel you will fit in best academically. Everyone always bad mouths NYU b/c of tuition, class size, etc. but you can go to NYU w/o accumulating tons and tons of debt if you budget yourself and live within your means. Yes, your state school will be less expensive..and if that's something that's important to you..the overall cost..then by all means go to your state school. You are going to have debt anywhere you go...and obviously some places more than others, but in my opinion that is not as important as getting a good education, which NYU does offer. You just have to decide which factors are most important to you in choosing a school....either way you will get a good education, congrats and best of luck!!

I wasn't badmouthing NYU. I think it's a great school. I am badmouthing being in ridiculous amounts of debt unnecessarily.

 

[shamrock2006]

I wasn't badmouthing NYU. I think it's a great school. I am badmouthing being in ridiculous amounts of debt unnecessarily.

No i understand..i wasn't assuming you were bad-mouthing NYU. I agree with you that is expensive...I'm just someone who likes to put education first..finances second...i know that's not for everyone though..sorry for the confusion.....sweet 250 posts, I gotta get off this thing

 

[dent2be4]

No i understand..i wasn't assuming you were bad-mouthing NYU. I agree with you that is expensive...I'm just someone who likes to put education first..finances second...i know that's not for everyone though..sorry for the confusion

You're right also. That is the tricky thing about deciding on a school. I think both quality of education and finances need to be in order. Sometimes finding a balance of those two factors is the tricky part.

The cost of living in NYC at NYU are just so out of wack, that the "finances section" is not balanced. NYU does not offer anything special from another school, in my opinion, to merit an extra $200k in debt. Especially if the reason is to "live somewhere more exciting."

I say, find a school that has a quality of education you're ok with and a school that has a financial expense you're ok with. All this talk about different schools and specializing is silly. Work hard in your DDS and you will be able to specialize. Don't go into huge amounts of debt, and you will have the option of specializing when you graduate, instead of being forced into general practice because you have so much debt.

 

[smithj143]

Your options:

1) Go to your state school. Graduate with $200k less debt. Move to an exciting location to practice and live afterwards, where you have the time and money to enjoy for the rest of your life.

2) Go to NYU. Live somewhere "exciting" where you do not have the time, nor money to enjoy. Live with much greater debt for far longer because you went to school in an awesome place that you were studying too hard to enjoy, and were too poor of a student to enjoy.


The choice seems pretty clear to me.

I'm very aware of the difference in tuition cost. The difference upon graduation would be closer to 100,000 though. However my parents have set up funds for school for my sisters and I and since I chose to go to a public school and got a tuition waiver the last year I have about 90000 left to spend on dental school. I don't want to set up a practice and live in New York for the rest of my life, but I think it would be a wonderful experience to briefly live there. I'm just really ready for a change of location and was wondering how much thats worth.

 

[DDSY]

I'll highlight some of the positives of going to NYU:

1. Facilities: The best I've seen so far.
2. The city: nuff said
3. Class size (a negative for some): NYU has the largest class in the nation. There are about 250 incoming first year students and 100 international advanced placements students. If you plan on practicing in/close to NYC or internationally, you can't beat the friends and connections (referrals, etc) you'll have from existing NYU alums and classmates.
4. Patient pool: The most diverse patient pool I've ever seen. NYU not only has patients from NYC but also from Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens etc, each of which is equivalent to any full-size city in the country. Patient range from the poorest to the very rich and are of various races/ethnicities.
5. Faculty: NYU attracts some of the best minds.
6. Research: NYU ranks near the top in research, which is why it has some of the best faculty.
7. Household name: Ask the general pop if they've ever heard of NYU and if they think NYU is a good school and you'll generally receive positive reviews.

Negative:
1. Cost. As mentioned in other posts, you can budget and save tons of $$$. Most of the cost of NYU comes from living expense and it is definitely possible to find cheap housing, etc.

That said, I don't know what your preference is. It varies from person to person. Try to think of the positives and negatives of each school and choose the one you ultimately like.
Debt is definitely a consideration and NYU is not cheap, but it shouldn't be the only consideration. Remember, too, that you are young and possibly single (after you're married, there are some restrictions, heh) only once. You can also live pretty comfortably even after the debt you incurred.

 

[shamrock2006]

I think I'd like to know the state school the OP is referring to...I'm not saying its going to make some huge difference or anything as far as its comparision to NYU. I Think it'd just make it easier. I just think NYU does have some special aspects that make it different...it is very, VERY diverse, it has a good reputation for its education in the aesthetic aspects of dentistry, (it has its own aesthetic institute attached to the school) awesome research opportunites, great clinical experience (all things mentioned above). Also, if i remember correctly from the tour, the man who invented veneers/was the biggest player in their creation..teaches at NYU. So i do think it has some advantages. Yes the cost of living sucks i will no fight anyone on that, i'm just biased b/c i think its a once in a lifetime chance..and i really loved the school when i saw it. But, as most people will say, in the end wherever you go..you will have your DDS/DMD...it's all what you make of it. IMO, everyone who has an acceptance to at least one school should be feel priveleged...yes we all earned it, but there are also many deserving folks out there who will not be part of the class of 2011 (or 2010 if you're going to UoP)

 

[OMFSwannabe]

I would not go to NYU

As a recent grad, I strongly believe that you could get a much better education at another dental school. The 300K cost of the school is not worth it.
As for the patient pool, give me a break. We each had to graduate with 5 crowns and endo's. Thats ridiculous. Check some of the other dental schools were each student has to do 12+ crowns, and a host of other procedures to graduate..

go to your state school man. It will be the best decision you will ever make

 

[DDSY]

Well, that is your opinion. I personally know some NYU dental students who believe they've received a pretty good education from NYU.

It seems that you've done pretty well too, taking in account that you are considering a OMFS specialty, also disregarding the 6 years of opportunity cost you'll have attending a OMFS program in addition to paying for medical school.

I would not go to NYU

As a recent grad, I strongly believe that you could get a much better education at another dental school. The 300K cost of the school is not worth it.
As for the patient pool, give me a break. We each had to graduate with 5 crowns and endo's. Thats ridiculous. Check some of the other dental schools were each student has to do 12+ crowns, and a host of other procedures to graduate..

go to your state school man. It will be the best decision you will ever make

 

[Blitzdt]

I would not go to NYU

As a recent grad, I strongly believe that you could get a much better education at another dental school. The 300K cost of the school is not worth it.
As for the patient pool, give me a break. We each had to graduate with 5 crowns and endo's. Thats ridiculous. Check some of the other dental schools were each student has to do 12+ crowns, and a host of other procedures to graduate..

go to your state school man. It will be the best decision you will ever make

I was impressed with NYU, but not many people i talked to are happy about going there.....strange😕

 

[Blitzdt]

I'll highlight some of the positives of going to NYU:

1. Facilities: The best I've seen so far.
2. The city: nuff said
3. Class size (a negative for some): NYU has the largest class in the nation. There are about 250 incoming first year students and 100 international advanced placements students. If you plan on practicing in/close to NYC or internationally, you can't beat the friends and connections (referrals, etc) you'll have from existing NYU alums and classmates.
4. Patient pool: The most diverse patient pool I've ever seen. NYU not only has patients from NYC but also from Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens etc, each of which is equivalent to any full-size city in the country. Patient range from the poorest to the very rich and are of various races/ethnicities.
5. Faculty: NYU attracts some of the best minds.
6. Research: NYU ranks near the top in research, which is why it has some of the best faculty.
7. Household name: Ask the general pop if they've ever heard of NYU and if they think NYU is a good school and you'll generally receive positive reviews.

Negative:
1. Cost. As mentioned in other posts, you can budget and save tons of $$$. Most of the cost of NYU comes from living expense and it is definitely possible to find cheap housing, etc.

That said, I don't know what your preference is. It varies from person to person. Try to think of the positives and negatives of each school and choose the one you ultimately like.
Debt is definitely a consideration and NYU is not cheap, but it shouldn't be the only consideration. Remember, too, that you are young and possibly single (after you're married, there are some restrictions, heh) only once. You can also live pretty comfortably even after the debt you incurred.

i agree with every single thing you said😀