NYU vs Western U

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Frankenstein777 said:
Accepted to both programs but I feel conflicted with on where to go... anyone have an opinion??
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NYU since it's a more established school and has a good history.Western is only graduated a handful of dentists since it's a new school
 
hye340 said:
NYU since it's a more established school and has a good history.Western is only graduated a handful of dentists since it's a new school
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I love NYU for its tradition, clinical training and the network it provides, but I love the affordability of living around Western, the weather and I really enjoyed the students and faculty at the interview. Just two completely different places that each have a lot to offer
 
I think tuition is slightly less at Western like 68k vs 70-72k per year at NYU. But the cost of rent/living at Western is much less
 
Frankenstein777 said:
Accepted to both programs but I feel conflicted with on where to go... anyone have an opinion??
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I was in the same exact situation as you last cycle I also got into unlv,choose NYU because my uncle is a dentist in LA and he had never heard of WesternU lol,and NYU was closer to home and family.
 
Frankenstein777 said:
I think tuition is slightly less at Western like 68k vs 70-72k per year at NYU. But the cost of rent/living at Western is much less
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NYU D1: $121K
Western D1: $110K

You'll save $44K before interest going to Western over NYU. Is NYU's clinical training, tradition, and network worth that to you? It may well be, but it's entirely your call.
 
Frankenstein777 said:
Accepted to both programs but I feel conflicted with on where to go... anyone have an opinion??
Click to expand...
As a NYU alumni who just graduated last year I have to say I would encourage you to go to NYU it's a really good school and it being a little bit more expensive is totally worth it in the long run.
 
4 years of living costs besides tuition at NYU could rack up your expenses without you even knowing it... sure NYU is much more established but WesternU at least isn't a "no-name" school. Thus I would suggest WesternU for you, but as others have said, it's your call.
 
Thanks for all your input! I really appreciate it. I'll be making my decision soon!
 
NYU because it is better and in a better and more beautiful place ( at least that is my opinion)
 
WesternU.
Cali > NY weather any day.
Cost difference is a big factor.
WesternU has been fairly established.... it has been open for 8 years already... They've graduated at least 3 classes so far so...
I've heard some bad things about NYU, especially being a 360 student class, I would imagine it's quite difficult to fulfill clinical requirements in time to graduate. I haven't really heard any bad things about WesternU other than it being new. Personally, I would choose WesternU simply because the weather and cost.
 
Not sure if this is hearsay or not, but I've heard NYU boots their bottom 10% and makes people reapply every year. Is that true?
 
Oh! I had the same dilemma too.

I was conflicted between WesternU and NYU as well. Let me tell you, I'm 500% glad I'm here in California and not freezing my butt off and in debt in New York City. I was (and still am) in love with the glamorous big apple, Halal guys, diverse and urban New York City setting; but in the end, NYU was not a realistic choice for me.
  • The cost of living was way too high. I looked into several options around the city.. $2000+/month for a tiny, janky closet! I'm living comfortably at $999 per month in my nice, spacious bedroom with my own bathroom here at the Daumier, LOL. Hell, you could go to the Helix for $850/month or outside of Pomona for even less than that.

  • NYU is definitely more expensive. The best dental school in my opinion, is the cheaper one. Doesn't matter where you get your degree, what matter to me is the quality of my training and how prepared I am for clinical practice. Western does not have specialty programs, so there's no problems with residents taking patients.

  • Can't speak on behalf of NYU's clinical experience, but Western really gets us going within the first 2 weeks of school. 2nd week, we already have a drill in our hands. First semester, we're already in clinic working on each other for oral cancer screenings and impressions. Second semester, we're here doing perio probing and learning scaling. Done Class I, II, III, V restorations, root canal access, waxed up, we've done a full crown preparation, other stuff I can't remember off the top of my head, etc... they're really preparing us here. I couldn't be happier with my clinical education.

  • Board pass rate was 100% last year. Western may be new, but it's evolving rapidly.

  • Student to faculty ratio is pretty nice. There's definitely at least 1 faculty member per 7 students here.
If you have any questions, feel free to PM me!
 
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debtist said:
Not sure if this is hearsay or not, but I've heard NYU boots their bottom 10% and makes people reapply every year. Is that true?
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I don't know if that is true or not, but that sounds absolutely absurd to me.

OP, I would go NYU. 40k in the long run won't be much. Some periodontists can make that in 2-3 cases 😛
 
I'll chime in here for WesternU as well. We have a very strong clinical program here and like debtist said above we had 100% pass rate on boards last year as well as a high WREB pass rate here.

Some other positive points:
-You can do ortho here in clinic starting as a 3rd year (other schools especially with an ortho specialty program won't give you ortho patients)
-Cost of living is cheaper and you're close to LA and Orange County (aka Disneyland, I go to the beach monthly, I pay $880 a month to live in a nice apartment off campus but you can find cheaper for sure)
-We start sim lab and preparations in the first month of school (I've had a few friends from other schools surprised that I've already touched a handpiece in December, by then I could already do 2 different cavity preparations and restorations and have done root canal access)
-Rotations start in second part of first year so you get good exposure to our clinic and external sites
-We started learning how to use CADCAM in our first semester of school
-Our faculty is diverse including many resident specialists (they come from Dugoni, USC, Harvard, Northwestern, the list goes on)
-Convenience for living compared to NYU. I know that if you live in Stuyesant near the NYU dental campus, there's one grocery store you can go to but it's overpriced. The people I know at NYU say Google Shopping Express is their best friend since trying to get groceries can be a bit of a journey (going to Costco is a bit of a trek and my friends who have tried had to tried to carry all of it on the subway). If you have a car at WesternU, then you have 2 Costcos within 12 minutes of school as well as Vons, Stater Bros, Super King, and other places you can stop by on the way home from school.*


One point I've seen in the thread is picking the school based on reputation and whether it is more established. I'd say this is only a factor if the school hasn't graduated a class yet OR if their graduated classes have had a bad reputation in the work force. As for WesternU, I've only heard from a few dentists in southern California and northern California but they say that WesternU grads are good and that our school has a good clinical reputation.

And as for faculty to student ratio, debtist is right our class size makes it so that we always can get the help we need. Our school thrives on feedback, the way our sim sessions are set up is that we get feedback and checks from faculty before moving to the next step. A current NYU student can correct me here but I have a a few friends at NYU who say that due to the class size, you really need to be proactive if you want feedback or help from a faculty. If you're a quiet person or shy, the sheer number of students will make it hard to know if you're on the right track when you are in lab. That was usually the complaint I heard when I interviewed there that they wish they had more available faculty to help students.

If you have more questions feel free to PM me or debtist!

Edit: Added a new point to WesternU marked with an *
 
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Frankenstein777 said:
Accepted to both programs but I feel conflicted with on where to go... anyone have an opinion??
Click to expand...
Im doing my GPR residency in California where there are students from USC and western.I believe that me and my friend from NYU are more proficient and our weekly productions are much higher then the other residents because of NYU.
 
Angleblue said:
As a NYU alumni who just graduated last year I have to say I would encourage you to go to NYU it's a really good school and it being a little bit more expensive is totally worth it in the long run.
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Any worries about paying off the debt?
 
Good friend just graduated from Western and she absolutely loved it. Many people from her class went on to specialize so I don't think the prestige is really that big of a deal. Most importantly (to me at least), everyone there seems very happy and were so friendly and helpful; the culture seemed to be very supportive in general. They're getting the patients and the clinical they need, and the small ratio of prof to student helps.
I was honestly more impressed with Western when I visited there than many of the more prestigious schools, so I wouldn't worry about the name. I think in a few more graduating classes people will start realizing what great dentists the school is producing.
 
Western and I wouldn't even look back. NYU is a solid school but at the price your paying at least Western gives you access to cutting edge technology and a class size that isn't huge. Just my opinion.
 
Alpha Centauri said:
I don't know if that is true or not, but that sounds absolutely absurd to me.

OP, I would go NYU. 40k in the long run won't be much. Some periodontists can make that in 2-3 cases 😛
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But then you'd have to pay off them perio loans too.
 
The new private schools are diploma mills for dentists, and to be honest, when you get out you will probably be judged by other dentists for going to these lesser known schools. If you don't mind that, and you don't mind the fact that, imo, both of these schools are poor investments, then you should go to either one.
 
comatose said:
The new private schools are diploma mills for dentists, and to be honest, when you get out you will probably be judged by other dentists for going to these lesser known schools. If you don't mind that, and you don't mind the fact that, imo, both of these schools are poor investments, then you should go to either one.
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If dentistry is the career that you want to go into, neither is a poor investment. Not everyone gets into a state school with cheaper tuition, most privates will cost roughly the same tuition wise disregarding cost of living. The only way if it is a poor investment is if the school cannot properly prepare you for boards and for licensure which based off both schools is not the case.
 
Hi Im Dent said:
If dentistry is the career that you want to go into, neither is a poor investment. Not everyone gets into a state school with cheaper tuition, most privates will cost roughly the same tuition wise disregarding cost of living. The only way if it is a poor investment is if the school cannot properly prepare you for boards and for licensure which based off both schools is not the case.
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First off, you won't know for sure if dentistry is what you want to do unless you are actually doing it. So to pay 550 to 600k in loans to go to school for a career that pays an average salary of 150k is not a very smart financial decision. This is a huge gamble imo because if you find out that you don't like dentistry, then you are totally screwed because you still owe all that money. It's not like med or law school where there are other options on the table if you don't like your job. Now if dental school was say 200k or less, then it makes more sense. I don't understand how predental students these days think it's just okay to go to any school no matter the cost without fully understanding the consequences of getting themselves into that much debt. It's just really stupid and makes me question the caliber of students being accepted today. Guys, do your homework!!! paying 6k per month just in student loans will make you hate life.
 
Hi Im Dent said:
If dentistry is the career that you want to go into, neither is a poor investment. Not everyone gets into a state school with cheaper tuition, most privates will cost roughly the same tuition wise disregarding cost of living. The only way if it is a poor investment is if the school cannot properly prepare you for boards and for licensure which based off both schools is not the case.
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You said investments not loans this time :laugh:
 
tyjacobs said:
I don't go to NYU but I know you will come out of NYU being a very very very very good clinician. You get a top notch clinical education there despite the class being so large.[/QUOTE
As a NYU grad doing GPR residency I definetly believe this
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comatose said:
First off, you won't know for sure if dentistry is what you want to do unless you are actually doing it. So to pay 550 to 600k in loans to go to school for a career that pays an average salary of 150k is not a very smart financial decision. This is a huge gamble imo because if you find out that you don't like dentistry, then you are totally screwed because you still owe all that money. It's not like med or law school where there are other options on the table if you don't like your job. Now if dental school was say 200k or less, then it makes more sense. I don't understand how predental students these days think it's just okay to go to any school no matter the cost without fully understanding the consequences of getting themselves into that much debt. It's just really stupid and makes me question the caliber of students being accepted today. Guys, do your homework!!! paying 6k per month just in student loans will make you hate life.
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While it's a huge amount of debt, the salary you make with your degree can vary to a degree. In addition I think a lot of people realize they have to have some type of post grad degree because being real most bachelors degrees these days aren't worth the paper they are printed on.

In my major from undergrad, a girl is making 29k a year at her job. There are oral surgeons who make that in a week. It's a joke.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile
 
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Alpha Centauri said:
If you can't see the loans as an investment in your future then leave the profession
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I agree that you have to look at loans as an investment, but at the time, an investment that is too large and you dont see it breakeven any time soon, it's a bad investment.
 
Hi Im Dent said:
I'll chime in here for WesternU as well. We have a very strong clinical program here and like debtist said above we had 100% pass rate on boards last year as well as a high WREB pass rate here.

Some other positive points:
-You can do ortho here in clinic starting as a 3rd year (other schools especially with an ortho specialty program won't give you ortho patients)
-Cost of living is cheaper and you're close to LA and Orange County (aka Disneyland, I go to the beach monthly, I pay $880 a month to live in a nice apartment off campus but you can find cheaper for sure)
-We start sim lab and preparations in the first month of school (I've had a few friends from other schools surprised that I've already touched a handpiece in December, by then I could already do 2 different cavity preparations and restorations and have done root canal access)
-Rotations start in second part of first year so you get good exposure to our clinic and external sites
-We started learning how to use CADCAM in our first semester of school
-Our faculty is diverse including many resident specialists (they come from Dugoni, USC, Harvard, Northwestern, the list goes on)
-Convenience for living compared to NYU. I know that if you live in Stuyesant near the NYU dental campus, there's one grocery store you can go to but it's overpriced. The people I know at NYU say Google Shopping Express is their best friend since trying to get groceries can be a bit of a journey (going to Costco is a bit of a trek and my friends who have tried had to tried to carry all of it on the subway). If you have a car at WesternU, then you have 2 Costcos within 12 minutes of school as well as Vons, Stater Bros, Super King, and other places you can stop by on the way home from school.*


One point I've seen in the thread is picking the school based on reputation and whether it is more established. I'd say this is only a factor if the school hasn't graduated a class yet OR if their graduated classes have had a bad reputation in the work force. As for WesternU, I've only heard from a few dentists in southern California and northern California but they say that WesternU grads are good and that our school has a good clinical reputation.

And as for faculty to student ratio, debtist is right our class size makes it so that we always can get the help we need. Our school thrives on feedback, the way our sim sessions are set up is that we get feedback and checks from faculty before moving to the next step. A current NYU student can correct me here but I have a a few friends at NYU who say that due to the class size, you really need to be proactive if you want feedback or help from a faculty. If you're a quiet person or shy, the sheer number of students will make it hard to know if you're on the right track when you are in lab. That was usually the complaint I heard when I interviewed there that they wish they had more available faculty to help students.

If you have more questions feel free to PM me or debtist!

Edit: Added a new point to WesternU marked with an *
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Oh hey, that's me. Tbh OP, all you have to do to get help from a faculty is walk up and ask them; most are more than happy to assist. Class size is far less of an issue that I originally anticipated. Based from my own personal observations, the concerns (cost aside) and pros have been somewhat exaggerated. I'm pretty sure every school gets feedback and checks from faculty before moving on to the next step...not doing so...would be..concerning....In that regard, you'll have to interact with faculty no matter how quiet or socially anxious you are or else you'll never get checked off and Dr. Bucklan will grill you via email multiple times. There are even faculty in bench lab on weekends should you be concerned or require feedback when you practice. I feel that you'll get a similar clinical/training experience no matter where you go. One side note: I did notice that we emphasize quantity and proceed at a fast pace regarding # of procedures we do in bench lab when I was comparing our daily syllabus with a friend's at UCSF. Regarding the actual quality of acceptable procedures that get checked off-that honestly depends on the faculty inspecting your work-which as I understand, is the same in most dental schools.

debtist said:
Not sure if this is hearsay or not, but I've heard NYU boots their bottom 10% and makes people reapply every year. Is that true?
Click to expand...
The 10% getting booted is one of those exaggerated rumors; board pass rate was either 98 or 100%(I forget, one or the other-on this note, almost every school's board pass rate is 98%+ it's honestly a meaningless statistic) in the most recent statistics (according to faculty). Also other rumors: no you won't have trouble finding seats in bench lab to practice, unless you're trying to practice during another class's session time. The bench lab is almost always almost empty on weekends if you want to practice. And as mentioned before, there are faculty in bench lab on weekends too. Regarding getting the lecture professors to know you-if you show up to lecture, you'll be one of 40 that actually attend (unless attendance is mandatory-then numbers may range from 80 to 350). Just ask some questions after and you'll probably be memorable.

TL;DR: Eh, base your choice on finances/where you want to be at this stage in your life. You'll get decent training almost anywhere.

Super Major Important Edit: Biggest difference besides cost and location: you don't need to wear business casual every day at NYU; just avoid jeans while in bench lab class.
 
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I still need that McCree skin doe
 
Frankenstein777 said:
Going to attend Western U!! Thank you very much for your input everyone!
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Very smart decision, I live in NYC and the costs of living are way too much. I think I would go to WesternU based on the weather alone, some days it gets really cold over here in the winter.
 
Anic1993 said:
Very smart decision, I live in NYC and the costs of living are way too much. I think I would go to WesternU based on the weather alone, some days it gets really cold over here in the winter.
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I live in CT so I am looking forward to experiencing a different climate. Plus I have a 2 year old son who will enjoy SoCal much more than NYC. I also really liked all the faculty and students I met at my Western interview. It seems like a good environment to be in.
 
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