Opinions of UNC dental

[Carolina06]

I am just beginning my road to dental school acceptance.

I am a native North Carolinian, and Carolina dental is my number one choice for a variety of reasons: in-state tuition, proximity to family, familiarity with campus (went to UNC undergrad). I am obviously going to apply to several other schools, but I am curious of its reputation to "outsiders."

Thanks for the help.

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[Count Orlok]

I am just beginning my road to dental school acceptance.

I am a native North Carolinian, and Carolina dental is my number one choice for a variety of reasons: in-state tuition, proximity to family, familiarity with campus (went to UNC undergrad). I am obviously going to apply to several other schools, but I am curious of its reputation to "outsiders."

Thanks for the help.

From everything I have gathered (and take it as you will), I feel that UNC School of Dentistry is an excellent program. It is a heavily funded research and academic school that also has excellent clinical experience. So it is kind of like having the best of both worlds for a very well rounded education. If you are in-state I don't think you can find a better deal than UNC due to the low tuition (comparatively) and the solid education that will afford you many options as a graduate.

 

[sarah_bellum]

UNC see was my number one choice because of the low in-state tuition, the town of Chapel Hill, and the balance of clinical and research opportunity.

 

[Carolina06]

Thanks for the info!

 

[will9631]

unc is an excellent school and was my number one choice both years I applied. I warn you though, they can be very difficult to get into (like many state schools). They're one of the top schools in the country in a number of respects, and they rejected me with DAT's of 21,22,23,24,25 (oc, gc, bio, pat, CR) and a 3.35 GPA, even though they said that they consider CR to be the most important DAT score. Make sure you take a trip up there to have a conversation with the dean to get his thoughts on your application. If you do really well you can get in and I wish you the best of luck, just make sure you apply to plenty of other schools as well.

good luck!

 

[jonxjizza]

There is no doubt that it is tough to get admitted to UNC. I am an in-state guy, and I was a little perturbed when I received my UNC rejection letter after being accepted at 5 other schools. An acceptance at UNC would have made my dental school decision easy.

One note, I feel that I generally interview well – but nothing seemed to be clicking for me the day I interviewed at UNC. I have heard that the interview counts for about 40% of your rating. Some times you feel it, sometimes you don’t. And sometimes you get lucky and get interviews with people that compliment you well, and sometimes you don’t. That’s the name of the game I’m afraid. Best of luck to you.

 

[eventualOMFS]

Can anybody comment on how hard it is to get admitted to UNC out-of-state? I know it varies from school to school. For what it's worth, I'm from Vermont (no state school).

 

[jamminjimmy21]

To answer your question about its rep with "outsiders" I'd say from my experience living in different areas of the east coast (in the DC area now), UNC overall has a pretty good reputation. When I talk to locals they recognize the program name (a lot of people at the NIH for instance are or were at one time affiliated with UNC). Even my dentist here has really harped about what a great program she think it is. It all really depends where in the country you want to practice, teach, or do research. But the point has been made before that your patients probably won't care where you went to school as long as you are a great clinician and not a complete a-hole. Just from the experience going to a family dentist trained at UNC for most of my life, I can say that I think that Carolina does put out some great clinicians and thats its a great school, but your attitude and personality will be what ultimately builds you a good reputation in practice.

 

[jamminjimmy21]

Can anybody comment on how hard it is to get admitted to UNC out-of-state? I know it varies from school to school. For what it's worth, I'm from Vermont (no state school).

http://www.dent.unc.edu/academic/programs/dds/profiles/

This is a link to the class profiles for the last several years. They don't break down the applicants by out of state vs. instate but they do give the number of out of state students accepted as well as which states are represented along with a bunch of other stats.

 

[blankguy]

Aren't they in process of getting new buildings and expanding enrollment within the next year or so?

 

[DGDDS]

I think they are. I'm not sure of the exact time line though. East Carolina is trying to fund/build a dental school in the next few years as well.

All this expansion is because NC ranks a low 49th in dentist per capita in the US.

 

[Carolina06]

Yeah, they've been doing some major renovations.

The concern is the lack of rural dental care in NC. Enrollment is supposedly going up from 80 to around 120. East Carolina University in Greenville, NC is in the process of opening a dental school with an emphasis on rural dental care.

 

[yeahdentist]

UNC is going to increase enrollment to 100 when they finish their new dental science building. There is a PDF slide show on the UNC dental website. It should be really nice.

 

[armorshell]

Good school, lots of funding, cheap tuition, good sports, nice campus. What's not to like?

 

[SHC1984]

UNC has a good reputation, but Chapel Hill is kinda boring. I have a sister at UNC and a brother at Duke right now and I can tell you the area is very VERY boring.

UNC values their interview more then anything else. I feel that it is completely out of your control if you get in or not. Like Will stated his DAT was very high but he was still rejected...I mean here is a perfect example of someone that is VERY VERY qualified and GOT into HARVARD but not UNC (I know this person and she told me she didn't get into UNC I was shocked!)... http://www.predents.com/?page=user&user_id=633 its absurd...So there is nothing you can do to get into UNC, just pray you are lucky Or send in a pic...

 

[armorshell]

UNC has a good reputation, but Chapel Hill is kinda boring. I have a sister at UNC and a brother at Duke right now and I can tell you the area is very VERY boring.

Boring is subjective. Some people would say Pullman, Washington is boring, (It's in the middle of a 200 square miles wheat field so flat you can see the curvature of the earth), but I had an amazing time getting my education there.

UNC values their interview more then anything else. I feel that it is completely out of your control if you get in or not. Like Will stated his DAT was very high but he was still rejected...I mean here is a perfect example of someone that is VERY VERY qualified and GOT into HARVARD but not UNC (I know this person and she told me she didn't get into UNC I was shocked!)... http://www.predents.com/?page=user&user_id=633 its absurd...So there is nothing you can do to get into UNC, just pray you are lucky Or send in a pic...

Yeah, SRW is also not a NC resident, and while she with her amazing stats might have been rejected, quite a few people with less impressive stats have gotten in. It may make you feel better to think that it was out of your control whether or not you got accepted to NC, but that's just plain wrong.

 

[jamminjimmy21]

UNC has a good reputation, but Chapel Hill is kinda boring. I have a sister at UNC and a brother at Duke right now and I can tell you the area is very VERY boring.

UNC values their interview more then anything else. I feel that it is completely out of your control if you get in or not. Like Will stated his DAT was very high but he was still rejected...I mean here is a perfect example of someone that is VERY VERY qualified and GOT into HARVARD but not UNC (I know this person and she told me she didn't get into UNC I was shocked!)... http://www.predents.com/?page=user&user_id=633 its absurd...So there is nothing you can do to get into UNC, just pray you are lucky Or send in a pic...

I just think every school is looking for something different. Some people just do not fit some schools and vice versa. As Chapel Hill/NC being boring, its what you make of it. If you think going to the school halfway between the mountains and the beach is boring then yes you may be bored. I grew up on the outer banks and never once found it boring, but then again I'm an outdoors kind of guy and I love the beach. I know its a place that I would be comfortable during the next 4 years and that's important as d-school can definitely be a trying experience. Again its what you make of it.

 

[Count Orlok]

UNC has a good reputation, but Chapel Hill is kinda boring. I have a sister at UNC and a brother at Duke right now and I can tell you the area is very VERY boring.

UNC values their interview more then anything else. I feel that it is completely out of your control if you get in or not. Like Will stated his DAT was very high but he was still rejected...I mean here is a perfect example of someone that is VERY VERY qualified and GOT into HARVARD but not UNC (I know this person and she told me she didn't get into UNC I was shocked!)... http://www.predents.com/?page=user&user_id=633 its absurd...So there is nothing you can do to get into UNC, just pray you are lucky Or send in a pic...

Shocked! The dickens you say.

I agree with armorshell. To say that you have no control over your acceptance at a school is way off base. I know it may seem like having great DAT scores and a great GPA is everything, but in reality personality is also very important. It is not hard to get great grades and kick the DAT in the teeth, but for some people it is hard to get great grades and hammer punch the DAT in the clavicle and not be a total tool. If you think your scores are off the charts and you don't get accepted then reevaluate your personal skills. I know this may be hard for some, but the first step is accepting you have a problem.

 

[armorshell]

hammer punch the DAT in the clavicle

I approve of this phrase UCB right?

 

[Carolina06]

As far as Chapel Hill being boring, different strokes I guess. I had too much fun as an undergrad. Gorgeous college town, great restaurants in the area (several top 50 in the country), college sports fan's paradise. Close to the beach and mountains.

Its definitely not in the same league as NYC, but I value open space. I have two dogs and my last place in Chapel Hill was on a horse farm. I wouldn't mind living in a city for dental school, but I wouldn't mind going to a school in the middle of nowhere either. I'm at a point in my life where I am going somewhere for an education first, location second.

 

[Count Orlok]

I approve of this phrase UCB right?

Sweet son of god, we have another Steve Youngblood groupie in the house! To know I am not the only UCB fan in the dental community just made my week....check that, year.

 

[bigstix808]

I approve of this phrase UCB right?

yea, abut those punches to the clavicle....haha. (that's mine right now)

oh yea, i'm from north carolina (now living in GA) but i'm hoping i have a shot of getting in there. i'm gonna try and finigle something with my residency status but that is something on its own. anway, how can someone not find CH fun...i've been there tons of times and have had a blast every single time. i mean, it does help that their basketball team kicks a$$!!!

 

[TheWiredNerv]

I loved UNC and had a very very hard time choosing between Stony Brook and UNC.

 

[Carolina06]

If I may ask, why did you choose Stony Brook over Carolina?

 

[TheWiredNerv]

Well, at the moment I want to practice in New York because I enjoy it here and Stony is a smaller school. UNC actually turned out to be a bit cheaper than going to Stony but it seemed to me that UNC really trained their dentists to stay in North Carolina and help out there since they are in dire need of dentists.

 

[bisconito]

Can anybody comment on how hard it is to get admitted to UNC out-of-state? I know it varies from school to school. For what it's worth, I'm from Vermont (no state school).

I got into UNC out-of-state, and it was difficult. There is no sure way to figure out how competitive you are, but you need to have a high GPA and a very solid DAT. The interview is 40% of the final decision, so getting the invite is a major boost. The only downside is that UNC can accept a maximum of 20% out-of-state. I deposited at UNC, but as many others out-of-state do, I chose my state school because of in-state tuition and other concerns. Apply to UNC, it is a top-notch dental school!

 

[cabbagebrain]

Sweet son of god, we have another Steve Youngblood groupie in the house! To know I am not the only UCB fan in the dental community just made my week....check that, year.

That's funny, before I got to this point in the thread, I just told my husband what I read on here and wondered if it was a reference or coincidence.