pittsburgh vs UAB vs VC

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qwewq1

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Hey guys,

I've got acceptance from those three schools (U of Pittsburgh, UAB, Virginia commonhealth). I'm not resident of any of those states so I guess I can take "cost" out of my equation. Can any of you share your experience/idea about those schools?

pros/cons and reputation wise would be nice. Thank you.
 
Hey guys,

I've got acceptance from those three schools (U of Pittsburgh, UAB, Virginia commonhealth). I'm not resident of any of those states so I guess I can take "cost" out of my equation. Can any of you share your experience/idea about those schools?

pros/cons and reputation wise would be nice. Thank you.
I give my two cents about VCU in this post. http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=779205
 
I can't say anything about the other schools, but I'm a second year at Pittsburgh, and I think it's a great school. The facilities are pretty modern-ish, within the last 6 years or so the sim lab was completely redone, as I'm sure you saw at your interview, and though there are newer sim labs out there, it's much better than some others I've seen at some very big name schools. It's all digital xrays and digital filing.

I think the faculty are pretty amazing - though there are a few hit or miss ones with the basic sciences, but you get that with having researchers teach some of the sciences. The clinical faculty so far has been great, with people who are really willing to give you what you'll need to know when you actually get out of dental school, not just touting the near impossible perfection that is the so called "ideal." Also, Pitt has been trying to get us into clinic as early as possible. We take boards after year one, and starting year two, we're able to sign up to do simple fillings and such paired up with a 4th year. Also, in the summer of year 1, we were in the recall clinic seeing patients, doing hard tissue charting, doing cleanings, etc - more or less just getting used to seeing patients, so you're not just thrown into clinic in your third year.

I think the best things at Pitt though, cheesily enough, are the people. It's a smaller class size, and there's a real sense of family and cooperation. You get paired with an upperclassman, and depending on how much you want to put into it, they can be a real asset. The student services staff, like Dr. Etzel and Rose, are amazing people, who you can really talk to about anything.

Pittsburgh is also a great place to live, and the area around the school is pretty nice - especially compared to some other dental schools (Temple, I'm looking at you! ;p). Pittsburgh is also one of the cheapest big cities to live in - i.e. you can buy a 3 bed room house for under 100k. A number of friends actually bought houses, haha. The school and city bus/shuttle system is great, and you can get to more or less wherever you may need to go.

Anyways, my biggest piece of advice is to go with the school you feel that you liked the most - go with your gut. I picked Pitt over some other great schools, and I really don't regret it at all.
 
I can't say anything about the other schools, but I'm a second year at Pittsburgh, and I think it's a great school. The facilities are pretty modern-ish, within the last 6 years or so the sim lab was completely redone, as I'm sure you saw at your interview, and though there are newer sim labs out there, it's much better than some others I've seen at some very big name schools. It's all digital xrays and digital filing.

I think the faculty are pretty amazing - though there are a few hit or miss ones with the basic sciences, but you get that with having researchers teach some of the sciences. The clinical faculty so far has been great, with people who are really willing to give you what you'll need to know when you actually get out of dental school, not just touting the near impossible perfection that is the so called "ideal." Also, Pitt has been trying to get us into clinic as early as possible. We take boards after year one, and starting year two, we're able to sign up to do simple fillings and such paired up with a 4th year. Also, in the summer of year 1, we were in the recall clinic seeing patients, doing hard tissue charting, doing cleanings, etc - more or less just getting used to seeing patients, so you're not just thrown into clinic in your third year.

I think the best things at Pitt though, cheesily enough, are the people. It's a smaller class size, and there's a real sense of family and cooperation. You get paired with an upperclassman, and depending on how much you want to put into it, they can be a real asset. The student services staff, like Dr. Etzel and Rose, are amazing people, who you can really talk to about anything.

Pittsburgh is also a great place to live, and the area around the school is pretty nice - especially compared to some other dental schools (Temple, I'm looking at you! ;p). Pittsburgh is also one of the cheapest big cities to live in - i.e. you can buy a 3 bed room house for under 100k. A number of friends actually bought houses, haha. The school and city bus/shuttle system is great, and you can get to more or less wherever you may need to go.

Anyways, my biggest piece of advice is to go with the school you feel that you liked the most - go with your gut. I picked Pitt over some other great schools, and I really don't regret it at all.


yes I believe pittsburgh is the best option there. Can anyone else give me advice?
 
One of my friends interviewed at pitt this year, got accepted and he says its top notch and really excited to get in.
 
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