Research vs Clinical Based Schools

[bestismidwest]

I have heard a lot about there being a big difference in schools that are more research based vs schools that are more clinical based. I am trying to decide what schools to apply for is- is this something I can find out before hand or is something that I would have to learn about in an interview?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[BYU4you]

You can find out on here to an extent...

For example, Harvard is more research than tufts.

Obviously every school is clinical. But there are assumptions on here that might have truth.

 

[bestismidwest]

I am so lost as to what schools to apply for. I don't even know where to start

 

[BYU4you]

I am so lost as to what schools to apply for. I don't even know where to start

Cheapest schools, ones you wouldn't be miserable at (ie location), ones you can get in (ie your stats are within range of those normally accepted)

And then you can worry about other stuff. Every school turns you into a dentist. You can't lose.

If you are DEAD SET on specializing an Ivy League would probably help. If you are dying to teach in a dental school after or do straight research again Harvard may be good.

If you want to be a dentist, honestly choose places you could see yourself practicing near.

There are things that are nit picky that might affect your decisions..AT still does a rotation thing which is why I didn't apply there.

A lot of people like roseman because of block scheduling and others hate that.


The majority of people on here choose schools that are in stage for them or are out of state friendly (private). Why? Because they have a better chance of getting in, not wasting money, and becoming a dentist.

 

[bestismidwest]

Unfortunately, the only school I have instate at is not my first choice.
I just took my DAT, and they said it will be another 2-3 weeks before it has been processed. Since that puts my application in around mid August, I am a little nervous about that being late for a lot of schools. Especially for an out of state applicant.

I have a 3.71 GPA and 3.5 science GPA
DAT: PAT 22 QR 19 RC 26 BIO 22 GC 24 OC 22 TS 23 AA 23

Will these stats make me a competitive applicant? I am especially worried since I feel that I am late.

At the end of the day I will be a dentist. I want to choose a good school with a good reputation, but I am not focused on getting into the very best school I can get in to, just because it might be a slightly higher ranked school- I don't see a need to be farther in debt just based on a ranking.

I had a few people mention to me that there are more researched based vs clinical based schools and that it is something that I should look in to. But I've read a lot of mixed information on here, especially about there not being a clear distinction between the two. However, that's not what I was told so I am a little bit confused. I was hoping that I might be able to narrow down my school choices based on that. Right now I am looking at location and class size for the most part.

 

[Accordion]

I'll be brief. You are an competitive applicant and mid-August is not late.

 

[Kittenz]

UConn and UCSF are 2 that come to mind both being OOS friendly with the right stats.

 

[MolarBear93]

Uconn isn't overly friendly to non-new englanders though

 

[MolarBear93]

And really I always felt the clinical vs research debate had much and more to deal with whether you want to specialize/teach/research or do general dentistry. Theoretically, you can specialize out of anywhere if you work hard enough, but some programs make it easier than others. And every school will make you a dentist. That being said, some schools have much better didactic curriculums while others have more intensive clinical experiences. For example, I got the sense that at VCU, they really hammer the clinical skills while at a school like Columbia, they have a strong more medically based curriculum. This is an over-simplification and there are a slew of other reasons to pick (or not pick) a school. But it is an actual thing to some extent.