Rutgers (OOS) vs. Buffalo (IS) vs. Stony Brook (IS) vs. Columbia

[deleted1010952]

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[deleted903013]

Either Buffalo or Stony. Since you seem keen on wanting to be a GP and Buffalo is cheaper, I'd go Buffalo.

 

[Alaskan _Polarbear]

Stony Brook has a better program I think and from what I hear from dentist that I have shadowed they like stony brook students because stony brook is known to pump out great general dentist.

The dentist i currently shadowed was choosing between Columbia and stony brook and said if she never specialized she would have chosen stony brook over Columbia

I believe if you don't want to specialize stony brook is still a great school and Columbia is better if you want to specialize

 

[Life of Pablo]

If you want to do GD, don't go to Columbia. To anyone going to Columbia, I don't mean to be critical about the program, but their preclinical program is very, very lacking. I would say Rutgers, SB, or Buffalo would definitely be a better option.

 

[wengerout]

If you want to do GD, don't go to Columbia. To anyone going to Columbia, I don't mean to be critical about the program, but their preclinical program is very, very lacking. I would say Rutgers, SB, or Buffalo would definitely be a better option.

As someone who goes to Columbia I disagree. With the new clinic and new curriculum I have found the pre-clinical program pretty adequate. I am planning on being a GP and feel prepared, and can think of people who went to Columbia and are GP's who are doing well for themselves.

 

[wengerout]

School 1: Rutgers (OOS) $270k + moderate living expenses

Pros:

• Grew up near Rutgers and family is in NJ
• Proven program
• Cost is less expensive but more IS options are cheaper
• I want to be a GP and school is great for that

Cons:

• I'd live outside of Newark and surrounding areas can be expensive
• Students seemed to be more competitive and unhappy
• Ranked

School 2: Buffalo (IS) $240k + cheap living expenses

Pros:

• Cheapest option
• Slightly cheaper than Stony Brook
• Proven program
• Change of location is nice
• I want to be a GP and school is great for that
• Students and faculty seem chill
• Cost of living is low and can live in a better place than if were to live near Rutgers, Stony Brook, or Columbia

Cons:

• Far from home
• Ranked

School 3: Stony Brook (IS) $240k + moderate/expensive living expenses

Pros:

• Cheap after Buffalo but slightly more expensive because the area is more expensive
• Proven program
• Small class size and people seem close
• Students and faculty seem chill
• I want to be a GP and school is great for that
• Don't plan on specializing yet but I keep reading Stony Brook is great at matching students. It's nice to know that doors to specialize might be a bit more open here. If I do specialize I know I won't do OS/OMFS for sure so I don't know if the medical curriculum is helpful
• Close to home although Rutgers is closer
• Unranked
• Area is nice

Cons:

• Area seems a bit isolated and too quiet
• Lack of diversity compared to schools in urban areas and the class also seems less diverse
• I feel less comfortable in the area since I grew up in busier places but I can see myself liking the change too

School 4: Columbia $375k + moderate/expensive living expenses

Pros:

• Dream school although learning about the implications of extra debt has made the other options my favorite
• Proven program
• Specialty matching although I don't plan to specialize yet
• Students seem so chill and friendly
• P/F
• Closest to home
• Familiar with area cause I used to live in Harlem

Cons:

• Expensive
• I'm used to the area since I lived nearby but I admit that the other locations are much nicer places to live
• I want to be a GP at the moment so Columbia may be the least sensible for me

Summary: Columbia has been my dream school for a long time. I was hoping for a scholarship but didn't get one. This makes Columbia more than $125k expensive than Buffalo and Stony Brook. I also like Rutgers because I grew up near there and am used to the area. I am also eligible for IS tuition from years 2-4. The OOS tuition during the first year makes the school about $30k more than Buffalo or Stony Brook. I think Buffalo or Stony Brook is as good as or even better than Rutgers so I think I'll just go to my IS options.

Stony Book and Buffalo are my leading options because of the cost unless someone can help come up with a reason to go to Columbia or Rutgers. Stony Brook is more expensive but only a little bit. I'm not sure if $20k difference between Stony Brook and Buffalo should be a decision maker. The quality of life in Buffalo will be better since housing is cheaper. I'll need a car in both places. Buffalo seems more fun too but can be lonely since I will be far from home.

One thing that makes me like Stony Brook more than Buffalo is this feeling of accountability. Since the school is so small and everyone knows each other there is a pressure to excel. That may be good for me. I know you should try to excel wherever you go but for some reason, I feel the pressure at Stony Brook more. Buffalo however is great and I'm sure I won't want to have this pressure when the real pressure that comes at every school kicks in. Buffalo is about $20k cheaper over 4 years for living expenses but I also think I can cut that down even more.

OP I would go to either Stony or Columbia. Personally, I picked Columbia even though I had an option that was about 100k cheaper. For me it was worth it, but that won't be worth it for everyone. If you have any questions just PM me.

I fit's not worth it I think stony is a better compromise than Rutgers or UB IMHO.

 

[Life of Pablo]

As someone who goes to Columbia I disagree. With the new clinic and new curriculum I have found the pre-clinical program pretty adequate. I am planning on being a GP and feel prepared, and can think of people who went to Columbia and are GP's who are doing well for themselves.

I only say that because I can directly compare what we're doing with what my gf is doing at Columbia. I just find myself having to help her a lot with pretty simple things that they dont teach you guys at Columbia (like how you're supposed to reseat a provisional when you're hyperoccluded). Also, having lab once a week during D1 year and having to share your work station with someone during lab just doesn't make sense to me. You're essentially getting half the amount of time you should and wasting a lot of your time while your partner is drilling and youre just watching. This isn't to say you can't be a great general dentist at Columbia, but you just might have to teach yourself a lot on your own.

Also, you guys don't use amalgam in preclinic. I know dentistry is shifting almost exclusively to composite, but I think you should still learn how to use it. Amalgam was our most failed practical last year, so it's not like it's something you don't need to practice and can just do lol.

 

[wengerout]

I only say that because I can directly compare what we're doing with what my gf is doing at Columbia. I just find myself having to help her a lot with pretty simple things that they dont teach you guys at Columbia (like how you're supposed to reseat a provisional when you're hyperoccluded). Also, having lab once a week during D1 year and having to share your work station with someone during lab just doesn't make sense to me. You're essentially getting half the amount of time you should and wasting a lot of your time while your partner is drilling and youre just watching. This isn't to say you can't be a great general dentist at Columbia, but you just might have to teach yourself a lot on your own.

Also, you guys don't use amalgam in preclinic. I know dentistry is shifting almost exclusively to composite, but I think you should still learn how to use it. Amalgam was our most failed practical last year, so it's not like it's something you don't need to practice and can just do lol.

I get you, but a lot these things are things you either do in D2, or definitely learn lol. For example, you learn how to reseat a provisional in prosth first semester of D2 with Dr. Z. You learn how to do amalgams in second semester of D2 with Dr. Graham. As for the bench, if you mean sharing a chair on VC5 then yes you split it, but this isn't the case during D2. You most definitely get your own bench on the pre-clinic in VC-8 though.

Don't get me wrong, I am not gonna sit here and say our clinical is as good as Temple or MWU-AZ (unless you work harder to get it to that level). But I push back on saying it's "very, very lacking".

 

[Life of Pablo]

For example, you learn how to reseat a provisional in prosth first semester of D2 with Dr. Z.

Well the class below you never learned/were taught lol. I taught my gf after she couldn't get it, and then she went and taught all her friends because none of them could get it either. But yeah that's my point with this thread. If the OP has a cheaper option that also teaches you to be a strong GP, he/she should definitely go for that.

I wouldn't even go to Penn (my own school) if I wanted to be a GP. We learn a lot and had the highest ADEX pass rate in the country last year, but it's not worth an extra 100k+ if you want to be a GP imo.

 

[wengerout]

Well the class below you never learned/were taught lol. I taught my gf after she couldn't get it, and then she went and taught all her friends because none of them could get it either. But yeah that's my point with this thread. If the OP has a cheaper option that also teaches you to be a strong GP, he/she should definitely go for that.

I wouldn't even go to Penn (my own school) if I wanted to be a GP. We learn a lot and had the highest ADEX pass rate in the country last year, but it's not worth an extra 100k+ if you want to be a GP imo.

Nah I think you guys just learned it before them, due to the medical curriculum a lot of of pre-clinic is pushed to 2nd year, especially second semester of second year.



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[AppalachianDentalBoy]

Buffalo. You can save $ while living in a nicer place far from the hullaballoo of nyc.

 

[dentalninja49]

Stony Brook or Buffalo