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Between the two, where would you go? and why?
Thx.
Thx.
-
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San Antonio or Houston?
- Thread starter d2lhp
- Start date
San Antonio Spurs or Houston Rockets? Tim Duncan and Tony Parker or. . . Yao Ming and Tracy Mcgrady?
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I chose San Antonio....
I really liked the school. My interviews were great. The students all seemed to have great things to say about San Antonio's classes and professors and opportunities. At Houston they talked about was how it's like a "family". Personally, I'm going to dental school to learn, not have a new family.
Additionally, I love the idea of lap-top learning, however for some people that's a huge turn-off.
There are other reasons that I chose San Antonio, but they're for personal reasons and not sure that they would be pertinent to your choice.
Best of luck!
I really liked the school. My interviews were great. The students all seemed to have great things to say about San Antonio's classes and professors and opportunities. At Houston they talked about was how it's like a "family". Personally, I'm going to dental school to learn, not have a new family.
Additionally, I love the idea of lap-top learning, however for some people that's a huge turn-off.
There are other reasons that I chose San Antonio, but they're for personal reasons and not sure that they would be pertinent to your choice.
Best of luck!
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SA...It is more highly viewed by students and faculty of other schools. I think they are all good...but this prof that was in charge of a residency program said that SA student that entered his program always knew what they were doing...he didn't talk as highly of Houston kids. I think you can do great where ever you go though 🙂
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- Dental Student
First, the friendliness and professionalism of each school was the same. Both are great and each will get you to the D.D.S. degree.
Why I would choose Houston
Houston is a great school with facilities that are old but very well taken care of. The new school they are building should not be a factor since it probably will not be ready to move into until 2012. Their simulation lab and the clinic are both top notch with some of the best tools available. I like the confidence building exercises being done in the simulation lab. It is located right in the middle of the largest health center in the world and your access to patients with a variety of conditions to work on will allow you to graduate on time. Houston does require its students to own a computer with a broadband internet connection, but the type/brand of computer and service is up to you.
Issues with Houston
I am not a big city Texan. Houston is about as big as you can get and therefore not for me. This was the major issue I had with the school. The clinics were essentially rows of office cubicles where anyone could peer into the next and see who was sitting in the chair. Patient privacy is an issue I hold dear to my heart as all health professionals should. The attire at Houston was either business casual or their own green scrubs. If they are able to open their new facility prior to 2011, there will be a period of down time to make the move. I do not know how much down time there will be, but I would expect a degree of inconvenience. If you own a laptop with a wireless connection, you may run into issues getting on-line. The walls at the school are concrete and do not allow communication waves to pass through easily thus hindering your wireless bliss. There are hotspots around the school, but they seemed few and far between. After talking to DS3's and 4's they often complained that they did not have enough time to study during the two weeks before the boards because of a scheduled class. I do not know how much merit there is in this claim since their national board scores are top notch as of last year. The school may have given students more time to prepare. The last issue I have is a quote from a DS3. She said "If you want a good foundation in general dentistry, come to Houston. If you want to specialize, go to San Antonio." That always stuck in my mind, take from it whatever you want.
Why I chose San Antonio
San Antonio is a city that fits me better than Houston or Dallas. It is true when they say SA is a "big time city with a small town feel." There are many living options in and around the medical district. You could probably spend your entire four years in SA and not drive a congested highway once if you planned for it. My wife appreciates the less intense driving conditions in SA too. I was also always impressed with the San Antonio facilities. Their clinics are clean and spacious. Each operatory is completely sequestered from one another except the entrance. Patients face away from the entrance and unless you stepped into the operatory you really wouldn't be able to see the patient. Each chair had a mount for your laptop so you can go over slides or procedures with the patient. I like the idea of engaging a patient in their oral health. Houston does have a screen in each of their operatories, but it did not seem that it could be used to educate the patient. I may be wrong. SA's labs were not fully renovated when I toured in October. They had run into funding issues but it appears now that they are nearing completion. The new look is clean, comfortable and practical for its purpose. The laptop curriculum does not bother me. I read off of a computer screen most of the time anyway so there is no adjustment. Their dress code was identical to Houston except you could purchase your own scrubs with your choice of solid color.
Issues with San Antonio
In my opinion, there are two major issues with SA. First is they are the youngest school in Texas. This may not mean much if they produce a good product (which they do), but in politics it can be the difference between funding and not funding. Houston and Baylor have the legacy of both being 100 years old and have thus many graduates that have influenced Texas politics for a good 60+ years before SA. The funding for the lab is a prime example. How is it SA can have trouble building a lab, whereas Houston can get an entire school approved. More evidence of this disparity is the number and size of scholarships that can be awarded to students. SA does not have the large number of alumni that donate to the school for such purposes as Houston does. While the source of funding may hold relevence, there is evidence that Houston holds more political clout. The other major issue with SA is the patient base from which you can draw is not as vast as Houston. Houston has a large poorer population that increased significantly after Katrina. They have enough clinically diverse cases for all of their students. I have heard of students at SA going out to "find" their patients on their own in order to progress through their degree. Dr. Thomas at SA was upfront with us about this issue at our interview and has vowed to take the finding of patients out of the students' hands. On a minor note, some have complained about the "dungeon" feel of the hallways at the school. I think they are just hallways and I walk through them. The clinics do not have the same feel with their bright lights and modern construction. Finally, the only issue I have with the laptop curriculum is that you must purchase a computer from the school and cannot simply use one that you may already have (this may actually be a blessing if you were looking to upgrade to MS Vista and your current PC is not able to run it). You have a choice of Mac or Dell.
That is my two cents, but I think I gave you a $1.46 worth. There are many more issues that are just too numerous to comment on here. This was what I found pertinent to my choice. Each comment is based on my three years of conversations and research on each school. Nobody is going to do your four years for you, so make the decision yours.
Why I would choose Houston
Houston is a great school with facilities that are old but very well taken care of. The new school they are building should not be a factor since it probably will not be ready to move into until 2012. Their simulation lab and the clinic are both top notch with some of the best tools available. I like the confidence building exercises being done in the simulation lab. It is located right in the middle of the largest health center in the world and your access to patients with a variety of conditions to work on will allow you to graduate on time. Houston does require its students to own a computer with a broadband internet connection, but the type/brand of computer and service is up to you.
Issues with Houston
I am not a big city Texan. Houston is about as big as you can get and therefore not for me. This was the major issue I had with the school. The clinics were essentially rows of office cubicles where anyone could peer into the next and see who was sitting in the chair. Patient privacy is an issue I hold dear to my heart as all health professionals should. The attire at Houston was either business casual or their own green scrubs. If they are able to open their new facility prior to 2011, there will be a period of down time to make the move. I do not know how much down time there will be, but I would expect a degree of inconvenience. If you own a laptop with a wireless connection, you may run into issues getting on-line. The walls at the school are concrete and do not allow communication waves to pass through easily thus hindering your wireless bliss. There are hotspots around the school, but they seemed few and far between. After talking to DS3's and 4's they often complained that they did not have enough time to study during the two weeks before the boards because of a scheduled class. I do not know how much merit there is in this claim since their national board scores are top notch as of last year. The school may have given students more time to prepare. The last issue I have is a quote from a DS3. She said "If you want a good foundation in general dentistry, come to Houston. If you want to specialize, go to San Antonio." That always stuck in my mind, take from it whatever you want.
Why I chose San Antonio
San Antonio is a city that fits me better than Houston or Dallas. It is true when they say SA is a "big time city with a small town feel." There are many living options in and around the medical district. You could probably spend your entire four years in SA and not drive a congested highway once if you planned for it. My wife appreciates the less intense driving conditions in SA too. I was also always impressed with the San Antonio facilities. Their clinics are clean and spacious. Each operatory is completely sequestered from one another except the entrance. Patients face away from the entrance and unless you stepped into the operatory you really wouldn't be able to see the patient. Each chair had a mount for your laptop so you can go over slides or procedures with the patient. I like the idea of engaging a patient in their oral health. Houston does have a screen in each of their operatories, but it did not seem that it could be used to educate the patient. I may be wrong. SA's labs were not fully renovated when I toured in October. They had run into funding issues but it appears now that they are nearing completion. The new look is clean, comfortable and practical for its purpose. The laptop curriculum does not bother me. I read off of a computer screen most of the time anyway so there is no adjustment. Their dress code was identical to Houston except you could purchase your own scrubs with your choice of solid color.
Issues with San Antonio
In my opinion, there are two major issues with SA. First is they are the youngest school in Texas. This may not mean much if they produce a good product (which they do), but in politics it can be the difference between funding and not funding. Houston and Baylor have the legacy of both being 100 years old and have thus many graduates that have influenced Texas politics for a good 60+ years before SA. The funding for the lab is a prime example. How is it SA can have trouble building a lab, whereas Houston can get an entire school approved. More evidence of this disparity is the number and size of scholarships that can be awarded to students. SA does not have the large number of alumni that donate to the school for such purposes as Houston does. While the source of funding may hold relevence, there is evidence that Houston holds more political clout. The other major issue with SA is the patient base from which you can draw is not as vast as Houston. Houston has a large poorer population that increased significantly after Katrina. They have enough clinically diverse cases for all of their students. I have heard of students at SA going out to "find" their patients on their own in order to progress through their degree. Dr. Thomas at SA was upfront with us about this issue at our interview and has vowed to take the finding of patients out of the students' hands. On a minor note, some have complained about the "dungeon" feel of the hallways at the school. I think they are just hallways and I walk through them. The clinics do not have the same feel with their bright lights and modern construction. Finally, the only issue I have with the laptop curriculum is that you must purchase a computer from the school and cannot simply use one that you may already have (this may actually be a blessing if you were looking to upgrade to MS Vista and your current PC is not able to run it). You have a choice of Mac or Dell.
That is my two cents, but I think I gave you a $1.46 worth. There are many more issues that are just too numerous to comment on here. This was what I found pertinent to my choice. Each comment is based on my three years of conversations and research on each school. Nobody is going to do your four years for you, so make the decision yours.
S
sumluck
go to SA so someone I know, who is a bear, can get into Houston 🙂
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hahah somebear would be very berry happy to hear another spot at crappy Houston school has opened up!!!😀
San Antonio... I chose it mostly for the location.
