Should I defer my acceptance and re-apply?

[deleted1048419]

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I was waitlisted by my state school, but got accepted to an OOS private school. I applied to one of the cheapest private schools, but even then its tuition is still 100k a year (and increasing 5% ea year).

let's just say the principle at the private school would be around 450K while the in state school would be 150k. 300k is the difference between paying off a loan within 2-3 years vs 10+ years.

Should I defer my acceptance and re-apply?

I should have applied to HPSP program but I didn't think I wouldn't get into my state school since my stats are quite higher then their avg matriculates.

Also if my DAT is almost 2 years old, would it still be valid for the 20-21 cycle if I submitted my app before the date I took the DAT?

 

[Svart Aske]

You’re not guaranteed to get into your state school next year either. What are you going to do this year if you defer? The opportunity cost may not be worth it.

 

[GoDental101]

How is the principle of the private school only 350 K if the tuition is 100 K a year? wouldn’t that be about 400 K plus about 100 K for living so 500 k

 

[deleted1048419]

typo. meant to write 450.

 

[deleted1048419]

1. why should this be a concern if my primary goal is IS? how would they know I deferred an acceptance to an OOS?

2. starting salary for dentists is 120-150. That's 1/2 the difference of my IS and OS school. Lest we not forget about accruing interest

3. isn't it too late to apply for HPSP for incoming DS1's? Plus I hear it's gotten very competitive these days

 

[IOPEU]

1. why should this be a concern if my primary goal is IS? how would they know I deferred an acceptance to an OOS?

2. starting salary for dentists is 120-150. That's 1/2 the difference of my IS and OS school. Lest we not forget about accruing interest

3. isn't it too late to apply for HPSP for incoming DS1's? Plus I hear it's gotten very competitive these days

Note that it will be the last one or two years of your career that will be deducted from your life-long salary.

In that case, it may far exceed 120-150K.

But you're right. Let's say hypothetically you're guaranteed to be accepted by your state school next year. Then it's financially a right choice to wait a year. Unfortunately, there's no such guarantee. Risk is too high. We are not talking about getting accepted to any dental school. We are talking about getting accepted to only one school.

 

[deleted1048419]

Note that it will be the last one or two years of your career that will be deducted from your life-long salary.

In that case, it may far exceed 120-150K.

But you're right. Let's say hypothetically you're guaranteed to be accepted by your state school next year. Then it's financially a right choice to wait a year. Unfortunately, there's no such guarantee. Risk is too high. We are not talking about getting accepted to any dental school. We are talking about getting accepted to only one school.

but having more financial freedom in your early years is very important too. It allows you to start your own practice sooner, then you start investing into your retirement. If you 300K extra in debt can delay all that by 5-10 yrs.

 

[endodonia]

Tough. In retrospect you shouldn't have applied/interviewed to a school you weren't committed on going to but that ship has sailed.

I should have applied to HPSP program but I didn't think I wouldn't get into my state school since my stats are quite higher then their avg matriculates.

yes you should have. let this be a lesson in overconfidence and if you choose to sit out a year and reapply recognize there is an above 0% chance you don't get in again. my old swim coach harped on me that the definition of insanity is you do the same thing over and over again and expect a different result. a quick google search says he stole that from Albert Einstein.

So, what are you going to do this year if you don't take the OOS school offer? what is your degree in and how much $ can you make waiting? how old are you? there are too many unknowns to guide you accurately and taking/giving advice over the internet is risky business. I wouldn't go to dental school for over $250k knowing what I know now but that number is so relative to an individual situation its unfair to apply it to everyone. good luck with your decision and sorry you didn't get into your state school. it stings.

 

[IOPEU]

but having more financial freedom in your early years is very important too. It allows you to start your own practice sooner, then you start investing into your retirement. If you 300K extra in debt can delay all that by 5-10 yrs.

I've seen plenty of people starting their own practices with loans (I'm talking about 300K+ upon graduation).
Existing loan matters but gross income matters more.
By the way, I can only think of 2 or 3 dental schools that charge 100K+ for tuition per year. Are you sure it's over 100K per year?

 

[Anondds87]

Dentistry isnt a good financial choice at 100k per year tuition alone. You are signing up for a decade of living like a student and working hard long hours after graduation.

you are in a tough situation, but honestly, its really good you have the foresight to be having this conversation now while you can do something about it, rather than in 3 years time realising how screwed you are.

I don't have any good advice, I know what its like to have to turn down an offer which you have worked so many years to get to, its not easy, i had the same when i got into ortho, and i started asking these kind of questions before i was accepted and honestly more than anything it just took away any good feelings i had about finally getting accepted, but i still took it because i spent so long trtying to get accepted. In hindsight, I wish i had declined and gone to a different, cheaper, school. however, that would have left me working as a dentist making money while i reapplied which is better than the position you're in.

in my opinion the best advice is accept and do everything it takes to get military because if you don't get any financial help you are essentially committing financial suicide by becoming a dentist with that much debt. its not worth it.

 

[MG14]

You can do a 3 year HPSP.

And to add on to what other people have said, (and some advice from some random guy on an anonymous forum) I wouldn’t accept it. I would do one of two things,
first would be to decline and apply next year. Try and get in your state school, or also look into Dalhousie University in Canada. Tuition with the exchange rate for all 4 years there is ~$210-230K. It’s a DDS degree (US and Canada have reciprocating agreements with dental schools) and they offer US licensure boards and are a test site for them.

The other thing you can do is if you don’t get into your state school, choose another career. (I understand the repercussions with this one) but sometimes an inconvenient shift early on can save you a life of headaches. Lots of options that can give you just as much return on investment. $550k is financial suicide and not worth the BS and political games of dental school. Seriously. Too much debt to put up with that much crap.

just my two cents.

 

[charlestweed]

Dentistry isnt a good financial choice at 100k per year tuition alone. You are signing up for a decade of living like a student and working hard long hours after graduation.

OP, this statement is correct. This is exactly what you sign up for if you decide to go to dental school that recently accepted you…..yes, a decade of hard work. If you are not willing to accept this challenge after graduation, then you should decline the offer and reapply. Just keep in mind that there is a chance that you may not get in anywhere the 2nd time....and you may have to face longer than a decade of hard work with the non-dental jobs that are not as stable and pay well as dentistry.

 

[Anondds87]

You can do a 3 year HPSP.

And to add on to what other people have said, (and some advice from some random guy on an anonymous forum) I wouldn’t accept it. I would do one of two things,
first would be to decline and apply next year. Try and get in your state school, or also look into Dalhousie University in Canada. Tuition with the exchange rate for all 4 years there is ~$210-230K. It’s a DDS degree (US and Canada have reciprocating agreements with dental schools) and they offer US licensure boards and are a test site for them.

The other thing you can do is if you don’t get into your state school, choose another career. (I understand the repercussions with this one) but sometimes an inconvenient shift early on can save you a life of headaches. Lots of options that can give you just as much return on investment. $550k is financial suicide and not worth the BS and political games of dental school. Seriously. Too much debt to put up with that much crap.

just my two cents.

Studying in canada is a good idea. I dont think enough americans realise the degree I'd equivalent. Is that 210k the rate for international students though? That seems low and I heard dalhousie has recently increased tuition

 

[LFA20]

I was waitlisted by my state school, but got accepted to an OOS private school. I applied to one of the cheapest private schools, but even then its tuition is still 100k a year (and increasing 5% ea year).

let's just say the principle at the private school would be around 450K while the in state school would be 150k. 300k is the difference between paying off a loan within 2-3 years vs 10+ years.

Should I defer my acceptance and re-apply?

I should have applied to HPSP program but I didn't think I wouldn't get into my state school since my stats are quite higher then their avg matriculates.

Also if my DAT is almost 2 years old, would it still be valid for the 20-21 cycle if I submitted my app before the date I took the DAT?

There is no way in hell I’d attend dental school at 450k principal..

Apply for HPSP,NHSC and try to get a 3 year scholarship.

 

[Blueshirts]

The amount of 3 year HPSP scholarships is low. This year 10 for the army, 60ish for the air force, and you are too late to apply for navy already. Don't take all advice here at face value, do your research.

 

[P7898]

Apply for scholarship and if you don't get it, reapply and don't apply to any expensive schools. Rinse and repeat for 1 year.

 

[MG14]

Studying in canada is a good idea. I dont think enough americans realise the degree I'd equivalent. Is that 210k the rate for international students though? That seems low and I heard dalhousie has recently increased tuition

Yeah that’s even for international rates. Right now for the current year those are the numbers. It’s a public university so I assume those numbers can only go up so much. So even with increase and you factor in the average 3-4% it’s still WAY cheaper than most US schools.(keeping in mind US schools are increasing by the same percentage so in comparison ratio should still stay about the same)

 

[deleted903013]

You're looking at over 500k post interest easily. There's no way I'd go for that much. If I were in your position, I'd reapply to my state school and try to get HPSP or NHSC. Both are competitive, but if you get one of them, you can go to any school for free. Also, I'd live at home and work full time while you reapply. I lived at home and worked during my gap year and saved a ridiculous amount of money. This will at least mitigate some of the lost income by not going this year and also possibly give you valuable work experience.

You have an extremely difficult decision. I can only tell you what I would do if I were in your shoes. Best of luck to you with whatever you choose.

 

[allDAT]

Defer acceptance. Do not apply to schools that cost 100k a year period. It’s not worth that much debt unless you specialize or were born and raised in a rural community where you plan to return. This is the perfect year to defer acceptance.

 

[DocMon16]

I agree with a lot of the comments above; however, there are ways that you can get around this enormous debt load you are potentially going to acquire. A branch of the military may be the best option or if you can potentially get enough scholarships (HPSP or NHSC). With that principle though with interest on top of it, you are going to have to work your ass off in order to pay that back as this has been said above. The problem is the amount of debt you will be vs. the income you take in. Even if you start making 150k yearly, if you want to pay this off in a reasonable amount of time you are going to have to be extremely frugal for 5+ years ( I say 5 years factoring in income taxes that will be taken out and interest that will accrue on the principle). It is possible to pay it off in a reasonable time but it is just going to be extremely difficult. If you decide you are going to specialize, this may put you into further debt which is quite scary, just my .02. Depending on the speciality you go into, this could put you another 100k+ in debt.

I personally agree with some of the posts above about 100k a year to go to dental school or medical school. It puts a huge burden financially on yourself when you get out of school and/or training. I personally think its financial suicide to do it....it would be different if your income coming out was going to be 250k + yearly but it won't be at first. Even if it was, 400k + in debt with a large income of 250k is crazy.

To help answer your question, its a toss up. There is no guarantee to be accepted into professional school which has been said in previous posts. If you are willing to take the risk, defer and reapply to schools that are affordable. Its absolutely asinine to pay 100k a year for school...its insane.

I would look at it like this, if you are willing to gamble on deferring and reapplying, take the year to boost your application and make yourself more competitive in more than 1 way and trust me, I'm sure you can find something in your application to boost. If you reapply and can land an instate school great.

With that being said ---> I'm playing devils advocate here badly.
I know how hard I worked to get into DS. I did a two year masters after not being accepted and got in. If you truly love the field of dentistry, don't let the cost of going keep you back and taking your huge accomplishment of being accepted, its extremely competitive. There are ways to offset the debt (military and scholarships). It can be done. I would have an extremely hard time deferring/declining the acceptance that you've worked so hard for. If you love dentistry and are passionate about it, gambling on an acceptance is risky.

Good luck, its a tough decision.

 

[axiumgod]

Random question but how does someone get their membership revoked like this guy did? Is that just deactivating your account or did he get kicked off

 

[Big Time Hoosier]

typo. meant to write 450.

Random question but how does someone get their membership revoked like this guy did? Is that just deactivating your account or did he get kicked off

He openly admitted to a typo. We don’t have room for such offenses hear on SDN. Period.

Big Hoss

 

[artist2022]

He openly admitted to a typo. We don’t have room for such offenses hear on SDN. Period.

Big Hoss

Looks like it's time for Hoss to get the banhammer you wanna wield it or shall I @schmoob?

On a serious note, people delete their accounts but sometimes they're removed if they've violated the ToS repeatedly, or if they have tons of other accounts.

 

[schmoob]

Looks like it's time for Hoss to get the banhammer you wanna wield it or shall I @schmoob?

I agree. Their is know room hear four these infarctions.

 

[Biggytooth]

I was waitlisted by my state school, but got accepted to an OOS private school. I applied to one of the cheapest private schools, but even then its tuition is still 100k a year (and increasing 5% ea year).

let's just say the principle at the private school would be around 450K while the in state school would be 150k. 300k is the difference between paying off a loan within 2-3 years vs 10+ years.

Should I defer my acceptance and re-apply?

I should have applied to HPSP program but I didn't think I wouldn't get into my state school since my stats are quite higher then their avg matriculates.

Also if my DAT is almost 2 years old, would it still be valid for the 20-21 cycle if I submitted my app before the date I took the DAT?

[I didn't bother reading any of the other comments, just by the way.]

I've written about my experience in a similar situation in the past. I don't know how to link that SDN post here, but maybe if you search my name it will come up.

I had to choose between attending NYU (and being in around $600,000 of debt) and reapplying to my state school. I chose to reapply, after making a reapplication plan with my state school. The plan involved increasing my work and volunteer experiences, taking additional science coursework to increase my low science GPA, and adding to my experience in the dental field. The reapplication plan did not guarantee my acceptance, but it was guaranteed to better my chances. Ultimately, I got into my state school and will be attending this year. However, I did not get into any of the other (backup) schools that I applied to the second time around (which I only would have attended if I had received the HPSP scholarship, which ultimately I didn't). I didn't even get any interviews to the other dental schools I applied to, likely because they viewed my reapplication after rejecting an acceptance as a red flag. You have to be prepared to face a similar response from programs if you reapply.

My overall GPA was around 3.50, science GPA around 3.05 at the time of reapplication.
My DAT was 23 AA, 24 TS. (I did not have to retake my DAT for my reapplication).

I would say that if you feel the program that you'll be attending is going to be unaffordably expensive-- once interest in considered and whatnot-- contact your state school to see if you can make a reapplication plan. If they are willing to work with you, and you are willing to gamble a bit, then go for it: reapply. A lot of other may say that it would be foolish to do this and risk your future in the dental profession. But ultimately, you need to go with your gut. It worked for me will save me around $200,000; it may (or may not) work for you.

Best of luck in your decision

 

[Lindseyd25]

The amount of 3 year HPSP scholarships is low. This year 10 for the army, 60ish for the air force, and you are too late to apply for navy already. Don't take all advice here at face value, do your research.

Where do you get your facts? I’m applying for the 3 years AF HPSP and can’t find any anywhere.

 

[ESPN907]

What instate school is that cheap? If you didn’t evaluate the risk while applying of getting into a school more expensive that you’re willing to attend...now it’s time to evaluate the risk of never getting into dental school again and decide if it’s worth turning down your spot. There is no free lunch, take what you are given. If the price tag has made you question dentistry maybe it’s time to look at other career paths. Good luck in making your decision! Hoping the best for you.

 

[Blueshirts]

Where do you get your facts? I’m applying for the 3 years AF HPSP and can’t find any anywhere.

All of the information I ever received was directly from my recruiter in the Army, and from friends who applied to other branches and received their information from their own recruiters. Any healthcare recruiter should be able to provide you with stats about the previous application cycle.