I guess my point was not necessarily how much you are/aren't paying for school, it's how much of an opportunity you have/don't have to learn in school. Your career is going to depend on how much you can take away from dental school - it isn't like high school or undergrad where you cram info in, take the exam, and then as long as you pass it doesn't matter what you remember. Patients at the dental school might be understanding if you don't know something or are unsure, but patients in private practice certainly aren't. I went to a school that even has a reputation for producing dentists that are clinically excellent/ready for practice, and I'm still astounded at how much I've learned since I've been out of school.
If you go to any school (3 year, 4 year, summers off, summers on, whatever) and think that you are going to graduate knowing all there is to know, you've got another thing coming. Which kind of led to my point that I'd go to the school that you can learn the most from - I'd rather go 4 years year-round than 4 years with summers off, because you'll have learned & have that much more experience from the "extra" time spent in school.
