I already put down my deposit. I love the block schedule, I cant think of a thing not to love about having to handle only one didactic course at a time. Taking multiple challenging classes concurrently, like most other d school students do, means extra stress and little-to-no down time for your self. In undergrad I once took 21 credits (3 upper lvl sci & 3 lower/mid lvl sci classes) and did research as well, and while I did still manage a 4.0 it was quite stressful and time consuming. Other d schools are just like that but with more credits and upper lvl courses.
Block system will obviously still be a lot of work, especially since entire courses are condensed to 1-3 weeks and the pass/fail line is at 90%, but all that is mediated. Youll be in class 5 days a week focusing on one didactic course the majority of the day and it wont just be your typical bland lecture with slides, itll be some of that but itll also employ more active and engaging
modes of learning.
The pass/fail at 90% may seem a little daunting, especially if youre anything like me and dont care for specializing and thought youd be taking it easy from being a straight "A" student and become a B student. However, Im sure it wont be that bad. If anything it might be more challenging to
not get above a 90 since youll be focused solely on one class at a time and doing well in the group exam earns you extra points on your individual exam.
In regard to the patient pool, based on online research and what the faculty & dental students said when I interviewed, it shouldnt be an issue at all.