Things to get before dental school??

[Red Britton]

This is a question for those already in dental school, or even pre-dents who know the answer. After getting accepted into dental school, is there any materials that would be good to get in order to prepare for dental school or help in the life of a dental student?

I have been told to just relax and take time off, but my mind is moving 100mph right now. Thanks for any answers!

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[AwesomeTeeth]

This is a question for those already in dental school, or even pre-dents who know the answer. After getting accepted into dental school, is there any materials that would be good to get in order to prepare for dental school or help in the life of a dental student?

I have been told to just relax and take time off, but my mind is moving 100mph right now. Thanks for any answers!

ALOT of alcohol, load up on it before you go!

But in all seriousness, DO NOT study or do any type of schoolwork ahead of time. Everything you will learn will be covered in about 1-2 weeks. Then they'll shove a bunch of new material down you're throat. And you'll have to juggle a million other classes/labs as well.

Enjoy your time off. Go travel. Enjoy life. Because all your free time is going to get sucked away fast.

 

[OU11BB]

so no netters anatomy atlas or reviewing of biochem will help???

 

[tinman831]

so no netters anatomy atlas or reviewing of biochem will help???

No. You don't even know what information will be covered on the exams. Just relax. and enjoy your last few months of freedom.

 

[30isthenew20]

i'm with the OP. my mind is racing. do i need a particular kind of software for my computer? i can't wait to get my book list. i really want a big dry erase board but i don't know where i'm going to live yet. just finding somewhere to live is a huge ??
so many questions!

 

[herkulease]

i'm with the OP. my mind is racing. do i need a particular kind of software for my computer? i can't wait to get my book list. i really want a big dry erase board but i don't know where i'm going to live yet. just finding somewhere to live is a huge ??
so many questions!

Software if any would likely be given to you by school of your choice.

Whether you have a laptop already or not, you should hold off on getting one(or newer one) until you see what the school's policy is. some schools let you bring your own(meet their specs) and their IT staff will load all necessary books software etc, others are like no. here is the list of computers you get choose from.

 

[2th Doc]

You may need to collect some teeth and store them in 1:10 bleach/water solution.

 

[txaggie03]

Several things that helped me out this Fall:

Mentalcase. It is a flashcard application for mac. It is super easy to pull in photos and images to use for anatomy, or pull text from PDF handouts. coupled with the ability to pull pre made cards from quizlet and flashcardexchange.com, and you are all set. http://www.mentalcaseapp.com/

Helping hand magnifier. made holding pedestal master teeth easy when waxing. and at around 5 bucks, you can't really go wrong. http://www.amazon.com/Dual-Helping-Hands-with-Magnifier/dp/B0002BBZ2Y

you will likely wanna use netters or equivalent, but those books are illustrations. I used both netters and a book called Color Atlas of Anatomy: A Photographic Study of the Human Body. it has absolutely awesome photos of dissections. http://www.amazon.com/Color-Atlas-A...=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1322896012&sr=1-1

a good lunch box/bag. do the math, eating out or in the cafeteria everyday absolutely destroys your budget.

If you have a school that records lectures, AND lets you download the file, VLC is the absolute bomb as it allows you to speed up and slow down lectures. some of my profs speak so slowly you can speed them up to 2x and knock out a 50 min lecture in 25 min. Free. http://www.videolan.org/vlc/

speedupTV does the same thing on your iPhone, but it isn't free. very much worth the 2.99 if rewatching lectures is your thing. http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/speeduptv/id386986953?mt=8

a separate set of scrubs just for gross lab. I also used an old set of sneakers just for gross lab. that smell just really gets into your stuff and doesn't want to let loose.

a decent thermos, if you are a coffee drinker. if you are not a coffee drinker, enjoy that while it lasts.

i will post more if happen to remember, but those are the big ones i can think of right now.



oh, and as mentioned before, just enjoy your time right now. don't stress. the hard part is over; you're in.

 

[godipial]

the school will probably mail you a list of things that you need to take care of before orientation, like vaccination etc.
for academics, i agree with everyone above: chill and relax!!!!!!!!

 

[30isthenew20]

Awesome list. Thanks! I didn't think about them requiring a certain computer. We just bought one a few months ago but I think that will stay with my husband and kids (they are staying where we live now while I go to school. So I will definetly need skype).
No, i'm not thinking about pre-studying. Just a to-do list.
Comfy professional shoes? My school requires professional dress so need to figure out how up dress up and get dirty at the same time (or start saving for a dry cleaning budget).
I really want a new backpack.
I don't even know what to want!

 

[dentalWorks]

The one thing I WISH PEOPLE TOLD ME ABOUT was the lab-top ripoff.

You see, many dental schools will rip you off with a laptop. They will give you a brand new laptop, state of the art, everything nice and great, and on your tuition you will see this "$2500 I.T charge" and you'll be like "huh wtf is this?"

Yep, they will sell you a laptop (that Lonovo offers for about $800-1100), but because they spent "time" working on it and adding "software" to it... it brought the price up to $2500.... I call B.S on that.

Try to see which model they are offering to students, and see if you can buy it yourself, and simply give it to them so they can upload the softwares... it will be much cheaper than $2500 I assure you

 

[persenmi]

I would recommend getting Microsoft OneNote (it comes with newer versions of Office so you'll probably already have it). It allows you to "print" powerpoint lectures and whatever else you want to this software and you can draw on them, highlight them, type on them, etc. This may sound hokey but it is very helpful when you have three 70 slide power point lectures per day. You'll be lugging around and organizing a lot of paper if you print those babies out.

 

[AwesomeTeeth]

The one thing I WISH PEOPLE TOLD ME ABOUT was the lab-top ripoff.

You see, many dental schools will rip you off with a laptop. They will give you a brand new laptop, state of the art, everything nice and great, and on your tuition you will see this "$2500 I.T charge" and you'll be like "huh wtf is this?"

Yep, they will sell you a laptop (that Lonovo offers for about $800-1100), but because they spent "time" working on it and adding "software" to it... it brought the price up to $2500.... I call B.S on that.

Try to see which model they are offering to students, and see if you can buy it yourself, and simply give it to them so they can upload the softwares... it will be much cheaper than $2500 I assure you

Did you think that a laptop was going to be included with your tuition or something? If a school was trying to force a laptop down my throat, I would've asked for the price tag and any associated cost with it first. And then see if I could get the laptop on my own and install the software myself.

 

[dentalWorks]

Did you think that a laptop was going to be included with your tuition or something? If a school was trying to force a laptop down my throat, I would've asked for the price tag and any associated cost with it first. And then see if I could get the laptop on my own and install the software myself.

We didn't know anything... we were told to come to orientation.
First day of orientation, everyone had a box on their bench. The box was labeled "Lenovo".

I never expected a Lenovo standard tablet to run $2500

 

[UnimaasMED]

The one thing I WISH PEOPLE TOLD ME ABOUT was the lab-top ripoff.

You see, many dental schools will rip you off with a laptop. They will give you a brand new laptop, state of the art, everything nice and great, and on your tuition you will see this "$2500 I.T charge" and you'll be like "huh wtf is this?"

Yep, they will sell you a laptop (that Lonovo offers for about $800-1100), but because they spent "time" working on it and adding "software" to it... it brought the price up to $2500.... I call B.S on that.

Try to see which model they are offering to students, and see if you can buy it yourself, and simply give it to them so they can upload the softwares... it will be much cheaper than $2500 I assure you

Does UDM allow us to buy our own tablet? I just got a new Macbook and now they are trying to sell me a new tablet for $2500??? Thats crazy.

 

[UnimaasMED]

This is a question for those already in dental school, or even pre-dents who know the answer. After getting accepted into dental school, is there any materials that would be good to get in order to prepare for dental school or help in the life of a dental student?

I have been told to just relax and take time off, but my mind is moving 100mph right now. Thanks for any answers!

Find a woman Assuming you are a guy?

 

[dentalWorks]

Does UDM allow us to buy our own tablet? I just got a new Macbook and now they are trying to sell me a new tablet for $2500??? Thats crazy.

I don't know... call and ask...

I assure you, if your Mac book doesn't handle tablet-like functions, they will force you have one (you need it for signatures from the clinic instructors when you have pts and you need to verify treatment plan)

 

[UnimaasMED]

I don't know... call and ask...

I assure you, if your Mac book doesn't handle tablet-like functions, they will force you have one (you need it for signatures from the clinic instructors when you have pts and you need to verify treatment plan)

That is indeed a huge rip off. What softwares do I need to have? Do you know?

 

[UnimaasMED]

I don't know... call and ask...

I assure you, if your Mac book doesn't handle tablet-like functions, they will force you have one (you need it for signatures from the clinic instructors when you have pts and you need to verify treatment plan)

Btw Betsy told me during interview that they will buy the tablet back when I graduate. Did you know that? How much will they buy it back for? $100??

 

[dentalWorks]

Btw Betsy told me during interview that they will buy the tablet back when I graduate. Did you know that? How much will they buy it back for? $100??

I never heard of that man... I won't sell it back anyways... it will be a double rip off lol

 

[dentalWorks]

That is indeed a huge rip off. What softwares do I need to have? Do you know?

its Axium... the paperless filing system... they have to instal it for you, I don't think you can buy it outside

 

[bing12]

The only thing some of my classmates and I had trouble with was Dental Anatomy in the beginning of the semester. I would prob go over some basic terms, and become familiar with that. Don't overdo it.

 

[qkchen]

The only thing some of my classmates and I had trouble with was Dental Anatomy in the beginning of the semester. I would prob go over some basic terms, and become familiar with that. Don't overdo it.

following along the same lines, i was wondering what advice anyone would suggest for a person like me who has never taken anatomy in undergrad. i know how intense dental school will be and i don't want to feel overwhelmed by not having had prior anatomy exposure. i don't plan on burning myself out or burning another hole in my wallet by enrolling in a formal class, but what materials are available for someone who can self-teach. i've heard about netter's anatomy; would this be sufficient? thanks!

 

[SEAirLand]

One of my accepted schools webpage for accepted students highly recommended getting and reading (skimming) the book, "Medical Terminology for Health Care Professionals" before class convenes. So I have it ordered and going to look it over.

Also, CPR class is required at one of my accepted schools.

 

[jcruiser]

Get some white teeth.

 

[toothexplore]

following along the same lines, i was wondering what advice anyone would suggest for a person like me who has never taken anatomy in undergrad. i know how intense dental school will be and i don't want to feel overwhelmed by not having had prior anatomy exposure. i don't plan on burning myself out or burning another hole in my wallet by enrolling in a formal class, but what materials are available for someone who can self-teach. i've heard about netter's anatomy; would this be sufficient? thanks!

i borrowed "netter's head and neck anatomy for dentistry" from my schools library... gonna give that a bit of a skim over the next few months

also downloaded some anatomy apps to my iphone lol

 

[dentalprodigy]

I know people recommended microsoft onenote. Are there any other note taking must hadn't programs, strategies, applications for your smartphone that people recommend?

Evernote, springpad (check these out)

 

[Doc Smile]

SKYRIM!

That should make the time before now and dental school fly by.

 

[30isthenew20]

bump

 

[hifive]

Trust us when we say chillax on your free time, studying at this point will still not get you ahead of the curve cuz the nut sacks aka gunners are already lightyears ahead, they probably have written the new anatomy text that you will be reading in class.

 

[iralex801]

Trust us when we say chillax on your free time, studying at this point will still not get you ahead of the curve cuz the nut sacks aka gunners are already lightyears ahead, they probably have written the new anatomy text that you will be reading in class.

. Perfectly said. I'm going to relax so much that I get bored of being a bum and want to study in D-school .

 

[SmilingMimi]

Thanks for the info! It is going to be sooo hard to relax and not go crazy planning between now and then!

 

[Sisero68]

The only thing some of my classmates and I had trouble with was Dental Anatomy in the beginning of the semester. I would prob go over some basic terms, and become familiar with that. Don't overdo it.

bing,

I found this dental anatomy video from U-Mich, but before everyone gets excited get ready for a nice retro video 70's or 80's era. Thought i would share the link for those that are interested.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqrXeDrlEiY

 

[thewobblytooth]

go to costa rica, zipline, horseback ride, natural hotsprings, mudbath, get drunk everyday!

 

[MowgliR]

bump!