Tufts vs. BU ?

[ejay]

Anybody know about student to patients ratio of both of Tufts and BU? And the other factors to campare the schools?
Next week I have to deposit one of those schools. Please help me~~~~~~.

[This message has been edited by ejay (edited March 25, 2001).]

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[dds2b]

Tufts consistently scores higher on the boards...not DVD curriculum (I personally don't like a DVD curriculum)... no APEX program at Tufts (I heard it's a waste of time and nothing more than dental assisting...I've already been there and done it)...it's a bit cheaper at Tufts....both have new sim labs...not too sure about student

atient ratios, but I heard some students at both schools had trouble getting enough patients...class size at Tufts is about 40 greater than BU, but students seemed more cut-throat at BU...I asked students at both schools if they had a chance to do it over again and some students at BU said they would have gone elsewhere if they had a chance to start over, while most Tufts students were happy with their decision.

I was accepted to both Tufts and BU and opted to put my deposit down at Tufts based on the 'vibes' I felt on the interviews/tours of the schools.

 

[ejay]

Thanks, dds2b.
Do you mean that both schools have trouble for recruiting the patients for graduate?
I also had NYU. The students said people have to wait more than 6 months for treatments. NYC is big city and has a lot of patients. How about the schools in Boston?

[This message has been edited by ejay (edited March 25, 2001).]

 

[DrDMD05]

It's not that big of a problem. The biggest problem I heard was that at Tufts you have to pay the balance of your patients bills before you can graduate. This does suck but I doubt that this happens very often. If it did everyone would know about it and the school would have problems with recruiting.

 

[maris]

I don't know where you plan to live in Boston. But, Tufts has a better dorm than Boston in term of location. Tufts/NE Medical Center is located infront of Chinatown, you'll have easy access to food/groceries.
BU/Boston Medical Center is located a bit further to stores. Even the student I talked to said to not live in the dorm, it's isolated. Since I'm planning to sell my car if I move to Boston, I thought about all this.

A student that I talked to about pulling patients kinda hem and haw a bit at BU. But another student said it's not a problem. Everybody in Tufts seemed to not find this a problem.

Somebody told me BU is more competitive, but from what I see they really try to make it not so. You d?n't know your grade until 4th year-I've heard diff. so I could be wrong.
You put your lab work in a locker and your prof grades it. When you pick it up nobody knows your grade unless you told them.
Both school seemed pretty laid back.

BU offers EXCEL and APEX which I wish Tufts have. EXCEl allows you to come a month early and preview 2 classes, get tips from profs and students (help in finding apts and life in general). APEX sounds too good to be true-working for dentists for summers of 1st and 2nd year. You get paid for it and supposedly they teach you about the business. Some students also get hired from the dentist that they worked with.

BU is going to the DVD system, but unlike NYU where you don't have the option of getting textbooks, you can still do this at BU. Tufts is sticking with the books.

Tufts brand new lab is just SIM LAB. You'll have more access to manequin at BU than TUFTS. But at the end, it doesn't seemed to matter since TUFTS has better scores than BU in Board 1 and 2.

BU cost sligtly more than Tufts. International students like me do not qualify for scolarships in BU but do in Tufts. Tufts help students to get a hygienist license at the 3rd year which can help your cost of ed. if you work weekends and summers. BU didn't mention this at all.

Tufts has a larger alumni assc. since they have been around longer. I need every help I could get to get an associateship after graduation.

It really depend on the vibe that you get when you visited the schools. Remember, you are spending 4 yrs at this school. Not to mention a good chunk of money.

Hope that helps.

Maris

BTW I'm interested if anybody choose BU over tufts and why.


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[This message has been edited by maris (edited March 30, 2001).]

 

[ParisAmel]

Hey guys,

I've been reading your responses about Tufts and BU, and thought I should add in my 2 cents about both schools, since I'm from the Boston area and I have some information about the topic. Any questions you have about Boston, I'm happy to help- it can be tough to learn the ropes at first if you don't know the little things.

I was not allowed to apply to Tufts because my Dad and his best friend from dental school have heard of several of their dentist friend's kids who went to Tufts Dental and couldn't graduate on time due to the lack of patients in the clinics. According to what you said, if you have to pay the difference before you graduate for your patient's bills, my view is that if you're already paying >$200,000 to go there in the first place, I think that's something you might want to really consider as a red flag. But that's just me looking in from the outside on that and giving my honest opinion.

I didn't apply to Tufts out of fear of that happening to me- it happened to at least 3 different people they know of. But that's also my perception- it all depends on how YOU felt there. We can tell you all we want about our perceptions at the schools, but it all comes down to where you felt more comfortable. Yes, they're similar, but which atmosphere in the clinics did you prefer? did you get a gut feeling at one school over the other? when you were there, could you envision yourself at one school over the other? were the students more like yourself at one school over hte other? These are the thoughts that went through my head. I can share with you that I felt that BU was a low stress environment and that the faculty were devoted to helping the students get through the rigors of dental school, and I talked with several students who supported that feeling too. I know one of the dentists on staff too, so I was able to hear his point of view about hte school and the students. I also felt that BU had excellent technology offered to its students to help prepare them for dental practice- from the DVD to the SLC, I was thoroughly impressed.

BU Dental school is as accessible as Tufts in terms of public transport in Boston, but I would be wary of apartment/rooms conditions in Chinatown- they can tend to be very run down and have other non-tenant roommates (ie. cockroaches and rodents). There are plenty of other areas near the school where you can live affordably and cleanly- Boston's good like that.

Sorry I can't comment on Tufts, but that's what I found at BU's dental school. I felt like I'd fit in well there, and that is why I will be there in the fall- it just felt right for ME. I'm the one who has to endure the 4 years of hard work there, and I feel BU will give me everything I am looking for in a dental school. It's your choice to make!

Best of luck with the decision, and welcome to Boston!! It's a great city

 

[ejay]

Thanks.
I heard (just heard) one of the reasons BU made the APEX program was that they are short of patients. What do you think about this? From the opinions of you guys, I just thought that the schools in Boston area are short of patients. Is that Right?