Tufts vs. Case Western Dental

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Dental2016

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Trying to decide between the two. I haven't been able to really find consistent results when looking for their rankings online. I'm hoping to get some feedback from current students at either school or other accepted students and their reasoning for choosing either school. I live a good distance away from both, their prices are about the same, class size difference doesn't really bother me. Any insight is greatly appreciated!
 
I haven't come across any unhappy Case students (unhappy with curriculum that is). I found the faculty very friendly. However, it is almost universally accepted that Tufts has one the best clinical programs in the country (students are all ready to jump in clinical practice right after graduation). Aside from that, I think it comes down to location and finances. Cleveland is one of the worst cities to live in and Boston is one of the best. Tufts tuition and Boston cost of living is much higher than Case and Cleveland. My prediction is that you will choose Tufts, and for many years in future regret why you didn't go with the cheaper option (most D4 Tufts students I talked to are anxious about their upcoming loan payments--but again who isn't?).
 
I am intrigued by Case's approach to PBL and I think it probably is run better than USC's. Also, I am sure their clinic gets packed due to the location

Nothing negative to say about Tufts though. They certainly have done a lot to provide the students with a great experience there.
 
I'd go to Tufts. I'm not far from Cleveland and man, the weather will wear you out. At least Boston is much better city to live in. I drove to Cleveland to see family and never drove back out so fast.
 
Go wherever you can save on rent, if your family lives in Cleveland or Tufts, stay there and then go to that school to cut down on costs.
 
Go where you save money. At the end you will be a dentist. Talk to the dentists they always recommend cheaper school = less dept = happiness.
 
Dental2016 said:
Trying to decide between the two. I haven't been able to really find consistent results when looking for their rankings online. I'm hoping to get some feedback from current students at either school or other accepted students and their reasoning for choosing either school. I live a good distance away from both, their prices are about the same, class size difference doesn't really bother me. Any insight is greatly appreciated!
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Dental2016,

Which school did you like better? You need to decide which of the two is the best fit for you. Obviously, you know yourself best, but I'll give you my opinion about Tufts.

I'm obviously biased, as you can see from my choice, but I would pick Tufts. Based on my interview and tour experiences, as well as my conversations with different people in the dental profession, I believe Tufts has some of the best facilities and clinical training in the country. The five-story expansion of the school that ended in 2011 added onto an already strong facility. The faculty seems intelligent and as though they are genuinely interested in helping you to succeed. The students seem to love the school, which I feel is also important. I think having students that have a passion for the school will carry on to when they are alums, which I believe is the reason so many alums of the school come back to donate their time. I am not only going to be spending four years at the school, but the people I went to class with and learned from at the school are most likely to be my closest contacts within the profession. I feel like the great people and top facilities make Tufts one of the best schools in the country.

Best of luck with your decision.👍
 
I liked the city of Boston more than the city of Cleveland, however, I have family about 40 minutes away from Case Western which is always a nice thing. I loved Tufts school, the students whom I spoke to seemed to love going there and the faculty were really friendly and seemed excited about working there. One thing about Case that is making it hard for me to decide between the two is that at Case you get to work with patients right after Thanksgiving break with the Healthy Smiles program, which I think would be great practice and help to keep you focused on why you are spending so much time studying. I appreciate everyones thoughts, still such a tough decision for me!
 
Dental2016 said:
I liked the city of Boston more than the city of Cleveland, however, I have family about 40 minutes away from Case Western which is always a nice thing. I loved Tufts school, the students whom I spoke to seemed to love going there and the faculty were really friendly and seemed excited about working there. One thing about Case that is making it hard for me to decide between the two is that at Case you get to work with patients right after Thanksgiving break with the Healthy Smiles program, which I think would be great practice and help to keep you focused on why you are spending so much time studying. I appreciate everyones thoughts, still such a tough decision for me!
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If you can live with family 40 mins from Case that would be the best situation. You can save a ton of $$$ on rent and you can live in a nicer area than Cleveland. Plus having family support is awesome. I think you answered your own question, I see no merit in going to Boston and spending more $$$.
 
Dental2016 said:
I liked the city of Boston more than the city of Cleveland, however, I have family about 40 minutes away from Case Western which is always a nice thing. I loved Tufts school, the students whom I spoke to seemed to love going there and the faculty were really friendly and seemed excited about working there. One thing about Case that is making it hard for me to decide between the two is that at Case you get to work with patients right after Thanksgiving break with the Healthy Smiles program, which I think would be great practice and help to keep you focused on why you are spending so much time studying. I appreciate everyones thoughts, still such a tough decision for me!
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Did you say you were planning to live with your family? An hour and twenty minutes is a long commute every day.
 
omnipoDent said:
Did you say you were planning to live with your family? An hour and twenty minutes is a long commute every day.
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Thats nothing compared to saving 20 to 30K a year. Its not a big deal a lot of people commute to save money. You wont be studying every waking minute of every day. Contrary to SDN paranoia.
 
wired202808 said:
Thats nothing compared to saving 20 to 30K a year. Its not a big deal a lot of people commute to save money. You wont be studying every waking minute of every day. Contrary to SDN paranoia.
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I'd prefer to not commute almost an hour and a half every day, but that's personal preference. The OP also has not said whether or not they would want to live with family, which is why I asked. Having family near a school doesn't mean you will necessarily live with them.
 
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omnipoDent said:
I'd prefer to not commute almost an hour and a half every day, but that's personal preference. The OP also has not said whether or not they would want to live with family, which is why I asked. Having family near a school doesn't mean you will necessarily live with them.
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That's true, if he can't live with them and the cost is the same than its a toss up. If he can live with them and commute he can save $80K pre interest which is around $120K after 10 years. Seems like a no brainer at that point.
 
According to the ADEA Official Guide to Dental Schools 2012 both schools have very similar DAT admissions requirements (average 20 AA). It seems that Case is a bit more selective on the GPA side (average Sci GPA of 3.64 vs. 3.44 for Tufts). Also Tufts is obviously a bigger school with a class size of 184 vs 75 for Case.

I think it comes down to if you want to go to a bigger school ( that may have more resources) and whats the cheaper option.

At least you narrowed it down to two schools! I finished my DAT and honestly have no idea where I want to go.
 
I'm not sure that I could live with my family, for my interview, which was at 9 am (I stayed at my family's house the night before) I had to leave at 7 45 due to all the traffic getting into the city. I think it may be too much of a commute at least for my first year if I end up going there. I could see myself living in both areas and really liking both schools. I had to send in my deposit to Tufts yesterday to hold my spot, not yet for Case, so right now I have a spot at Tufts and just have to decide for sure. Thank you all again for your input.
 
Dental2016 said:
I'm not sure that I could live with my family, for my interview, which was at 9 am (I stayed at my family's house the night before) I had to leave at 7 45 due to all the traffic getting into the city. I think it may be too much of a commute at least for my first year if I end up going there. I could see myself living in both areas and really liking both schools. I had to send in my deposit to Tufts yesterday to hold my spot, not yet for Case, so right now I have a spot at Tufts and just have to decide for sure. Thank you all again for your input.
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Could I ask when you received your acceptance from Case?
 
Dental2016 said:
I'm not sure that I could live with my family, for my interview, which was at 9 am (I stayed at my family's house the night before) I had to leave at 7 45 due to all the traffic getting into the city. I think it may be too much of a commute at least for my first year if I end up going there. I could see myself living in both areas and really liking both schools. I had to send in my deposit to Tufts yesterday to hold my spot, not yet for Case, so right now I have a spot at Tufts and just have to decide for sure. Thank you all again for your input.
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After April 1st you cant hold multiple deposits. So you have to make up your mind by next week.
 
Having family near a school = lots of support and help. We all know dental school is not easy.
 
lovesmile said:
Having family near a school = lots of support and help. We all know dental school is not easy.
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Lovesmile, so did you ever hear from Tufts? I remember your old post asking about whether or not the school was still giving out interview offers.
 
omnipoDent, I did get an interview. Unfortunately Tufts was too expensive for me and I am fortunate enough to have a cheaper option. Tufts is a great school!
 
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I've decided to go with Tufts officially! Can anyone add me to the 2016 Facebook group, please?
 
lovesmile said:
omnipoDent, I did get an interview. Unfortunately Tufts was too expensive for me and I am fortunate enough to have a cheaper option. Tufts is a great school!
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I'm happy to hear you got the interview. I'm sorry to hear you will not be joining our class this fall, though. I'm sure you ended up choosing another great place. It sounds like you had a great application cycle. Congratulations!
 
you should be a recruiter haha. You are so good at it! haha

Go jumbos 🙂
 
Congrats....I think you made the right choice. 👍
 
Dental2016 said:
I've decided to go with Tufts officially! Can anyone add me to the 2016 Facebook group, please?
Click to expand...
Do you currently go to tufts? I interviewed there last month and loved it have to make deciosn my next week as far as a a deposit. Would you advise me to go elsewhere? I got accepted to my state school which is cheaper. I really love tufts. How do you plan to relinquish debt?
 
I'm from nyc and thought Cleveland was fine *shrug.
 
Look ahead. Do you want to specialize then see if they have what you'd like and that would help you out
 
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