UNC (OOS) vs. Pitt (IS)

[Syrian-Pre-dental2015]

Hey everyone. I was blessed to be accepted into 5 dental schools. UNC, Columbia, Pitt, Temple and Rutgers. I initially made a decision to choose UNC based on 3 major factors that I was considering (Cost, Name and Weather and location). However, after more research on ADEA book and on this website, I realized that UNC might not be the ultimate fit for me. so I wanted to get other people perspective on this, especially from current students that are familiar with these schools.

Cost: UNC on paper should be just 20K more expensive than Pitt. However, I couldn't calculate possible savings by staying in the same state where my parents live (PA). If I stay at Pitt, my parents would be paying for car insurance, health insurance, etc. Also, after reviewing the financial aid from ADEA and comparing them to UNC packet, I realized that UNC has increased their tuition by roughly 9K over the last two years, and if a drastic increase to happen in the future, I expect my cost of attendance at UNC will be about 50K more when compared to Pitt. Pitt has only raised their tuition by 7K in the past 4 years.
I have asked UNC if they can offer me some scholarships but it did not work (said they don't offer merit-based scholarships).
Note: these numbers are based on me getting in-state tuition after the first year at UNC which is something not guaranteed and if I to stay oos for the 4 years, UNC will be way more expensive, even more expensive than Columbia so why not I go to Columbia!!?
Conc: Pitt wins here.

Name: UNC might have the edge here but Pitt also has a good name.
Conc: Tie.

Weather and location: UNC has the better weather (obviously) but Pitt is close to family.
Conc: Hard to call it but I think UNC wins here.

Note: I went to Pitt for undergrad and my family lives in Pittsburgh. For specializing: I'm not decided but for now, I'm only thinking General Dentistry so cost is most important. Also, I have an interview at UPenn on Jan 4th and I interviewed at UT San Antonio, so If I later get into UT SA I might just go there because it will be around 40K cheaper than Pitt.

Thanks! and happy holidays.

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[macsak]

if you plan on working and living in Pittsburgh after graduation, choose Pitt

 

[zToothinator]

Where did you calculate the UNC increased tuition by 9k over the past 2 years?

ADEA book 2016-2017: $34,065 tuition + $7,162 fees (I think this includes summer session tuition) = $41,227
2017-2018 COA : $34,172 academic tuition + $4,155 summer tuition + $5,544 fees = $43,781
2018-2019 COA: $39,730 academic tuition & fees + $4,350 summer tuition & fees = $44,080

Which is a difference of ~$3k over 2 years. In your calculations, make sure that you're comparing apples to apples. Some sources report just tuition (academic vs academic and summer) whereas some combine tuition and fees together.

 

[Syrian-Pre-dental2015]

I'm comparing apples to apples.
1) ADEA Book 2016-1017: $34,065 (Tuition) + $7,162 (Fees: not sure what kinda of fees) = $41,227
2) Packet (2018-2019) that was given at the interview dated as Jun 27, 2018: $36,152 (Academic year tuition) + $4,785 (Summer tuition) + $5,569 (Univ. Fees) + $4,926 (Dental School Fees) + $40 (Basic Science Fees) = $51,472
So the difference would come up to $51,472 - $41,227 = $10,245
3) Packet (2018-2019) that was deliverd after acceptance: says on it 2019-2020 is not finalized, "the figures shown below are for the previous academic year": $39,730 (Tuition) + $4,350 (Summer Tuition) + $11,918 (Miscellaneous) + $764 (Miscellaneous summer) (Living and travel expencses are not included) = $55,998
Difference: $55,998 - $41,227 = $14,771
Difference between UNC sheets (both for the same 2018-2019 academic year): $14,771 - $10,245 = $4,526
This calcultion is based on in-state but when looking at oos the difference is even larger.
You can also subtract the living expenses from the totals and then compare the numbers, you can see a large difference there too.
There is an inconsistency here. it is either ADEA failed to report the correct cost of attendance for UNC, or UNC failed to report all the fees to ADEA. At the end of the day, I used ADEA to apply and now I'll have to go with UNC sheet cost of attendance to calculate how much it would actually cost. In other words, I applied thinking tuition and fees were $10,000 cheaper than what they actually are.

 

[Beckwith Wiedemann]

I agree that there is definitely some inconsistency with what ADEA reports and what UNC reports. Let's just go with what UNC says since that's probably the most authentic data:

IS Tuition
2017-2018: 34172 (academic year tuition) + 5544 (university fees) + 4155 (summer tuition) = 43871 [first year]
2018-2019: 36152 (academic year tuition) + 5569 (university fees) + 4785 (summer tuition) = 46506 [first year]

That's a 6% increase (46506/43871) based on tuition itself. What I can say for certain is that is a huge % increase for NC residents.

If projected another 6% increase for next year, then the first-year tuition for NC residents would be 49296 which is pretty much 50k, and doesn't include any of the dental schools fees yet, which is also going to increase.

OOS Tuition
2017-2018: 57816 (academic year tuition) + 5544 (university fees) + 15975 (summer tuition) = 79335 [first year]
2018-2019: 59795 (academic year tuition) + 5569 (university fees) + 18150 (summer tuition) = 83514 [first year]

That's a 5% increase (83514/79335) based on tuition itself. If bound to increase by another 5-6%, it would be 88-90k for OOS in first year for class of 2023.

OP: UNC is without a doubt a top and reputable program, but I would agree with you that "affordable" may not be the correct term as its % tuition increase is skyrocketing. Not to mention that university fees + summer tuition also will increase in D2-D4 compared to D1. I am sorry to hear that UNC also does not offer scholarships anymore (merit-based), and it is unknown how they award scholarships to few select OOS individuals as well which is unfair IMO.

Whichever school you choose in the end, you will be in good hands. Good luck in your decision!

 

[zToothinator]

Finalized rates for past years can be found here: Prior Year Rates and Information - Office of the University Cashier

It looks like it increases ~$1700/yr with about a 5% increase for both the academic year and summer. It also seems that the estimated tuition/fees for 2018-2019 were higher than actual, so on the bright side, the COA UNC estimates will be somewhat on the higher end.

So over the past 4 years, UNC has also raised tuition/fees ~7k which is in line with Pitt.

 

[Syrian-Pre-dental2015]

Thank you star-lord and Zburk for clarifying COA at UNC. It seems like I would end up with a similar price at both schools if I was able to claim residency starting the first summer (as I'm planning to move to NC in April 2019 if I ended up choosing UNC) so I think cost is no longer a factor here.

 

[Ladm8]

Everyone always advocates for the cheapest option, you already know Pitt and the area which can help you a lot with your post-graduation plans.
A 50K price difference*0.7 interest+principle= almost a years worth of dentistry income