UOP Info

[ami15]

Has anyone out there interviewed at UOP? Anyone attending UOP? I'm applying to dental schools this summer and want to know more about it. What do they look for in applicants and how was the interview? Also..how is the schools overall rep? Thanks

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[Dr. Pedo]

Hi ami,

I haven't interviewed at UOP--but I've only heard good things about their dental school. Well, ok---I've heard it was a little expensive.

Not sure it'll help you but from my experience....
Most dental schools will look into several areas when deciding on a candidate. Obviously the gpa and the DAT score are important but not the "end-all" in the decision. They will want to see the candidate take part in some leadership activities, demonstrate a desire to be a dentist (volunteering or related experience), have good recommendations, a solid personal statement, and have good manual dexterity (judged by hobbies etc..)

An interview is normally an opportunity to show them the "real" you. They get to see your sense of humor (or lack of one

), your ability to communicate effectively, your maturity, your empathy for others, and to give you an opportunity to see the school. Remember they are also in the sales business---they want quality individuals and also want to sell you on their program. My interviews were rather relaxed and they only asked a few questions about dentistry. (they were easy ones----such as what is the future of dentistry, what is oral health, why is it important etc...) Otherwise they focused on getting to know the "real" me.

i wish you the best.

R.R.B

[This message has been edited by Dr.2b (edited 02-26-2001).]

 

[ami15]

Thanks Dr.2b for the reply. Do you know what their average stats are?

 

[DrDMD05]

stats for uop entering class of 2000:
class size 138
length of program 3 years
dat 20/19
gpa 3.24
applicants/accepted ratio 17/1
references required three, or one from preprofessional committee
prerequisites bio 8, eng 6, chem 8, ochem 8, phys 8

 

[ami15]

I've heard that UOP emphasizes clinical experience over research in applicants? Can anyone verify this?

 

[groundhog]

I doubt that there are many folks who know the real inside story of the selection process of each school. However, there are persistant rumors about certain schools. The rumor about UOP is that the adcoms give greater weight to DAT than they do to GPA and that they also place greater emphasis on the PAT portion of the DAT than do many other schools. The stats provided to you by DrDMD05 may lend some credence to that rumor.

 

[DrDMD05]

groundhog, that's exactly the same info I've heard about uop. you sure know your schools.
btw where did your son go?

 

[stdent9972]

I'm interested in UOP simply because it's a year shorter. Anyone know the inside story of how much more difficult it is than a traditional 4 year program?

 

[sweettooth]

I've interviewed at UOP and I was very impressed with the facilities and how they wine and dine the applicants to sell their school. It is true that they emphasize clinical aspects of dentistry and they don't require any research at all to graduate, but it is an option if you like.

Plusses include three year program, top notch sim lab, excellent faculty/student relationships, location, and their strong emphasis on practice management. Almost all of their faculty now have MBA's. The environment seems very friendly, open, clean, and organized.

I think the only drawbacks would be cost (65k per year) and added stress because of the year round classes. The first-year students were definitely stressed when I interviewed there, but they just finished a test. It might also be a little harder to specialize, but not impossible, because most specialties like candidates to have research experience. It also doesn't have a campus, if you are into that sort of thing. It's just a single building, but it's very nice and professional.

Overall, excellent school, in my opinion. I was also surprised to learn that their default rate on student loans is lower than that of the UC schools, which are around half the price. Hmmm, it doesn't make much sense to me, but they showed the numbers. I guess that's where their practice mgt classes pay off for the students.

Cheers,
Brian

 

[sweettooth]

One more thing I forgot to mention, I believe they look heavily on how you performed on the reading section of the DAT. I saw my chart when I was being interviewed by the faculty member and it had three scores at the top: PAT, overall, and reading. It probably has to do with the intensity of the program.

Cheers again,
Brian

 

[Beagle]

I think that UOP is very concerned with your DAT scores. In addition, they also care a great deal where you went to school for undergrad. Obviously if you went to UOP and paid the tuition as an undergrad, you are heavily favored over someone applying from an outside university. In addition, I know they cutt you some slack if you went to a tougher university than a state school or Junior college. THe interview, if you make it htat far, is very important as well...

 

[Doggie]

Originally posted by DrDMD05:
•stats for uop entering class of 2000:
class size 138
length of program 3 years
dat 20/19
gpa 3.24
applicants/accepted ratio 17/1
references required three, or one from preprofessional committee
prerequisites bio 8, eng 6, chem 8, ochem 8, phys 8•

Where did you get this data? I would also like to look up these data with other schools.

thanks.

 

[dds2b]

Originally posted by Doggie:
•
Where did you get this data? I would also like to look up these data with other schools.

thanks.•

AADSAS/ADEA publishes a book on this info about every dental school in the US and Canada. You can purchase it for $25 directly from AADSAS...The guidebook is called 'Admission Requirements of US and Canadian Dental Schools: 2002-2003. You can order the book directly from AADS by calling (202) 667-9433.

This book is invaluable and will let you know the avg DAT scores, avg. gpa, the # of in-state students accepted, the # of out-of-state accepted, the # of applicants to the school, the # of students enrolled in first year, the tuition fees, the application fees, and tons of other info. which will let you know what schools you should apply to and have the best shot at getting in.

good luck! HTH

 

[Gil]

Ami15,

I am a current UOP dental student. From my own experiences and from talking to students and teachers, it seems that the best way of getting into UOP are a high GPA (at least 3.0) and good DAT scores. If your GPA is closer to 3.0, study really hard to get that DAT score to at least 19 but hopefully higher. If you get the chance to interview there, you've got a great chance of getting in. According to several doctors and staff close to the admissions process, they will accept about 95% of the people that interview at UOP.

UOP is a school that really emphasizes education geared towards the clinical aspect of dentistry. Their sim lab is excellent, and provides a great way to learn the hand skills that will be needed. They have just added a state of the art classroom and will be adding at least one, maybe two more of these classrooms (the classrooms look like a a small modern theatre equipped with the latest technology needed for any type of presentation). The pass rate for the national boards at UOP is over 95%, and the CA boards is about the same. Currently the clinic is starting to transition to computerized charting and students are provided laptops for clinic and didactic use.

Personally I was impressed with the school and teachers, and the way they presented their material. The doctors that lecture there usually give notes that summarize what students need to learn from a certain chapter or lecture. If the materials aren't handed out in class, the information is posted on the school's website where the student can read on the computer or print is out themselves. This quarter several of the instructors have provided CD-Roms in place of a large syllabus, and this will probably be true for more subjects in the future. The doctors that teach there are all very nice and easily approachable. UOP definitely has some of the friendliest and considerate professors (not all of them are like that, but over half of them are).

The main negative out of UOP is the cost. Total cost of education (not including room and board), is about $170,000 over 3 yrs. On top of that, SF is not the cheapest city to live in. If you rent a room, it'll be about $650-$1000. Studios are about $1000-$1400, 1br apts $1300-1900, 2br apts $1800+.
But with the extra year you get, you'll be earning about $90,000 in your first year if you stay in the bay area to work. Like someone above said, UOP has one of the lowest default rates on their loans, and I think this is due to the fact that UOP not only teaches one how to be a dentist, but they also teach the students how to run a business and handle their finances.

If you have any more questions, let me know.

 

[ckrupan]

Flowerpot,

I found some old messages from the summer regarding U of P. I thought this might be useful in making the decision.

 

[flowerpot]

thanks Caligirl,
hey, I noticed you have the same top 2 choices for schools...maybe we'll end up at the same place... well, that's a long way off

 

[wasabi007]

hi all,

i am completely torn over uop. i just had a wonderful interview experience at uop--loved the facilities, faculty/students, and especially the general ambiance of happiness. however, i've heard such contrasting opinions about uop that i can't decide what to believe.

my mentor, coworkers, dentists say that uop is not a good school....3 years of practice is just not enough time to master everything...faculty is not as strong as at uc's...it has a rep for being a school where if you have the money, you can get in...school for people who can't get in anywhere else...etc.

but, when i was at my interview...everyone had such good things to say about the school (everyone meaning both the uop folk as well as those of us, applicants)...fellow applicants told me that all they've heard were good things about uop...how hygenists they've worked with prefer working with uop grads than dentists from other schools because uop dentist are so skillful with their hands...alum have reported taht they loved it there...and of course the candy-coated impression given by the uop faculy/students/staff...

i can't believe that there are such disparate views about uop. where should i look to find the truth behind all the hearsay?

much perplexed,
wasabi007

hi caligirl,

would you mind posting the old uop threads? i'm very interested in finding out more about uop too. thanks!

 

[ckrupan]

Wasabi,

Talk to graduates of U of P. Ask Kathy for the list of past graduates in your area. I think that is the best way to find out. Ask the alumni how they think U of P prepared them for practice in the real world. Also talk to many different people so that you get a broader perspective instead of one person's point of view. If you hear same thing from various people, then it's more credible.

Also, if you want you can email me and I will give you some more information from some alumni.

 

[ckrupan]

Here are some emails that I've received from U of P graduates in the past few months. He said it was ok for me to share this. I hope that these will give some idea from a person who actually went there.


"I actually think the three year program is great. The only thing about the three year program and specializing in my opinion is that you will have to make the decision as to whether or not you want to specialize/ what to specialize in sooner than if you were in a traditional 4 year program. I wouldn't worry about the three year program inhibiting your chances to specialize. It may only be a problem with some oral surgery programs that don't like the accelerated idea, from what i've heard."

"Personally I have a love/ hate relationship with dentistry. Sometimes I love it and sometimes I hate it. I think that the first thing that you have to consider is if you want to be a physician or not. Some people that want to be "doctors" that get into dentistry have problems in my opinion. Dentistry, is a very unique and somewhat isolated profession. It is a health profession, but it is in a world of its own. (unless you get into oral surgery, because that is pretty much like practicing medicine) That can be good or bad, depending on the way that you look at it. Personally, I never wanted to/ or even thought about going into medicine, and kind of just got into dentistry without knowing much about it. The thing about dentistry that is difficult is the fact that dentistry is actually difficult. The technical aspects of dentistry are much more difficult than I ever imagined before coming to dental school. I always thought that the hard part was taking all of those med school classes, but for me it was all the hands on stuff that made it frustrating and hard. Some people with great "hands" and little science background find the med school classes the hard part. Then, when I actually got into the clinic, many other things came into play. For example, just dealing with patients and getting them to come in for and pay for their treatment was very difficult. But all in all dental school has been a very positive experience for me in many ways. I could probably go on for hours about dental school and what it is like, or why it is so challenging. I think it is a good idea to try to learn what dentistry is really like, although I don't know if this is really feasible by just observing someone. My current opinion about dentistry is that it is a business revolved around people skills. I think that the best dentists/most successful dentists are those that have good interpersonal and business skills. Dentistry can really be a cool and fun thing to do. I have friends that love it and others that hate it. Right now I am enjoying it and feeling really excited about my future career. "

 

[wasabi007]

hi caligirl,

thanks for sharing the uop graduate's email with us! i will try to contact some uop alum as well and see what they think about the 3 year program.

-wasabi007