UW vs Stony Brook (When out of state is cheaper than in state)

[shima29]

Out of the schools I got accepted to, UW and Stony Brook are the most attractive to me. I'm a WA state resident, and you would think UW would end up cheaper than Stony Brook, but it turns out Stony Brook is about 30k less over the 4 years (not factoring in any tuition hikes by either of the schools over that time period). This is thanks to UW increasing tuition dramatically over the 4 years (probably due to current debt difficulties - 35 million or so) and New York allowing in state tuition after one year.

Both schools seem great to me. Location of UW is far superior being in Seattle (and close to friends and family). There is nothing to do around Stony Brook - but NYC is a 2 hour train ride away.

Facilities at Stony Brook are updated while at UW they are dated.

UW ranks students while Stony Brook is P/F.

Class sizes are similar 65 (UW) vs 45 (Stony Brook).

To combat debt problems UW has considered eliminating some specialty residencies like OMFS (WA state gvt is opposed to this so it may not happen but still under consideration).

Any opinions about the comparison of these 2 schools?

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[ThirdMolarz]

Congrats! Tough decision. 30k difference negligible imo. Depends whether you want to keep building your network in WA, or try something new at Stony Brook

 

[Lau Sang]

Grats on those two great choices. Location is a major factor, and Long Island is just not that great unless you're from the area and have family around. I've heard how new the facilities are really doesn't make much of a real difference (and idk what UW's are like, but it's not like Stony's facilities are incredible anyways). Class ranking vs p/f is something you'll have to make a choice on on your own. It seems like you're considering Stony over UW mainly because of the cost. One thing people forget when thinking about instate vs outofstate is getting a new health insurance. Idk what your current situation is, but you'll probably be able to keep your insurance in WA whereas at Stony, you'll have to buy their insurance or a comparable NY insurance (which I don't think they include in their estimated cost sheet because they are a state school-- likely to be >20k for 4 years looking at the current situation). If in fact UW is more expensive than Stony, just think of it as a convenience fee. And also, it might be far into the future, but if you have a preference for where you'd want to work in the future, I would imagine you'd want classmates to be working in similar areas. It is likely that Stony grads are mostly staying in NY, and UW grads are mostly staying in WA.

 

[ProspectivePostPreDent]

SB isn't pass fail. They're graded but I believe not ranked.

 

[Lau Sang]

SB isn't pass fail. They're graded but I believe not ranked.

Pretty sure SBU is p/f

 

[ProspectivePostPreDent]

Pretty sure SBU is p/f

In clinic, yes, in didactics, no. Unless they lied at the interview, I suppose.

 

[ncide]

I was talking to someone the other day who was in a similar boat. Got accepted to Stony Brook and UW, as well as a few other schools, and was mostly torn between Stony Brook and UW. I recommended UW since the difference wasn't that significant, and you can stay in Seattle and be with your family. Having to relocate isn't easy (I moved from Seattle to VA) nor is it cheap since you have to buy a lot of furniture or you have to move it across the country. Then when it comes time to licensure, you gotta make sure that the state license works in WA if you intend to move back, or you have to take the licensure exam (WREB) somewhere else.

UW School of Dentistry is in a lot of debt, and what's probably gonna happen is tuition will continue to rise, but how much who knows. My OOS tuition and living expenses made UW's in-state tuition and COL expenses almost the same. Still I think UW is a good choice and it allows you to be close to home.

 

[Lau Sang]

In clinic, yes, in didactics, no. Unless they lied at the interview, I suppose.

Oh I think you're right... I kind of remember that but I'm not sure anymore lol. I wasn't concerned with grading systems when I went to interviews. Can someone confirm?

 

[SweetMelonPreDent]

UW. Seems better campus life, closer to the fam for you, 30k is really negligible as some dentists can bang that out in a month, living near a city, better climate, no Lime Disease lol.

 

[Jaa_]

Another thing to take into account is the curriculum. At SBU you take some med school classes with the MD students. Idk what it's like at UW.

I personally love Stony Brook but I'd value being close to my friends/ family/ support system and Long Island is reaalllyy far from Seattle.

EDIT: also I've been living at Stony Brook for 5 years and it's not as bad as people say... there are things to do. That being said it's no Seattle lol

 

[shima29]

Thanks guys for your insight, I really appreciate it! Confirmed at UW 🙂

 

[wengerout]

I would pick Stony. I moved from the Deep South to the North East and didn’t regret it.


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[Likkriue]

Stony brook is not p/f lol. Only some meme clinic classes are p/f e.g. Patient 1.

As far as picking a place I would go to stony.

UW is in deep financial issues they laid out a plan to drop the debt from 27m couple of years ago and ended up at 35m.

Also stony is pretty stress free so far.

 

[0rgansm]

Stony is a much better school, especially if you plan on specializing.

 

[sgv]

Stony Brook is the much better school

 

[shima29]

Stony Brook is the much better school

Stony is a much better school, especially if you plan on specializing.

Why do you guys think that?

 

[WolfsBane]

Med school curriculum D1 and its cheaper. Additionally, UW is in crazy debt and thus tuition will go up. If you want a tight knit group that gives ample opportunity to specialize Stony>UW not even a contest

 

[ncide]

Med school curriculum D1 and its cheaper. Additionally, UW is in crazy debt and thus tuition will go up. If you want a tight knit group that gives ample opportunity to specialize Stony>UW not even a contest

Med school curriculum is just better for OMFS. My buddy matched in ortho this year at UW. Several of his classmates also matched in ortho and OMFS. UW is one of the better dental schools, the only detracting aspect of it is the cost and debt it is in.

 

[WolfsBane]

Med school curriculum is just better for OMFS. My buddy matched in ortho this year at UW. Several of his classmates also matched in ortho and OMFS. UW is one of the better dental schools, the only detracting aspect of it is the cost and debt it is in.

That is true, but UW is a state school, and the focus is GP. If you kill it you can specialize anywhere, it is just easier to do at stony.