I have thought about this question pretty extensively, particularly since I am an older student who will be entering dental school this fall at the age of 33.
When I first made a list of schools to apply to I ranked schools based on (1) location, (2) international service missions (since I am interested in going abroad during dental school), and (3) facilities. NYU was one of the schools that was at the top of my list based on my initial research.
I do agree with most people that you should not pick a school based on name recognition unless you get into Harvard or Columbia and then only if you are considering academia / teaching in your future. In the end, what we learn in dental school will not be entirely adequate to prepare us for a practice. This knowledge will be gained in the few years following dental school as an associate. So paying more for the NYU name is certainly not a wise decision. With that said, NYU is extremely well known. The average person is above the NYU bickering that seems limited to SDN. The fact that you went to NYU should not hinder you in your career and may even help based on general reputation and a large network of graduates.
As to location, I realize New York City is not for everyone. But there is little doubt it is one of the most diverse cities in the US. And honestly the fact that an additional 100+ international students are added after the second year is a plus in my eyes since this only increases the diversity and perspective of your class. And after all it is New York City. A total melting pot of the United States. You have broadway shows, you have Yankees games, you have movie premiers, you have a certain sense of fashion (i.e. the women in skirts and knee high boots in 10 degree weather), you have TV and filmography (i.e. MTV, CNN news, Letterman, etc). You will be studying alot particularly during the first two years but you do need downtime and NYC is a great city for that downtime. Yes, you could visit and see many of these things, but to live in NYC is truly a unique experience that you will carry with you for the rest of your life. Even the simple things like a late night trip to a falafel stand to take a break from studying will be memorable. Some people say go wherever is cheaper, it is only four years of your life. But for many, you will meet your spouse when you go to dental school and that may tie you to the area you end up going to school at. It is like the person who takes a job in another city to advance his career and ends up staying in that city until he dies. These are major decisions in your life that should be thought out carefully. Yes NYC is extremely expensive and you will be living in a shoebox. But it is freaking NYC.
The facilities speak for itself as do the patient base and international service trips (look at their website) so I will skip this.
NYU does have a large class size. But I went to an undergrad institution that had 20,000 people and honestly being a number is not a big deal. Unless you are socially inept, you will meet people, have a close circle of friends who you study with and go out with. I don't need my teachers to coddle me and having a little initiative may go a long way when you start your practice.
So lets get into the price tag of it and what this means. Assuming your parents are not going to help you, you are talking $360,000 based on $60k per year tuition and $30k living expenses each year. You can drop this by about $10k per year by communiting 30-40 minutes each morning which is not a big deal since you can spend that time studying. But for sake of argument let us just assume $360,000 vs. $160,000 for your state school. You are taking an additional $200,000 (plus interest) to attend NYU. On a student loan of about $200k you will be paying $1300 month for 30 years. On a $400k loan you will be paying about $2600 per month for 30 years. So realistically you are talking about making $1300-1600 dollars less per month. If you make $150,000 net and pay 40% in taxes than you are talking a net salary of $90,000 per year or $7,500 per month. So realistically what you are talking about is the difference of netting $6,200 per month vs. around $5,000. Obviously the more you make (i.e. specializing), the less it will matter. Some of this will be offset by the fact that NYU certifies you in invisalign so even if you are a general practice dentist, you can offset some of this cost by offering this procedure. But nonetheless $1300-1600/month is significant amount of money and there are going to be sacrifices associated with this. But if you know what you are getting into, it will be calculated sacrifices. For exampe, instead of being an associate for 2-3 years, you may choose to be an associate for 5-6 years to pay down your debt faster. You may be driving a Lexus instead of a Porsche. You may have to buy a $250k house instead of a $400k house. You may have to buy a practice with an apartment above it and live in this for a few years. You may share a car with your spouse. You may need your kids to pay for their own college tuition instead of you fronting the bill for them. But there is no doubt you should live pretty comfortably.
In the end, you probably are not taking your porsche, or your half a million dollar house with you after you die so you might as well enjoy life to its fullest. If this means experiencing a city like NYC for four years of dental school, than NYU is perfect for you. If it means driving the fanciest car possible or buying the biggest house possible, than maybe NYU is not for you. Some of the most memorable experiences of my life have been associated with discovering new and unique places (i.e. travel abroad). So for me, I am ignoring the naysayers and keeping NYU near the top of my list.
Go ahead and tear my comments apart🙂
Cheers,
Bob
