Which School should I attend?

[Dr_Oh_DMD]

Which School should I attend if:
1) I have not yet decided if I'd like to specialize but I would like to keep it as an option. Right now I think I would be happy to be a GP.
2) I am not rich and $$$ is important.
3) Not even applied to my state school (long story)
4) I hate reseach!

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[drPheta]

Your choices are fairly limited, and they don't really cover the entire spectrum of schools offered. That said, I chose "not very prestigious, but love it there" because I'm an advocate of working where you're happy. Be it out in practice or in school, you're only as good as you'll let yourself be. If you're miserable, you're dealing with stress that you don't need to be.

Ivy league means jack in dental school. Name is nothing in this arena. Every school has its niche. Some emphasize research for those enthusiastic about it. Others are more clinically inclined. Some have a reputation for specializing, while others seem to have most of their graduates enter general practice. But, you can specialize at ANY school you go to. It's just a matter of how disciplined and dedicated you are.

Also, cheapest school can mean many things. A difference of 10,000 a year isn't really that significant compared to a difference of 30,000 a year. That 10k could totally be worth going to the school that makes you happier. However, chances are 30,000/year isn't going to be worth 4 years of happiness (compared to 10 years of addtional loan payments). However, since you said you didn't apply to your state school, chances are you're going to get accepted to a private institution. That means, the cost of education will range from 50,000 to 70,000 (tuition, fees, books, housing, etc.).

HTH.

If I'm wrong anywhere, please correct me guys.

 

[aphistis]

Originally posted by Dr_Oh_DMD
Which School should I attend if:
1) I have not yet decided if I'd like to specialize but I would like to keep it as an option. Right now I think I would be happy to be a GP.
2) I am not rich and $$$ is important.
3) Not even applied to my state school (long story)
4) I hate reseach!

You'd better make sure you can be happy being a GP before you commit to dental school. If specializing doesn't work out and you hate being a GP, you've got a long, miserable career ahead of you.

If applying to your state school is even an option, you might consider it. If you have strong credentials, your chances of admission to a state school are very good, and waiting a year to start school could pay huge dividends over time, compared to attending a much more expensive school where you'll accrue a much taller loan obligation.

 

[Dr_Oh_DMD]

The difference is ~6,000 an year which is not much but after 4 years thats like 25,000. or even more cuz the tuition always goes up.

There is NO way I can hate to be a GP. When you decide that you want to go to Dental School you better know that the least thing you will be is GP, DDS/DMD and you should be OK with this. I THINK that a person is making a mistake if he enters dental school with the only idea "specialize". No one garantees this. Everyone who enters dental school should like dentistry the way it is. If someone however likes a field of dentistry more and he wants to do it to the rest of his life then let him go ahead and specialize.

 

[sxr71]

Originally posted by Dr_Oh_DMD
Which School should I attend if:
1) I have not yet decided if I'd like to specialize but I would like to keep it as an option. Right now I think I would be happy to be a GP.
2) I am not rich and $$$ is important.
3) Not even applied to my state school (long story)
4) I hate reseach!

Let me guess. You didn't apply to OSU. Sort of the same thing here. I decided to apply to OSU really, really late after I seriously looked at the financial aspect of acquiring a dental education. It's pretty darn late right now and they told me that I wouldn't even be interviewed as an alternate. So I've basically resigned myself to paying through my nose for this education.