hey from a current DS1 perspective at CASE, id say nail the boards, as with all school and you got a good shot at specializing. as far as GPA, id say CASE curves pretty darn big, mainly A's and B's for everyone in all the courses. clinically, its pretty strong starting with hands on experience in the first year, working with children doing sealants by the end of first semester. there is the dent sim practice in the first semester, as well as the begining of clinical prophies on patients in spring semester. there is also a free clinic down the street from CASE, where you can go to, to learn anything bout dentistry, and actually get the opportunity to perform before doing it on your classmates! i find that dental school in the first semester is brutal, brace yourself, but in the end no matter how much students bitch and complain, everything works out just fine.
for the person that said about brining the car, i live in the triangles, a block from school. it is CASE owned and operated. there is a private parking garage where you can park your car. this is like the only apt. complex i know of in the area with a parking garage, its nice to live close to school, but the rent is a lil bit pricey, but the winter months is about even with anywhere else, bc we aint got to pay for heat! and oh, it does get cold.