why not more 3year D-schools?

[ddschris]

---

Members don't see this ad.

it seems like UOP is one of the more popular schools on this board,
if not the most. So I can't help it but wonder, why don't they make more 3 year programs? I mean, if people at Pacific can handle the workload and become a competent dentist in 3 years, why not at other places?
any thoughts? it will be really cool if i can't cut down one year from my school. I mean, i will be like a 23rd grader by the time I graduate from the D-school!

 

[I'mFillingFine]

More schools used to offer such programs, but almost all have reverted to 4 years. In many cases, it was just found again and again that 4 years was an appropriate amount of time to mash that much information into a student's brain while making most of it stick (or, the amount of time needed to complete legal requirements for licensure.)

Of course, UOP does it extremely well, and I'm sure the students there love the program. One reason I personally only applied to 4-year programs is because I need a lot of balance.....I wouldn't be able to go all year, and I know I only get good at something with a lot of repitition and sometimes slowing down a bit.

I would imagine that in a 3-year program, you graduate early and thus have more time for family and the rest of your life, but you're more busy during those three years so you may get less time to devote to family while you're actually in school? Dunno...you'll have to ask a Pacific student about that one.

 

[armorshell]

Not sure why there aren't more three year programs, but I can certainly throw out a few guesses.

1. To facilitate a year round program you need to have faculty that are willing to:
A. Teach year round.
B. Teach at night (At UoP we have mandatory night clinics in third year and optional night clinics in 2nd year)

Considering it's already hard to find faculty, that may not be an option.

2. Unfortunately, a lot of people out there believe that doing dental school in 3 years is educationally impossible without cutting out some vital information or shortening time in the clinic. However untrue this may be, the sentiment is out there.

 

[lgwdnbdgr]

2. Unfortunately, a lot of people out there believe that doing dental school in 3 years is educationally impossible without cutting out some vital information or shortening time in the clinic. However untrue this may be, the sentiment is out there.

In addition to the other problems you mentioned, I think this is because if the school doesn't know what they are doing, they WILL end up cutting out vital information/shortening time in clinic, etc.

From the stories I've heard, UoP is the only one with a three year program because they were the only school that could get it to work effectively. I suspect other schools aren't trying to learn how to do it from UoP for all the other reasons armorshell mentioned (especially with respect to faculty demands)

 

[armorshell]

I also suspect it might not really be feasible to have a 3 year school somewhere with a ton of specialty programs. If every patient you get that needs more than one crown is shuffled off to the prosth department and your multiple extraction cases are sent to oral surgery, etc... then you might have a really hard time completing requirements.

Another factor is that with a schedule this tight, it's really hard to get extracurriculars like externships and research in, and some schools consider that an integral part of the learning experience.

 

[djeffreyt]

I also suspect it might not really be feasible to have a 3 year school somewhere with a ton of specialty programs. If every patient you get that needs more than one crown is shuffled off to the prosth department and your multiple extraction cases are sent to oral surgery, etc... then you might have a really hard time completing requirements.

Another factor is that with a schedule this tight, it's really hard to get extracurriculars like externships and research in, and some schools consider that an integral part of the learning experience.

Tight schedule, what tight schedule? I relax all the time, like right now I'm taking 15 minutes to clear my head by reading SDn and having a snack before I continue studying at 1:45 in the morning for the anatomy lecture quiz and lab oral exams after a nice long day of getting 4 different preps and restorations checked off in Operative Dentistry. Then I'll have alovely weekend of Biochemistry test studying for the Monday exam. All of this done in time to have a good week before final exams.

Yeah school. 8 weeks in, and only...ah hell, I don't have time to count, back to anatomy.

 

[planetmrmr]

3 years = 3 years tuition
4 years = 4 years tuition

 

[armorshell]

Tight schedule, what tight schedule? I relax all the time, like right now I'm taking 15 minutes to clear my head by reading SDn and having a snack before I continue studying at 1:45 in the morning for the anatomy lecture quiz and lab oral exams after a nice long day of getting 4 different preps and restorations checked off in Operative Dentistry. Then I'll have alovely weekend of Biochemistry test studying for the Monday exam. All of this done in time to have a good week before final exams.

Yeah school. 8 weeks in, and only...ah hell, I don't have time to count, back to anatomy.

Good week before finals? I think you forgot about the physiology quiz in dental anatomy and the operative practical on thursday.

 

[rainbowman]

it seems like UOP is one of the more popular schools on this board,
if not the most. So I can't help it but wonder, why don't they make more 3 year programs? I mean, if people at Pacific can handle the workload and become a competent dentist in 3 years, why not at other places?
any thoughts? it will be really cool if i can't cut down one year from my school. I mean, i will be like a 23rd grader by the time I graduate from the D-school!

Yeah but I hear that first year at UoP is torture and the third almost equally so

 

[rainbowman]

3 years = 3 years tuition
4 years = 4 years tuition

Logic would tell you that, but unfortunately UoP is hella expensive and the tuition difference between that and other private 4 years is not really discernable. Of course I'm not a dental student but it doesn't take a rocket surgeon to look up statistics

 

[djeffreyt]

Yeah but I hear that first year at UoP is torture and the third almost equally so

It's only torturous if you let it get to you and you slip behind. I mean, there are certain things you can't help, like if your handskills just suck and you have to work 3 times as long to get those up to par. Generally, if you keep on task and work your ass off during the week, you have weekends to relax. There is one girl in our class that almost never studies on weekends. As for most of us, we all relax in our own way throughout the process. I was up late studying last night cause I FORGOT we had a test in Anatomy cause I was thinking about other tests we had, but Last weekend I went to the park twice, had a 3 hour lunch with friends, and never went near the school or the library for 3 days (long weekend) so we all find ways to deal with the "torture."

Logic would tell you that, but unfortunately UoP is hella expensive and the tuition difference between that and other private 4 years is not really discernable. Of course I'm not a dental student but it doesn't take a rocket surgeon to look up statistics

The price at UOP is the same if not more than most 4 year privates. In order for us to get 4 years worth of student loans from financial institutions, UOP has set up a system where we get a calendar year's worth of financial assistance (about $40,500 in federal stafford loans and additional loans as needed from other lenders) every 9 months. So basically, every 9 months at pacific, we pay the equivalent of 1 calendar year's worth of tuition at any other school. Even then our 9 month tuition costs are higher than most 4 year schools. Right now we pay around $17,000 a quarter in tuition costs and will go to school here for 12 quarters.

So the approx. cost of UOP Tuition is: $204,000 which of course doesn't cover food, transportation, living, personal, and misc. costs of school. That pretty much just covers the tuition and I think books and supplies. Extra supplies, however, cost more, so if you burn through your practice teeth and burs or use your rubber impression materials wastefully, you gotta buy more and dental materials add up.

 

[rainbowman]

So the approx. cost of UOP Tuition is: $204,000 which of course doesn't cover food, transportation, living, personal, and misc. costs of school. That pretty much just covers the tuition and I think books and supplies. Extra supplies, however, cost more, so if you burn through your practice teeth and burs or use your rubber impression materials wastefully, you gotta buy more and dental materials add up.

Which is why I hope I can go to dental school in gainesville

 

[armorshell]

Which is why I hope I can go to dental school in gainesville

Yep, there's no doubting that it's expensive here. There are a few saving graces though.

1. It seems to me like they're pretty liberal with handing out some decent sized (~30k) scholarships. While not a substantial amount, it makes a decent dent.

2. They budget way to much for living expenses. I'm returning $2000 this quarter alone and I wasn't nearly as conservative as I should have been.

3. Everyone says it's so expensive per year (OMG it costs as much there for 3 years as it does for 4 somewhere else?!), but don't seem to understand that:

A. It costs as more per year to run our school than it does a 4 year school.
B. You're graduating with the same debt as any private school, in a year less. This equates to a savings of about $20,000 in unsubsidized loan capitalization and an additional year of income.

Comparing average students, Pacific is substantially cheaper than USC, NYU and Midwestern and on par with the cost of Columbia, Nova, Case and UNLV for out of staters.