University Of Washington Dental School, Which dental school to go to?

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Q. I am applying to Dental school this summer to enter in the Fall of 1995, and would appreciate any information that you could give me that would give me a better understanding about the school you went to. Tell me about both the good and bad aspects of the school.

A. I am starting my fourth year at the University of Washington Dental School. It is a very highly regarded school (I think it was ranked 3rd nationally this year - however, these rankings are somewhat arbitrary) which is good if you are interested in postdoctoral programs. It is very strong in academics, but like most large public universities, it stresses research. It sometimes lacks in clinical areas. I feel that I am getting a good education in a nice city. For the money, it is a pretty good deal compared to other schools, but is somewhat expensive for out of state students like myself. The class size is small (50 students), so the student faculty ratio is pretty good, and the facilities, although not as nice as some private schools, are good. I would recommend this school for a good education and enough clinical skills to start a successful practice, but if you want extensive clinical experience look elsewhere! On the other hand (regarding the last response) you could come to the University of the Pacific School of dentistry here in the beautiful city of San Francisco. UOP is a small private univeristy (like it's sister campus located in Stockton, CA--of which I did my graduate and undergrad work in biology) that stresses CLINIC. We get a tremendous amount of experience in the clinic. From the first week of your frist year here at UOP, you will be down in clinic--though initially working with and on your fellow students of course. Our class size this last year was about 140. The cost of tuition is a pretty penny however but financial aid programs abound. I personally haven't saved up the $35,000 - $40,000 /year over my part time summer jobs. It's a three year program but don't let that scare you off. You get plenty of help as the entire faculty is dedicated to the "humanistic approach". You are well treated to say the least but like most other programs, you still have to work your ass off. I just finished my 1st year and I already have two patients assigned to me for when I return from break. You get many more as the 5th quarter goes on however. Contact UOP at (415) 929-6501 for more info. The city is wonderful as well--and I'm a country boy at heart so that's saying quite a bit. At Case our tuition is about $10,000 less (around $21000) and fairly clinically oriented as well. Requirements for 1st year are 5 units of cleanings and for second year 14 units. By June of the Summer after your second year, around 30 patients are assigned to you for general dental work, and the list more than doubles by your senior year. The only Summer that we have off is the one between first and second year.

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