You believe you are ready to apply to dental schools. Through all the years in undergraduate, the accumulating stress, the tears, the smiles, you feel it is time. Time to apply. But where should you apply to? To how many schools? What are the different types of schools? Specializing? Clinical programs? How does my DAT score compare to applicants? What are the pre-requisites? Ahhhhhh!!!
I was in your shoes not even a year ago. This was JUST six months ago for me. Time goes by quick and I want to make this process as easy for you as possible. In this post I will go over the main factors you should consider when choosing a dental school and some tid-bits I learned along the way which I want to share with you.
Here is a list of US Dental Schools and list of Canadian Dental Schools for my fellow northerners.
Location
Let me first premise by saying the best resource I had through this process was ADEA's Dental School Explorer. You can either purchase a paper or online copy - or both - but I would just stick to the online version for $25 a year. It gives you an updated (most of the time) collection of information from each dental school in the US and Canada. With all the factors I highlight today, this will give you the information and more. Can't recommend this more. Split the cost with some of your pre-dental friends to make it even more affordable. Some information on dental schools are so hard to find - trust me. Save your time and stress and get the guide. I am not sponsored by ADEA, this is my honest thought.
The best resource for learning about dental schools is the ADEA Dental School Explorer - it costs $25 for a yearly online subscription but is so worth it . . .
Tip #1
Now onto location. I think this will be a heavy factor for many. If you attend dental school this is where you'll be for the next four years. Remember how stressful it was to choose an undergrad institution? Well this probably will dictate more of your future. This location may be where you practice one day, meet business partners, and decide to settle down. Or not. But for many, choosing their state school to apply to is an obvious choice as you are surrounded by a familiar community with nearby friends and family. And in-state tuition . . . and a higher acceptance rate . . . but that's for later. JUST APPLY TO YOUR STATE SCHOOL(S). Just do it.
As for outside of your state, I would only apply to locations you would attend. Because if you don't want to go there in the first place, why bother apply? One way to do this is to break down the schools by region. West coast, Midwest, southwest, southeast, etc. Would you like to go there? Do you have nearby family? Thoughts to consider when you choose a school. I know that I had no family and didn't personally feel a connection to the southeastern US, which is why I avoided dental schools in the area. And a strong reason for a lot of west coast schools. I have lots of extended family out there.
Apply only to schools that you would attend if you are accepted
Tip #2
Cost
Okay, before I begin, if you don't know how expensive dental school is, I am going to stop you right here. Please read my blog post about the pros/cons of dental school. After you understand what you're getting into, and are thinking of getting it funded by a scholarship check out the post about ways to fund dental school (coming soon) and the HPSP Mega Thread if you are interested in that. If you choose to get a scholarship this will open up so many doors for you school-wise. This is because maybe ahead of location, cost should determine where you go to school.
"Maybe ahead of location, cost should determine where you go to school"
Ethan Ta's brain
Because I can only see dental schools going up in price, disregarding some political/education miracle reform, you should attend the cheapest dental school that you can. This is because at the end of the day, it really doesn't matter where you get your DDS or DMD. When's the last time you asked your dentist where he went to school? Never? I thought so. Weighing location and other factors, if a school you get an acceptance letter is substantially cheaper than the rest, go to it. This may be your state school or another school you get a scholarship from.
Now what schools are cheap? These will generally be your state school because of in-state tuition. There are some schools that have cheap OOS tuition, most notably dental schools in Texas. HOWEVER, we need to look at acceptance rates next. For reference now, nearly all the dental schools in Texas accept less than 10% OOS applicants, and more likely closer to less than 5%. It is difficult. I will touch on acceptance rates next.
However, there are some schools where you can get in-state tuition after you first year due to certain laws about in-state status. I don't know these on the top of my head but if you type in 'in-state tuition after a year dental school' or 'eventually get in-state tuition dental schools' into a browser, you'll find something.
Some OOS tuition also may be lower than your state school depending on where you live, so look at the Dental School Explorer! Also note, that for reference some schools like NYU (nothing personally against them) have very high tuition rates. You may end up with close to 3/4 of a million dollars in debt by the time you graduate!
For forming a list, I would first focus on if you're doing a scholarship option. If you are you can apply more broadly disregarding cost. If not, I would look at cheaper schools and the next factor:
Acceptance Rate/Selectivity
Once you look on the schools' website or the ADEA Explorer, you will get a general idea of how you fit into the school. The schools often publish the average DAT scores and GPA/Science GPA for matriculating students. I would focus on these numbers as the scores for average applicant isn't what you want. You want to get accepted.
If you are around the stats of the school I would apply. It's also fine to be either too high or too low from the average stats, I wouldn't do this for too many schools but if it's your dream school go ahead and apply to 1-3 of these. Unlike undergrad, I don't think there is such a thing as a safety net or reach school. Dental schools work in special ways especially due to selectivity.
Selectivity is how many in-state and out-of-state applicants they allow into their schools a year. Some schools have reciprocity agreements as well meaning they take applicants from certain states and give them "in-state status" when applying. These dental schools who have high in-state selectivity want more in-state students as they believe it will benefit the states numbers of dentists for the future. In general, private schools allow more out-of-state applicants and internationals than public state schools. I know California, East Carolina, Washington, and California schools are notorious for low out-of-state acceptance rates or high selectivity. I knew this going into the application period, and it ended up resulting in what I thought. Worth a gamble though.
Look closely at a schools average matriculant's stats and the in-state to out-of-state selectivity
Tip #3
These next few factors should be considered after the following as they aren't as important in my eyes. Personal opinion though so agree to disagree.
Class Size
Some schools have different classes ranging from 30 to over 400 students per year. This is small for most applicants coming from big public universities, but something to consider. Either way you'll interact closely with these students each day as I have heard that dental school is a lot more like high school than university since everyone is taking the same coursework and there aren't a ton of "majors" that people spread out into.
Pre-Requisites
Look at the dental school website or the Explorer for this. You'll need to take all the pre-requisites before you graduate your undergrad and get your Bachelor degree, NOT BEFORE YOU APPLY. I repeat, you do NOT have to have all the pre-requisite coursework completed when you are applying.
Do keep in mind though if you are missing this coursework and if you have time to get it done. I know coming from a small liberal arts college that for OHSU I would have needed to take an online anatomy class since my school did not offer it. Extra steps that you should weigh in your dental school list.
Clinical Program
This is what the dental schools will try to sell you while at the interview. The curriculum and clinical program. All will try to say theirs is the best because they of this and that and start you in the clinics at this point in the year. I agree that this is important, just like how you chose an undergrad. But remember at the end of the day when you graduate, you will still be a "rookie" dentist who still has so much to learn. From people I shadowed I was told that coming out of dental school they felt so confident but soon realized they had done so little. Their first week at work was about the same amount they did in their last year in dental school. Think about that.
Needless to say, if you have the opportunity, and cost isn't as an issue do bring yourself to the best fit.
After the main factors of location, cost, and selectivity/acceptance rate, do bring yourself to the best school that fits your needs
Tip #4
How Many Schools
This is always a good question but I would say think of all the factors I listed above and choose some schools and write them down. I would say 8-10 schools is the average people apply to. I have heard of those that applied to 1 school and other with 20+. Do know that it costs about $175 for each additional school after secondary fees.
I was fortunate this year as due to COVID-19, all interviews were online through Zoom or a similar video conferencing platform. This saved me so much money to not have to fly, get food, and rent hotel rooms or an Air B&B. But expect to pay at least $500 for each interview you get that's not in-state.
I had a mix of my state school, west-coast schools due to family, and institutions that I thought were "reaches" and "safety nets". Never heard back from the "safety nets" funny to say. I got into my "reach" school of UPenn. Interesting how it works out.
Coming up with your list isn't a one day event. Take your time, talk to friends and family about what they think
Tip #5
I hope this helps you in some capacity. If you would like me to discuss school choices with you feel free to reach out. Oh I have an update for the blog but will make turn it into a quick post after this. Ta-Ta!