Due to financial constraints, I will be attending TCNJ (graduating class of 2021) on a full scholarship & commuting. My goal is to become a dentist, or maybe a dental surgeon. I will my majoring in Public Health & minoring in Spanish.
My parents have agreed to pay for dental school since I will be getting a free undergraduate education, and my dream dental school is UPenn Dental. I scoured the TCNJ website and was disappointed to see that many students attended UMDNJ, and I know FOR A FACT that I do not want to spend eight consecutive years in NJ. I would rather like to study dentistry in a prestigious university. This is not meant to come off as snobby or pretentious - getting into any dental school is a feat in itself, but it looks like most students just continue on to study at NJ’s Dental school and I do not want to spend so much time in suburban NJ. I’ve heard TCNJ is sort of like a HS atmosphere, and I really want to study at an elite university without this type of environment at some point in my life. I was not able to receive the undergraduate education I wanted (my dream was to study at an elite LAC like Haverford, Middlebury, or Smith, then go onto dental school), so I refuse to compromise my professional education. Would anyone be able to affirm that TCNJ students can go on to top dental schools (or med schools, I suppose they fall under the same category). I looked at both the UPenn Dental Undergrad Matriculation list, and TCNJ is listed once in six years. I also looked at the TCNJ pdfs about the “One Year Marks”, and the majority are at UMDNJ. By attending TCNJ, am I compromising my entire dental education experience? (Not that UMDNJ is a bad school - it is just that I LONG to attend an ivy or top dental school). Does TCNJ facilitate the process for students who are motivated to attend such schools after undergrad? Also, does TCNJ allows students to do research? Could anyone find evidence that shows that TCNJ graduates can and do in fact attend top dental schools such as Penn, Columbia, UNC, Tufts, etc.?
Thanks. I am very disappointed - I was accepted into several top LACs and strong state schools, but am only getting a full ride from TCNJ so I have to choice but to attend. It would be great if someone would assure me that my entire education isn’t compromised by attending a regional school for undergrad.
Posted this in the wrong forum! Ignore - not supposed to be in Smith, supposed to be in TCNJ!
I don’t know anything about TCNJ, but are your parents prepared to pay $100,000 per year for dental school if you get accepted at UPenn? The acceptance rate there is 5%, so you want to apply other many other dental schools. Plus half the applicants in any given cycle get accepted nowhere.
Get high grades, ace the DAT, show your love of dentistry by shadowing and joining the pre-dent club, do research. Go to the dental school that is the cheapest and requires the least loans. Every dental graduate earns a DDS or DMD, no matter what the school. Prestige is overrated.
I’m a bit curious. You got a full scholarship at TCNJ? How did you get your admission already- did you apply ED?
And number two, maybe you should go visit one of these days. TCNJ has a great name for itself and it has connections and rigor- if you make use of your resources, then you can go anywhere you want. I agree with dentmom4 with what she said- you’ll need to show your interest for dentistry while in college and shadowing/interning can boost your application for med school. Do some research about what they’re looking for.
I’m kinda surprised…I guess you don’t want to be a doctor so that makes sense. TCNJ has a 3+4 program with NJMS and it’s pretty competitive.
Also, if you didn’t know…Muhlenberg college in PA has a 3 +4 program with Upenn Dental Medicine. The deadline, however, is quickly approaching and you better act fast if you want to apply. (it’s feb 1st) So go quickly and get your stuff together and apply. I think you should to see what happens- you’re guaranteed a spot into Upenn’s Dental school if you get in.
S is 3rd year at NYU Dental. His experience was that admission was extremely competitive, grades and DAT mean everything. Any place you go you will essentially spend four years inside, hard at work. So you will hardly notice whether you are in NJ or CA. One suggestion: look carefully at course requirements. They vary somewhat by dental school. S had to spend an extra semester, even though his major was bio-mechanical engineering.