<p>Even though I have not received all of my college decisions back, I believe that my college decision will come down to the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor vs University of Pittsburgh main. For now I will be studying biology (although this may change to econ)/pre-dentistry (this won't change). I am waiting to hear back for the honors college from Michigan and I have been accepted to the University of Pittsburgh Honors College. In addition I received $5,000 merit scholarship plus a conditional dental acceptance from Pitt - the only problem for the dental program is that they require a 3.8 gpa and 22 DAT. I have no guarantee at Michigan but their dental school tends to take around 60% of their own undergrads; however, getting a solid gpa (3.5+) i've heard is pretty hard. </p>
<p>I really feel that both schools are great but I do not know what to do and wanted to get some opinions. I have lived in Pittsburgh for 10+ years and have/had friends who go to pitt (which could be both a good and bad thing) but I don't know whether OOS cost for Michigan is worth it (family can afford it by all means...but still, it's a lot of money). My parents also do want me to go out of pittsburgh for college if that makes a difference.</p>
<p>Once again, I just wanted to get some opinions. let me know if i need to clarify anything!</p>
<p>If money is not an issue, University of Michigan 100%. UMich is a top world class flagship research University which goes head to head with University of California-Berkeley, Georgia Tech, University of Virginia etc. It has incredible prestige around the country. I would seriously think twice before turning down University of Michigan. </p>
<p>“their dental school tends to take around 60% of their own undergrads”</p>
<p>Everything you mentioned point towards University of Michigan. I would recommend UMich.</p>
<p>If you know you want to be a dentist for sure, then Pitt should be your choice. However, maintaining a 3.8 GPA is going to be extremely difficult at most good schools with a pre-dent cirriculum. You should inquire how many students at Pitt graduated in four years with that high of a GPA. If the number is very low, I would seriously consider attending Michigan since it is an overall better school, in the case where might decide that dentistry is not for you, and also you can afford and are being encouraged to attend it OOS.</p>
<p>As a physician, no one cares where I went to med school, let alone undergraduate. If you really want to be a dentist, save your money and go to Pitt.</p>
<p>“My parents also do want me to go out of pittsburgh for college if that makes a difference.”</p>
<p>Not a small consideration. Your parents want you to broaden your horizons. Good for them and good for you that they are willing to pay the premium to attend Michigan. There are many full pay OOS students attending U-M.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for weighing in. I know that michigan is better academically and that maintaining a 3.8 at Pitt might be hard, but what is harder: a 3.5 or better at Michigan or a 3.8 or better at Pitt?</p>
<p>Of course it will be hard to maintain a 3.8 GPA than 3.5 GPA. College doesn’t matter here since neither college can be considered an easy school plus your major is not easy.</p>
<p>@XtremePower yes i guess you are right in that sense.
So then should it basically come down to cost and fit? I know michigan costs roughly $45,000 OOS (from what i’ve been told) whereas pitt would cost around $20,000 in state for me with scholarship. I guess I’ll have to wait and hear back from everyone before i really make a decision</p>
<p>Michigan costs more like $55k. We’re talking a $140k difference over 4 years. That’s a significant sum for many families. I would recommend Pitt under most circumstances. However, if your parents are well off and can afford your entire education (including Medical school) without too much hardship, Michigan may be worth the extra cost. But your parents really have to be well off. Also, if you are not 100% sure about your medical school ambitions and may change academic/professional paths, Michigan may offer you more options.</p>
<p>I recommend Pitt. Even if your parents could afford that much money for UMich, that doesn’t mean they should spend that much. 140k can buy many, many things. Don’t forget that.</p>
<p>beyphy, the OP said his family could afford it. The question is, how much of a burden would it be? Some people earn more than $150k annually in stock options and bonuses alone. Such a family can afford the additional cost with ease, in which case attending Michigan is perfectly reasonable. Other families work hard for years to accumulate such savings, in which case, attending Michigan would be unwise since Pitt is a great university in its own right.</p>
<p>IMO, definitely not worth the financial difference with a pre-admit Pitt dental offer in hand. If Michigan can get you close with aid, then it comes down to simple gut instinct, but remember, you’re going to have to pay for dental school somehow too which isn’t cheap. Apply the savings to dental school and come out with your DMD with that much less debt. Pitt Dental is also going to be in a brand new facility (well, half of it will be brand new) by the time you start Dental School as well.</p>
<p>Alexandre, the OP also admitted that it’s a lot of money. Perhaps his parents can afford Michigan, but can they afford Michigan and the 200k for dental school? Might he change his major and do something different? Sure, but if he doesn’t, and his parents make him go into debt for dental school, he’ll be less well-off than had he gone to Pitt.</p>
<p>Perhaps we simply are on opposite ends in our philosophies of frugality Alexandre. I know someone who pays 50k to attend UCLA, and I know exactly why she does it. I personally would never even consider paying such a sum to attend UCLA, or any other undergraduate institution for that matter. But I admit that whether one would is a very personal decision.</p>
<p>Although the benefit of the guaranteed admission to Pitt’s dental school is that if you attain the required GPA and DAT you know you’re in, that doesn’t mean you can’t get into Pitt’s dental school or other top dental schools with lower stats. Here’s a link to dental school admission statistics for the class entering in 2011:</p>
<p>Dental school is expensive so as others stated, unless money is no object, the different costs for undergrad probably need to be taken into account.</p>
<p>Roughly 40% of Michigan’s undergraduates are from OOS. The vast majority are full pay, or near enough to it. That’s well over 10,000 OOS students who are full pay during the campus year. Michigan has a very high retention rate, so these coeds must feel that they are getting their money’s worth.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone. I think byephy said it best “Perhaps his parents can afford Michigan, but can they afford Michigan and the 200k for dental school?” My dad makes enough money that he could afford Michigan OOS and the rest of our family not be pressed. However, both he and I want to graduate (both undergrad and dental school) with as little debt as possible.</p>
<p>@wgmcp101 I didn’t know pitt dental was getting a new facility! is it still going to be in the same location?</p>
<p>Are you in-state to Pittsburgh? Sure, Michigan is a world-class university, but University of Pittsburgh is also a great school. The fact that Michigan is a world-class research university doesn’t matter much for an undergrad who’s not interested in a research career. You’re in-state to Pitt AND you have a merit scholarship; you also have conditional acceptance to their dental program. Even if you don’t get a 3.8, you can still apply widely, and remember that for pre-dental students keeping undergrad costs down is important.</p>
<p>Yeah, lots of people cough up OOS money every year to attend Michigan. Thousands of people also borrow subprime loans or purchase expensive luxury cars they can’t afford. That doesn’t mean it’s a good idea for any individual student, or even that it’s a good idea in general. Michigan IS a great school, but “other people do it” isn’t a very good reason.</p>
<p>Besides, it’s not like we are comparing Michigan to a regional public or little-known college out in the backwoods. The University of Pittsburgh is a great school. They also have a lot of medical research going on there - it’s an RU/VH university like Michigan.</p>