<p>I am currently a sophomore at my school, accepted at a special dental program at my school. I basically split half of my time between my undergrad and dental school during jr and sr year. I save one year of dental school (7 year undergrad + grad) and about 70,000 dollars in tuition/fees. I've been thinking about studying abroad lately in Madrid, which I absolutely cannot do while in this program. I will have finished all my pre-dent courses and have taken the DAT before jr year starts. I was wondering if studying abroad for a year is worth the extra gain in year/tuition, or would studying abroad during the summer in spain be an equally reasonable choice?</p>
<p>It depends on how much money you’re already in debt. Honestly, if you’re trying to set up your own practice, though, don’t do it. My mom is a consultant for orthodontics, and she has heard plenty of horror stories where these kids go to great schools, get ridiculously in debt, and the bank says they’re too high of a risk and won’t give them the loan to set up their practice. Because of the economy, associate opportunities aren’t opening up, either, so you’re stuck being paid half of what you deserve in what they call a “factory,” where they have a bunch of doctors working, you get paid abominable wages, and never see the same patient twice. If you’re going into the dental industry, I’m sure you’ll make plenty of money to go to Madrid later on in life : ]</p>
<p>Physicians and dentists don’t get paid “abominable wages,” even when they don’t work in their own practices.
A lot of people assume that they can just go abroad when they get older and have more money, but it is a lot harder to travel abroad for leisure when you’re older, even if you are making more money - and especially if you are a busy dentist.</p>
<p>In any case, I think it has to do with the personal importance to you about whether it’s worth it. I studied abroad when I was in college and it was an absolutely fantastic experience; it’s an enriching experience which really can’t be replicated in any other time of life. Visiting Madrid as an adult is quite different from studying there for a semester or a year as a college student. It broadens you and adds so much. I’m currently in graduate school and my experiences abroad (both academic and cultural) have really enriched my research and my understanding of the world. My only regret is that I <em>didn’t</em> spend a year abroad (I only took a semester). When people ask me whether I think they should graduate early or study abroad, I nearly always tell them to study abroad.</p>
<p>If you study abroad during the summer, will you have to pay for it out of pocket? If you study during the academic year usually your FA comes with you, but not so during the summer. Also, studying abroad for an entire academic year is not at all comparable to studying for a summer, but the summer may be sufficient for your desires. (Could you do it during one semester?)</p>
<p>I mean, in this case you do stand to save about $70,000, but you’re going to take a year to have an amazing intercultural experience. My opinion is that dental school will always be there, but this opportunity won’t.</p>