<p>Hi, I will be a Junior in high school this coming school year. I was just wondering about a few things. At the moment I am at the top of my class, and will most likely finish Val or Sal as long as I don't mess up badly. I live in Georgia, so I will be awarded the full HOPE scholarship which pays full tuition to a public state school. I was thinking about going to Georgia State (So you have to go to an undergraduate college before going to grad school? I want to be a dentist so I would need to go to Georgia state for undergrad then transfer to a school which has my major, which would include stuff like biology?). Realistically, do you think I would be paying much? Georgia state is around 20k instate to attend but with my HOPE I would only have 8k(ish) left. Would there be other scholarships on top of the HOPE or would that be the only thing I should rely on.</p>
<p>Stats...
Weighted- 4.38
UW-3.9
SAT- hopefully around 2100 since I am getting tutoring and am studying lots for it</p>
<p>thanks for the reply.
So say I get the merit aid on top of state aid and end up paying very little. Would I end up paying this much each year, even into grad school? If this is the case, I would graduate with very little debt?</p>
<p>If you study and get good test scores, you might end up paying even less than this. But, please make sure you’re applying to several schools. You can get a great pre-dental education at lots of schools.</p>
<p>Congratulations on doing so well in high school so far. </p>
<p>Have you taken a sample PSAT? How were your sample scores? Doing well on the PSAT this October could open up a lot of doors for you.</p>
<p>“Would I end up paying this much each year, even into grad school? If this is the case, I would graduate with very little debt?”</p>
<p>There are very few scholarships for med school or dent school. Students usually pay for those programs with student loans. And yes, students can graduate from med and dent and vet and law school with debts of $200,000 or more. If your parents can help at all with the cost of your education, find out if they will be willing to chip in a bit for dent school if you can manage to get your undergrad degree for free or nearly free.</p>
<p>arabrab-
I did take the PSAT sophomore year and kind of blew it off. I didn’t know scholarships were available and didn’t study. I think I was in the 85th percentile, so nothing outstanding. Can you take the PSAT again? I would be willing to start studying for it now if it would be worth it, but I would think those hours would be better put into studying for the SAT.</p>
<p>happymomof1-
yes, my parents would help me out greatly. They make pretty decent money (120k annually) and will definitely be helping me out.</p>
<p>I know there are a lot of "if"s, but if I graduate from my school as Val/Sal, go to UGA for undergrad, have full HOPE and end up getting merit aid (so undergrad would be free), then going to grad school for general dentistry (assuming I have to pay for it all based on Happymomof1’s post), how much would this roughly cost? I have been to the UGA page for cost of attendance but I get a little bit confused because I do not fully understand a few aspects on there. </p>
<p>The junior year PSAT is the one that counts. Prep for it and it can open financial doors if you would achieve NMF. After you’ve taken it, then prep for the SAT and ACT(some do better on one or the other) and take them in the spring and early summer of junior year.</p>
<p>A bit of terminology. Dental, Vet, Medical and Law school are professional schools, not grad school. Grad school is getting a masters/PhD in a subject area.</p>
<p>ok thanks, so would you advise me to take the SAT in October (rising junior). I can start studying soon and take it just to get a fell for it. Or should I just study for PSAT right now.</p>
<p>RIght now you should be studying with your focus now on the PSAT (since it drives national merit scholarships and other scholarship opportunities). You can take the SAT later in the year, with opportunities to retake or take the ACT if need be.</p>
<p>The PSAT is Oct. 16th so concentrate on that first. It will give you a good idea how you may do on the SAT. I thought the ACT was pretty big in Georgia. Take the SAT and the ACT Feb-June next spring. Prep and take each once to see how the results compare and then you can decide if you think you can improve one or the other significantly with some more prep.</p>
<p>thanks everyone,
I was looking at UGA also, so I appreciate those stats bobwallace.
In my current situation, would you suggest UGA over GSU? I am pretty sure UGA is generally a better school, but would paying a little bit more at UGA be better? This is assuming I get a 1400-1500 SAT and get some merit aid at both schools. Money isn’t that much of an issue but why pay more if you end up with the same degree at a similar school</p>
<p>* I want to be a dentist so I would need to go to Georgia state for undergrad then transfer to a school which has my major, which would include stuff like biology?*</p>
<p>??? What does the above mean??? Certainly Georgia State has biology. What do you mean transfer to a school that has your major? What is your major?</p>
<p>BTW …since the PSAT is in mid October, I do think it’s a good idea to take that first SAT at the beginning of October. And practice this summer for both tests.</p>
<p>Erin’s Dad- I looked through the full tuition /full ride scholarships thread and didn’t see any particularly good schools. I’m not saying they are bad or anything, but in my situation I would think going to GSU or UGA paying just a little would be better than going to Alabama-Huntsville for free.</p>
<p>Mom2collegekids- I’m sorry, I did not really understand that you can enroll in for undergraduate or graduate at the same school. I thought you had to go to one college for undergrad then transfer for grad school. But someone brought to my attention that I would need to go from Undergrad to Professional to graduate, if I understood correctly</p>
<p>And would studying for the SAT prepare me for the PSAT? Say I have studied weeks and would get a 2200 on the SAT, would I also do very well on the PSAT, or should they be studied as entirely different tests.</p>
<p>Personally I would rather attend Alabama-Huntsville than Georgia State. Neither is an upper-tier school, but Alabama-Huntsville has a real campus, whereas Georgia State is a very urban, largely commuter/night school without much of a real college campus atmosphere. That’s a matter of personal preference, of course. </p>
<p>UGA and GSU are very different schools. You should consider what type of college atmosphere will appeal to you and be the best environment for growth and learning. This is not the same for everyone. I would also suggest looking into the other Georgia publics, such as GCSU or Georgia Southern.</p>
<p>Generally, you would go to an undergrad school for 4 years and graduate with a Bachelor’s degree. You can major in anything but you also need to satisfy dental school required classes: biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, some math, maybe psychology. Most probably do major in a science. You need to check the required courses for the dental schools you are interested in applying to. There may be some dental schools that admit students after 3 years of undergrad if the required courses have been satisfied.</p>
<p>To be admitted to a dental school you need to have a top GPA and a high score on the DAT, Dental admission test, a standardized test. If admitted to a dental school, and it’s not easy, you would go to dental school for 4 years and graduate with your DDS.</p>
<p>I’m not an expert, this is just from my general knowledge and some quick research. In most cases you will graduate twice, from undergrad and from dental school. Others more familiar with this may chime in with more info or some different dental programs.</p>
<p>thankyou, and my uncle is a general dentist who has graduated. By the time I graduate he would probably have opened his own practice so I may be in luck with finding a job quickly. I am not really a party animal, but I like to have a good time every once in a while. Studying would obviously be my top priority, so would that fly at UGA? Not that everyone there has their priority set to partying, but would I be happy there (just generally, obviously nobody can say for sure).
Thanks</p>