Month: March 2022

For my next school, we’ll stay in Boston at Boston University’s school of dental medicine. Boston University is a well known program similar to that of Tuft’s. Students who attend are great students, come from all different walks of life, and are thrown into the clinical setting in their first year, giving them great hands-on experience. They offer a 4-year DMD degree for students going through their program in comparison to those that offer a DDS.

Mission & Core Values

The Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine works to be the best academic dental institution that excels in dental education, research, oral health care, and community service. Through scholarship, creating and disseminating new knowledge, developing and using the newest technologies and educational methods they will change the dental field for the better. Their students will enforce an ethical, supportive environment filled with trust, responsibility, respect, fairness, compassion and excellence in their services. All if this will be done while maintaining reasonable pricing.

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

Their site has a sub-menu with diversity and inclusion, but no words on how they enhance or maintain it. They do have a code of ethics that touches on respect, responsibility, truth, fairness, and compassion. The code of ethics talks about behavior expected from faculty, students, staff, researchers, and administration. This code of ethics, if followed by the staff and students, is meant to support the standard for patient care in their clinics, and eventually the students’ own practices.

Cost

Boston University, like Tufts is very costly. After tuition and fees, schooling is estimated at $95,000 before financial aid. This is not including any costs for housing, food, gas, etc. Estimating any outside costs, most likely amounting to upwards of $30,000 the final cost would come to roughly $125,000 dollars per year. Boston’s dental schools have proven to be much more expensive than UNE.

Last Thoughts

Boston University’s website was not very informational regarding their dental school. Their program is very well known and credible but in comparison to Tufts it seems they may be a tier below. Although I don’t necessarily like the city, I think living in the city would be much different than being an occasional visitor and for this reason I think living in Boston would be a cool experience. Of course, if I were to get into BU and only BU I would go but if possible I would take Tufts or UNE over BU.

For my next school, I will be moving farther south into the historical city of Boston, Massachusetts. Tufts University has an esteemed program in the heart of the city. They too like UNE, are a private school with a small undergraduate population that is known for their sciences. Their dental school is quite large, usually taking classes sized in the hundreds. Their average DAT scores for students in their last class was a 20, which is a point above the national average. Their students’ cumulative GPA’s reflected a score of 3.42, and a cumulative science GPA of 3.33.

Mission and Core Values

At Tufts, they have three core values. Education committed to clinical excellence, provide knowledge to improve general and oral health, and provide care that creates a community. They’re able to achieve their mission and reach these goals by education on pre-clinical and clinical education on the newest techniques and technologies while satisfying patient needs. Their research programs allow for the continued knowledge and practice of oral health and general health, and through inclusivity the school creates a community feel for their patients.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Tufts University School of Dental Medicine creates a climate that recognizes differences and commonalities. The student body has diverse ideological viewpoints, socio-economic statuses, racial/ethnicity, equity and more. They are committed to increase faculty and staff awareness of issues of diversity and inclusion through professional development programs. In their most recent class they were among the most diverse dental school classes in the country.

Cost

An education at Tuft’s University comes at a large cost. Of course, this is before aid but financial aid can only take away so much of the cost. When all of the costs are compiled for the first year, this not including any living expenses and books, the total comes out to $103,000. When including the cost of living in Boston and expenses for books the total rises to nearly $130,000. After four years, this total debt if not supported by financial aid would result in $520,000 in the hole.

Last Thoughts

The program at Tufts is the top of line, with a staff-to-student ratio below the national average, diverse classes, and great facilities, the school is truly top of the line. With this great school, there comes high tuition and the expensive cost if living in the city. Overall, if I were to be accepted at this school I would take it of course, but if there were less costly options then I would go with those. I would also rather not live in the city just based on my own current lifestyle.

If you or anyone you know is a current Pre-dental major thinking about schools, here is the link Tuft’s page.

https://dental.tufts.edu/

For the rest of the semester, I will be doing my own research on dental schools I plan to apply to over the summer and into the early fall. By doing this now, and having a general knowledge about schools I would like to go to I can use my thoughts and knowledge on the schools in my interviews and the application process. It’s also always good to know what the program will offer ME as a student to help me succeed in the long run. For my first school, I’ll be telling you guys about the College of Dental Medicine at UNE in Portland!

Mission and Core Values

UNE CDM has a mission that is grounded in public health, especially in northern New England and other underserved areas. They plan to touch these communities with professionalism, and great service to their patients. Their core values are stemmed in excellence, professionalism, patient-centered care, social responsibility, diversity, scholarship, and leadership.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

At UNE they make the effort to create a diversity through a shared community of different backgrounds, perspectives, and lifestyles. The diversity is found through race, gender, ethnicity, biological sex, age, and disability among others. They try to regulate this diversity through equal opportunity among applicants, the student body, and their patients. Because of this, inclusion has become a staple in their program that is here to stay.

Cost

Tuition starts at $68,380, with a general service fee of $720. Along with this is a yearly program fee of $11,200. The fees help pay for cadavers, e-textbooks, instruments/tools, supplies, and other necessary technology. Fortunately for myself, I would be able to drive there and back which would save me money on room and board.

Last Thoughts

Overall, I love UNE’s dental school because of the convenience it would give me when it comes to travel. I wouldn’t have to get up and move, and find an apartment across the country. I also love how quickly the students get into the clinic and learn the functions of a clinic. If I were to get into UNE I would definitely go there to continue my education.

In this week’s edition of the “Weekly Dentistry Update” we’ll be talking about a study done on baby teeth that could one day help identify kids who may be at risk of developing mental disorders in their life time. This study was run by researchers at the University of Bristol and tested 70 different subjects. These teeth could possibly help psychologists get an understanding of any prior life-changing trials and tribulations a child may go through early on in their lives that could lead to mental health disorders. The goal of the study is to hopefully one day use the findings to then provide preventatives to help children grow up and live normal lives.

How do the teeth tell the story?

The teeth have different growth patterns as a child grows to the point that they will fall out. If a child were to have suffered from some sort of physical stress like some sort of disease, or nutritional deficiency the teeth would have a specific growth pattern. This growth pattern would leave large, grooved lines called stress lines. In particular doctors studied the neonatal line of the children in relation to the mother’s psychological state. Amongst the subjects, mothers who experienced psychological stresses throughout, before, and after the pregnancy the children had a wider neonatal line on the teeth. Hopefully with more research, and a larger study, this theory could be used to prevent mental health issues at a young age.

Provided below is the link to the article by ScienceDaily

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211110104603.htm