Thanks for willing to answer some questions.
What is your favorite aspect of being a student at UCLA? How many OOS students do they interview? Do you feel like the cost of living in LA is much higher than most other places that have dental schools? Do you feel like there is a lot of teamwork and strong friendships in your class/other classes or do classmates keep to themselves?
Thanks again!!
School-specific favorites:
• The faculty you have here are amazing. You'll want to hate them because of how much they expect of you, but you just can't because they're such badasses in their respective fields. Many of them will go above and beyond to help those who show genuine interest in whatever it is you want to explore
• Your classmates will continue to push you to strive for the best (and not in the bad way). My classmates are so hardworking that it motivates me to do the same; they don't work hard at the expense of having a social life either. They give you the drive to maintain a certain standard in everything that you do
OOS students:
• I don't have specific numbers, but I am inclined to say <20 and the chances of you getting in after an interview invite is high
• We have roughly 4-5 OOS classmates, but the lower number could be because OOS students opt to go elsewhere or stay in their home states
Cost of LA:
• It is definitely high in my opinion. For a ~325 sq foot studio, I'm paying around $1470. This is also through graduate housing, so it's slightly lower in cost than comparable units that are unaffiliated with the school
• Classmates renting around the area probably pay anywhere from $1300-$1800 if they opt to stay around Westwood. This price range will be to share a 2 bd and 2 bath
Class dynamic:
• You will hear multiple times that it depends on the class; every class has its own personality
• Our class and the class above us definitely work together. We aren't as familiar with the 3rd and 4th years since we don't interact with them as much, but for us, we always have classmates offering their resources
• I think this type of attitude needs to be fostered early on. It just takes a few people to reach out in the beginning - offer help or notes, etc. - to set the tone
• There will always be small circles of friends that are closer, but we still plan social events to involve the class as a whole. I'd say we're a pretty cohesive bunch
