Crystal Estrada had several reasons to be anxious upon her arrival last year at the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry. In addition to the normal nervousness of being a D1 student, Estrada was returning to her home state after living in Mexico with her family since she was 9 years old. She had no relatives in town to lean on, and she admittedly was a bit intimidated by the high-quality of classmates she knew the SOD attracted.
“When I first had this idea of going to UAB for dental school, I didn’t think it would be possible,” Estada says. “It was so far away from where I was living, and it was going to be just me, without my family.
“I was also nervous because I had heard that this is such a competitive program, and I thought everybody would be competing against each other. I wasn’t sure I wanted to be in that type of environment. I was a bit intimidated at first. But I threw myself into it because I really wanted to do this.”
Estrada says it did not take long for those concerns to recede. That’s because she quickly discovered that the atmosphere at the UAB SOD is more collaborative than competitive, and there are plenty of new friends and colleagues around to quickly make her feel right at home.
“Yes, this is a challenging program, but my classmates are always helping each other out,” Estrada says. “Everyone here is both super smart and super helpful. They’ll help you even before you ask for it. If you’re ever struggling, there’s always somebody willing to help. You feel supported and welcomed. That was both incredibly surprising and comforting for me.”
Estrada also has found a bit of comfort through her affiliation with the Hispanic Student Dental Association. She says those gatherings provide an opportunity for her to feel at home, and to share her home with others.
“They offer a lot of workshops to teach students Spanish, which I think is an important language to know,” Estrada says. “But what I like about the club is they don’t just share the language, but they also share the Hispanic culture.”
While the friendly environment within the SOD might have somewhat surprised Estrada, she said she fully expected the early clinic opportunities she has received so far. In fact, that is exactly what she wanted from a dental school.
“I was looking into programs that are very strong clinically, which was something that really stood out about UAB,” Estrada says. “The PCD (Predoctoral Clinical Dentistry) course was very impactful for me, since it was my first close-up into the clinical aspect. In a short period of time my skills using a handpiece improved greatly.”
“It’s all been very encouraging. It makes you think that anything is possible, as long as you have the determination and the spirit to do it.”
All UAB dental students are welcome to apply, join and/or participate in any SOD student organization. For more information, visit UAB HSDA on Facebook.