Fell in love with Yerevan on my Erasmus, now thinking of returning for Dental School?
Hey everyone,
So here's my situation: I spent 6 months living in Yerevan for an exchange program during my Bachelor's and I absolutely fell in love with the city, the vibe, the people, everything. Now that I'm back home, I'm facing the reality of a pretty awful job market, and I'm seriously considering a complete career pivot into Dentistry.
In Italy, the admission test for dentistry is an absolute nightmare—super rigid, hyper-competitive, and honestly a complete pain in the ass. That’s why I started looking into Armenia, since entry requirements seem way more reasonable and I’d get to live in Yerevan again.
My long-term plan would definitely be to move back and practice somewhere in the EU after graduation, so I’m trying to figure out how viable this actually is. Is the degree recognition process back in Europe after graduating from an Armenian school super painful, or relatively straightforward? Also, is YSMU pretty much the only solid choice for dentistry, or are any of the private unis worth looking into?
I'd be looking at either English or Russian-medium programs, so I'm curious if the teaching quality is actually decent and if international students get genuine hands-on clinical practice with patients. On paper tuition and living costs look pretty cheap compared to Western Europe, but I'm wondering if there are hidden costs I'm not seeing.
If any current students, grads, or locals could share their thoughts or experiences, I’d really appreciate it!