Gum Disease / Periodontitis Help

So, I was at the dentist, and she told me I should go get an exam over at the Harvard School of Dental Medicine. Apparently, my gums have receded quite a bit, and there's a chance my teeth might start getting loose down the line. Nothing hurts right now, but I’m honestly pretty worried about what's coming. When I asked my orthodontist if I really needed to go, he just brushed it off and said everything looks fine. Now I'm stuck wondering who to actually trust.
From what I've gathered, students at dental schools basically use patients as practice, which makes me a little uneasy 😁—even if the only perk is that it’s cheap.

Has anyone here actually dealt with the Harvard School of Dental Medicine before?

I thought about just going to a private clinic instead, but I have no idea what they charge per tooth these days.🤔

There’s a thread a few posts down... You might want to just grab a referral for an exam so they can actually see if there's an issue. Once you have those results, deciding on next steps will be much easier.