Academic Update

[rolltide15]

I am currently taking Anatomy and Physiology to show the dental schools that my biology score on the DAT isn't accurate. I am doing really well in the class so I am very excited for the Academic Update period. Does anyone know when it becomes available/ how much importance dental schools put on it. I haven't heard from any schools yet so I am wondering if the are waiting to see how I do in the class before they respond to me. Is anyone in a similar situation?

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[NavyDDS1990]

I am currently taking Anatomy and Physiology to show the dental schools that my biology score on the DAT isn't accurate. I am doing really well in the class so I am very excited for the Academic Update period. Does anyone know when it becomes available/ how much importance dental schools put on it. I haven't heard from any schools yet so I am wondering if the are waiting to see how I do in the class before they respond to me. Is anyone in a similar situation?

What did you get on Biology on DAT?

 

[rolltide15]

17 bio
19 gen chem
20 ochem
20 pat
21 rc
20 qr
19 aa

 

[NavyDDS1990]

17 bio
19 gen chem
20 ochem
20 pat
21 rc
20 qr
19 aa

The only thing I can say is that, I think the AU period is around early December (someone correct me if I'm wrong), and I'm sure many schools will appreciate your strong upward trend. However, in my opinion, DAT is an accurate way of measuring one's ability to do well in science since it is the standardized exam. The reason why they do this is because some schools are obviously easy to get A's while at other universities it might be more difficult. I believe your 17 in BIO can be made up if you do extremely well in all of your biology courses from your school.

 

[rolltide15]

So in your opinion what is the best thing for me to do in order to gain an interview. Just take more biology courses?

 

[Flemish]

I personally think you'd be better off retaking. Bio is an important score and compensating with grades seems like a lot more work than just retaking the test and getting 20+


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[rolltide15]

I personally think you'd be better off retaking. Bio is an important score and compensating with grades seems like a lot more work than just retaking the test and getting 20+


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My only concern with retaking is that I would go down in other sections that I did well in. So thats why I was leaning towards the classes. But I am definitely thinking about taking the DAT again if I don't hear back by like February. If you were in my position how would you go about studying this time around.

 

[NavyDDS1990]

My only concern with retaking is that I would go down in other sections that I did well in. So thats why I was leaning towards the classes. But I am definitely thinking about taking the DAT again if I don't hear back by like February. If you were in my position how would you go about studying this time around.

.

 

[Flemish]

My only concern with retaking is that I would go down in other sections that I did well in. So thats why I was leaning towards the classes. But I am definitely thinking about taking the DAT again if I don't hear back by like February. If you were in my position how would you go about studying this time around.

Well ideally, studying more could potentially bring up those other sections as well. Honestly you don't have any spectacular sections that you should be particularly worried about losing. They're decent, but you could certainly approve upon them. The gains you have to make in bio and gchem far outweigh the potential losses, even if you lost a point here and there. You should shoot for a 21 AA.

Hard to say how you should study differently without knowing how you studied in the first place. Though if you haven't tried it already, DAT Bootcamp is your bible. Feralis Notes for Bio (included in Bootcamp), and an extensive understanding of all the Bootcamp practice tests. Then go through Destroyer a couple times. I used Kaplan Bio for general review though there's nothing there you won't find in Feralis.


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[rolltide15]

how much time did you guys take to study? I studied from May to August so I don't know how much more I could study if I were to take it again. I used Kaplan, Bootcamp, DAT Destroyer and AP Biology book. I knew Biology was going to be a section that lacked considering my major in college was chemistry but I was doing really well on all the practice exams I think I just got spooked when I actually took the real exam and thats why I was trying to take the classes to show them my biology score wasn't completely accurate.

 

[1070752]

Academic period is around mid November btw

 

[stoopidmonkeycatdog]

how much time did you guys take to study? I studied from May to August so I don't know how much more I could study if I were to take it again. I used Kaplan, Bootcamp, DAT Destroyer and AP Biology book. I knew Biology was going to be a section that lacked considering my major in college was chemistry but I was doing really well on all the practice exams I think I just got spooked when I actually took the real exam and thats why I was trying to take the classes to show them my biology score wasn't completely accurate.

When did you submit your application this time around?

 

[rolltide15]

I submitted August 3rd and it was mailed August 19th

 

[Nelson16]

If I were you I wouldn't retake. If you want some extra confidence calculate your Modified San Antonio Score and compare it to the averages of the schools you applied for. You can find all of that info on Dr. Toothache's 2014 spreadsheets. I'm sure that your scores are average, if not above average for a lot of the schools - even with the Biology hiccup.

 

[8_man]

Do we have to do an academic update? Or am I fine with not doing it?

Currently taking English 100, English 200, and intro level Human A&P.

 

[Hi Im Dent]

Do we have to do an academic update? Or am I fine with not doing it?

Currently taking English 100, English 200, and intro level Human A&P.

Would definitely do it if you have an A&P course on your transcript since for some schools its a pre-req. Also if you listed those courses as planned courses when you applied then you have to do to the update or else they'll think you cancelled/dropped out of those courses.

 

[8_man]

Would definitely do it if you have an A&P course on your transcript since for some schools its a pre-req. Also if you listed those courses as planned courses when you applied then you have to do to the update or else they'll think you cancelled/dropped out of those courses.

Got it. Thanks for the tip.

 

[NavyDDS1990]

how much time did you guys take to study?

I studied about 2 months, which I think is ideal. Don't study for too long, it's not good for you and it's difficult to retain all those information for a long period of time.

 

[stoopidmonkeycatdog]

I submitted August 3rd and it was mailed August 19th

Honestly I don't think your DAT is bad at all, it's just very average. So is your gpa. K think you were a completely average applicant who applied a little too late. I wouldn't be surprised if you got interviews post December or even in November! There's nothing, including your bio score, thats bad enough to keep you from interviews tbh.

 

[Flemish]

If I were you I wouldn't retake. If you want some extra confidence calculate your Modified San Antonio Score and compare it to the averages of the schools you applied for. You can find all of that info on Dr. Toothache's 2014 spreadsheets. I'm sure that your scores are average, if not above average for a lot of the schools - even with the Biology hiccup.

That's soooo 2014. Haha. But really, average DAT scores for matriculants increase every year regardless of the school you're looking at. A 19 might be sufficient for some schools now, but if you're going to be applying next cycle and want to feel better about your chances, 21+ is a good standard to shoot for. I'm not saying it's impossible to get in with a 19---it's just harder and getting harder every year.


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[ineedaboosta]

@Hi Im Dent if our scheduled changed from the one we listed on AADSAS, do we have to notify every school? Or can we just adjust the schedule during the academic update?

 

[Hi Im Dent]

@Hi Im Dent if our scheduled changed from the one we listed on AADSAS, do we have to notify every school? Or can we just adjust the schedule during the academic update?

I believe you typically can change it but it is also smart to notify schools if it is a big change (ie you've decided not to take an expected science class).

 

[DMDDDSHopeful]

If I were you I wouldn't retake. If you want some extra confidence calculate your Modified San Antonio Score and compare it to the averages of the schools you applied for. You can find all of that info on Dr. Toothache's 2014 spreadsheets. I'm sure that your scores are average, if not above average for a lot of the schools - even with the Biology hiccup.

What is this "Modified San Antonio Score"?

 

[Michael_Scott]

That's soooo 2014. Haha. But really, average DAT scores for matriculants increase every year regardless of the school you're looking at. A 19 might be sufficient for some schools now, but if you're going to be applying next cycle and want to feel better about your chances, 21+ is a good standard to shoot for. I'm not saying it's impossible to get in with a 19---it's just harder and getting harder every year.


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that's just completely inaccurate info. A 19 is still a good score. The OP should take more science/bio classes and do well in them before re-applying if need be. The reason why he has not received any calls is because he applied so late in terms of stats. Also depends on his extra-curriculars.
A call post-December is likely and needs to really ace the interview to get an acceptance.
A&P is a good course but try to take more challenging courses.

 

[Nelson16]

What is this "Modified San Antonio Score"?

Modified San Antonio Formula: Science GPA x DAT Score/30 x 4 + Overall GPA

Doc Toothache lists rankings of DS in 2014 based on GPA, DAT, and a combination of the two (San Antonio/Modified San Antonio) here: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/2014-ranking-of-ds-based-on-dat-gpa-other.1137667/

 

[nice_guy1]

Do I need to send an email to all the schools i applied to, or so I just wait until the academic update to notify schools that I am taking my planned courses in the spring semester in the fall instead? I was planning to wait until the spring semester and see if I can get some interviews before taking out more loan to take more classes, but luckily I had some early interviews so i decided to finish those courses in the fall instead. It is not updated on my AADSAS application, so should i just wait until academic update or just notify all the schools of my changed plan?

 

[DMDDDSHopeful]

Modified San Antonio Formula: Science GPA x DAT Score/30 x 4 + Overall GPA

Doc Toothache lists rankings of DS in 2014 based on GPA, DAT, and a combination of the two (San Antonio/Modified San Antonio) here: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/2014-ranking-of-ds-based-on-dat-gpa-other.1137667/

Thanks for the info! So what's the need for this? Is this what schools use as a calculation before reading apps or something?

 

[Nelson16]

Thanks for the info! So what's the need for this? Is this what schools use as a calculation before reading apps or something?

From what I've read UTHSC-San Antonio used a version of this formula to calculate applicants "Management Model Score" which was supposedly a starting point for the school to sort through applications. UNLV also had a similar formula where interviewees were scored using their DAT and GPA's and interview performance (Source).

I have no clue if these formulas are still used, but - for me at least - they were useful to gauge where I was competitive. Also, if you're looking to kill some time Dr. T talked more about this formula and it's uses here.

 

[Flemish]

that's just completely inaccurate info. A 19 is still a good score. The OP should take more science/bio classes and do well in them before re-applying if need be. The reason why he has not received any calls is because he applied so late in terms of stats. Also depends on his extra-curriculars.
A call post-December is likely and needs to really ace the interview to get an acceptance.
A&P is a good course but try to take more challenging courses.

I didn't say 19 wasn't good. I just said that given OPs current GPA and the general immobility of GPAs after a few years of less than fantastic grades, a 21+ DAT would make an applicant with a subpar GPA competitive. At least that's what I meant to imply. I'm also taking into account that DAT scores for incoming classes raise every year, which is self-evident.


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[Nelson16]

I didn't say 19 wasn't good. I just said that given OPs current GPA and the general immobility of GPAs after a few years of less than fantastic grades, a 21+ DAT would make an applicant with a subpar GPA competitive. At least that's what I meant to imply. I'm also taking into account that DAT scores for incoming classes raise every year, which is self-evident.


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This "self-evident" rise in DAT scores isn't supported by the stats. Here's an thread from 2012 that talks about DAT scores "raising every year": http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/ds-admissions-is-we-getting-more-competitive.898305/

tl;dr - they're not.

 

[Likkriue]

This "self-evident" rise in DAT scores isn't supported by the stats. Here's an thread from 2012 that talks about DAT scores "raising every year": http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/ds-admissions-is-we-getting-more-competitive.898305/

tl;dr - they're not.

Dat scores aren't rising as whole. The difference is that more and more people are obtaining higher scores proportionally to those getting lower scores. So on average the scores are not rising, however the number of competitive scores applying to dental schools are indeed going up.

To me it might as well be termed "rising" since so many more applicants are getting 20+ dat scores.

 

[Flemish]

This "self-evident" rise in DAT scores isn't supported by the stats. Here's an thread from 2012 that talks about DAT scores "raising every year": http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/ds-admissions-is-we-getting-more-competitive.898305/

tl;dr - they're not.

This is news to me. Good read. I'd be interested to see up-to-date stats.


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[DentalHopeful16679]

Would definitely do it if you have an A&P course on your transcript since for some schools its a pre-req. Also if you listed those courses as planned courses when you applied then you have to do to the update or else they'll think you cancelled/dropped out of those courses.

I posted 3 Bio courses when I completed my application before the semester and ended up dropping one class before my semester ever began because I didn't need to take it. Do you think that will look bad when/if I do my academic update?