ASDA at Columbia University

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
C

ColumbiaASDA

Full Member
10+ Year Member
Joined
Sep 11, 2013
Messages
97
Reaction score
22
Hey SDNers!

I'm from the Pre-Dental Committee of ASDA at Columbia University College of Dental Medicine and I'm here to answer any questions that you may have regarding the DAT, grades, application process, interviewing, etc. I understand that getting to dental school is a formidable stride so I'm here to lend you a hand. I can gear my perspectives specifically from the eyes of Columbia, or I can answer any general questions that you may have.

It would be great if you could post any questions, concerns, and/or comments here so I don't have to go rummaging through threads to see if I forgot to respond to someone. I will also act as floaters, answering any relevant questions from current threads to make your lives easier. :)

In addition, feel free to PM me!!! :thumbup:

Edit: If you have any questions about our medical school curriculum, our clinical experiences, our grading scheme etc, we can answer that on top of your questions on admissions.
Members don't see this ad.
 
Last edited:
ColumbiaASDA said:
Hey SDNers!

We are the Pre-Dental Committee of ASDA at Columbia University College of Dental Medicine and we're here to answer any questions that you may have regarding the DAT, grades, application process, interviewing, etc. We understand that getting to dental school is a formidable stride so we're here to lend you a hand. We can gear our perspectives specifically from the eyes of Columbia, or we can answer any general questions that you may have.

It would be great if you could post any questions, concerns, and/or comments here so we don't have to go rummaging through threads to see if we forgot to respond to someone. We will also act as floaters, answering any relevant questions from current threads to make your lives easier. :)

In addition, feel free to PM us!!! :thumbup:
Click to expand...
Are the interviews still held in the conference room?
 
Members don't see this ad :)
what is the general interview day like? do we get to talk to other students on interview day? do most students live in the city? Bard hall? New Jersey?
 
gn4 said:
what is the general interview day like? do we get to talk to other students on interview day? do most students live in the city? Bard hall? New Jersey?
Click to expand...

gn4, the typical interview day at Columbia initially starts with a presentation of our school. Following the presentation, interviewees will then meet with their interviewer. Afterwards, it's smooth sailing from there. You have lunch with second year dental students and then you will be given a tour of our school, this includes mingling with the first year dental students in preclinic. You'll have more than enough time to talk with them.

Most students live in the city. There's approximately an equal amount of students who live off-campus and on-campus. A lot of students have apartments because sometimes it's just cheaper that way.
 
ColumbiaASDA said:
Bon Appétit ;)
Click to expand...
3qarl1.jpg
 
ColumbiaASDA said:
gn4, the typical interview day at Columbia initially starts with a presentation of our school. Following the presentation, interviewees will then meet with their interviewer. Afterwards, it's smooth sailing from there. You have lunch with second year dental students and then you will be given a tour of our school, this includes mingling with the first year dental students in preclinic. You'll have more than enough time to talk with them.

Most students live in the city. There's approximately an equal amount of students who live off-campus and on-campus. A lot of students have apartments because sometimes it's just cheaper that way.
Click to expand...
thank you for the answers. Looking forward to interviewing at the school and meeting some of the current students.
 
gn4 said:
thank you for the answers. Looking forward to interviewing at the school and meeting some of the current students.
Click to expand...

Best of luck! If you have any more questions, you know where to contact us!
 
Is it too late to apply to Columbia?
 
tandem7 said:
Is it too late to apply to Columbia?
Click to expand...

It's never really "too late" to apply for a school. It's a relative term. Columbia doesn't fill its class of 80 by 12/1. We leave a good amount of spots open for those who interview post-December. It goes without saying that the earlier you apply, the higher the chances of you getting an interview. However, all applications will be reviewed regardless of how "early" and "late" you apply. If you have a great application and it matches with what Columbia is looking for, then there's no doubt you'll receive an interview, no matter how late you apply. I hope this helps!
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Can you comment on what Columbia is "looking for"? High DAT seems to be a trend with applicants invited for interviews...
 
are you strict in the 3 science professor letters? I was a non-science major and have 2 science professors and 1 non-science. The last recommendation is what prevented me from applying to Columbia.
 
The website says we can have 3 science letters or a composite committee letter. This is confusing because does the composite committee letter have to include 3 science professor letters? My pre-health packet includes a letter from my pre-health committee, 2 science professors, research mentor, and dentist.
 
DoWork91 said:
Can you comment on what Columbia is "looking for"? High DAT seems to be a trend with applicants invited for interviews...
Click to expand...

I think they look at overall application as well. I don't have "Columbia" type DAT scores, but I have lots of research publications. I'm assuming that the research somehow played a role in me getting an interview. I was shocked when I got their email. I only applied because my gf made me apply there. I've wanted to go there, just didn't want to waste money applying there. I guess I got lucky somewhere.
 
DoWork91 said:
Can you comment on what Columbia is "looking for"? High DAT seems to be a trend with applicants invited for interviews...
Click to expand...

The class of 2017 had an average DAT score of 22.4 with an average GPA between 3.4 or 3.5, I don't remember. However, don't forget that this is just an AVERAGE! High DAT is a trend among applicants simply because they're the ones applying to Columbia. I can't really comment on what Columbia is "looking for" because there are so many components to an applicant that it's actually really hard to give you a generalized answer. We have a lot of non-traditional applicants. For instance, there are students who have worked many years before choosing dentistry and there are those who didn't major in sciences.

Xo1991 said:
are you strict in the 3 science professor letters? I was a non-science major and have 2 science professors and 1 non-science. The last recommendation is what prevented me from applying to Columbia.
Click to expand...

I will get back to you on this with a more solid answer after I visit the admissions office. However, when I applied to Columbia, my school wrote me a committee letter. I only had a science professor, an Economics professor (my major), a dentist, my PI from research, and several others from work.

DoWork91 said:
The website says we can have 3 science letters or a composite committee letter. This is confusing because does the composite committee letter have to include 3 science professor letters? My pre-health packet includes a letter from my pre-health committee, 2 science professors, research mentor, and dentist.
Click to expand...

Look above.

gn4 said:
I think they look at overall application as well. I don't have "Columbia" type DAT scores, but I have lots of research publications. I'm assuming that the research somehow played a role in me getting an interview. I was shocked when I got their email. I only applied because my gf made me apply there. I've wanted to go there, just didn't want to waste money applying there. I guess I got lucky somewhere.
Click to expand...

Congratulations :)
 
Hi,
I was wondering if the school offers any merit scholarships to incoming dental students? I'm sure they're extremely difficult to get if any exist, but I was just curious as to whether or not it was possible. Thanks!
 
imflossy said:
Do you guys send out interviews as batches or do you guys select a few applicants and inform them one by one?

Just out of curiosity, so don't have to answer this.

Thank you!
Click to expand...

I'm not sure but I imagine the admission office sends them out as batches since we have an average of 2400 applicants yearly out of the approximate 11,000 nationwide applicants.

wazian2018 said:
Hi,
I was wondering if the school offers any merit scholarships to incoming dental students? I'm sure they're extremely difficult to get if any exist, but I was just curious as to whether or not it was possible. Thanks!
Click to expand...

I'm not 100% sure but I believe we do.
 
How many acceptances does Columbia typically send out on 12/1? Approximately what percentage of applicants who interview pre-December get accepted?
 
obeserabbit said:
How many acceptances does Columbia typically send out on 12/1? Approximately what percentage of applicants who interview pre-December get accepted?
Click to expand...

I can't give you an accurate number because we don't work hand in glove with the admissions office. Sorry!

Edit: Most schools overfill their class because they know that every person they accept won't take up on their offer.
 
Last edited:
ColumbiaASDA said:
I can't give you an accurate number because we don't work hand in glove with the admissions office. Sorry!

Edit: Most schools overfill their class because they know that every person they admit won't accept their offer.
Click to expand...

Do you think you could check up on my last question about the 3 science recommendations? Thank you for answering all these questions.
 
I only had 2 science LOR's and still got an interview if that answers your question.
 
Xo1991 said:
Do you think you could check up on my last question about the 3 science recommendations? Thank you for answering all these questions.
Click to expand...

It us of our utmost pleasure to assist you in the process. Thank you for appreciating us.

I asked administrators and the best way to get this requirement clarified is if you called the office yourself. I hope this helps.
 
Last edited:
do a lot of the students end up specializing and going to residency? what percentage of the students, would you say, goes to residency?
 
are any pre-december interviews still being giving out
 
gn4 said:
do a lot of the students end up specializing and going to residency? what percentage of the students, would you say, goes to residency?
Click to expand...

Last year, 96% of the graduating class matched into post-graduate residencies, a percentage nearly three times more than the national average. Each year we have a different number of applicants going into different residencies. Overall, our percentage has been > 90% for the past decade or so. Even those who don't want to specialize will still end up doing a GPR or AEGD. I hope this answers your question!

fungames said:
are any pre-december interviews still being giving out
Click to expand...

Pre-december interviews are still being sent out! It's still early.
 
Do you guys update on the AADSAS portal?
I sent in my applications early July but my LOR was not submitted until early August.
However, I see on my portal status that it's been under review since July 5th. lol
 
skybuts said:
Do you guys update on the AADSAS portal?
I sent in my applications early July but my LOR was not submitted until early August.
However, I see on my portal status that it's been under review since July 5th. lol
Click to expand...

Yeah, we update the AADSAS portal. You should be in good hands!
 
LilyBrunes said:
Do you guys accept unofficial DAT scores?
Click to expand...

I can ask for you; however, as of right now, my guess is that we will accept unofficial DAT scores (probably via fax) as long as we get the official scores from ADA later. You can call our admissions office tomorrow and ask for yourself if you want a quicker response.
 
imflossy said:
When will they re-review your app? (for ppl who applied early but did not receive interview)
Do you know if they do this before pre-dec interview?
Click to expand...

I believe they will re-review all the applications before pre-december interview before they make any final decisions. However, I'm not sure when they'll re-review the application. You can call the admissions office to find out, though! :)
 
How often do you send interviews out? Is it every week? Every couple of days?
 
patricklin27 said:
How often do you send interviews out? Is it every week? Every couple of days?
Click to expand...

We send interviews out every week. Our interviews land on Fridays of every week, unless there's a holiday, until mid-February, in case anyone was wondering how late we interview.
 
If you have any questions about our medical school curriculum, our clinical experiences, our grading scheme etc, we can answer that on top of your questions on admissions.
 
ColumbiaASDA said:
If you have any questions about our medical school curriculum, our clinical experiences, our grading scheme etc, we can answer that on top of your questions on admissions.
Click to expand...

Hi,
What percent of the time are you in med school classes? And how are the honors/pass/fail cut offs set? Thank you!
 
asal1 said:
Hi,
What percent of the time are you in med school classes? And how are the honors/pass/fail cut offs set? Thank you!
Click to expand...

You spend the first 1.5 years in med school with the medical students, especially the first semester where you'll be spending nearly 90% of your time with them. Within those 1.5 years, you'll also be in preclinic lab. Essentially you'll be in medical and dental school simultaneously.

The honors/pass/fail cutoffs are different for each class you take; however, the cutoff is variable depending on how well the class does on exams. The bar will never be set higher, only lower if need be.
 
During Junior Year, I stuck up for my friend and got in a physical altercation with another individual. As a result, I was put on Conduct Probation. Does Columbia give a second chance and realize people make mistakes? Does this probation keep the admissions committee from sending out an interview invite, even when the applicant has everything Columbia is looking for?
 
Hi. I am really excited for my upcoming interview at Columbia. I wanted to ask if you guys could give a little detail about the "interview" part of the day and what sorts of questions you think we should think about or any questions that you wish you could have gone back and re-answered. Thanks!
 
Illini0909 said:
During Junior Year, I stuck up for my friend and got in a physical altercation with another individual. As a result, I was put on Conduct Probation. Does Columbia give a second chance and realize people make mistakes? Does this probation keep the admissions committee from sending out an interview invite, even when the applicant has everything Columbia is looking for?
Click to expand...

Columbia does realize mistakes--point it out on your application (I believe there's a section in the application that asks you to clarify/explain any mistakes). To err is human.

BRUINnette said:
Hi. I am really excited for my upcoming interview at Columbia. I wanted to ask if you guys could give a little detail about the "interview" part of the day and what sorts of questions you think we should think about or any questions that you wish you could have gone back and re-answered. Thanks!
Click to expand...

Great to hear about your excitement! Some of the "interview" parts of the day were mentioned in above posts.

You should be true to yourself and ask questions that will help you decide that our institution is the right fit for you. I personally don't think that asking the right/wrong questions will have a huge effect on the final decision. It's really about your personality and who you are as a person. I had all my questions more or less answered because I believe the dental students who come in for lunches and tours do a great job at informing interviewees what Columbia has to offer to you.
 
Is Columbia heavily research involved?
 
gn4 said:
Is Columbia heavily research involved?
Click to expand...

There's an endless amount of opportunities to conduct your own research at Columbia. We have so many research facilities in almost every building of the medical campus. You can also conduct research at the undergraduate campus. Additionally, research doesn't have to entail pipetting, running PCRs, etc. You can immerse yourself in behavioral/social science as well. Choosing to research is really up to you.
 
Last edited:
HI there!

So Columbia is my DREAM school, there is no where else I rather go! So could you offer me some advice in regards to the DAT? I know Columbia has a strong preference for people with high DAT's but could you tell me what sections of the DAT Columbia specifically prioritizes? That way I can gear my studying to do even better on those sections.

I currently have a 3.5 overall and 3.4 sci gpa and have no idea what kinda of DAT score I would need to get an interview!
 
I live in California and just scheduled an interview at NYU for late november. I applied 5th batch and still haven't heard anything from Columbia. I'd obviously like to get through both interviews (if invited to Columbia) on the same trip, and was wondering if there would be any benefit to letting Columbia know I'd be in the area. Thanks in advance for any advice!
 
Member 6236 said:
HI there!

So Columbia is my DREAM school, there is no where else I rather go! So could you offer me some advice in regards to the DAT? I know Columbia has a strong preference for people with high DAT's but could you tell me what sections of the DAT Columbia specifically prioritizes? That way I can gear my studying to do even better on those sections.

I currently have a 3.5 overall and 3.4 sci gpa and have no idea what kinda of DAT score I would need to get an interview!
Click to expand...

In regards to the DAT, in the past four years or so, we have averaged 22+ on the DAT. Class of 2017 had a DAT average of around 22.4; Class of 2016 had a DAT average of around 23. Just remember, this is just an AVERAGE! There will be people above and below that mean.

Overall, as for many schools, I'm sure total science, academic average, and reading comprehension are the top sections that they prioritize. However, just because you're gearing your studies on those sections, don't lose sight of everything else!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

Mr.Smile12
Columbia University DDS/PhD engineering
Replies
0
Views
744
Mr.Smile12
Mr.Smile12
K
UConn (OOS) vs Columbia
Replies
5
Views
491
dynamo72
dynamo72
rh2k20
Rutgers (IS) vs Columbia
Replies
7
Views
890
MimikryAlkaline
MimikryAlkaline
D
Columbia vs Penn vs Pitt (IS)
Replies
10
Views
1K
Spahrtan
Spahrtan
D
ASDA
Replies
1
Views
653
artist2022
artist2022
Top