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Are they both weighted equally in the admissions process? Or is one given more importance than the other?
GPA or DAT?
- Thread starter Gurl21
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Gurl21 said:
DAT >> GPA for obvious reasons. The former is standardized, the latter is a craps shoot. A candidate with a 15 DAT and 4.0 GPA can easily be a *******, but someone with a 25 DAT and whatever GPA is in no way underqualified (well provided you can adequately explain a really really low one)
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I disagree...each school weighs them differently...and what the schools pick to be the best determinant is up to the admission committee. If you can get in touch with one of the people on an adcom, ask them...an uninformed student who just got accepted to a professional school (such as myself) can offer opinions and thats about all
Bullfan16 said:
i agree. if you look at dental school stats, some schools school admit students with a low avg gpa, but high avg dat score...other schools are opposite.
it's obvious schols liek UoP believe dat scores to be more important than gpa, since their avg gpa is about 3.2 whereas dat scores are 20+...
other schools like the texas schools SEEM to place less emphasis on dat scores, since their avg gpa is abt 3.5, and dat scores are only 19 or so...
so it really does depend on which school you are applying to...
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I dont think a person with a 4.0 is a ******* at all, I think it shows they cared enough about their grade and their dedication to getting into dental school. Any ******* can cram for a few weeks and score well on the DAT, it isn't hard to do, but to be consistent and continue to pull off a perfect GPA is hard to do...not in terms of studying your heart out, but being dedicated enough to do just that.
puncho said:How heavily do LORs weight? Cause I don't think I have strong ones
personally, i feel like the LORs shouldn't matter too much...as long as your recommenders aren't bitching you out in them...
but if you are borderline acceptance, they might consider the one with the stronger recommendations....
if you have a good gpa and DAT score, i can't imagine them rejecting people just cuz you had mediocre recommendations...
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dexadental said:
How many 4.0 sociology/psychology majors have you met in your lifetime?
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dexadental said:
what happens if you have a dedicated *******? Also, throw in an UG w/o top notch competition or that has de-facto GPA inflation.... what have you got? A candidate with a high GPA that's not necessarily as qualified as stats would reveal.
And any ******* who can study for a few weeks and cram out a 25 on the DAT is not a ******* at all.
mvs04 said:
Also, throw in an UG w/o top notch competition or that has de-facto GPA inflation.... what have you got? A candidate with a high GPA that's not necessarily as qualified as stats would reveal.
And any ******* who can study for a few weeks and cram out a 25 on the DAT is not a ******* at all.
honestly, the DAT really isn't that hard...so the fact that one scores well on the DAT doesn't mean they are smart either...the material is pretty general...
if a person with a high GPA could be a *******, then i think certainly, a person with a high DAT score COULD be a ******* too...
i mean, no matter WHAT school one attends, i can't imagine that their material in their 4 worth of classes could be easier than the DAT...just because classes often go deeper into the subject, while the DAT doesn't...
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r0entgen said:
how are you so clueless about this? If the DAT is easy to score high on even for a *******, then everyone and their dog would get 25s, but the fact remains is the average is something like 19, and very few people numerically score higher than oh 26... it's just like well the SAT was easy, but then still, only something like 200 people out of the entire country every year get a perfect score. The point is that the DAT is a standardized gauge of applicants, where as the GPA is not.
mvs04 said:
uhh..i never said gpa was a means for standardisation. i was saying if you think *******es can get 4.0s, then *******es can also get high DAT scores because the DAT is not nearly as in depth as what one learns in a college class for FOUR years.
so using your argument, if *******es can get 4.0s, then how come i don't see many people getting 4.0s? In fact, the HIGHEST average of accepted students into a dental I have seen is about 3.5. And that sure isn't a 4.0...
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r0entgen said:
Fact: *******es can and often do get 4.0s. Have you ever sat next to the stupidest girl ever? But simply because she puts in the time she has a 4.0 GPA?
There is NO WAY a ******* can get a super high DAT score barring a statistical random chance. It has nothign to do with what the DAT covers or doesn't cover, or "how in depth" it is, it simply has to do with the fact that it is a directly competitive test, and only very small number of takers get high scores and to do so you have to be better than 99.9% of all other takers. Again refer to my SAT example since you're having difficulty understanding this.
mvs04 said:
ohh im not having difficulty..i think i've just come to a realisation...you're dumb..that's why you think the dat is difficult..cuz i sure don't think it is...
how detailed the DAT is correlates with difficulty...if it's just a cursory overview of general topics, obviously you don't need to be very bright and you can still do well...if the ******* put in that much effort to get a 4.0 in college, i'm sure she can do the same on the DAT...just cuz i don't think the DAT is that difficult...
by the way, i've sat next to a stupid girl before...and she sure didn't have a 4.0...
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r0entgen said:
1) What did you get?
2) I didn't get over 26, but I scored just fine.
3) You still DON'T understand because I did not say that the DAT is hard, I said getting a super high score on it for a ******* is impossible simply for the reason of: (I already delineated but it's not clear for some reason) (a) directly competitive, standardized tests (b) to score super high you MUST outperform your peers (c) very few numerically test takers score in the super high range (d) ala my SAT example.
mvs04 said:
I haven't taken my DATs yet...I'm taking it May 19th...but that doesn't matter because I'm preparing for them now, so I obviously know the difficulty of the exam.
and i still don't think the DAT is that competitive....i personally don't think dental school is that competitive...but everyone will have a different opinion about the level of competition.
my point is, the material tested on the DAT is not nearly as detailed as college bio, gchem, or ochem...so if a "dumb person" could score a 4.0 in his college career, he can obviously get a good score on the DAT if he put enough time into it. you keep saying it's a competitive exam...but the questions aren't very difficult...so if one mastered the concepts in college, and assuming he reviewed the concepts thoroughly for the DAT, i don't see why this 'dumb person' can't get a high score....
so conclusion: i don't think a DUMB person can get a 4.0...comparing students based on gpa alone is obviously inaccurate, as schools vary in difficulty....this is where the DAT comes in..but i definitely don't think many dumb people make 4.0s...if that were the case, the gpa stats for dental school would be MUCHHH higher...
anyway, this is getting ridiculous, and i don't think anyone cares about what we have to say...if you want to continue this, pm me...there's no need to do this in public.
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r0entgen said:
No the chance of manipulating your teachers especially if your outspoken and teachers love your personality which there are a ton of students like this in my school, then sucking up and kissing ass is very doable to raising your grade to a great enough deal where it matters.
The DAT on the other hand cheating and sucking up is close to impossible. A ******* can get a good gpa by cheating, sucking up all that bs, (there is smartness in that by itself, i don't know if you want to count that), but a ******* can't on the DAT, one has to study for it and that studying take times. If your saying the ******* takes the time to study for the DAT and do well then he or she is not a *******.
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r0entgen said:
The DAT is only "easy" to someone who has taken the classes that have prepared them for it or have studied hard enough to compensate. In a way, it kind of correlates with grades. Getting good grades in your science classes will influence how well you score on the DAT. Give the DAT to a psychology student or a history major and I promise they will not think it "easy." YOu are forgetting the years of preparation you have had to say it is "easy."
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I'd rather have a ******* that studied and showed dedication and got a 4.0 work on my own teeth than a ******* that didn't care about their grades, partied all the time and were careless, work on my teeth. They're both *******es, but the one with the 4.0 will atleast be incredibly anal about what they do to me.
Tooth Fixer said:
I'm not sure I'm following your logic. If you can suck up to your univ. professors, OBVIOUSLY your institution isn't very professional. We aren't talking about high school here. And if it was the case that your institution wasn't professional, I highly doubt EVERY professor of your 4 years was that unprofessional that a ******* could just suck up and get a 4.0.
reLAXgirl said:
You're kinda missing my point here...I was trying to argue the comment about even a ******* could make a 4.0, which I don't really agree with. And IF this so-called ******* could make a 4.0, due to the superficial nature of the DAT, that ******* could perform well. The DAT isn't a very detailed exam, so the '*******' obviously learned something through the 4 years of undergrad...I'm not sure he just sat around, did nothing, learned nothing, and got a 4.0.
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ok, back to the original question
some schools love high DAT scores such as UOP, Upenn and among other, but at the same time they want a decent GPA. However, a good balance of gpa and dat is the best way to go (gpa: >3.4, DAT >19)
some schools love high DAT scores such as UOP, Upenn and among other, but at the same time they want a decent GPA. However, a good balance of gpa and dat is the best way to go (gpa: >3.4, DAT >19)
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I never mind suck ups, after all, they really care about their grades and their future. Everyone has the right to suck up, and if you don't, well thats your problem. Don't say you have enough pride...because we all are trying to do the same thing here. Also, the sucking up will pay off in the future...you know people skills are looked fondly upon in dental schools and in our future as dentists. If you just go to class and do the work, I doubt you'll get an awesome reccomendation. Sucking up in classes you aren't necessarily interested in is certainly valid; getting into dental school is cutthroat. With that said, kudos to the diehard study fiends with 4.0's, I salute you.
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dexadental said:
I agree to a certain extent. You can establish rapport with your professor and TAs (in classes like Micro where TAs are extremely involved) without kissing up. One thing that you said, Dexa, that I really think is true is in dentistry people skills are vital. This is why schools call us and ask us to come to their school for an interview.....what patient wants a robot-brain treating them (on any level: pharmacy, dental, or MD)? Schools love stats, but hate churning out the robot-like brainiacs. They would much prefer to have students turn out to be a good mix of brains and personality and in fact at least in the dental world (outside of institutions) personality will build your practice (that and good dental work). In one of my classes I am definitely not the teachers pet and have made a few comments that in retrospect I probably shouldnt have made, but the point is I have established a rapport with my professor and would feel comfortable asking her to write me an LOR (which I dont need her to do). In any case, I couldnt agree more about grades....grades are something that can be increased or decreased with effort (or lack there of). However, that doesnt guarantee an A (or a 4.0 for that matter). The DAT is a test that if one studies for the proper amount of time, they can do well (maybe not 25's but seriously a 25 is like 10-15 total mistakes on the whole damn test). 3-4 months will earn you a solid score. GPA is earned over a period of 4 years and is not one random day of testing like the DAT.
