WAMC- help! very low gpa, ok dat 22 AA

[dentbeanx3]

Date of submission: June 21st, 2023
Overall GPA: 3.16 (not any lower than a C)
Science GPA: 3.03
Bio-Chem-Physics GPA: 2.95
DAT score: 22 AA, 21 TS, 24 PAT
State of Residence: Ohio

Undergrad Attended: Ohio State University
Major: Biology
Minor: Business
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? Yes, taking one gap year

Shadowing Experience: Around 120 hrs
Volunteering Experience: Around 600 hrs, ranging from volunteering at a food pantry, volunteering at a local non-profit organization, interpreting/translating at a church due to bilingual skills, etc.
Employment: 270 hrs, worked as front desk assistant for a clinic of the OSU dental school
Research: 360 hrs at an Alzheimer's research lab at OSU, no publications
Other Extracurriculars: Served as several leadership positions of a club (not science/dental related) and was president senior year
Have you volunteered/shadowed/attended events at any dental schools? Attended meetings of the pre-dental student org at the College of Dentistry, and shadowed at the dental school clinic I worked at (only a few surgeries ~20 hrs).
Relevant Honors or Awards:
LOR type and strength: 3 letters, 1 from a dentist, 1 from ecology professor, and 1 from a biochem TA, my LOR are not that strong, I did not have a close relationship with the professor and was a last resort ask although I did well in her class, and the LOR from the dentist is OK, and the LOR from the TA is OK
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags: Really low gpa, weak LORs. I retook two prerequisite classes but the gpa of both takes were averaged but hoping they will notice the retake and improved grade. I'm also planning on applying for a post-bacc/masters for 2024 in case I don't get accepted this cycle. Any advice on what's the best route if my chances are pretty slim this cycle?

School list:
Please include a list of schools you are interested in applying to! It is much easier for users to help you when you have taken the time to construct your own school list first! OSU, Case Western, Boston, LECOM, Meharry, Midwestern, Rutgers, Temple, Buffalo, Maryland, UTHSC, Western

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[macsak]

Date of submission: June 21st, 2023
Overall GPA: 3.16 (none below C)
Science GPA: 3.03
Bio-Chem-Physics GPA: 2.95
DAT score: 22 AA, 21 TS, 24 PAT
State of Residence: Ohio

Undergrad Attended: Ohio State University
Major: Biology
Minor: Business
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? Yes, taking one gap year

Shadowing Experience: Around 120 hrs
Volunteering Experience: Around 600 hrs, ranging from volunteering at a food pantry, volunteering at a local non-profit organization, interpreting/translating at a church due to bilingual skills, etc.
Employment: 270 hrs, worked as front desk assistant for a clinic of the OSU dental school
Research: 360 hrs at an Alzheimer's research lab at OSU, no publications
Other Extracurriculars: Served as several leadership positions of a club (not science/dental related) and was president senior year
Have you volunteered/shadowed/attended events at any dental schools? Attended meetings of the pre-dental student org at the College of Dentistry, and shadowed at the clinic I worked at (only a few surgeries ~20 hrs).
Relevant Honors or Awards:
LOR type and strength: 2 letters, 1 from a dentist, 1 from ecology professor, and 1 from a biochem TA, my LOR are not that strong, I did not have a close relationship with the professor and was a last resort ask although I did well in her class, and the LOR from the dentist is OK, and the LOR from the TA is OK
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags: I retook two prerequisite classes but the gpa of both takes were averaged but hoping they will notice the retake and improved grade. I am also planning on retaking the DAT in October in hopes I can fax/email scores to schools in time. And I'm also applying for a post-bacc/masters for 2024 in case I don't get accepted this cycle. Any advice on what's the best route if my chances are pretty slim this cycle?

School list:
Please include a list of schools you are interested in applying to! It is much easier for users to help you when you have taken the time to construct your own school list first! OSU, Case Western, Boston, LECOM, Meharry, Midwestern, Rutgers, Temple, Buffalo, Maryland, UTHSC, Western

how can your bcp gpa be below 3.0 if you have none below C?

 

[dentbeanx3]

how can your bcp gpa be below 3.0 if you have none below C?

some c's and c+'s for prerequisites but i also retook two of them and got a better grade

 

[macsak]

some c's for prerequisites but i also retook two of them and got a better grade

perhaps you should edit your OP then

any sections on dat less than 17?

 

[dentbeanx3]

perhaps you should edit your OP then

any sections on dat less than 17?

thanks, they were all at least 20

 

[macsak]

thanks, they were all at least 20

nice

why meharry?
why western?

 

[dentbeanx3]

they seemed to accept oos applicants and has stats closer to my gpa range

 

[macsak]

they seemed to accept oos applicants and has stats closer to my gpa range

ummm, meharry is an HBCU...

 

[macsak]

ummm, meharry is an HBCU...

and western is not a fit geographically
why would they think you would come to their school?

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Your app pretty much screams tOSU is your first choice, and if they don't take you with your low GPA (since they should know what classes you took best), it will be hard for others to think you are seriously going to attend their program. It shouldn't stop the schools with large enrollments like LECOM or BU, but they may wait to send you an II. I could be wrong though.

Now, let's look at that GPA: what is your year-by-year science GPA trend? Let's remove the business school coursework.

What is your motivation to be a dentist? Where do you want to be practicing? What is your mission fit? Break down the 120 shadowing hours.

some c's and c+'s for prerequisites but i also retook two of them and got a better grade

So all grades are included, and your are reporting your AADSAS GPAs?

 

[dentbeanx3]

Your app pretty much screams tOSU is your first choice, and if they don't take you with your low GPA (since they should know what classes you took best), it will be hard for others to think you are seriously going to attend their program. It shouldn't stop the schools with large enrollments like LECOM or BU, but they may wait to send you an II. I could be wrong though.

Now, let's look at that GPA: what is your year-by-year science GPA trend? Let's remove the business school coursework.

What is your motivation to be a dentist? Where do you want to be practicing? What is your mission fit? Break down the 120 shadowing hours.


So all grades are included, and your are reporting your AADSAS GPAs?

yes its true, tOSU is my first choice as its where i went for undergrad and my home state.

the year-by-year gpa trend is somewhat consistent: 3.15, 3.17, 3.22, 3.15
these are from AADSAS and I'm not sure where to get just the science gpa's

shadowing hours broken down are 50 from a local clinic, another 50 from the family dentist, and 20 from the clinic I worked at the undergrad dental school.
i appreciate the help!

 

[OncePreDent]

I have seen people get in with significantly lower stats; they also completed a master's that was connected through a dental school too.

Great job killing the DAT

 

[dentbeanx3]

and western is not a fit geographically
why would they think you would come to their school?

i have family that lives in california and don't mind going to a new place