What to do during school year...

[deleted341012]

Hey guys,

I'm currently a sophomore and after this semester, my motivation to do better in school is full in gear.
But I have no idea what to do regarding my extracurriculars.
Should I do research? If yes, then what kind? Is research really important for applying to dental schools?
I know I need a good GPA, DAT scores, and many job-shadowing hours but apart from that what should I do more?
My mom said that I should take classes (16 weeks) to become a dental assistant since she thinks that will make me stand out and also, show the schools that I'm really interested in dentistry, blah blah blah.
I personally am really interested in dentistry and do want to be a dentist but I still think my mom's idea is a little too extreme and time-consuming. What's you guys' take on this?
If you could please give me some advice on what I should do, I'd really appreciate it.

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[Wakaaa]

There are no extremes if you want it badly. You do everything you can to stick out and show yourself.

 

[crax]

1) find a job, preferably interesting that you can talk about
2) research isnt neccessary, but if you ARE interested, go look around some research labs. think about if you liked bio labs, chem labs, orgo labs. if you liked one of these go speak with some professors about joining up and learn about their lab. research is extremely time consuming, and if youre not into it, it will be hell.
3) i think the assistant class is too much, but thats just me.
4)get involved in things you like on campus, that way you can talk about them with enthusiasm. Possibly tutor, play competitive club sports, volunteer, culture clubs, pre dental association, something you can see yourself getting involved in.

aside from that, study hard for a nice GPA DAT, have > 100 shadowing hours (make sure to not spend all 100 at the same practice) and be capable of being as close to ready as possible to apply by june 1st when the application opens (most arent, so dont worry)