Gross anatomy in undergrad worth it?

Started by ECUpirate19
Get help with your application

Use all the free resources available to you from SDN: articles, guides, expert advising, forums discussions, and school research.

Browse articles Compare schools My application plan Read Interview Feedback
Practice for interviews Ask an Advisor
E

ECUpirate19

Full Member
10+ Year Member
I was wondering if taking gross anatomy as an undergrad is worth it or even really necessary for dental school. Thanks in advance
 
u should check the schools websites. Alot of them have updated prereqs to include things like psych and microbio. I forget which ones but def check the websites of the ones u interested in
 
If you have the opportunity to take anatomy then you should even if it's not a pre req. From what I hear one of the classes that most dental student struggle with is anatomy. It's alot of memorizing and if you've already seen it once it will be much easier on you when you see it again in d school.

Plus it's an awesome class😀
 
Holopeachy1 said:
If you have the opportunity to take anatomy then you should even if it's not a pre req. From what I hear one of the classes that most dental student struggle with is anatomy. It's alot of memorizing and if you've already seen it once it will be much easier on you when you see it again in d school.

Plus it's an awesome class😀
Click to expand...
👍
 
You should absolutely take anatomy if your schedule allows for it. Echoing what has already been mentioned, some schools require anatomy. I actually felt like anatomy was the first course I took that seemed to have a lot of real world applications. Overall, it significantly peaked my interests in the health sciences and increased my eagerness to start dental school.
During my interview day at Maryland, I spoke with several current dental students who said that they felt there was a substantial advantage had by those students who took anatomy shortly before entering dental school as this class, at least at Maryland, is one that students struggle the most with.
 
Hands down this was by far the hardest class for me D1 1st semester! I wish I would have taken the cadavier dissection in undergrad. My classmates that had taken it before were light years ahead of those of us who didn't.
 
Thanks everyone that really helps. Ill def try and fit in comparitive anatomy and gross anatomy in addition to the other anatomy I took just to boost my resume and help better prepare myself for dental school
 
I think it could be the single most important class you could take in undergrad. I took it at Texas A&M with the veterinary school teachers, so it was the real deal, and it was a challenging yet extremely interesting class.

That along with histology and physiology would be great.
 
Gross anatomy at UB was one of the most wordy time consuming class i've ever taken.

Anything that you can prepare for it would be a great advantage
 
Hey there fellow pirate. I took it last fall with Dr. Capehart, and it was by far the best class I've ever taken as a college student. I definitely recommend it. It will put you ahead of the learning curve when you enter dental school. PM me if you have any questions.
 
Dentalishus said:
So worth it!!!!
Click to expand...

HAHA

Let me complete the original question by asking how deep we are going to cover our entire body systems before we go over head and neck or dental stuffs much more in depth.

The whole body anatomy, the whole body histology, the whole body embryology ---> Head and neck anatomy, oral histology, oral embryology ---> dental anatomy (possibly oral histology and oral embryology at this time)

Maybe, they are covered in a totally different combination at another dental school.

This is what I am understanding and guessing. :laugh:
 
Without question, gross anatomy ranks as one of the most fascinating and difficult preclinical courses dental students take. Any course taken in cell bio, micro, physio, immunology, physiology, pharmacology before enrolling in ds will ease the pain since they are more likely to resemble the course content found in ds. The same cannot be said of gross anatomy. The only courses that may be considered quasi comparable would be those given for medical, physician assistant, physical therapy and perhaps others students. There are a number of courses offered nationwide during the summer for medical and dental students. However, these were designed for those needing remediation. DS anatomy courses are heavily weighed on the head and neck with less emphasis on the rest of the body. As an example a ds will require the identification of 109 anatomical structure in the abdominal dissection while expecting identification of 175 landmarks on the articulated skull alone. If you are intent on getting a leg up on your classmates you might do better off purchasing an anatomical skull and an atlas of the human skull.
 
Last edited:
doc toothache said:
Without question, gross anatomy ranks as one of the most fascinating and difficult preclinical courses dental students take. Any course taken in cell bio, micro, physio, immunology, physiology, pharmacology before enrolling in ds will ease the pain since they are more likely to resemble the course content found in ds. The same cannot be said of gross anatomy. The only courses that may be considered quasi comparable would be those given for medical, physician assistant, physical therapy and perhaps others students. There are a number of courses offered nationwide during the summer for medical and dental students. However, these were designed for those needing remediation. DS anatomy courses are heavily weighed on the head and neck with less emphasis on the rest of the body. As an example a ds will require the identification of 109 anatomical structure in the abdominal dissection while expecting identification of 175 landmarks on the articulated skull alone. If you are intent on getting a leg up on your classmates you might do better off purchasing an anatomical skull and an atlas of the human skull.
Click to expand...

Thanks Dr, for providing such a long and informative opinion. I have been reading some anatomy and your correct, I certainly wondered how someone was expected to memorize so much information! I will stick to it and hopefully I will be well versed when school rolls around. I have never taken anatomy or cell biology so I know I definitely need to prepare myself a little more than the average student who may have had prior exposure to these courses.
 
These responses seem so strange to me, I always thought "gross" anatomy specifically involved human dissection on a cadaver. So I looked at this topic and though, "Wow! I didn't know you could even take that kind of class at most undergrad institutions!". But looking at wikipedia I'm guessing some schools are using this title rather than just calling it Human anatomy, or anatomy, or A&P I/II. Wiki seems to define it simply as non-microscope, or a macroscopic perspective on anatomy, and that human dissection is sometimes incorporated. Also, those dental school pre-reqs simply ask for "anatomy" they don't specify "gross" anatomy, though again, I guess this is just semantics?
 
doc toothache said:
Without question, gross anatomy ranks as one of the most fascinating and difficult preclinical courses dental students take. Any course taken in cell bio, micro, physio, immunology, physiology, pharmacology before enrolling in ds will ease the pain since they are more likely to resemble the course content found in ds. The same cannot be said of gross anatomy. The only courses that may be considered quasi comparable would be those given for medical, physician assistant, physical therapy and perhaps others students. There are a number of courses offered nationwide during the summer for medical and dental students. However, these were designed for those needing remediation. DS anatomy courses are heavily weighed on the head and neck with less emphasis on the rest of the body. As an example a ds will require the identification of 109 anatomical structure in the abdominal dissection while expecting identification of 175 landmarks on the articulated skull alone. If you are intent on getting a leg up on your classmates you might do better off purchasing an anatomical skull and an atlas of the human skull.
Click to expand...

Thank u very much for this information.

Actually, it sounds like we are not covering lower extremities such as lower limbs, pelvis region (genital system), and upper limbs.

Can u elaborate more on this? (Not only NBDE but also dental curriculum!) 🙂
 
ECU,

If you can somehow make your way into actual gross anatomy through the ECU med school, do it.

But I'm confused a bit. Have you taken the standard undergrad Anatomy and Physiology 1 and 2? At least 4 hours of your bio prereq for Carolina Dental has to be A&P. My prof is probably the only ball-buster I've had in a while, so I took A&P 2, even though Carolina doesn't require it. Its only going to help.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.