Every year there are several threads about the LLU secondary, and every year people complain about the same stuff.
Have any of you seen UCLA or UCSF's secondaries? They are almost as detailed as the AADSAS app., plus they require their own set of transcripts plus your HIGH SCHOOL transcript (at least UCLA). Talk about ridiculous...
LLU is a Seventh Day Adventist institution, and therefore all of their schools are founded upon that religion, which plays a very important role in their administration and their approach to education. There is mandatory weekly church attendance (note: this is not the same as participation), and yes, there are a number of questions that ask about the role of religion/spirituality in your life.
If you are not religious, your chances are slimmer but they still exist. You need to be able to show that you are respectful of religion in general, and especially the philosophy behind their mission. If you're a tolerant and respectful person who can get on board with their mission statement, even without subscribing to the "God" aspect of it, then you have a much better chance than someone who thinks that religion is some sort of fairy tale and thinks religious people are messed up in the head.
Every year people complain about the "required" letter from a pastor. Use your head, people. If you don't have a pastor because you are not religious, then obviously you can't provide that. So, being the (hopefully) smart future dentists that you are, you find something that will be an acceptable substitute, such as the person in charge of some volunteer work that you did, or community service activity. Basically, this person needs to attest to your value system, just as a co-worker would attest to your work ethic, and a professor would speak for your studiousness.
Stats and numbers are not the top priority for the adcom at LLU. Just as some schools out there (like ASDOH) are well known for wanting applicants with interest and experience in public health, LLU wants people who can look at the patient as a whole, as a person, and heal from a whole person perspective, while, of course, healing the oral malady. It's difficult to explain from a non-religious perspective, but for someone who believes in God (especially Christians), it's about viewing the patient as a child of God, made in His image and likeness, and therefore is deserving of your respect and the best care you can give, from every angle.
Instead of complaining about how much work the application is (which is NOTHING compared to the work you will have to do once in dental school), you should sit down and think about why they might want certain things, and what you can do if you don't exactly fit their profile to make yourself an outstanding applicant.
But then again, if you really don't want to go through with it, there are plenty of applicants out there who would be more than happy to see you drop out of contention for the school they really want.
Observation hours = required 20 or 30 (not sure what it is now for LLU) hours spent shadowing/observing a dentist.
