23 year old needs advice

[Rangersfan]

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I have decided that I want to pursue dentistry and I have started to prepare for the DAT. This past year I spent working as a research assistant and I graduated last December with a degree in Biology with a 3.4 oGPA and a 3.4 sGPA. I would really like to apply for the next cycle.

I spoke with one of my close friends (who is applying this cycle) about what it would take to be a competitive applicant and he suggested that my DAT would need to be very high, 20+, to get in since my GPA was a little low. He also said I would need some shadowing hours and some way to show I was committed to dentistry and that this was not some random decision.

My question is this, do i really need to score 20+ and 20's on every section to be competitive? I have a state school, Oklahoma, and was wondering what you guys thought. Their average is an 18 I believe and I was just wondering if it was necessary to score so high. Is an 18 not good enough to get in?

My friend had told me that although he's going on all these interviews, he would take his state school over the private ones because the cost was so high. I think he said OU was 120k for four years while others could be two or three times that amount. Any suggestions or response to this?

 

[FutureDent020]

My question is this, do i really need to score 20+ and 20's on every section to be competitive? I have a state school, Oklahoma, and was wondering what you guys thought. Their average is an 18 I believe and I was just wondering if it was necessary to score so high. Is an 18 not good enough to get in?

My friend had told me that although he's going on all these interviews, he would take his state school over the private ones because the cost was so high. I think he said OU was 120k for four years while others could be two or three times that amount. Any suggestions or response to this?

20+ would help your cause, but plenty of dental students get in with below 20's. And your GPA isn't even bad. It's solid. Your friend's perception is a little skewed, perhaps b/c his stats are high....

 

[Vicviper]

Haha, yeah, 20+ will make you more competitive, but it's not needed. I don't know about Oklahoma in particular... well... gimme a sec.... ok, the average in 2008 was 19AA and 3.6, and that's an average, so people clearly got in with less in both. So with your GPA you might want to shoot for 20 or up, but if you get an 18, don't feel like you've lost all hope.

You're going to definitely need plenty of shadowing hours, so be sure to get on that right away.

And don't worry, your GPA is much better than mine, but luckily you can counterbalance things like that with the DAT.

 

[prk15]

you should always aim to get the highest score possible. The higher the score the higher the % of you getting in.

 

[cowboy17]

.

 

[Rangersfan]

Thanks guys! I appreciate the comments and the advice. I see on here that a lot of people are getting above a 20. Is that the norm now or is it just because this place is full of over achievers?

 

[PaulieGualtieri]

overachievers

 

[FutureDent020]

overachievers

Haha it's true. There are maybe ten schools around the nation that average a 20 DAT...

 

[FutureDent020]

It's actually like 14, but they consist of all the West Coast schools, Ivy's, and a few others (BU, SB, UConn, NYU and maybe 1 or 2 more) The majority of the schools are in the 19's. Its amazing how much averages have jumped the past few years. Ugh, if I don't get in, I'm going to have to take the DAT again. BLAAGGHH 😱