Medical Accepted to dental school, but want to pursue medicine now. What should I do?

[Mr.Smile12]

Hi everyone. I recently applied to dental school and got some really nice admissions offers. I was fortunate enough to have been accepted to my dream school for their DDS program but nonetheless, after a few months of contemplating about my career choices and doing some soul searching, I have come to the conclusion that medicine is what I really want to pursue. It was very difficult to take this chance given the amount of time and money I invested to apply to dental school, but I am determined to pursue what I am really passionate about.

Having said this, I'm posting this to seek any sort of advice in terms of the whole application process, which appears to be very similar to dental school in terms of the requirements, etc.

Additionally, I am fortunate to have invested a lot of effort throughout my undergraduate career to build up my resume in terms of science research, academics, and volunteering which really help me stand out at my dental school interviews. With this, would I have a good shot in standing out in the pool of med school applicants? Based on the research I've done, it appears to me that medical school is a lot more competitive than dental school....... Any advise is greatly appreciated

Thanks a lot and stay safe out there!

Medical school is a bit more competitive, but you have three times as many programs and larger class sizes compared to dental admissions. The MCAT though is a PITA and you need to really focus to do well on that exam before you attempt to apply.

I don't know what your non-dental experiences are, but you would need to compile some hours with primary care physicians. You could probably get some connections through the dentists you've already shadowed or physicians you may have encountered if you did any non-profit clinic work. Research helps but not so much (just like dental admissions). If your grades were solid for dental school admissions, there will be some medical schools that may interview you. You just have to take your time to really think why medicine instead of dentistry now and make a convincing argument that you won't bolt.

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[Catalystik]

To be competitive for med school admissions, you'd need dedicated physician shadowing time (50 hours is the average listed; including primary care providers is highly desirable) and a volunteer or work situation where you interact with current medical patients, ideally with some having acute illness or injury (1.5 years and 150 total hours is the average listed for volunteers).

Coursework-wise, do you already have Biochem, Psychology and Sociology, Physics Lab, as well as a year of college math (statistics is desirable)?

 

[MusicDOc124]

Make the decision before you matriculate, or plan to complete dental school. Leaving a professional program after starting is not a good look, and you'd be taking a seat away from someone who truly wants to be a dentist. And from the other side, you do not want to be in a situation where you leave your seat and head for medicine and wish you stayed dental.

 

[artist2022]

Another thing to think about is I'm sure you will have to mention applying to and being accepted to a dental school on AMCAS/AACOMAS, and I'm not sure if medical schools will view it as a red flag? And you will definitely have to be convincing to show that you won't change your mind on medicine and switch to pharm or opt or something else instead...

Dental school to become an OMFS is also another option you could think about.