Activities to put under the dental experience section of application

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.

destinedsirius

Full Member
10+ Year Member
Joined
Apr 29, 2010
Messages
255
Reaction score
1
Hi everyone,

So I have done a lot of dental related activities to mention in my application, but was not sure what section to put them under. I've attended a tooth-carving workshop (1 day), pre-dent sim course (2 days), Give Kids a Smile Day (1 day), UCSF Impressions (tour and taking impressions, 1 day) and of course, volunteering at a dental office for many hours just to name a few.

I'm going to put my volunteer work at the dentist under the dental experince section of the application, but I'm not sure where to put the rest. Since the tooth-carving workshop, UCSF Impressions, and the pre-dent sim course only lasted a couple of days, is it worth putting under dental experience or is it better of metioned in my personal statement?

And for Give Kids a Smile Day, should it be put under volunteer work or dental experience? Since that was only a 1 day thing, is it even worth putting down in the professional experience part of the application or would it be better off in my personal statement as well? There are many other non-dental related volunteer/extracurricular activities I've put more hours into that I feel that if I put GKASD in, it would just take the space up of something more meaningful.

The problem is that I don't want to turn my PS into big list of things I've done so I prefer to put my experiences on the rest of my application. But at the same time, the mentioned activities were only 1-2 day activities and I don't want my app. to seem like a joke when the hours reads something like 8 hours.

Thanks for all your help.

Members don't see this ad.
 
I have a question to add onto this thread: I am a post-bacc now, but as an undergrad I majored in sociology and was involved in a number of social-welfare-type internships and volunteering positions. Should I put those onto my application as well? By the time I apply, these activities will be about 4 years old....
 
There is this one category in AADSAS called "Professional Experience".... In it, it has 6 areas (in blue) you can populate, here are the instructions for each:

1) Academic Enrichment Programs
Academic Enrichment Programs include programs sponsored by colleges, universities or other not-for-profit organizations that are frequently targeted to students from disadvantaged backgrounds. They can include:

  • exposure to health careers by shadowing healthcare professionals
  • special academic support such as study skills development, time management, review of science course content
  • special research experiences
These experiences can occur in high school, during college (frequently summer programs), or as post-baccalaureate programs. Examples of Academic Enrichment Programs include the Summer Medical and Dental Education Program (SMDEP) and post-baccalaureate programs.
Do not list DAT preparation courses that are offered by commercial test preparation companies (i.e, Kaplan, Princeton Review).
Provide the name of the program, a brief description, and total hours of participation, and dates of experience(s) in this section:
Name of Program
Enter name of program
Brief Description
Provide a brief description of the program and the extent of your participation. You are limited to 175 characters, including spaces.
Total Number of Hours
Enter number of hours worked.
Month of Start Date
Select date from pull down menu.
Year of Start Date
Select date from pull down menu.
Month of End Date
Select month from pull down menu.
Year of End Date
Select year from pull down menu.


2) Awards, Honors, Scholarships
The purpose of this section is to highlight any special accolades you have received. List awards, honors scholarships in order of importance to you. You may include awards, etc. from high school and college, but keep in mind that college accomplishments are given higher priority by many admissions committees. You may list up to 5 awards.
Name of Award, Honor or Scholarship
List the full name of the award, honor or scholarship.

Sponsoring Organization
List the name of the organization that presented the award, honor or scholarship to you.

Month Received or Awarded
Select the month received from the drop-down menu.

Year Received or Awarded
Select the year received from the drop-down menu.

3) Dentistry Experience
The purpose of this section is to demonstrate to admissions committees the extent of your knowledge, background and experiences with the dental profession. List any experiences you have had in order of importance to you. You will be prompted to provide a brief description of the activity, including start and end dates, and to indicate whether the position was paid, volunteer, job shadowing or other. If you are still participating in the experience, leave the end dates blank. Name of Supervisor
First and last name of the person to whom you directly reported.
Position Title
Name of the position you held.
Type of Dentistry Observed
Please select a dentist from the list.
Brief Description of Activities
Describe your job responsibilities and duties (limited to 175 characters including spaces).
Total Number of Hours
Enter the total hours engaged in this experience.
Position Type (select all that apply)

  • Paid
  • Volunteer
  • Job Shadowing
  • Other
Month of Start Date
Enter the month you started the position.
Year of Start Date
Enter the year that corresponds with the month you started the position.
Month of End Date (If still employed leave blank)
Enter the month you stopped working in this position.
Year of End Date (If still employed leave blank)
Enter the year that corresponds with the month you stopped working in this position.


4) Extracurricular/Volunteer/Community Service
List any related activities in order of importance to you. You may include activities from high school and college, but keep in mind that accomplishments during college are given higher priority by many admissions committees. You may list up to 10 services.
Name of Organization
Enter the name of the organization with which you performed extracurricular, volunteer or community service.
Position Title/Brief Description
Enter the title of the position you held and a brief description of your responsibilities and duties (limited to 175 characters, including spaces).
Average Weekly Hours
Enter the average number of hours per week worked at the listed organization.
Total Number of Hours Over Span of Experience
Enter the total number of hours volunteered while at the listed organization.
Month of Start Date
Enter the month you began your association with the organization.
Year of Start Date
Enter the year that corresponds with the month you began your association with the organization.
Month of End Date
Enter the month your relationship with the organization ended. (If still employed leave blank.)
Year of End Date
Enter the year that corresponds with the month your relationship ended with the organization. (If still associated leave blank.)


5) Work Experience (Including Military Service)
Enter any paid work experience, including military service. List experience in order of importance to you. List each activity only once. Do not repeat any activities listed in the previous section. You may list up to 5 experiences. If still employed, estimate future end date. If listing military experience include (anticipated) discharge date and type of discharge.


Name of Employer
Enter the name of the business name of the employer for whom you worked.

Position Title
Enter the title of the position you held.

City/State
Enter the city and state of your work experience.

Brief Description
Include details about your responsibilities and duties (limited to 175 characters, including spaces).

Total Number of Hours
Enter the amount of hours you worked at the listed employer throughout your experience.

Month of Start Date
Enter the month you began working at the employer.

Year of Start Date
Enter the year that corresponds with the month you began working at the employer.

Month of End Date
Enter the month you ending your working relationship with the employer ended. (If still employed leave blank.)

Year of End Date
Enter the year that corresponds with the month your working relationship ended with the employer. (If still employed leave blank.)



6) Research Experience
Enter any paid or volunteer research experience. List experience in order of importance to you. List each activity only once. Do not repeat any activities listed in the previous section. You may list up to 5 research experiences.


Principal Investigator
Indicate the name of the lead person on this project.

Location of Research Project
Indicate the university or site location where the project took place.


Position Title/Brief Description of activities
Enter the title of the position you held and a brief description of your responsibilities and duties (limited to 175 characters, including spaces).

Total Number of Hours
Enter the amount of hours you worked at the listed organization throughout your experience.

Position Type (Select all that apply)

  • Volunteer - received no pay for participation
  • Received Academic Credit
  • Paid position
Month of Start Date
Enter the month you began working on the project.

Year of Start Date
Enter the year that corresponds with the month you began working on the project.

Month of End Date
Enter the month your working relationship ended with the project. (If still employed leave blank.)

Year of End Date
Enter the year that corresponds with the month your working relationship ended with the project. (If still employed leave blank.)
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Thanks for the info. I have seen it on the AADSAS website. My main concern is whether 1-2 day dental experiences are acceptable to put under the dental experience section. And if the dental related volunteer work I've done goes under dental experience section or volunteer/extracurricular section. Thanks
 
give kids a smile day is volunteer work.
im assuming you went to that because you volunteer at a dental clinic
 
Do most students fill out AADSAS using complete sentences or bullet points?
 
give kids a smile day is volunteer work.
im assuming you went to that because you volunteer at a dental clinic

Yes. You're right. I'll put under volunteer work. But does it look weird I'd only have 5 hours of that?
 
Do most students fill out AADSAS using complete sentences or bullet points?

You're given a very limited amount that you can write so complete sentences is a waste. You can list them, but there isn't an actual function to put in bullets so probably incomplete sentences is good.
 
You're given a very limited amount that you can write so complete sentences is a waste. You can list them, but there isn't an actual function to put in bullets so probably incomplete sentences is good.

I wrote in complete sentences, so that it looks more professional. Just be succinct.
 
Do most students fill out AADSAS using complete sentences or bullet points?

you BETTER use complete sentenses, with proper grammar and spelling. Some schools judge your writting style from this.
 
you BETTER use complete sentenses, with proper grammar and spelling. Some schools judge your writting style from this.

but i just felt like if i used complete sentences, i wouldn't get a chance to say everything i did.
 
but i just felt like if i used complete sentences, i wouldn't get a chance to say everything i did.

Its your call. I have talked to some dental schools and some use these little sections to determine your writing skills (since they can't go by your personal statement ~ because most likely its been corrected by others)
 
Its your call. I have talked to some dental schools and some use these little sections to determine your writing skills (since they can't go by your personal statement ~ because most likely its been corrected by others)

good to know. thanks!
 
but i just felt like if i used complete sentences, i wouldn't get a chance to say everything i did.

Like dentalWorks said, you really are making yourself look a lot less professional if you use fragments or bullets. You should be able to get the big idea of what you did in your writing, and you can explain other things at the interview if it is that important and you really couldn't find a way to write it in there.
 
If I am a member of ASDA (American Student Dental Association), should I include that in one of these categories?
 
Top