Advice for spring 2013

[bluemoon27]

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Hi everyone. I am junior (non-sci major) right now and want to apply for dental school for the next cylce in June but I need some advice.

Currently, my BCP GPA is 2.39 and my sci GPA is 2.57. Ive mostly gotten B's in most of my science classes but for phys 2 and orgo 2, I first made a D then repeated the class and made a C (Yes I know its bad!=( Also got a C in orgo 1, but made a B in the orgo lab. B in everything else. So for next semester, I want to take some science classes to help my GPA.

I have the option to take 2 science classes or more from these(I cant take other BCP sci classes because I dont have the pre-reqs since I am engineering major): Biochem, Pchem, Cell Bio, and Upper level Genetics. Would you guys recommend taking all of these with an engineering and another class together (both engineering and other are required classes I need to take next semester because of too many sequecne-based classes remaining til graduation). So I was wondering should I just do 2 of them or all 4? If I can make A in all those then my BCP gpa can go up by a lot to like 2.80. Overall GPA currently is just above 3 though and wont get affected too much if I get all A's though. But I am scared that its too many sine I havent done well in the past.

I am also worried about too many sci classes because I still need to prepare for and take DAT (I have started prepping a little bit this break). On the bright side cell bio and gen could help for the bio section which would be a plus. But I havent done as well when I take a few sci classes because I dont study efficiently and even though I work really hard, end up studying the useless stuff and do bad on tests. I really want to apply this coming cycle but I feel my GPA is too low, but Idk if taking that many hard sciences together with a hard engineering and another class is a good idea.

I do have 100+ hrs shadowing and am also good with leadership, EC's, and research experience, but I feel that GPA is my weak point.

Plz help me! What should I do? If you were in my shoes, what would you do? Should I take 2 of them or more? Any efficient studying method you use that works well? Any advice is much appreciated. Thank you in advance!!

P.S: If any of you would recommend a masters in bio or some sci for backup, plz can you give me names of schools that let you do it in one yr (for my gap year in case things dont work out this cycle). Thanks!

 

[unknown111]

That GPA to me, is a red flag for sure. I would not apply this upcoming June if I were you I'd focus on performing well in my senior year, even if it means stopping ECs or research.
You must bring that GPA up!!

 

[user101]

you wont get interviews to any school with that gpa..I advise putting the DAT on hold and taking classes and passing with A's to compensate.

EC and shadowing make a person with avg DAT and gpa stand out but in your case you need to focus on just academics

good luck with everything

 

[bluemoon27]

Yes definitely. Would you recommend taking all 4 of these sci courses or just 2?

 

[bluemoon27]

Would 2.8 BCP n sci GPA be enough to at least get me an interview? Thats the max I can bring it up with all As in sci classes

 

[unknown111]

It's really hard to say based off GPA alone but I would have to guess and say that you would need higher than a 2.8...

Of course it all depends on your situation, your total application package, and more importantly how well you can score on the DAT.

 

[503224]

Yes definitely. Would you recommend taking all 4 of these sci courses or just 2?

How many can you take at a time and score A's in?

That is the million dollar question. If the answer is just one, then take one.

 

[LaughingGas]

If you can, stay longer for undergrad and try to take more classes. I agree with Jean Grey. You need to learn how to get As, even if it means taking 1 class per term.. I understand that engineering is a gpa killer but adcoms won't take too much consideration of it. Looking at your academic history, I would personally suggest finish your engineering major first and do a bio minor afterwards. You couldn't make As with the "easier" courses, it's safer to think the upper div bio classes will be harder but not the other way around. You should take more than 4 upper div bio/chem/phys, in fact, you probably need to do postbac at least for a year or stay 5th or 6th year undergrad.
I calculated my GPA wrong, and I am sitting a 2.96 overall gpa, which I'm 0.04 short. Guess what, automatic rejection from UCSF. It was painful to watch lol.
You see people that get in with 2.8 gpa with ok DAT, but statisticallly, it's VERY rare that I see those case in this forum. People with 2.8 that get accepted, I'm 90% sure it's one of the cases that did super bad during first 2 years but aced the rest, showing upward trend in the GPA.
If you have enough research experience, shadowing, ECs, drop everything and focus just on studying. And don't waste on your money applying. Most likely you will be rejected, statistically and automatic rejection from some schools if your gpa is under 3.0.
I used to be overwhelmed by the amount of little details that bio textbook showed. If you have no clue what to study and what not, go office hour and bother the **** out of the professor. Ask them what they want you to know and what not. They sure will be annoyed. But each A you get from each class will slowly help you to become a stronger applicant. Do anything to earn even smallest points. That's what I did very different from my undergrad. I became very eager to earn every single point, even I was getting As on my tests.
Also it's a good idea to either call the schools or make an appointment with an admission advisor and discuss about your situation. It sure took me a lot of guts to talk to an adcom with my ****ty and embarrassing undergrad GPA. But I was able to realize what I need to do and strategize better to become a stronger applicant.
Don't rush things but take one step at a time. What you really need to do is for you to learn how to get As.
Best luck.

 

[UCLAzy]

many engineering folks think that the harder major will make up for a low GPA (and as a former engineering major i agree, it should) but it doesnt. especially since your non-engineering classes that make up the BCP are so low, you have a lot of work ahead of you.

how's your overall gpa? seems like if your work ethic for the BCP classes is lacking, the same would be true for the engineering courses

anyways, it would be a complete waste to apply next cycle as others have said.

 

[bluemoon27]

Overall Gpa is currently a 3.0. Thank you this is very good advice! Please keep it coming. Im open to criticism and suggestions to improve.

 

[KittySquared]

Take a look at how many credits you've taken. If you're barely around 90-100 credits total, 2 or 3 semesters of postbac can still really help you, but it gets to a point where you've taken so many credits that your GPA won't even marginally change regardless of whatever additional semesters of classes you take. Work out the math and see how much more you need to get it to at least a 2.9 or 3.0and on top of it, I'd recommend a 1 year bio masters and THEN apply.

 

[bluemoon27]

Thanks everyone!

This is really helpful! If any one else has any comments or suggestions, please feel free to pitch in! I appreciate your comments and critiques.