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[deleted829492]

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[macsak]

Hello there! I hope everyone is staying healthy and safe this holiday season.

I have a “unique” situation for my application to dental school. I’ve been agonizing over my chances for years now, but I can finally ask to be “chanced” since I’ve finally completed my application.

I might as well get it out of the way; I have an IA on my undergrad educational records for cheating on a final exam in my senior year. It was a collaboration with two other students, I was recruited to do it (it was my first- and last-time cheating). This happened over 3.5 years ago now, and I completed my punishment without any problems and successfully graduated. I have spent many, MANY months hating myself for what I did, but at this point, I can only accept it, learn from it, and move on. I can’t keep punishing myself for the rest of my life, it’s not healthy and I will only hurt my chances at success. Before that, I was a pretty decent student, I had good grades and education/grades were VERY important to me (honors student and all that). Like, it defined my self-worth. Not healthy.

If you want to know the why and what and whatever, you can read this next part, otherwise just skip it (TW: suicide ideation, mental health, abuse). I don’t want pity and I’m not trying to make excuses.

I was facing a lot of physical and emotional abuse at the hand of my parents, specifically my mother. Brother was getting involved in crimes and drugs. I was mentally and physically sick, contracted bronchitis, got into a car accident. Life was pretty **** and I was very selfish and disillusioned. I hated everyone and everything and thought I deserved a good grade even though I was struggling in the class. I felt that I couldn’t ask for help or that no one cared if I lived or died. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do but was entertaining the idea of dental school or PA. My only goal at that moment was to be able to leave my religious/cultural/controlling Asian household so I knew good grades into graduate school would be the only “acceptable” way. I was lamenting about my ****ty grades to a group chat, and two students who bragged about cheating multiple times asked me to join them. I would never have attempted anything like this on my own. I was also depressed and friendless, and desperate to be accepted somewhere. This is not reflective of how I think today but merely an explanation to why I did something so stupid and unethical.

I know what I did was wrong, and I take full responsibility for it. I know my chances are slim to none. I have done what I can to try to make up for my faults, and I have grown a lot as a person. Since I was able to move out, get help for my problems and therapy, things have changed for me in ways I can’t even begin to explain. The IA was one of the lowest points in my life, and it guided me to take control over my life for the first time in my young adult life instead of living in fear of my family and other social constructs I didn’t believe in. Although it was a terrible decision, I am glad that I went through it because I needed a kick in my ass to change a lot of things and face my reality.

Now here’s the situation of today. I tried contacting the dean who oversaw my case, but after promising a Zoom call to discuss my IA and how I’ve changed, he basically ghosted me. I will try emailing him again to see if he’s still willing to put in a good word for me or write a letter explaining my IA. He hasn’t replied to multiple emails so idk at this point.

I completed an MS in bio, specifically in upper-level bio classes geared for pre-health people. My sGPA was low and I needed to prove that I could handle upper level bio after I was able to leave my toxic household.


Date of submission: 06/16/2020, verified 6/24/2020 for AADSAS
TMDSAS: 06/08/2020
DAT: December, 2020
Overall GPA: 3.49
Science GPA: 3.36
Bio-Chem-Physics GPA: 3.21
DAT score (include AA and all sections): 23 AA/ 21TS/ 22 Bio/ 21 GC/ 20 OC/ 28 PAT/ 29 RC/ 21 QC
State of Residence: TX

Major: Bio for undergrad, Bio for graduate
Minor: Studio Fine Art
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? No

Shadowing Experience: 100+, general and specialties
Volunteering Experience: 500+, general and dental related
Employment: 4000+, retail, CNA in a hospital, Pharmacy tech, Dental assistant (significant employment in college to support my myself)
Research: None
Other Extracurriculars: Art, reading, cooking
Relevant Honors or Awards: multiple scholarships, graduated with honors
LOR type and strength: committee letter + dentist letter
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere: I have fantastic essays, which I got help with by a professional (not bragging, it's really my saving grace at this point, lol)

School list:
Arizona,
Missouri
Columbia,
Nova,
LECOM,
Case Western,
Marquette,
UNLV,
Temple,
Colorado,
Detroit,
Maryland
And all 4 Texas schools (I live in TX)

I applied to a lot of schools because both my husband and I are trying to get into the same school, preferably. And my IA puts a major damper on my application.

At this point, what else can I do? I JUST took my DAT so no interviews yet, but my husband has gotten multiple so far (he’s also a unique story). I’m just kind of lost now, being unemployed and done with school and the DAT. I can’t even volunteer :/ I have a lot of hobbies and personal interests, and I will shadow online. But is there anything else I can do to strengthen my application or am I at the mercy of admissions?

Side note, flaming me or calling me a troll doesn’t bother me but I am well aware of what I did was WRONG. So, let’s try to remain constructive.

Thank you very much for reading and for any insight you guys can offer.

EDIT: Fixed format and template for WAMC.

what is your masters gpa?
you sound like you have grown and are in a better place now
your PS and LOR should reflect this too
good luck in your journey

 

[DMD12345]

It’s a great story and the situation happened a long time ago, since which you’ve grown a lot. If you wrote the story in your personal statement well like you did here, I personally feel like it won’t destroy your app and they’ll enjoy your unique pivotal moment, especially since even though you had such hard circumstances you still take complete responsibility and accountability of your actions. I’m just concerned about your gpa being moderately low and your late dat date. Luckily this is covid app year so there’ll be a lot of post-December interviews so you’re not out of the game, but you might have to reapply next year where you’ll have a much better chance, especially if you take science courses to bring your gpa up and retake any low prereq grades. I’d suggest submitting your personal statement to someone on the official personal statement readers page to double check its efficacy on outsiders. I wish you the best, you got this.

Edit: glanced over you got a masters so disregard the retaking prereqs I believe

 

[deleted829492]

what is your masters gpa?
you sound like you have grown and are in a better place now
your PS and LOR should reflect this too
good luck in your journey

It's an overall 3.72, and I took classes such as histology, immunology, advanced cell biology, gross anatomy + lab.

Thank you! I think so as well. I'm just scared that I won't be forgiven/given a second chance.

Thank you for your well wishes.

 

[deleted829492]

It’s a great story and the situation happened a long time ago, since which you’ve grown a lot. If you wrote the story in your personal statement well like you did here, I personally feel like it won’t destroy your app and they’ll enjoy your unique pivotal moment, especially since even though you had such hard circumstances you still take complete responsibility and accountability of your actions. I’m just concerned about your gpa being moderately low and your late dat date. Luckily this is covid app year so there’ll be a lot of post-December interviews so you’re not out of the game, but you might have to reapply next year where you’ll have a much better chance, especially if you take science courses to bring your gpa up and retake any low prereq grades. I’d suggest submitting your personal statement to someone on the official personal statement readers page to double check its efficacy on outsiders. I wish you the best, you got this.

Edit: glanced over you got a masters so disregard the retaking prereqs I believe

Thank you for the kind comment. I hope so as well, I didn't really go that depth into my situation as I did here, but I alluded to it. Thankfully the PS and other essays (for TMDSAS) are very strong-- I went through a professional route for help and I am very happy with the results. I figured I will have to reapply next year, it's just unfortunate that I don't have much to add to the application due to COVID.

I was thinking about finding another job, doing some virtual shadowing, and finding volunteer opportunities outside of dentistry since the dental-related ones are all cancelled.

Yeah, I don't think there's much point to doing more GPA-related stuff, my grades are decent and I've already done a Masters-- it's just the IA that makes things questionable.

Again, I appreciate your kind comment. I was hesitant to post on SDN because I've seen others being roasted for their IA's in the pre-med section, and I am already demoralized lol.

 

[macsak]

It's an overall 3.72, and I took classes such as histology, immunology, advanced cell biology, gross anatomy + lab.

Thank you! I think so as well. I'm just scared that I won't be forgiven/given a second chance.

Thank you for your well wishes.

trust the process...

 

[PerioDont]

Hello there! I hope everyone is staying healthy and safe this holiday season.

I have a “unique” situation for my application to dental school. I’ve been agonizing over my chances for years now, but I can finally ask to be “chanced” since I’ve finally completed my application.

I might as well get it out of the way; I have an IA on my undergrad educational records for cheating on a final exam in my senior year. It was a collaboration with two other students, I was recruited to do it (it was my first- and last-time cheating). This happened over 3.5 years ago now, and I completed my punishment without any problems and successfully graduated. I have spent many, MANY months hating myself for what I did, but at this point, I can only accept it, learn from it, and move on. I can’t keep punishing myself for the rest of my life, it’s not healthy and I will only hurt my chances at success. Before that, I was a pretty decent student, I had good grades and education/grades were VERY important to me (honors student and all that). Like, it defined my self-worth. Not healthy.

If you want to know the why and what and whatever, you can read this next part, otherwise just skip it (TW: suicide ideation, mental health, abuse). I don’t want pity and I’m not trying to make excuses.

I was facing a lot of physical and emotional abuse at the hand of my parents, specifically my mother. Brother was getting involved in crimes and drugs. I was mentally and physically sick, contracted bronchitis, got into a car accident. Life was pretty **** and I was very selfish and disillusioned. I hated everyone and everything and thought I deserved a good grade even though I was struggling in the class. I felt that I couldn’t ask for help or that no one cared if I lived or died. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do but was entertaining the idea of dental school or PA. My only goal at that moment was to be able to leave my religious/cultural/controlling Asian household so I knew good grades into graduate school would be the only “acceptable” way. I was lamenting about my ****ty grades to a group chat, and two students who bragged about cheating multiple times asked me to join them. I would never have attempted anything like this on my own. I was also depressed and friendless, and desperate to be accepted somewhere. This is not reflective of how I think today but merely an explanation to why I did something so stupid and unethical.

I know what I did was wrong, and I take full responsibility for it. I know my chances are slim to none. I have done what I can to try to make up for my faults, and I have grown a lot as a person. Since I was able to move out, get help for my problems and therapy, things have changed for me in ways I can’t even begin to explain. The IA was one of the lowest points in my life, and it guided me to take control over my life for the first time in my young adult life instead of living in fear of my family and other social constructs I didn’t believe in. Although it was a terrible decision, I am glad that I went through it because I needed a kick to my ass to change a lot of things and face my reality.

Now here’s the situation of today. I tried contacting the dean who oversaw my case, but after promising a Zoom call to discuss my IA and how I’ve changed, he basically ghosted me. I will try emailing him again to see if he’s still willing to put in a good word for me or write a letter explaining my IA. He hasn’t replied to multiple emails so idk at this point.

I completed an MS in bio, specifically in upper-level bio classes geared for pre-health people. My sGPA was low and I needed to prove that I could handle upper level bio after I was able to leave my toxic household.


Date of submission: 06/16/2020, verified 6/24/2020 for AADSAS
TMDSAS: 06/08/2020
DAT: December, 2020
Overall GPA: 3.49
Science GPA: 3.36
Bio-Chem-Physics GPA: 3.21
Graduate GPA: 3.72
DAT score (include AA and all sections): 23 AA/ 21TS/ 22 Bio/ 21 GC/ 20 OC/ 28 PAT/ 29 RC/ 21 QC
State of Residence: TX

Major: Bio for undergrad, Bio for graduate
Minor: Studio Fine Art
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? No

Shadowing Experience: 100+, general and specialties
Volunteering Experience: 500+, general and dental related
Employment: 4000+, retail, CNA in a hospital, Pharmacy tech, Dental assistant (significant employment in college to support my myself)
Research: None
Other Extracurriculars: Art, reading, cooking
Relevant Honors or Awards: multiple scholarships, graduated with honors
LOR type and strength: committee letter + dentist letter
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere: I have fantastic essays, which I got help with by a professional (not bragging, it's really my saving grace at this point, lol)

School list:
Arizona,
Missouri
Columbia,
Nova,
LECOM,
Case Western,
Marquette,
UNLV,
Temple,
Colorado,
Detroit,
Maryland
And all 4 Texas schools (I live in TX)

I applied to a lot of schools because both my husband and I are trying to get into the same school, preferably. And my IA puts a major damper on my application.

At this point, what else can I do? I JUST took my DAT so no interviews yet, but my husband has gotten multiple so far (he’s also a unique story). I’m just kind of lost now, being unemployed and done with school and the DAT. I can’t even volunteer :/ I have a lot of hobbies and personal interests, and I will shadow online. But is there anything else I can do to strengthen my application or am I at the mercy of admissions?

Side note, flaming me or calling me a troll doesn’t bother me but I am well aware of what I did was WRONG. So, let’s try to remain constructive.

Thank you very much for reading and for any insight you guys can offer.

EDIT: Fixed format and template for WAMC.

Life is full of challenges. What happened is in the past, and you obviously have changed. I think that adcoms will feel the same way. as long as you articulated that properly in your essays etc.

I don't think you need to do anything differently at this point. just because you took the DAT a little on the later end I think this cycle may be more challenging for you though you did submit your app early. Wishing you the best for you and your husband in the future!

 

[deleted829492]

Life is full of challenges. What happened is in the past, and you obviously have changed. I think that adcoms will feel the same way. as long as you articulated that properly in your essays etc.

I don't think you need to do anything differently at this point. just because you took the DAT a little on the later end I think this cycle may be more challenging for you though you did submit your app early. Wishing you the best for you and your husband in the future!

Thank you for the reply! I hope that they can see that. Though I more so alluded to my difficult past as opposed to being so forthright about it.

I kept on delaying my DAT cuz I KNEW it was imperative to have a high score to offset the bad, so my anxiety got the best of me. Thankfully I did well and that this year is a little different. Regardless, I need to start preparing for a reapply. Do you think a half-year of basically doing nothing (besides DAT) would look bad? All my volunteering opportunities stopped and I live in a big city/no health insurance so getting COVID is a real concern for me.

What should I do for these next 6 months to strengthen my application for next year?

 

[PerioDont]

Thank you for the reply! I hope that they can see that. Though I more so alluded to my difficult past as opposed to being so forthright about it.

I kept on delaying my DAT cuz I KNEW it was imperative to have a high score to offset the bad, so my anxiety got the best of me. Thankfully I did well and that this year is a little different. Regardless, I need to start preparing for a reapply. Do you think a half-year of basically doing nothing (besides DAT) would look bad? All my volunteering opportunities stopped and I live in a big city/no health insurance so getting COVID is a real concern for me.

What should I do for these next 6 months to strengthen my application for next year?

What are you doing now? since you mentioned the assisting experience I would continue that. If you have other health problems or can't find an assist position offering health insurance consider working at a dental lab. It will be an invaluable experience for you to learn how to manipulate dental materials - they usually train you on the job.

 

[deleted829492]

What are you doing now? since you mentioned the assisting experience I would continue that. If you have other health problems or can't find an assist position offering health insurance consider working at a dental lab. It will be an invaluable experience for you to learn how to manipulate dental materials - they usually train you on the job.

Nothing, I finished my masters in August of this year, and I started preparing to take the DAT but had it cancelled a few times. Eventually took it in December, and now I'm doing literally nothing. I have been applying to find work; either in research and I may consider dental assisting even though I have very minimal experience/training. Things have been slow in terms of jobs/volunteering because everything I was doing (volunteering at a local free dental clinic, TMOMs, working, my masters) ended/stopped due to COVID. I am also going to try to find a dentist to shadow, which may prove difficult.

My husband may or may not be accepted this Tuesday, so depending on where he goes, I want to write a letter of intent to that school and ask them specifically what else I can do to make myself more competitive. Thought honestly both our top choice is Texas A&M. He's interviewed there and has a very high chance of getting in this Tuesday. If he does, and if I don't get in this year, I plan on staying very close to the school and participating in every event, to increase my chances of going to the same school.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Time heals all wounds, but you never know at the level of individual faculty looking at your file.

 

[deleted829492]

Time heals all wounds, but you never know at the level of individual faculty looking at your file.

Yeah, that's what scares me the most. No matter what I do or say, it really depends on admissions, whether I'm worthy of redemption or not. Oh well, I'll just have to keep applying.

 

[deleted829492]

Hey everyone, I wanted to quickly say, I got my first interview invite today!! So, I guess it's still possible for me to get in! Super excited, humbled, and grateful for this opportunity. I'll update if any more exciting news falls my way. Thank you everyone for your lovely messages and encouragement. It truly means a lot to me!

 

[osMOLARity=D]

She got accepted in case anyone was wondering!

 

[macsak]

She got accepted in case anyone was wondering!

congrats to you both!