Application Situation

[TheLoveMD]

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Ok, so I just started thinking about whether or not to take summer courses this year and I realized that after this semester I will be 46 credits from graduating. I have added 5 credits of classes for the summer, leaving me with a mere 41 credits to graduate, and i have only been enrolled in my university for 2 years (9 AP credits from ACT score and 8 credits taken part time before full time enrollment)

so...

Here's my question.

Say I take my DAT at the end of this summer (late july i guess) and then try and complete my application. What type of score would i need in order to get accepted, knowing this is a relatively late time to begin the application process. Also, I'd obviously have to take summer courses in 2011 before matriculation to complete my bachellors so would this be a negative?

Here are some of my stats as of now...

GPA: 4.0 (65 credits total, 59 toward biology degree, 56 earned, 53 earned toward biology degree)...i dont plan on ever making a B, and im pretty confident in maintaing a 4.0 around app time.

DAT: n/a (ill put in alot of time and effort and $$ into studying for the DAT...im generally very successful with standardized test (32 ACT)...id b disappointed for an AA under 22-23)

Classes:
-I will have completed all pre reqs (except for organic chem lab) by the end of this spring semester and ill be taking a genetics course this summer. No other advanced sciences (just intro bio😀), but I have taken calc I and II...
-Ill be having to squeeze all advanced biologies into 1 year, but its technically possible. I am actually a bio major, but I didn't figure this out until late my freshman year and I opted out of biology this semester to take business courses to check my interest in that area (found out i did NOT want to be an investment banker)

Awards:
-TOPS Honors Award
-LSU Top 100 Alumni Assc. Award
-Chancellor's Future Leaders in Research Award (This award pisses me off because I have yet to see more than about 10 hours in the research lab due to budget cuts, but it still looks nice)

EC's:
-I just joined my pre-dental society and an extremely active honors fraternity called phi sigma pi. hope to have more to say about community service involving these two organizations by app time
-I volunteer at a local hospital in the pediatric ward (hope to have about 100 hours volunteering total by app time...50 here and 50 in community dental clinic)
-I am about to start shadowing a general dentist (will put in about 50 hours. should i look into shadowing specialists?)
=IDK if it applies to manual dexterity, but I won some art awards in high school for pencil drawings. I also used to build models, but its been about 4-6 years since ive done one...might try to get one done this summer. I also fish alot...im pretty good at guitar hero😀...on GH3 i could beat every song on expert except metallica - one for the longest time...which sucked because its one of my favorite songs but i recently beat it after not having played in at least a year...WHAT!? I also worked full time as a baker's assistant one summer...if you've ever had to make gourmet desert's then you KNOW that theres ALOT of manual dexterity involved there.

Thats alot to handle...if i left anything out ill edit...or you can just ask!

Thanks for opinions

 

[junkemails44]

I had a 23 and took the DAT in August. Received 6 pre-December interviews, and accepted 6 by Dec. 1st. I had total of 10 (I think), interviews so far. Of course, I did not attend all of them. You will be fine.

 

[TheLoveMD]

I had a 23 and took the DAT in August. Received 6 pre-December interviews, and accepted 6 by Dec. 1st. I had total of 10 (I think), interviews so far. Of course, I did not attend all of them. You will be fine.

i am worried that i will not have strong LoR's...also, my school uses a pre professional committee and i didnt register for it...what can i do?

id like to start maximizing my chances to shave one year off of undergrad.

 

[junkemails44]

i am worried that i will not have strong LoR's...also, my school uses a pre professional committee and i didnt register for it...what can i do?

id like to start maximizing my chances to shave one year off of undergrad.

If it makes you feel better, I did not use the pre-profession committee, and I asked letters of recommendation at the very last minute. Also, I attended a community college. Of course, my GPA and the DAT score offset it all. You will be fine! You gotta nail the interviews. Worry about the DAT for now.

 

[TheLoveMD]

If it makes you feel better, I did not use the pre-profession committee, and I asked letters of recommendation at the very last minute. Also, I attended a community college. Of course, my GPA and the DAT score offset it all. You will be fine! You gotta nail the interviews. Worry about the DAT for now.

im a very personable guy...im not really worried ab interviews...i actually enjoy them; its another area where i feel that ill do well.

what schools did u apply/interview/get accepted? (just for future reference)😀

 

[subdoc]

im a very personable guy...im not really worried ab interviews...i actually enjoy them; its another area where i feel that ill do well.

what schools did u apply/interview/get accepted? (just for future reference)😀

Sounds like you have it all figured out. Make sure your personal statement is well-articulated reflects your moxie. Dental Schools look for PROFESSIONALS, not just kids with great stats. (Although great stats go A LONG WAY!)

Work on leadership and becoming a professional in the time before your application, and DEFINITELY before your interview. If I were on an interview committee, I would GRILL a younger applicant to see if the applicant were worthy outside the numbers. Maturity goes a long way.

Best of luck on the cycle. Round yourself out with professional activities. Start lining up your LORs, although I have heard the committee letters are held with more weight. (...psst, I didn't have a committee letter, and had only one from a professor.)

 

[TheLoveMD]

Sounds like you have it all figured out. Make sure your personal statement is well-articulated reflects your moxie. Dental Schools look for PROFESSIONALS, not just kids with great stats. (Although great stats go A LONG WAY!)

Work on leadership and becoming a professional in the time before your application, and DEFINITELY before your interview. If I were on an interview committee, I would GRILL a younger applicant to see if the applicant were worthy outside the numbers. Maturity goes a long way.

Best of luck on the cycle. Round yourself out with professional activities. Start lining up your LORs, although I have heard the committee letters are held with more weight. (...psst, I didn't have a committee letter, and had only one from a professor.)

what if i didnt end up finishing my degree...i found out that i cannot take summer classes this semester due to a medical bill that ill ahve to pay for instead...even with spectacular stats, will this put me at an extreme disadvantage (id probably be about 15-20 credits from a degree)

 

[subdoc]

what if i didnt end up finishing my degree...i found out that i cannot take summer classes this semester due to a medical bill that ill ahve to pay for instead...even with spectacular stats, will this put me at an extreme disadvantage (id probably be about 15-20 credits from a degree)

The stats say a preponderance of D1s have at least a bachelor's degree. Some people get in without one, but it is rare. Invest in the 40 or so dollars on the ADEA guide to see the latest numbers. I think the 2010 edition hit the streets in the past month. I am sure if you do a search on this forum for number of D1s who have a BS/BA you will find something doctoothache has gaciously complied.

If you are set on D School, just take out some loans for the summer classes. You mentioned you are at LSU...as a state school, it can't be that over-the-top expensive. Also, if you stay in LNA for dental school, LSU is one of the cheapest in the country...around 10k/yr if I remember correctly from last year's ADEA guide.

Like most matters academic, you are best served by speaking with your academic advisors at your university. They know you far better than us and can provide guidance in situ. Or if summer school is definitely not an option - just overload. You said you were about 45-50 credits short? Slam it home. I have done 24 in a semester while being bogged down with the BS of a service academy. You can do it. Your social life will suffer, but let's face it, LSU will have a lean year on the gridiron next fall! 🙂 j/k

 

[TheLoveMD]

The stats say a preponderance of D1s have at least a bachelor's degree. Some people get in without one, but it is rare. Invest in the 40 or so dollars on the ADEA guide to see the latest numbers. I think the 2010 edition hit the streets in the past month. I am sure if you do a search on this forum for number of D1s who have a BS/BA you will find something doctoothache has gaciously complied.

If you are set on D School, just take out some loans for the summer classes. You mentioned you are at LSU...as a state school, it can't be that over-the-top expensive. Also, if you stay in LNA for dental school, LSU is one of the cheapest in the country...around 10k/yr if I remember correctly from last year's ADEA guide.

Like most matters academic, you are best served by speaking with your academic advisors at your university. They know you far better than us and can provide guidance in situ. Or if summer school is definitely not an option - just overload. You said you were about 45-50 credits short? Slam it home. I have done 24 in a semester while being bogged down with the BS of a service academy. You can do it. Your social life will suffer, but let's face it, LSU will have a lean year on the gridiron next fall! 🙂 j/k

lets not talk about LSU and football in the same sentence right now...im too proud of my saints to realize how much of a failure Les Miles' team was this year

anyhow...i cant imagine doing 24 hours but thats only because i have almost no electives left to complete...its all advanced biology courses hahaha...no easy feat to tackle cell bio, physiology, comparitive anatomy, biochemistry, evolution, microbiology and genetics all in the same year along with a foreign language senquence and a literature class...i have 7 biology classes left to take so idk what ill do but i might look into it...they dont offer anything over intersession and im not sure but i think id have to have my degree b4 summer term to b considered for admission to most schools. and if i end up not getting accepted i wouldnt want to have lower grades due to overwhelming course loads

we'll see how my DAT score goes...im guessin if i home run it then itll motivate to go ahead and graduate

 

[subdoc]

lets not talk about LSU and football in the same sentence right now...im too proud of my saints to realize how much of a failure Les Miles' team was this year

anyhow...i cant imagine doing 24 hours but thats only because i have almost no electives left to complete...its all advanced biology courses hahaha...no easy feat to tackle cell bio, physiology, comparitive anatomy, biochemistry, evolution, microbiology and genetics all in the same year along with a foreign language senquence and a literature class...i have 7 biology classes left to take so idk what ill do but i might look into it...they dont offer anything over intersession and im not sure but i think id have to have my degree b4 summer term to b considered for admission to most schools. and if i end up not getting accepted i wouldnt want to have lower grades due to overwhelming course loads

we'll see how my DAT score goes...im guessin if i home run it then itll motivate to go ahead and graduate

7 lab classes in a year...TOUGH, but doable. Sounds like good prep for D School. You'll figure it out. I would think you could take some bs lit (I was an English major) course over summer...that's what all the football jocks (I was one too) do.

Best of luck!

 

[TheLoveMD]

7 lab classes in a year...TOUGH, but doable. Sounds like good prep for D School. You'll figure it out. I would think you could take some bs lit (I was an English major) course over summer...that's what all the football jocks (I was one too) do.

Best of luck!

well we will see what happens...i really want to go to a top school so i might just stick out the extra year to continue padding my application...pending DAT score of course