Applying to 30 schools. Good or bad idea??

[jdmgsr]

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So my stats are 3.54 cGPA, 3.6 sGPA, 22OC 21GC 20Bio 26QR 25PAT 19RC

I'm a Canadian applicant. My problem is that I cannot narrow down my list of schools. Seems like I have a chance in getting into all 30 of these schools below.... or do I?? If anyone could please narrow down my list a little more I would really really appreciate it. If you see a school that I have no chance in getting intp, and is a waste of time and money to apply, please let me know. Or if you can think of a school that I haven't listed that I should consider, also let me know.
Thanks in advance guys!!!

Midwestern University-Arizona AZ 01/01/2011
Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health (AZ) AZ 12/01/2010
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) CA 01/01/2011
Western University of Health Sciences (WESTU) CA 12/01/2010
Loma Linda University (LLU) CA 12/01/2010
University of Southern California Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry (USC) CA 02/01/2011
University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry (UOP) CA 12/01/2010
University of Connecticut (CONN) CT 01/01/2011
Midwestern University-Illinois IL 01/01/2011
Indiana University (IND) IN 12/01/2010
University of Kentucky (UK) KY 12/01/2010
University of Louisville (UL) KY 01/01/2011
Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HVD) MA 12/15/2010
Tufts University (TUF) MA 02/01/2011
Boston University Henry M Goldman School of Dental Medicine (BU) MA 02/01/2011
University of Maryland (MYD) MD 01/01/2011
University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) MI 02/01/2011
University of Michigan (MICH) MI 12/01/2010
Creighton University (CRE) NE 02/01/2011
University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) NV 01/01/2011
University at Buffalo (BUF) NY 12/01/2010
Columbia University College of Dental Medicine (CUL) NY 01/14/2011
New York University (NYU) NY 02/01/2011
Case School of Dental Medicine (CWR) OH 01/01/2011
University of Pittsburgh (PITT) PA 12/01/2010
The Maurice H. Kornberg School of Dentistry, Temple University (TEMP) PA 02/01/2011
University of Pennsylvania (PENN) PA 12/15/2010
University of Southern Nevada, Utah Campus (USN) UT 02/01/2011
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) VA 11/01/2010
Marquette University (MQT)

 

[persenmi]

If you are planning on applying this cycle and haven't done so yet, I would recommend doing so IMMEDIATELY or you will not have a chance even if you apply to all 55 schools because at this point it is already considered late in the cycle. That said, I know that Case and Midwestern all practically done handing out interviews (although there will be a "reshuffle" after Dec 1) so your chances are reduced there. I also know that Loma Linda recruits heavily from the Seventh Day Adventist church, so unless you are SDA or have close ties to some other religious group (b/c they require a letter from a religious leader who knows you well), I would say save your $. As a Canadian, your best bets are with the Canadian schools, as well as the private schools in the US (Tufts, UoP, BU, Case, UPenn, UPitt, Harvard, NYU, Columbia, etc.) b/c they do not give any residential preference and your stats are good enough to be competitive. Also, if you do not get in this year, apply as early as possible next year! Good luck.

P.S. Keep in mind that many of these schools have secondary applications and fees. If you apply to this many schools it will take a lot of work, time, money, and organization to finish all the apps.

 

[jdmgsr]

Wow, I didn't know Loma Linda requires a letter from a religious leader. I guess I'll cancel that one.

Thanks for your suggestions persenmi.

P.S. Do schools care about how many other schools you apply to?????

Anyone else wanna help me narrow down my list?? I'm desperate cuz my application is ready to submit and I don't know what schools to apply to.

Thanks!

 

[Destiny11]

I think it's a waste of money applying to 30 schools. Are you going to go to all 30 interviews if they all offer it to you? I would say narrow it down to <18, esp with your stats. Narrow it down based on the following:

1) Location...do you want to spend 4yrs living there?
2) Cost
3) School's mission...does it fit your needs?
4) School's reputation
5) Curriculum

I would take out ASDOH (unless you have close to 1000 hours of community service), state schools like UNLV, Maryland, Michigan, and schools that are done with giving out pre-dec interviews: Marquette, Midwestern-AZ, Indiana, Case

 

[jdmgsr]

Thank you Destiny11. I'll def take out a few state schools and ASDOH. An important thing for me is living in a suitable city for 4 years.

p.s. you brought up a good point about narrowing them down based on the location of the school. One of the most important things for me is the city where the school is situated. I want to have fun in those four years (i wanna enjoy my twenties, or at least try to, while in dental school). But I have no idea what it's like in the US. I've only been to NYC, and absolutely loved it. Are there any other cities in the US that rock as much as NYC does?

 

[AmpedUp]

Looking to see which schools are "international-friendly" (since you're a canadian applicant) would help trim this list down as well. I would aim for 15 schools.

 

[dentalWorks]

with that kind of GPA and your DAT (guessing 22AA and 22TS??) I think you'll for sure get alot of interviews / acceptances IF YOU WERE TO APPLY next cycle..... if your talking about this cycle, then, I dunno

But be prepared to spend about $5000-6000 just on AADSAS and 2ndary fees... This doesn't even include money spent on flying / hotel stays. Good luck, you better have some serious cash saved up

As far as your list of schools go, most of them are good..... Just, is Arizona out-of-state friendly? And what is your religion? I ask because Loma Linda is pretty strict about the kind of students they accept (religion wise)

 

[MNdental]

Another thing that I have seen on another thread is that dental schools CAN see what other schools you applied to. If you apply to 30, that might lead them to believe you aren't considering that school in particular. It may serve as a red flag for your application that might hurt you. Also, it's getting to be a bit late in the game for this cycle. If it were me, I would pick 4 schools for this year. Save your money, leave some room to apply for the next cycle and get the application in during the summer, aiming for before Aug 1. That will give the schools enough time to give your application the time it deserves and you time to assemble the strongest application you can.

I don't really follow the logic for applying to more than 10 schools. I know there are a number of people that do it, but with your scores you should be able to secure some interviews. I don't think that you are in much better of a position by applying to a ton of schools.

 

[dentalWorks]

Another thing that I have seen on another thread is that dental schools CAN see what other schools you applied to.

I don't think this is correct. AADSAS does NOT provide this kind of information. Alot of times when you go to interviews, there is a reason why they ask you how many / which schools you applied too cause they don't have access to that information

 

[MNdental]

I don't think this is correct. AADSAS does NOT provide this kind of information. Alot of times when you go to interviews, there is a reason why they ask you how many / which schools you applied too cause they don't have access to that information

I was skeptical when I heard this too. I might still be wrong. i can try to find the thread I read it on. A couple of people said that they had heard from admissions people that they do have access through AADSAS to see where you application was sent. It seems wrong and that they should not have access to it, but these people seemed positive about this information. Ill go find a link to that thread so you can decide for yourself. Just want to make sure nobody is shooting themself in the foot without knowing it

 

[MatthewLeeDDS]

Applying to 30 schools seems a bit excessive. Try to figure out where you will have the best shot, what schools fit your style, and what schools are in a location you would actually want to be. Don't forget, applying to 30 schools, like dentalWorks said, is going to cost you a LOT of money. Not to mention that if you get interviews to, let's say, half of those schools, you'll be missing a lot of time traveling around going to the interviews. It is highly unrealistic to think 1 interview will take 1 day. Each interview is likely to take at least 2, maybe 3 days when you factor in traveling.

The way it see it, it's one of those "just because you can doesn't mean you should" situations. Just because you can apply (and possibly be accepted) to 30 schools doesn't mean you should attempt it. In the end, you'll have to pick one anyway. If you get multiple acceptances, you're going to have to pick 1 school sooner or later. Start thinking about where you really want to be a knock some of them out ahead of time. I just don't see it being worth the time or $ to apply to 30.

 

[wantVCUdental]

So my stats are 3.54 cGPA, 3.6 sGPA, 22OC 21GC 20Bio 26QR 25PAT 19RC

I'm a Canadian applicant. My problem is that I cannot narrow down my list of schools. Seems like I have a chance in getting into all 30 of these schools below.... or do I?? If anyone could please narrow down my list a little more I would really really appreciate it. If you see a school that I have no chance in getting intp, and is a waste of time and money to apply, please let me know. Or if you can think of a school that I haven't listed that I should consider, also let me know.
Thanks in advance guys!!!

Midwestern University-Arizona AZ 01/01/2011
Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health (AZ) AZ 12/01/2010
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) CA 01/01/2011
Western University of Health Sciences (WESTU) CA 12/01/2010
Loma Linda University (LLU) CA 12/01/2010
University of Southern California Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry (USC) CA 02/01/2011
University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry (UOP) CA 12/01/2010
University of Connecticut (CONN) CT 01/01/2011
Midwestern University-Illinois IL 01/01/2011
Indiana University (IND) IN 12/01/2010
University of Kentucky (UK) KY 12/01/2010
University of Louisville (UL) KY 01/01/2011
Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HVD) MA 12/15/2010
Tufts University (TUF) MA 02/01/2011
Boston University Henry M Goldman School of Dental Medicine (BU) MA 02/01/2011
University of Maryland (MYD) MD 01/01/2011
University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) MI 02/01/2011
University of Michigan (MICH) MI 12/01/2010
Creighton University (CRE) NE 02/01/2011
University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) NV 01/01/2011
University at Buffalo (BUF) NY 12/01/2010
Columbia University College of Dental Medicine (CUL) NY 01/14/2011
New York University (NYU) NY 02/01/2011
Case School of Dental Medicine (CWR) OH 01/01/2011
University of Pittsburgh (PITT) PA 12/01/2010
The Maurice H. Kornberg School of Dentistry, Temple University (TEMP) PA 02/01/2011
University of Pennsylvania (PENN) PA 12/15/2010
University of Southern Nevada, Utah Campus (USN) UT 02/01/2011
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) VA 11/01/2010
Marquette University (MQT)

I think you need to do more research on the type of applicants each of the schools is looking for.

Midwestern University-Arizona AZ 01/01/2011
Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health (AZ) AZ 12/01/2010
Western University of Health Sciences (WESTU) CA 12/01/2010
University of Southern California Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry (USC) CA 02/01/2011
Midwestern University-Illinois IL 01/01/2011
Indiana University (IND) IN 12/01/2010
Tufts University (TUF) MA 02/01/2011
Boston University Henry M Goldman School of Dental Medicine (BU) MA 02/01/2011
University of Maryland (MYD) MD 01/01/2011
University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) MI 02/01/2011
University at Buffalo (BUF) NY 12/01/2010
Columbia University College of Dental Medicine (CUL) NY 01/14/2011
New York University (NYU) NY 02/01/2011
Case School of Dental Medicine (CWR) OH 01/01/2011
University of Pittsburgh (PITT) PA 12/01/2010
University of Pennsylvania (PENN) PA 12/15/2010
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) VA 11/01/2010

This is a what i would apply to if i were in your position.

 

[MNdental]

I was skeptical when I heard this too. I might still be wrong. i can try to find the thread I read it on. A couple of people said that they had heard from admissions people that they do have access through AADSAS to see where you application was sent. It seems wrong and that they should not have access to it, but these people seemed positive about this information. Ill go find a link to that thread so you can decide for yourself. Just want to make sure nobody is shooting themself in the foot without knowing it

i can't find the thread I was reading this on. if somebody else does, please post it. At any rate, they were saying that admissions teams have can find out where you are applying and if you have put down a deposit somewhere. That isn't to say that they necessarily will just, just that they can.

 

[Maygyver]

Case's interviews are filled up until like April, so you might want to cut that one out.

 

[In2Infinity]

I think you need to do more research on the type of applicants each of the schools is looking for.

Midwestern University-Arizona AZ 01/01/2011
Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health (AZ) AZ 12/01/2010
Western University of Health Sciences (WESTU) CA 12/01/2010
University of Southern California Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry (USC) CA 02/01/2011
Midwestern University-Illinois IL 01/01/2011
Indiana University (IND) IN 12/01/2010
Tufts University (TUF) MA 02/01/2011
Boston University Henry M Goldman School of Dental Medicine (BU) MA 02/01/2011
University of Maryland (MYD) MD 01/01/2011
University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) MI 02/01/2011
University at Buffalo (BUF) NY 12/01/2010
Columbia University College of Dental Medicine (CUL) NY 01/14/2011
New York University (NYU) NY 02/01/2011
Case School of Dental Medicine (CWR) OH 01/01/2011
University of Pittsburgh (PITT) PA 12/01/2010
University of Pennsylvania (PENN) PA 12/15/2010
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) VA 11/01/2010

This is a what i would apply to if i were in your position.

isn't NOVA a good school to apply to if you are canadian looking to attend the US?

 

[PreD]

Smart Move !! I think you have not done any work researching these school and decided to save time and just ask people here.

My suggestion is take a little time, go through their website, take a look at ADEA's book , chapter 3 and I am sure you can find the relevant information.

As a Canadian, you basically have zero chance for some of the schools that you have in your list.

 

[corpus luteum]

i just called uop a few days ago and their message says they are done giving out interviews for this cycle.

 

[doc toothache]

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=619685

 

[prsndwg]

i just called uop a few days ago and their message says they are done giving out interviews for this cycle.

:-? you mean pre-December?

 

[corpus luteum]

:-? you mean pre-December?

i wish! it says they are done for the cycle, and if you would like to apply for next year you may apply through AADSAS beginning in june. 😕 i'm disappointed too because i just submitted my app a few weeks ago. maybe their post-dec interviews are only for students in their 2+3 program... not sure though.

but yeah that's what it says... if you want to hear the message yourself you can call the admissions office @ 415-929-6491. press 3 to hear status of current cycle.

 

[DrReo]

Thank you Destiny11. I'll def take out a few state schools and ASDOH. An important thing for me is living in a suitable city for 4 years.

p.s. you brought up a good point about narrowing them down based on the location of the school. One of the most important things for me is the city where the school is situated. I want to have fun in those four years (i wanna enjoy my twenties, or at least try to, while in dental school). But I have no idea what it's like in the US. I've only been to NYC, and absolutely loved it. Are there any other cities in the US that rock as much as NYC does?

Attend the cheaper school so you can live the other 50+ years and not married to a massive amount of debt.

 

[TonyTheTigre]

They do know which schools you apply too BC I was actually shown the list from last cycle AND this cycle in my last interview (very creepy ) I'd say you need to do a lot of work understanding why you applied to 30 schools (if you do) in case you have to explain them down the road! Good luck if choose to apply this cycle!

 

[Lethstang]

lots of good advice in this thread, though i humbly disagree with most.

if you can apply to thirty financially, do so asap. it is worth the few thousand extra if it gets you into school early.

narrowing down your list intelligently may sound like a good idea, but i can tell u about my personal experience. i applied to 24 schools, and the 5 interviews i got were all from schools i wasnt betting on getting them at. IE it was random.

Also I hear its harder for canadian applicants, so the more schools the better. If you do not get in this year due to being so late, then you are a shoe in for next year I would think.