Canadian Pre-Dental Student

[dentistrypapi]

Hello everyone! I’m currently a sophomore at a Canadian university and I have been researching the various dental schools in the US. Since it’s extremely competitive to get admission in a Canadian dental school, going to the States for education will likely be my backup. Honestly, I would prefer going to a graduate school in States than in Canada. However, I’m kind of confused by how the AADSAS calculates GPA. So what if the grading is done by letter grades, would the AADSAS just convert that letter grade to a GPA on their scale? What if the grades are shown as a percentage on the transcript? Several universities in Canada are different in how they display grades on a transcript.

Are there any specific tips for Canadian applicants, or just things that we should know? I’m sure a lot of other people are in the same boat as me and this will help them out as well.

What about ECs? I’m aware that some dental schools in the States have shadowing requirements, but other than that and volunteering, what unique activities did some of you guys do?

Thanks to everyone who takes the time to reply, I really appreciate the community here.

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[vzhou]

Hi OP, I'm a current Canadian student applying to US schools this cycle so might be able to answer your questions:

GPA:
AADSAS uses a grade conversion (both letter grade/percentage) scale listed on their website. My transcript (UBC) showed both letter grade and percentage but I entered in letter grade only (called them directly to ask which one I should enter). If you enter in a letter grade then it's converted to a 4.0 scale, for example A+/A = 4.0, A- = 3.7 etc..

Specific tips:
-US schools often require shadowing hours (usually 100 shadowing hours is the minimum) but Canadian schools don't, I'd contact any dental clinics you know and get those hours before your application year so you don't feel rushed.
-start getting involved in various EC's (if you haven't done so already), i'd suggest dedicating your time to a few roles you really have the passion for as it'll show in your application/interview instead of having many different EC's with less commitment. As for specific activities, feel free to pm to discuss
- If you haven't taken the DAT yet, just know some schools don't accept the Canadian DAT. Taking the US DAT covers more schools (if you're planning on applying to many), and the US DAT can be taken at any time while the Canadian DAT can only be taken in Nov/Feb.
- I had the most difficulty writing out my personal statement, if you can get a rough idea/draft of why you want to go into dentistry that'd help immensely when the application cycle starts. Something I wish I did more was keeping a journal of what was memorable to me while shadowing or what things did I learn in the clinic, later on you can look back on it and it might come to use.

Hope these helped!

 

[PreDenting]

Having direct experience successfully advising Canadian applicants, here are some tips:

1. School selection. Fit is going to be a major part of your application process. Some US dental schools do not accept Canadian applicants, others accept some Canadian applicants, and a few schools accept a lot of Canadian applicants. Having a deep understanding of every dental school, or having an advisor who does, will vastly increase your chances of getting accepted.
2. DAT. Some US schools accept the Canadian DAT, and other schools do not accept the Canadian DAT. Choose whichever version of the DAT you'd like, but understand which schools accept which version. If that's a lot to handle for the 60+ dental schools, I'd recommend an advisor who is an expert on the process to help you navigate that part of the process.
3. Extracurriculars. While extracurriculars are important, dental admissions teams aren't too impressed with titles and organization names. Focus on framing your experiences in the right light to impress the admissions committee and land an interview. From there, mastering the interview process will be your key to success! The worst, and most popular advice among pre-dentals is "just be yourself" during your interviews. While it's certainly good to be yourself in the sense of remaining calm, cool, collective, enthusiastic, and passionate, a lot of pre-dentals interpret the advice as "no need to prepare," leading to disastrous outcomes. Imagine "just being yourself" going into a Biochemistry final exam instead of investing the time and energy studying for success.

I have a few other ideas about strategic ways that could make you stand out given your background. You can schedule a free consult if you'd like to discuss further.

 

[dentistrypapi]

Hi OP, I'm a current Canadian student applying to US schools this cycle so might be able to answer your questions:

GPA:
AADSAS uses a grade conversion (both letter grade/percentage) scale listed on their website. My transcript (UBC) showed both letter grade and percentage but I entered in letter grade only (called them directly to ask which one I should enter). If you enter in a letter grade then it's converted to a 4.0 scale, for example A+/A = 4.0, A- = 3.7 etc..

Specific tips:
-US schools often require shadowing hours (usually 100 shadowing hours is the minimum) but Canadian schools don't, I'd contact any dental clinics you know and get those hours before your application year so you don't feel rushed.
-start getting involved in various EC's (if you haven't done so already), i'd suggest dedicating your time to a few roles you really have the passion for as it'll show in your application/interview instead of having many different EC's with less commitment. As for specific activities, feel free to pm to discuss
- If you haven't taken the DAT yet, just know some schools don't accept the Canadian DAT. Taking the US DAT covers more schools (if you're planning on applying to many), and the US DAT can be taken at any time while the Canadian DAT can only be taken in Nov/Feb.
- I had the most difficulty writing out my personal statement, if you can get a rough idea/draft of why you want to go into dentistry that'd help immensely when the application cycle starts. Something I wish I did more was keeping a journal of what was memorable to me while shadowing or what things did I learn in the clinic, later on you can look back on it and it might come to use.

Hope these helped!

Hey, thanks so much for taking the time to reply, the things you mentioned definitely help! I have a few more question regarding ECs and some other things so I will just PM you regarding those.

 

[dentistrypapi]

Having direct experience successfully advising Canadian applicants, here are some tips:

1. School selection. Fit is going to be a major part of your application process. Some US dental schools do not accept Canadian applicants, others accept some Canadian applicants, and a few schools accept a lot of Canadian applicants. Having a deep understanding of every dental school, or having an advisor who does, will vastly increase your chances of getting accepted.
2. DAT. Some US schools accept the Canadian DAT, and other schools do not accept the Canadian DAT. Choose whichever version of the DAT you'd like, but understand which schools accept which version. If that's a lot to handle for the 60+ dental schools, I'd recommend an advisor who is an expert on the process to help you navigate that part of the process.
3. Extracurriculars. While extracurriculars are important, dental admissions teams aren't too impressed with titles and organization names. Focus on framing your experiences in the right light to impress the admissions committee and land an interview. From there, mastering the interview process will be your key to success! The worst, and most popular advice among pre-dentals is "just be yourself" during your interviews. While it's certainly good to be yourself in the sense of remaining calm, cool, collective, enthusiastic, and passionate, a lot of pre-dentals interpret the advice as "no need to prepare," leading to disastrous outcomes. Imagine "just being yourself" going into a Biochemistry final exam instead of investing the time and energy studying for success.

I have a few other ideas about strategic ways that could make you stand out given your background. You can schedule a free consult if you'd like to discuss further.

Thanks for your tips, I appreciate the help. I will definitely look into scheduling a consult once the time comes for me to apply.