Chance me/help me make a school list (low gpa/avg DAT)

[jjabramoff]

Non-traditional applicant here (30+ years old). NY resident. Have a BA in english. Had a career in the tech industry, went back to school part-time a few years ago, taking only science courses (an unofficial post-bacc). Did ok (B student). Due to a bad few years way back when I was in my early 20's, my overall science GPA's are pretty low:

oGPA: 3.15
sGPA: 2.5
BCP: 2.7

If you're only considering my science courses of recent years, I'm at 3.0 for both sGPA and BCP.

DAT: 20AA, 20 TS, 21 PAT (lowest score is 19 in QR)

I have shadowed/volunteered for more than 4 specialties, totaling over 350+ hours. I spent an additional 100+ hours with a dental technician.
Nearly 100 community service hours.
500+ hours working for pay as a dental assistant.
Great personal statement.
I am a reapplicant (applied late last cycle (November) and got no interviews).
I have applied to the SMP's at Rutgers, Barry and MWU for Fall 2015 and I'm waiting to hear back.

With all that said, I'm not looking to apply to 20 schools again. This time around, I only want to apply to schools I may have a small chance at (especially if I can send an update from my SMP with stellar grades). Here's my list:

Midwestern University-Arizona
LECOM
Tufts
University of Maryland
Creighton
Rutgers
NYU
Stony Brook (A real long shot, I know, but I have to least attempt to get that state-school tuition)
Buffalo
Temple

I tried to compile a list based on schools that have a very high OOS acceptance rate, large class size and where my GPA at least falls into the range of what they have accepted before.

Are there any other schools that should be on my list? Any that I should take off because it's NEVER going to happen?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[gsquared]

Good job on the DAT and your recent grades! I'm not sure how ADCOM's will view this, but I think you stand a decent chance of at least getting a few interviews at a few of the schools on your list. Are you ready for the high price tags associated with some of those privates? I had MWU-AZ/IL on my list until I really thought about the prices/costs of living in the areas and crunched the numbers.

 

[PlasmaMembrane]

Here's the thing with a low GPA. You can sort of offset it in a few ways:

1. Doing a post-bac and doing well in the post-bac.

2. Doing really well on the DAT.

3. Doing well in graduate school or a SMP.

You pursued #1...but you just did 'ok'. A 3.0 in your recent science coursework is not going to alleviate concerns about your academics. You're going to look like a student that did poorly in science classes when he did younger, and is now just scraping by at B level. You did completely average (for a matriculant) on the DAT, so that's not working in your favor either. I'd go through with the SMP and really try do well, and then apply.

If you're going to apply anyway, remove Stone Brook. It's not just a long shot, it's pretty much impossible. The lowest GPA in their range reported for last cycle was a 3.18 and that person likely had a strong DAT or graduate school performance to still get in.

 

[superluminal]

How much will is cost you to apply to 5-10 more schools? Thats inconsequential compared to the salary you'd make from graduating from a dental school you dont even have listed. I'm reapplying after a 3.7 in an SMP and am aplying to 20 schools. Consider it.

 

[Typical Average Student]

I agree with Plasma, I honestly think you should wait next cycle to get your grades up. You need to show ADCOMs that you can handle the upper level sciences and a 3.0 is barely making it.

But to answer your question, according to the ASDA Handbook: Maryland has a recommended minimum GPA of 3.2. I think you have a fair shot at Creighton and LECOM.

 

[Scumbag_Steve]

.

 

[jjabramoff]

Thanks to everyone for the info and advice.

Because of my age, I want to do whatever I can to avoid losing another year. My thinking is that if I apply this cycle, I can always send an academic update in January with my Master's GPA. Perhaps some schools that are on the fence about me will give me a shot if my grades are good... Or is this just wishful thinking?

If I want to go through with the above plan, do I need to note my intention to do an SMP somewhere in my AADSAS application? I haven't been accepted for an SMP yet, though I do have an interview this week. My application is complete but I haven't submitted yet; should I wait for an acceptance at an SMP first so I can add that to my application?

 

[Cello]

Midwestern Illinois, Roseman UT, Western, A.T. Still Missouri