Hi all! New to the forum. Came across it accidentally searching through google for some info, and I'm glad I did, so much valuable info here. To get to my question, I go to a state university in Cali and have been taking between 12 to 14 units not less not over every semester and I'm applying now (I know kinda late). My grades have been nothing lower than a B with a gpa of 3.54 (currently studying for the dat). Will the light course load jeopardize my chances in any way??? Thanks in advance.
Course load
- Thread starter DDSDOC
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DDSDOC said:
I wouldn't say that 12 to 14 units is light, it is still full-time. As long as you have the required courses and enough credits to graduate in a timely fashion, then you should be alright. You do have a good gpa, so i wouldn't worry.
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I can't say for certain that 12-14 credits/semester will necessarily hurt your chances - but I do know that from my own interview experience, my interviewers remarked that my average of 21 credits/semester was rather impressive and that they were sure I would not have too much difficulty handling the dental courseload.
So although you may get through the interview unscathed, I think it really may be something to consider upon entering dental school, where an augmented course load is standard. Plus, 12-14 credit hours of English or intro statistics is certainly not the same as an equal number of credits in something like Histology and Biochem.
So although you may get through the interview unscathed, I think it really may be something to consider upon entering dental school, where an augmented course load is standard. Plus, 12-14 credit hours of English or intro statistics is certainly not the same as an equal number of credits in something like Histology and Biochem.
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12-14 units is a bit light, in my opinion.
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You have a good GPA and the fact that you have nothing less than a B indicates good performance. So I think you're in a position to slowly ramp up to maybe 17 hours a semester or so.
Overall, I think it is better that you stick with with the 12-14 hours if you start getting "C"s or there is a significant deterioration in performance when you take 17 or more hours. Still, given your consistent performance in the past, I would guess that you could probably handle a little more courseload without negative repercussions.
Overall, I think it is better that you stick with with the 12-14 hours if you start getting "C"s or there is a significant deterioration in performance when you take 17 or more hours. Still, given your consistent performance in the past, I would guess that you could probably handle a little more courseload without negative repercussions.
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Don't worry. Depending on what courses you are taking, but generally, >= 12 credits/semester is good enough. While I was in post-bac program, I had two semesters that the workload was lower than 12 credits (11 and 9 for each). All the schools I interviewed had no problem with that. My suggestion is to raise your GPA as high as you can and get DAT above 20+. Then, you will get into dental school.
