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dent56171

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I took the DAT once in March and scored a 17 AA. Did not have enough time to study and a huge break in between studying due to travels. I have a 3.5 GPA, involved in many clubs throughout school years, 1 year research, volunteered in hospital/other medical facility, shadowed 2 dentists 100+ hours, and certified nurse assistant (never had time to work as that however). I am planning on retaking the DAT in early July. When should I submit my application? How do you think everything is looking in terms of application (besides DAT)? I am really hoping to get into somewhere in the East Coast, preferably Illinois, Michigan, or Boston.

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I took the DAT once in March and scored a 17 AA. Did not have enough time to study and a huge break in between studying due to travels. I have a 3.5 GPA, involved in many clubs throughout school years, 1 year research, volunteered in hospital/other medical facility, shadowed 2 dentists 100+ hours, and certified nurse assistant (never had time to work as that however). I am planning on retaking the DAT in early July. When should I submit my application? How do you think everything is looking in terms of application (besides DAT)? I am really hoping to get into somewhere in the East Coast, preferably Illinois, Michigan, or Boston.
I think the general rule is the earlier, the better. I believe you can also submit your app so that they can start verifying GPA before the retake that way after you finish taking the exam all you will be waiting on is your score verification and upload. Best of luck!
 
I think the general rule is the earlier, the better. I believe you can also submit your app so that they can start verifying GPA before the retake that way after you finish taking the exam all you will be waiting on is your score verification and upload. Best of luck!
Alright so if I submit the end of June do you think that would lower my chances? As I have not started working on my personal statement yet and will begin that very soon.
 
Aside from your DAT score, everything looks good :) Make sure to create a study schedule and stick to it.

In terms of when to apply, try to have everything in the general application filled out as soon as possible! Lots of people fill out the application before they take their DAT, and the official score shouldn't take long to get added online. You could even contact schools with your unofficial score report so they have it and assure them that the official score is on its way. I had everything done the first week of June and waited until August for my committee letter to be sent. I ended up with 7 pre-December 1st and 2 post December 1st interviews. Submitting at the end of June wouldn't necessarily lower your chances, but rather slow the interview process down. If your goal is to get as many acceptances as possible on Dec. 1 (and have a huge weight lifted off your shoulders) I would recommend starting as early as possible. Good luck!
 
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You must achieve a higher DAT score to have a successful cycle. Bring it to a 20AA+ and hopefully the verification process won't take too long - you will be fine.
 
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Aside from your DAT score, everything looks good :) Make sure to create a study schedule and stick to it.

In terms of when to apply, try to have everything in the general application filled out as soon as possible! Lots of people fill out the application before they take their DAT, and the official score shouldn't take long to get added online. You could even contact schools with your unofficial score report so they have it and assure them that the official score is on its way. I had everything done the first week of June and waited until August for my committee letter to be sent. I ended up with 7 pre-December 1st and 2 post December 1st interviews. Submitting at the end of June wouldn't necessarily lower your chances, but rather slow the interview process down. If your goal is to get as many acceptances as possible on Dec. 1 (and have a huge weight lifted off your shoulders) I would recommend starting as early as possible. Good luck!
I understand that the earliest I submit the better, however if I am planning on retaking the DAT in mid July wouldnt submitting the app in mid or end of June be more ideal as it will take a few weeks for the new score to get processed. I just do not want schools to look at my old score first and reject right away based on that.
 
@dent56171 Do dental schools see your old scores? I'm not sure what the process is with that, maybe you just don't have to report it. Just fill out everything first (classes, extracurriculars, PS) and request your transcript verification (this takes a while) so that when your new DAT score gets updated, everything else on your application is ready to go.
 
@dent56171 Do dental schools see your old scores? I'm not sure what the process is with that, maybe you just don't have to report it. Just fill out everything first (classes, extracurriculars, PS) and request your transcript verification (this takes a while) so that when your new DAT score gets updated, everything else on your application is ready to go.
Yes, they do see your old scores. The 2009 ADEA test gives a fairly accurate score.
 
So if they see old scores, If I am planning on retaking the DAT in July would it be ideal to submit my application in late June?
On the AADSAS portal, there is a space that says you plan to retake if I remember correctly. Your application won't be complete in a sense if you are doing the retake, so you can submit it close to the re-take day if you want.
 
On the AADSAS portal, there is a space that says you plan to retake if I remember correctly. Your application won't be complete in a sense if you are doing the retake, so you can submit it close to the re-take day if you want.
Oh alright. However, if I would like better chances submitting in late June and retaking in first two weeks of July would be most ideal as I want to make sure my application is completed by the time I take my retake.
 
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