DAT Retake necessary with my profile?

[Mterizan120]

Hi guys, I took the DAT last month and obtained a score of 20 RC 22 QR 21 BIO 21 GC 21 OC 21 AA 20 PAT.

However, the other aspects of my life is not very traditional. I am 32 years old, and I graduated college 10 years ago with a GPA of 3.65 overall, 3.5 science GPA. I was pre-med when I was in college, but did not end up applying to medical school. Long story short, the last 10 years of my life I did not do anything substantial in terms of academics or volunteering. I was diagnosed with bipolar and struggled with living a normal life. The only types of work I did was some minimum paying jobs (Staples, grocery stores, etc.) on and off, and also helped with my father's small business at home. However, I am still motivated to continue my education and dream of having a career. I did not want to pursue medical school anymore, and instead I am now interested in dental school, especially after several of my friends who were in dental school told me about their experiences. I love working with my hands, and I am very meticulous, which are 2 important traits of dentists. I think dentistry will fit me well as a career.

Since I have been out of school for so long, I applied to a Master's program in biology last year, and started in the fall. So far my grades are unspectacular (around 3.3 GPA).

Do you guys think it is necessary for me to get a higher DAT score to make me more competitive, especially due to my abnormal life history (over the last 10 years of no academics, no real long term job, and no volunteering)?

I appreciate any feedback!

Thank you guys!

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[1942]

If you’re asking if your DAT in addition to your stats is enough to get in somewhere, then the answer is maybe. I’d give you a 25 % chance to get in if you applied broadly. The masters GPA is a bit low for my preference (you want 3.5+) but I don’t think it’ll eliminate you entirely. You will need volunteer and shadow hours for sure though. Get those done asap

it all really depends how comfortable you are with your chances. There’s always room for improvement and if you want to increase your chances to get in, its entirely in your control. if you’re lazy or don’t think you can do better, then accept that you might not get in this cycle.

if I knew I could do better on the DAT and had the time/funds, I would do it. If you achieve a 23 you can increase your likelihood of getting in to say 50ish %. A 24+ maybe 75%. It’s up to you. what odds are you comfortable with and how much work do you want to put in?

me personally I would retake the DAT and aim for 23+ to mitigate my weaknesses. I just cannot accept a 75% chance of not getting in.

(disclaimer: these odds are my beliefs based on nothing really. Just seemed about right).

 

[deleted994703]

with ur scores and gpa yes you have a chance! make a killer personal statement and write a disadvantage essay explaining everything you went through. your master gpa is a bit on the lower side, i would try your best to raise it to a 3.5. apply broadly and early and you should be fine. Personally i would not retake the DAT your score is still competitive and you don’t want to risk getting a lower score. Apply the FIRST DAY the cycle opens. spend this time until june volunteering and shadowing get at least 100 hours of each and you’ll be set!