Dental Assistant to Dentist?

[pandabearrr]

I'm currently attending school to become a Dental Assistant and my goal is to get accepted into UNLV's dental school. Anyone following the same path, or has done the same, as me?
Any hints and suggestions I need to be aware of?
Anything will help as I don't know anyone doing the same thing as me and it would be nice to have something to compare too.

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[206127]

I'm currently attending school to become a Dental Assistant and my goal is to get accepted into UNLV's dental school. Anyone following the same path, or has done the same, as me?
Any hints and suggestions I need to be aware of?
Anything will help as I don't know anyone doing the same thing as me and it would be nice to have something to compare too.

If I were you I would get out of that dental assisting school. Most dental offices will let you do dental assistant work without any degree, get x-ray certification after that and you will save tons of money. From what I hear dental assisting school is 20K, and when you walk out of there you just have x-ray certification (something you can get without the school for about 300 bucks).

I have been a dental assistant for about 7 years now, I never took any dental assisting courses. I just took exams held by the state to get certified to do things. I did my undergrad during that time, and now I'm going to dental school in the fall. Since I think this turned into too much reading, I'll put short answers to each question....

1. Yes, me kinda...
2. Yes, you don't need dental assisting school and make sure you keep your GPA high at a 4-year institution.

 

[pandabearrr]

From what I hear dental assisting school is 20K, and when you walk out of there you just have x-ray certification (something you can get without the school for about 300 bucks).

I have been a dental assistant for about 7 years now, I never took any dental assisting courses. I just took exams held by the state to get certified to do things.

I'm sure it's different state-to-state, but in Nevada it's basically 2 semesters and roughly 1000 in course fees and text to become certified. Are you a CDA?
What state is your dental school in and did you do all the required classes or earn a bachelors? Congrats on your acceptance!

 

[206127]

I'm sure it's different state-to-state, but in Nevada it's basically 2 semesters and roughly 1000 in course fees and text to become certified. Are you a CDA?
What state is your dental school in and did you do all the required classes or earn a bachelors? Congrats on your acceptance!

Yeah it probably is different state-to-state. Well here in Cali all you need is a dentists to sponsor you. This doesn't mean they pay for anything, it's more of a recommendation so you can avoid taking any courses.

In California most DAs (dental assistants) just have x-ray certification, few have prophy certification. Even with prophy certification here you still need to be an RDA (registered dental assistant) to do prophy. I assume CDA means certified dental assistant. I think the equivalent here might be RDA (registered dental assistant), I am currently an RDA. Again all without taking one course, just got sponsored by my employer. I think I spent about 600-700 total, so if it is only 1000 I guess it's not really any different from what I did.

Marquette is in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I was also accepted to a Western (a state school for me) but I declined because of how thouroughly impressed I was with Marquette. Marquette is like UNLV (a school I love) without the temptations Vegas has to offer. I got a BS in Biology from California State University of Los Angeles. I think school's like seeing that you take a good amount of upper division bio/chem courses (biochem, histo, physio, micro, etc.) so take some of those at least if you don't plan on getting a BS. Also keep in mind that schools prefer people with a BS/BA...

 

[mms0039]

I am not sure how much it help as a RDA. I have been an RDA for about 3 years now. I took ROP class when I was in high school... so I didn't pay to get my license and you get to learn and do a lot of things. I am getting my BS in bio from CSULB this May. I am wait listed at Western. I haven't heard back from USC and UNLV yet. My gpa is not too competitive and so is my DAT score. So, my suggestion is that if you are going to be an RDA and work as a dental assistant, just work about one day a week and focus on your school. That way it looks like you have awesome experience and good gpa. Just a thought. . .

 

[Libtech775]

I can help you with that question since I live in Reno. Don't even worry about getting certified. I currently work for Absolute Dental (that corporate dental office all over Vegas and Reno) and I didn't even need a license of any sort. All of it was in house training. Try doing that instead of going to school for it.

 

[dent2009]

If you're trying to make up for your subpar GPA/DAT by going to DA school, then I'd have to say that you're wasting your time. If this is your case, then I'd advise you to do a masters program and/or improve your DAT score. Then if you have time, perhaps become a CDA. From what I remember, a very small percentage of d.school matriculants are CDAs or RDAs. Having a good GPA/DAT is the first and most important step to getting into d. school.

 

[Rubber Dam Man]

If you're trying to make up for your subpar GPA/DAT by going to DA school, then I'd have to say that you're wasting your time. If this is your case, then I'd advise you to do a masters program and/or improve your DAT score. Then if you have time, perhaps become a CDA. From what I remember, a very small percentage of d.school matriculants are CDAs or RDAs. Having a good GPA/DAT is the first and most important step to getting into d. school.

I strongly agree - GPA/DAT scores are by far the two most important factors in making it to dental school. I speak strictly from experience when I say this because I have been down this very long road. Let's be honest with ourselves, those two things are typically looked upon with the greatest weight by adcoms (dental experience, research, etc. all supplement your application). When I was waitlisted 2 years ago, I decided I would become a CDA and took the course and worked full-time for almost 2 years. It was by far the BEST experience of my life. I developed confidence in my clinical skills and the Dentist who I assisted would teach me everything as he would go along. I also assisted an Endodontist at the office where I worked a few days a week as well. Long story short, I applied again the following year and again was waitlisted at the same school. The only thing I had done was strengthen my experience by working as a CDA and also in a dental lab.

This cycle I addressed those two very IMPORTANT areas of my applications. I retook my DATs and I am currently doing a post-bac at the same school where I completed my undergrad. This cycle, my interview was waived... I have yet to see an acceptance, but I know that I have addressed and significantly improved every area of my application at this point.

In retrospect, I wish I would have focused on my GPA/DAT scores the first time around. However, the experience and knowledge I have gained through assisting has been very valuable and I know it will be helpful not only in dental school, but also in practice. My recommnedation for anyone looking to improve their application for dental school is that you should address GPA/DAT deficiencies first.