Dental process similar to Med?

[ufblondi]

---

Members do not see this ad.

I am a borderline premed/pre dent going on my JR year. I have done a lot of research on how to get into med school but recently have felt like I might not have what it "takes" to get into med school. I have been looking into dentistry, and have always been interested in orthodontics. My main question is if the application process is similar to med school. Like should I try to take the DAT in the Spring of 2005 so that I can apply that summer? I will be graduating undergrad in 2006, so would enter the fall of 2006. Do dental schools require interviews like med schools? Also, are there any pre-reqs that you did not feel were as important to have finished before you took the DAT? I am just wondering if I should shoot for a later date for the DAT, but was not sure if that would hurt my chances of getting into schools like it would for med. Any input or links to previous posts on this topic would be greatly appreciated!

 

[ItsGavinC]

Yes, you would want to take the DAT in the spring or summer of 2005, so that you can apply in 2005 (the application process starts in late May/early June), have interviews in the Fall, and be accepted in the winter for the class that enters in the fall of 2006.

Now having said all that, do NOT enter dentistry just because Ortho interests you. Ortho is the specialty that is LEAST like the daily practice of a dentist. Ortho is a highly competitive field to match with (just like the highly competitive medical specialties) and there is no promise that you will, or even could, match with that program. I'm not saying you won't, but there seem to have been plenty of qualified applicants who don't even get Ortho interviews, much less a spot at programs.

So, you have to consider that you may get into dental school and you may not have Ortho as an option to you. Would you still be satisifed then being a general dentist or some other dental specialist?

You really need to weigh that answer prior to putting time and effort into the DAT and the application process. To draw a parallel, it would be like a pre-med student applying to medical school so he could be a radiologist. Sure, one MIGHT still want to do rads after med school (although most if not all med. students change their thoughts on what specialty they prefer), but even then there is no guarantee of matching with rads. Similar thing with applying to dental school just to do Ortho. It's great to have a dream and plan for it, but you also need to factor reality into that course.

 

[Dr.BadVibes]

If you feel that you dont have what it "takes" to get into med school, I can tell you that you probably wont have what it "takes" to get into orthodontics as Gavin has mentioned.....you should go into dentistry with the assumption that you WONT be an orthodontist, because it is highly competitive and the last thing you want is to be constantly rejected from matching, and then having to fallback into a career you hate...

 

[edkNARF]

If you feel that you dont have what it "takes" to get into med school, I can tell you that you probably wont have what it "takes" to get into orthodontics as Gavin has mentioned.....you should go into dentistry with the assumption that you WONT be an orthodontist, because it is highly competitive and the last thing you want is to be constantly rejected from matching, and then having to fallback into a career you hate...

I concur.

Though it may be easier to get into dental school than med school, the education is no less rigorous. I think you should evaluate the reason you want to pursue dentistry.

 

[smiledds]

oooh bad choice of words my friend. And a horrible reason to choose a career. There are plenty of other careers that are more along the lines of a physican than dentistry. Have you looked into physican assistant, nursing, medical technologist, ect. I feel that you need to do some reseach and find out what other areas might interest you.

 

[NCSMILES]

You know what I find frustrating? No offense to the OP but it aggravates the crap out of me that people with good stats who don't get into med school or bomb (which it totally relative) the mcat decide to just apply to d-school and think it is the same thing as going into medicine. The fact of the matter is if there numbers are good they will likely get into a d-school somewhere (since they are usually the deciding factor for most d-school admissions) and take the place of someone like me who doesn't have great stats but has the honest, driven desire to become a dds!! 😡

 

[Dr.SpongeBobDDS]

UFBlondi, I think you have been given some good advice here. Dentistry is very, very different from medicine. Don't get discouraged by all the uptight pre-meds at your school and here on SDN who insist that nobody gets into med school unless they are super-geniuses with 3.99 GPAs. 😀 I personally know several people who got into allopathic med schools with very mediocre (~3.3)GPAs and low MCATs.

Look at it this way. There are plenty of schools where the incoming class only has an average GPA of ~3.4. So for every kid with a 4.0 who gets in, the school is also admitting two people with a 3.1 or four people with a 3.2 or 7 people with a 3.3 . (Feel free to check my math. Those numbers are just off the top of my head, but they should be close.) And if you really want to be a physician there are always DO schools and the Caribbean. (sp?)

Anyhow, my point is that there is no need to settle. If you can get into dental school the odds are pretty darn good that you can get into medical school too. Don't be afraid of failing; just go after what you want and don't let anybody talk you out of it. 🙂

 

[UNLV OMS GUNNABE]

You know what I find frustrating? No offense to the OP but it aggravates the crap out of me that people with good stats who don't get into med school or bomb (which it totally relative) the mcat decide to just apply to d-school and think it is the same thing as going into medicine. The fact of the matter is if there numbers are good they will likely get into a d-school somewhere (since they are usually the deciding factor for most d-school admissions) and take the place of someone like me who doesn't have great stats but has the honest, driven desire to become a dds!! 😡

You know what I find frustrating? People who complain about not being able to get into dental school because their grades weren't as good as some guy who didn't get into med school. If you have the honest, driven desire to become a dds then you should be able to put in some effort to achieve the grades to get into a dental school. Come on, how hard is it to get above a 3.0? 😡