Dental School at 40?

[dshin525]

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Hello. 1st post…came across this forum as I was googling the question that is the post topic.
A little background…I received my BS in Chem Eng in 2000. Then worked for 11 yrs (same company) before I decided to pursue an MBA. Graduated in 2011. Both my BS and MBA are from University of Michigan. Post MBA I was at IBM for a couple years…and I've been at Google for the last 2. Most of my work experience is in management capacity.
My biggest concern is my underaged GPA…it was in the low 2's. However I overcame this when I applied to b-schools with a strong GMAT and solid work experience.
I'm wondering if the low undergrad (15 yrs ago) gpa will automatically disqualify me from the top programs, even if I managed to get a really strong DAT score. My ideal choice is UofM since I currently live in Ann Arbor. I like to think I have a pretty unique narrative as an applicant…but reading various articles and forums, a lot of people are saying any GPA below 2.5-2.75 (or 3.0 from top tier schools) is automatically denied.
There is also the "why now" question of course. Without going too much into it, I'm just really jaded by corporate america. I want to get into a filed where I feel like I can truly make a difference with each people I work with…and a career when I can do things on my own terms until I decide to walk away (if i were to open my own practice).
Thanks in advance for any and all input.

 

[SweetWater54]

I would contact U of M's dental school and talk to their admissions adviser. I would guess you have a pretty good shot if you have a strong DAT score even with the low gpa.

 

[zenrookie]

I'm sort of in a similar place as you. While I'm not 40 now, by the time I graduate it will be right around the corner.
I too worked in a different (ITSEC) field for several years after college. I knew about 6 years ago, I wasn't happy, but I tried to push thru.

When it got to the point where I started having anxiety about going to work on Saturday eve, I knew I had to make a change.
I had always wanted to be a dentist, so I went after it.

I say, if its what you want to do, do it.
You can get in. You can do well.

I had a crappy first year of college, including an F, but I got my ish together by the time I graduated. When I went back to school to take my pre-reqs I got all As and Bs so while my overall GPA was like 3.1 my science GPA was 3.7.

Being a 'non-traditional' applicant is awesome. Schools like it b/c it brings diversity to the class. They just want to see that you can handle the workload and subject matter. You def have to sell yourself harder, in my experience. But it's doable. Something i've found that adcoms can appreciate is that we're super focused and determined and no longer want to 'party' or worry about romance, lol. We have put everything on the line, and have nothing to fall back on, so they are willing to take a chance on us.

My best advice to you is to get the finances figured out cuz one advantage our younger cohorts have is more time to pay off that student loan debt before they buy a house and have a family, where as i'm ready for that right now, lol.

If being a dentist is your dream, do it.

There will be haters, there will be nay-sayers, there will be folks who think your crazy.
FORGET ABOUT THEM.

Spend some time at the school near you, find someone to shadow in your community. Let the school you want to attend know who you are. It's never too early to show interest. Start with a tour and go from there.

Do it for you, do it for your family
Get your grind on dude.

 

[dshin525]

I would contact U of M's dental school and talk to their admissions adviser. I would guess you have a pretty good shot if you have a strong DAT score even with the low gpa.

Thanks. I actually emailed the admissions dept today to see if there is an advisor I could meet with.

One more thing…my "GPA" from b-school is 3.4-3.6. You might be wondering why a range…Ross doesn't give out traditional letter grades. They use a 5 level grading scale, as explained below:

• Excellent (EX): Performance that is of superior quality. No more than 25% of the students in a core course shall receive this grade.
• Good (GD): Performance that exceeds all the standard requirements of the course. Approximately 35% of the students in a core course shall receive this grade.
• Pass (PS): Performance that meets all the standard requirements of the course. Approximately 35% of the students in a core course shall receive this grade.
• Low Pass (LP): Performance that minimally meets the standard requirements of the course. Approximately 5% of the students in a core course will receive LP or F.
• Fail (F): Performance that does not satisfy the minimal requirements of the course and is deficient on significant dimensions. No credit toward the degree will be granted for the grade of "Fail," but the grade will be used to evaluate academic standing. These grading standards differ slightly for elective classes.

Most of my grades were GD and PS, with a few EX. Ross provides a "conversion" scale for each level…but its a range. So for sample, PS is equivalent to a B- to B, GD is B+ to A-, and EX is A.

 

[dshin525]

Thanks for you encouraging words zenrookie! And finances is something that will play a HUGE role in any decision. I am the sole bread winner in the family…and I have 2 kids (6 and 2) with a mortgage, car loans, bills, etc…
I know my family (parents and brother) could help when needed…but it could be a 5-6 yr undertaking when its all said and down.

 

[doc toothache]

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/2014-age-and-ds-2006-2013.1109439/

 

[Justdontblink]

If this is what you want to do then go for it! I had similar undergraduate struggles academically, but I was able to my act together during graduate school and it payed off. Study hard to perform well on the DAT, put together a strong personal statement and as @zenrookie stated try and shadow some dentists in you area. Make sure that your application shows that you are really serious about taking this step. If you can get your application in early, that's always a plus. I do not see why you wouldn't have a shot, you have a ton of life experience and having a good grasp on management will put you ahead of the game when it comes to starting a practice.

During an interview I spoke to another applicant who was telling me about an interview that he had at a different school. At that interview he met and older applicant who had earned their MBA, and ran a hedge fund for a few years, and then went to medical school (I believe that they graduated), and is now trying to become a dentist. I hope that I got that in order, but the moral is that people from all walks of life apply, so why not try.

 

[DrJeff]

If you can get admitted and the finances can work, then why not? Let's say that it is a 5 or 6 year undertaking as you're estimating now, it's not like you're NOT going to be 45 or 46 in 5 or 6 years regardless if you don't do this!! ;-) That in reality could easily give you a 20+ year career as a dentist.

 

[MoMo15]

How common is it for a dental graduate to open his/her own clinic right away?

If I was in OP's position, I wouldn't go down this route. It's a significant risk for a marginal return. Assuming OP accomplishes a 90+ percentile on the DAT to make up for a non-satisfactory transcript, and assuming he gets through dental school without failing, he'll be at 45-46 by the time he graduates. Assuming he doesn't have a family member that has their own dental clinic to work at/take over, he'll need to work for another dentist to raise capital. Let's say it takes him 4-5 years to save enough for a down payment on his own clinic... and this is a fairly optimistic calculation considering the fact he has two young children AND mortgage/bills to pay. By the time he's the boss of his own clinic, he'll be in his early 50s. He'll most likely retire when he is 60-65. This equates to like 10-13 yrs of work. When you consider the opportunity cost & the amount of hurdles he'll have to go through to get to this point, I think most people would agree it's not worth it.

TL;DR - Financially, it's not worth it at this point in OP's life

 

[zenrookie]

How common is it for a dental graduate to open his/her own clinic right away?

If I was in OP's position, I wouldn't go down this route. It's a significant risk for a marginal return. Assuming OP accomplishes a 90+ percentile on the DAT to make up for a non-satisfactory transcript, and assuming he gets through dental school without failing, he'll be at 45-46 by the time he graduates. Assuming he doesn't have a family member that has their own dental clinic to work at/take over, he'll need to work for another dentist to raise capital. Let's say it takes him 4-5 years to save enough for a down payment on his own clinic... and this is a fairly optimistic calculation considering the fact he has two young children AND mortgage/bills to pay. By the time he's the boss of his own clinic, he'll be in his early 50s. He'll most likely retire when he is 60-65. This equates to like 10-13 yrs of work. When you consider the opportunity cost & the amount of hurdles he'll have to go through to get to this point, I think most people would agree it's not worth it.

TL;DR - Financially, it's not worth it at this point in OP's life

Happiness and fulfillment is priceless.

I made the mistake about 4 years ago telling myself something similar to your post about it being "too late" and "not worth it".

If it's your dream and desire, it's always worth it. If my parents worked til they were 70 bc they decided to go after their dreams, I would be pretty damn proud.

I'd be proud if they only worked long enough to pay off student loan debt. It's the principle and happiness, not the financial that really matters in the end.

 

[customx]

Thanks for you encouraging words zenrookie! And finances is something that will play a HUGE role in any decision. I am the sole bread winner in the family…and I have 2 kids (6 and 2) with a mortgage, car loans, bills, etc…
I know my family (parents and brother) could help when needed…but it could be a 5-6 yr undertaking when its all said and down.

You may have already thought about this, but since you would be an older student, you should really consider the financial ramifications of becoming a dentist. UM will probably set you back at least $325k unless you can get a scholarship. The amount of time you can work as a dentist will already be cut short due to your age, so make certain that you will be able to fulfill your loan obligations before you embark on this journey, especially with a family to support. I would advise you to head on over to Dental Town and check out their Finance forum which has a lot of useful information for dentists and aspiring dentists.

 

[DrJeff]

You may have already thought about this, but since you would be an older student, you should really consider the financial ramifications of becoming a dentist. UM will probably set you back at least $325k unless you can get a scholarship. The amount of time you can work as a dentist will already be cut short due to your age, so make certain that you will be able to fulfill your loan obligations before you embark on this journey, especially with a family to support. I would advise you to head on over to Dental Town and check out their Finance forum which has a lot of useful information for dentists and aspiring dentists.

One thing to consider, is that for most folks, as they get a bit older, and see the changes and responsibility that marriage and kids bring, very often your views on "what is important" change, and often quite dramatically, which can easily allow one, who undergoes a wanted career change in the stereotypical "middle" of their life to have a much greater degree of financial restraint and discipline than when one is starting out in their immediate post schooling, provide for themselves life.

Look at it this way, it isn't a daunting task, or considered that "crazy" of a move, if someone in the their mid 40's takes on a second mortgage to buy a vacation home, since very often at that point in one's life, even if starting a new career, you've learned what real financial restraint and discipline is. This is how I would look at someone wanting to make a career change towards one they'd see as being much more rewarding for them in their 40's.....