Dental School Non-Traditional Advice

[hjt10d]

Hello all. I am looking to gain any sort of advice possible on dental school admissions.
I have recently finished my undergraduate degree in Economics from Big State U. Abysmal 2.5 GPA.
Im bright enough to have a great GPA however I did not take this serious in school. Some of my family members are dentists and this is something that interests me as a career.
Knowing the dental school is highly competitive would any options be open for someone who has zero science credits and merely the desire and determination to become a dentist?

Ive been out of school for a few months and i must get moving in a direction. Going back to school seems like the best option however I do not want to waste years of my time and money if I have already shot myself in the foot with my business GPA.

Any thoughts?

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[BeaverLover]

You know theres also BCP gpa (Bio,Chem,Physics) as well as scienceGPA right? Really difficult without a BCP or DAT score but obviously your current oGPA is not pretty

 

[JLT223]

You 100% need a post-bac or SMP

 

[w4nt2baDDS]

Hello all. I am looking to gain any sort of advice possible on dental school admissions.
I have recently finished my undergraduate degree in Economics from Big State U. Abysmal 2.5 GPA.
Im bright enough to have a great GPA however I did not take this serious in school. Some of my family members are dentists and this is something that interests me as a career.
Knowing the dental school is highly competitive would any options be open for someone who has zero science credits and merely the desire and determination to become a dentist?

Ive been out of school for a few months and i must get moving in a direction. Going back to school seems like the best option however I do not want to waste years of my time and money if I have already shot myself in the foot with my business GPA.

Any thoughts?

You have to look at the credits.

Considering you've already taken english you're pretty much looking at the following:
2 semester of Bio: 8-10 credits
2 semesters of G-Chem: 8-10 credits
2 semesters of O-Chem: 8-10 credits
2 semesters of Physics: 8-10 credits
(some schools require biochem, micro-bio, and/or psychology)

Now, you're looking at around 32-40+ credits in total... IF you were to get a 4.0 GPA for all of these credits (that's one hell of an IF!!) What would your o-GPA be? You need to calculate it. You're fortunate in that you can earn a relatively high sGPA and BCP-GPA since you've taken limited science courses, but if you cannot get your o-GPA to 3.2 or higher then your chances still remain very bleak for all the effort..(As an Econ Major I'm sure you have taken math courses... those will be counted towards your science GPA so I'm betting you don't have zero science credits after-all). You can read the sub 3.0GPA threads to get a better idea of how others approach your situation and sometimes become successful. If the science classes alone don't bump your oGPA up enough then you'll have to consider retaking some of the classes you did poorly in...

The DAT is also a constant looming beast you'll have over your head, which in very crucial yet difficult to do well on.

 

[schmoob]

You have to look at the credits.

Considering you've already taken english you're pretty much looking at the following:
2 semester of Bio: 8-10 credits
2 semesters of G-Chem: 8-10 credits
2 semesters of O-Chem: 8-10 credits
2 semesters of Physics: 8-10 credits
(some schools require biochem, micro-bio, and/or psychology)

Now, you're looking at around 32-40+ credits in total... IF you were to get a 4.0 GPA for all of these credits (that's one hell of an IF!!) What would your o-GPA be? You need to calculate it. You're fortunate in that you can earn a relatively high sGPA and BCP-GPA since you've taken limited science courses, but if you cannot get your o-GPA to 3.2 or higher then your chances still remain very bleak for all the effort..(As an Econ Major I'm sure you have taken math courses... those will be counted towards your science GPA so I'm betting you don't have zero science credits after-all). You can read the sub 3.0GPA threads to get a better idea of how others approach your situation and sometimes become successful. If the science classes alone don't bump your oGPA up enough then you'll have to consider retaking some of the classes you did poorly in...

The DAT is also a constant looming beast you'll have over your head, which in very crucial yet difficult to do well on.

Lots of gloom and doom here.

OP, work hard and do the best you can. If you want it bad enough, you'll get it eventually.

 

[hjt10d]

You have to look at the credits.

Considering you've already taken english you're pretty much looking at the following:
2 semester of Bio: 8-10 credits
2 semesters of G-Chem: 8-10 credits
2 semesters of O-Chem: 8-10 credits
2 semesters of Physics: 8-10 credits
(some schools require biochem, micro-bio, and/or psychology)

Now, you're looking at around 32-40+ credits in total... IF you were to get a 4.0 GPA for all of these credits (that's one hell of an IF!!) What would your o-GPA be? You need to calculate it. You're fortunate in that you can earn a relatively high sGPA and BCP-GPA since you've taken limited science courses, but if you cannot get your o-GPA to 3.2 or higher then your chances still remain very bleak for all the effort..(As an Econ Major I'm sure you have taken math courses... those will be counted towards your science GPA so I'm betting you don't have zero science credits after-all). You can read the sub 3.0GPA threads to get a better idea of how others approach your situation and sometimes become successful. If the science classes alone don't bump your oGPA up enough then you'll have to consider retaking some of the classes you did poorly in...

The DAT is also a constant looming beast you'll have over your head, which in very crucial yet difficult to do well on.

Ive calculated it out to a 2.88 ogpa with all A's on the science pre-reqs.

My real question is is there a premium for the science GPA/ BCP-GPA and would that be enough to get me in somewhere.
I am an excellent test taker. The DAT would be something for me to put in work to do well.
To be honest I am on my way to law school and I want to know if this is an option.... even if it took graduate school before.

 

[JLT223]

Why the hell are you going to law school if you want to pursue dentistry?

 

[Soleus715]

find out for sure if you want to do law or dentistry. research and shadow and once you've made a decision, then stick with it and figure out how to tackle it.
you gotta take these things in the correct order, step by step.

 

[hjt10d]

Why the hell are you going to law school if you want to pursue dentistry?

I figure its possible I cant get in with my GPA. I have to do something so that was my backup.

 

[JLT223]

I figure its possible I cant get in with my GPA. I have to do something so that was my backup.

I understand, but your time would better be spent in a SMP (special master's program) to take science classes and pre-reqs that you don't have, which will hopefully help your low GPA. If you do very in it you have a shot. No doors are ever closed off.