Desperate help needed D:

[taehkim]

---

Members don't see this ad.

I'm not sure if this is the right forum to ask this, but here goes:

I'm a senior high schooler thinking of majoring in pre-dentistry, but since this decision just came about I don't know much about the program itself. Because of that, I've applied to most schools with the choice of majoring in Biology.

Is it possible for me to major in Biology as an undergraduate and channel the courses I take to the same ones taken in pre-dentistry?
If so, is it harder for me to get connections (interns, jobs, ECs, etc.) from dental offices as a biology major rather than as a pre-dentistry major?

Do you think that it's better for me to attend high-end undergrad schools (ivies or high ranking college/univs) or low-end undergrad schools for pre-dent? I ask this because my parents think that it's best if I go to an easier school for predentistry so that I can get higher grades and increase my chances of getting accepted to Dental School.

Your help would be very appreciated, especially since there aren't any other pre-dent students in my school, meaning that my counselor is pretty ignorant in this area as well (which is quite ridiculous).

 

[SIALINTERN]

"Pre-dentistry" is not a major, more of a focus. Majors are subjects such as biology, chemistry, biochemistry, etc. From my experiences, biology is the most popular major for those students planning to enter dental school; however, any major is accepted. You will just need to take all those classes that the dental schools require (most often covered through a degree in bio).

As far as attending an ivy league or lower ranking school, that has to be your decision. I know people that attended "top tier" undergrads with respectable DAT's and GPA's and still didn't get accepted. I also know people that attended "lower tier" schools with good stats and were accepted. IMO, it all depends on the individual and the effort they put forth to show their desire to be a dentist.

Best of luck!

 

[smile101]

I don't think schools have any pre-dentistry major. It wouldn't matter what your undergrad major is as long as you have all the pre-reqs done (which you can find from the website of any particular school you want to attend).

As far as the school is concerned, I'll advsie (from personal experience) to go to a well reputed college or a 4 yr univ because the schools are ranked by the AADSAS and/or the dental schools (and it will affect your AADSAS GPA). I believe that even if you have all A's from an "easy school," you may be voted out against someone with B's and A's from a well reputed college. Obviously GPA is not the only thing that matters...you also need to have good bit of shadowing hours, community service, volunteer work, and leadership positions.

I hope this helps...also get other people's opinion!

 

[smile101]

you also should consider talking to the dental school that you are interested in

 

[Regmata]

Just follow the pre-medical path, only channel your extra curricular experience and research towards dentistry. Many pre-meds do biology, however, at my undergrad there was an exercise science program that was perfect. It was for students looking to become physical therapists I think...food for thought if your school offers something similar.

The ivy is not necessary, although you want to go to a decent university.

 

[taehkim]

Thank you so much for the response guys, I'm relieved to hear all of this :]


My original choice was in fact pre-medicine, but people tell me that it's much harder to get accepted into med schools as an international student (I'm from Brazil) due to some law-related issues or something (I think it's cuz I don't have a green card, making it harder for me to get a job and whatnot). Perhaps this is the same with dental school, or not true at all, idk.

As for the schools I've applied to, they're not really ivies. Actually, I don't know if they're "decent" as you guys say it is or not...Some examples are U. Mich, Georgia Tech, BU, BC, and Michigan State University.

There's still months before the application decisions start arriving, but so far I've been accepted to Purdue University (rolling admissions) w/ Pre-dent, is that any good?

 

[Streetwolf]

Not ivies but they're fine.

Honestly though I wouldn't look at dentistry just because it will be easier to get into. If you actually want to do medicine then go for medicine.

With the rapidly rising applicant pool, it is getting more and more difficult to gain acceptance into dental schools these days. I don't know for sure if your situation would make it harder or not.

 

[burgler09]

As a high school senior it is good to start looking into what you want to do. I personally think Chemistry or Biochemistry is a better major for applying to dental school simply because I like Chemistry better 😉 . As stated, there is no such thing as a pre-dental degree, pre-dental simply means you are in college and are planning to go to dental school. As far as college choice goes, it doesn't really matter where you go as long as you do well. The people that go to the iveys like to talk about how much work they put into their school and how much harder they have to work, but in reality everyone usually puts the same amount of work in. You'll notice after the first year of college people will start talking about how much harder it is to get good grades at their school than any other school.. it doesn't matter where they go. I would personally say go to your state school and get away from the house, but do the state school because its cheapest. Now if you feel you really have to get far away go out of state if you feel its important. The school which you go to undergrad doesn't have much bearing on dental school acceptances so just pick where you will be happiest, you only get to do undergrad once (hopefully) so make it a good time and pull off some good grades.

 

[taehkim]

Thanks for the advice, I had no idea how open the 'major' really was. My parents keep telling me that Purdue is so far my best option since apparently it has some affiliation with Indiana University Dental, thus increasing your chances up to 50% of getting accepted there later on...is this true?

 

[32pearlywhites]

As said, it doesn't matter what major you choose. I am in Liberal Arts rather than a science major, but I knew coming in to college I wanted to be Pre-Dental so I just take all the requirements. I wanted to go to an ivy but I decided to save money for dental school by going to my state school. Start looking at dental school websites you are interested in early, because sometimes the pre-health program doesn't tell you all the classes you should really take. In the long run, once you are a dentist no one will care if you went to an ivy undergrad, and going to an ivy doesn't mean you will get into a better dental school. Just work hard! You are off to a great start thinking about this stuff in advance.

 

[burgler09]

I don't think any colleges will have an affiliation with a dental school.. Purdue however is a good school and you wouldn't go wrong by going there. Even doing your undergraduate work at a university with a dental school doesn't increase your chances. Pick the school based on where you will be happiest for the best price. Both should be weighed in hand for hand but don't simply pick purdue because you think it'll be easier to get into dental school.

 

[andyjl]

some dental schools have feeder undergraduate schools..meaning just like how you mentioned purdue has connections with Indiana. If that is the case, then yes Purdue would probably be one of your higher choices. You should definitely contact the schools and find out.

 

[blankguy]

some dental schools have feeder undergraduate schools..meaning just like how you mentioned purdue has connections with Indiana. If that is the case, then yes Purdue would probably be one of your higher choices. You should definitely contact the schools and find out.

Feeder school does not necessarily mean that the dental school has preferential arrangement with a specific school. It just could be that the undergrad school is among the most represented in a specific class year.

 

[jigabodo]

Feeder school does not necessarily mean that the dental school has preferential arrangement with a specific school. It just could be that the undergrad school is among the most represented in a specific class year.

I can attest that. UC Davis is one of the largest feeder schools for UCSF, but that is also the first rejection I received.

 

[taehkim]

I see...I hate it when my mom doesn't know something for sure and keeps bugging me about it...though i'm gonna contact the school anyway for further clarification.

I guess all I have to do then is wait for the acceptances to come out and THEN start deciding which school to attend...

The thought of college life makes me so nervous :[ (and excited at the same time)

 

[Aceofspades]

I would advise you keep your spending to a minimum, so that would mean going to a cheaper school. Also, if you can get into one of those sweet 7 or even 8 year BS/DMD or BS/DDS programs you can avoid posting the inevitable "what are my chances" thread.

 

[burgler09]

programs you can avoid posting the inevitable "what are my chances" thread.

I think some people would post that thread whether they were in that program or not.