dilemma, what to do?!?

[jackbauer!]

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i've applied to d-school for the 2007 cycle. gpa verified, just waiting for my app. to be sent out. i consider myself a competitive applicant... overall gpa 3.6, science gpa 3.5...got research, shadowing, ECs, leadership, etc. anyways, that's not my dilemma...

this is my dilemma:

i have not taken the DAT yet, but I have it scheduled for Aug 5th. problem is, the prof. i did research with during undergrad (i just graduated in May) hired me to continue my research for the remainder of the summer. my issue is this: after working everyday from 8-5 while taking a 5 credit course i DO NOT have enough gas to put in SERIOUS studying time for the DAT. i KNOW that i can demolish this test if i have more time time study.

do i put in my 2 weeks (aka quit) and study my butt off for the next month to get the scores i need and risk burning bridges with a prof. that is writing me an awesome LOR? OR

do i suck it up and risk not doing as well as i can on possibly the most important test of my life?

i'm having a hard time deciding b/c i feel as if i put in my two weeks i will be a quitter and i'm NOT a quitter. i have always sucked it up through thick and thin. But i feel if i'm sincere when discussing this with my prof. he may understand; however, this guy is extremely anti med/dent. schools and is pro grad school/research. in the past when i have expressed my time constraints with him, his response has been, "who needs sleep?"...

what are your thoughts?

jb! 🙂

 

[prez_al]

Well, I just wrote the Canadian DAT in February while working on my thesis project and I still got 22 on it. But then the Canadian DAT did not have an organic and QR component so I only studied maybe two days for it (probably a total of 10-15 hours). I'd say it's doable if you give yourself a good week and find time to do one or two practice DAT. Is the LOR really that important because at this point you should've had all the LORs sent to AADSAS. But I definitely believe you can pull of 20s if you study decently! Good luck.

 

[Prayin80]

Here my opinion. Since you already have your application in, I don't see why you need any more research. I'm sure your professor can work something out with you, and will understand how important this test is to you. Question is, do you really want to be a dentist? Your DAT is more important than research that isn't even yours. Your professor will understand, if you have a good relationship with him. I'm sure his LOR won't change, as long as you explain to him well. Tell him the truth.

 

[armorshell]

It's not impossible to get quality studying time in while working full time. That's what I did and it worked out okay for me.

A good tip would be to wake up maybe an hour or two early, and split your studying time up 1/2 before and 1/2 after work.

 

[BirkChick]

I think I may know what you're going through. Being the non-traditional applicant that I am, I studied for the DAT while working 40+ hours a week as an engineer and taking 4 credit hours of graduate-level courses.

At the time I started studying, it had been over 7 years since I'd taken gchem and over 1 year since I'd taken ochem. Even worse, I had never taken college-level biology. I studied about 12 hours a week, not including practice tests, for three months straight, spending the majority of my time teaching myself biology. While those were some hellish months, I was focused enough to get through it.

So, in my opinion, the decision comes down to two things:

1. Are you focused enough to spend the majority of your free time studying for this awful test?
2. Is your science/math/reading/PAT ability strong enough to require a limited amount of studying?

I think that if you answered "no" to either of those questions, it would be best to quit your job. But only you can know for sure. Why don't you get a copy of Topscore or Achiever and take a practice test. Perhaps you could use that as a gage for how much studying you will need to put in.

Good Luck!

 

[jackbauer!]

Is the LOR really that important because at this point you should've had all the LORs sent to AADSAS. But I definitely believe you can pull of 20s if you study decently! Good luck.

thanks prez. yes, the LOR is important b/c i've worked my butt off on this research...i wrote and defended an honors thesis. i think schools will be skeptical if i didn't have a LOR from this guy. plus, my top choice (UF) secondary has a research section that he must sign anyways. also, i'm shooting for 22+ on the DAT to ensure an acceptance.

So, in my opinion, the decision comes down to two things:

1. Are you focused enough to spend the majority of your free time studying for this awful test?
2. Is your science/math/reading/PAT ability strong enough to require a limited amount of studying?

1. Yes.
2. My chemistry and math are strong (i'm a biochem major), the others will take some time. luckily, i've already outlined the kaplan book for bio and have been looking over mcat ExamKrackers and Campbell's text. the PAT i will practice on.

Keep the advice coming guys, i appreciate it!

jb 🙂

 

[aggie.teacher]

I'll testify that you can do it while working and taking classes. I was teaching elementary science part time on Tuesdays and Thursdays and taking genetics and ochem w/lab MWF - commuting. Let me tell you it wasn't a breeze by any means, but I studied early in the morning, during my lunch breaks and every night to get DAT study time in. I had to prioritize when I had tests or homework due...or a lesson to plan - and put off DAT time periodically but I took a full week before the test to do nothing but DAT (luckily or rather, strategically it was Spring Break). Do what you can to get it done and it can definitely happen. Study only what you don't know because you can't waste time. I took practice test after practice test to pinpoint what I didn't know and study it. Anyway, good luck! I totally think you can do it!

 

[Fariba]

do i suck it up and risk not doing as well as i can on possibly the most important test of my life?

You even said it yourself... this is probably one of the most important tests of your life. You are right about your stats making you a competitive applicant.

But heres the thing: lets say you get under 17 in any of the sections... you are then going to be considered an average applicant, and none of your hard work and EC's will matter much.

I am sure that since you have built a repoire with this professor and he/she knows your passion for the field... they should understand your situation. I am sure the prof. does not want you to do poorly on the exam and will respect your decision.

Best way to approach the prof. is to tell them that you really feel terrible about quitting but your future relies on this.

It might be hard to watch someone else replace you in the job, but its going to burn you to the core to watch someone take your spot in dental school. You have worked too hard to have it all go to waste because of a month you COULD HAVE been studying.

You NEED at LEAST a month! Take this exam seriously. I do not know how much info you have retained from previous college courses, but statistics are only going up and you have to keep in mind that an 18 or 19 isn't as great as it used to be.

But then again, this is just my opinion.

 

[LIer2010]

You said yourself that DAT is the most important test. Why take a chance?

Research is important. LOR is important too. However, none of them can match DAT's importance. You can have no research exp. and average LORs, and still get into a dental school. But if you have poor DAT, forget about it.

This is YOUR life, not your professor's, regardless of your sense of loyalty. Your professor can't help you at all if you have lower than expected DAT.

I studied for MCAT as well several years ago and got a decent score (31), but when I was studying for DAT, I still needed to put in one full month's worth of studying time (in which I had no obligations besides studying for DAT). Even with my full-time studying, I managed only 17 for PAT and 24/21 for AA/SA. Since you have about a month's worth of time, you really have to buckle down and study, if you're aiming for anything higher than 19 (then again, you could be much smarter than me and don't need that much time - but why take a chance).

If I were you, I would quit research right now and just study for DAT, period. I had 6 publications under my name when I applied, but I really don't think they helped me out very much at the end.

What matters is DAT and GPA. And applying early. Everything else is secondary.

 

[jackbauer!]

thanks guys. i think i'm going to tell my prof. this friday that my last day will be a week from this friday--i know, i know..common courtesy is 2 weeks but it's not like he's going to be able to replace me anyways anytime soon.

on the other hand, i think i'll be fine with 4 weeks of solid studying. i was a chem ta for a yr so gen chem will be a breeze & as i have mentioned i have a leg up on bio since i've already read and made notecards of the kaplan book and have started looking over EKs and Campbells. I already have topscore which i will go over as soon as i've finished studying EVERYTHING. i also have the kaplan subject exams a friend gave to me. in addition, i heard ochem is the easiest section to study for. any truth to that?

thanks again for the advice, if anyone else has anything to add please reply!

killing terrorists like it's my job--oh wait, it is my job,
jackbauer!

 

[HC_smiles]

i went through the same exact thing. i was doing research and was studying for the dat in june. honestly, i did not feel prepared at all for the DAT. luckily, my research supervisor was understanding enough to give me one full week off before the DAT. before then i had studied for maybe 2-3 hrs a day when i got home for work. so i was basically exhausted. it is doable, although i did not perform as well as i would have liked to....if i had just a week more i probably woulda felt more prepared. its all up to you and how understanding your supervisor is. im sure you can work something out. i have found that most are for students who are pre-med or pre-dent.


good luck!

 

[ralf]

I suggest you hammer down on every single topic you can and work through as many practice problems and tests as possible. Quit the job, if you've got the letter already. If you don't do the best you can do on the DAT I suspect you'll have a miserable fall and spring, checking the mailbox twice a day, pacing, sweating, shadowing, getting ready for a reapply, and renewing your lease on the apartment. I say drop everything in order to walk into the testing center on test day with the knowledge that, for you, anything less than a 25 on any given topic is disappointing since you have the stuff down cold. Better to be overprepared than to wing it. More time on the DAT now means less time here next year.