Do I Have Any Chance????

[DEAN DDS]

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Hello everybody. Im new to this site and like to briefly introduce myself. My name is Dean and I am 23 years old. I am currently residing in Bellevue, WA. Im currently attending Seattle University and on my last year majoring in BS General Science. I've been working as a dental assistant for more than 3 years now. Im a Filipino-American that wants to be a dentist in the near future.

Heres a brief description of my education history. My first two years of college i started out at a local community college. I was "young and dumb" and didnt know what to major in. I didnt take it seriously and ended up getting my Associates degree with an embarassing 2.2 gpa (failed 1st quarter of the bio series). I was working at a dental clinic as a receptionist part time. After realizing i had to do something with my life, i went back to the local community college and finished up on pre reqs i needed for DENTAL HYGIENE( did well btw 3.5 gpa). The staff at the clinic encouraged me to get into it since it only about a two year course and is a well paying job. After that, i started applying which took a couple of months to here for an acceptance, and in the mean time i worked at the dental clinic full time. They trained me to become a dental assistant. Too sum it up, I loved the envirorment and loved working with the dentist. I saw myself being a dentist and so i went to SU to finish my bachelors degree and all the pre-reqs needed for dental school. (btw i did get accepted to dental hygiene school , but denied it 👍 👎 ?)

HERES THE PROBLEM. 🙁 the pre reqs for dental school is kicking me in the butt! Ive basically have straight "C's". This is what i have so far, in terms of my science classes.
GEN CHEM:C+/C/C-
O CHEM: C+/C+/C+
BIOLOGY: C+/C+/C-

I am currently taking 1st quarter in the physics series, micro, and a theology class. I know my grades arent good enough and i need major help or advice. Should i still continue trying or just give up? If i score well on the DATS (23 or up) would i have a chance? Will dental schools like it if i went to hygiene school to improve my grades instead of going to grad school? anything helps! Thanks for listening everyone and hope to get some positive feed back. 🙂

 

[JavadiCavity]

Hello everybody. Im new to this site and like to briefly introduce myself. My name is Dean and I am 23 years old. I am currently residing in Bellevue, WA. Im currently attending Seattle University and on my last year majoring in BS General Science. I've been working as a dental assistant for more than 3 years now. Im a Filipino-American that wants to be a dentist in the near future.

Heres a brief description of my education history. My first two years of college i started out at a local community college. I was "young and dumb" and didnt know what to major in. I didnt take it seriously and ended up getting my Associates degree with an embarassing 2.2 gpa (failed 1st quarter of the bio series). I was working at a dental clinic as a receptionist part time. After realizing i had to do something with my life, i went back to the local community college and finished up on pre reqs i needed for DENTAL HYGIENE( did well btw 3.5 gpa). The staff at the clinic encouraged me to get into it since it only about a two year course and is a well paying job. After that, i started applying which took a couple of months to here for an acceptance, and in the mean time i worked at the dental clinic full time. They trained me to become a dental assistant. Too sum it up, I loved the envirorment and loved working with the dentist. I saw myself being a dentist and so i went to SU to finish my bachelors degree and all the pre-reqs needed for dental school. (btw i did get accepted to dental hygiene school , but denied it 👍 👎 ?)

HERES THE PROBLEM. 🙁 the pre reqs for dental school is kicking me in the butt! Ive basically have straight "C's". This is what i have so far, in terms of my science classes.
GEN CHEM:C+/C/C-
O CHEM: C+/C+/C+
BIOLOGY: C+/C+/C-

I am currently taking 1st quarter in the physics series, micro, and a theology class. I know my grades arent good enough and i need major help or advice. Should i still continue trying or just give up? If i score well on the DATS (23 or up) would i have a chance? Will dental schools like it if i went to hygiene school to improve my grades instead of going to grad school? anything helps! Thanks for listening everyone and hope to get some positive feed back. 🙂

You've got a tough, tough road ahead. Honestly, I'm not sure schools will admit you even if you get an ultra high DAT score. Your best bet is to show schools you're serious about d-school and retake your C credit courses and get B's or better.

 

[Biogirl361]

plus if you got straight Cs in science classes your not going to get a 23 or up on the dat, it is the same material and if you didnt understand it the first time how are you going to understand it for the dat. and, dental school is like having all those science classes and then some, only twice as fast and all at the same time, while also trying to shuffle preclinical work. if it kicked your butt in undergrad then how are you going to handle d school?
my advice is like javadi said, to retake those prereq science classes and do well. this way you will learn that material, get your stats up for the application, and develop important study and time-management skills that i guarantee you will need if you are going to handle dental school. after retaking the prereqs and doing well, then take the dat and you will be able to do good on it. then apply to dental school. it will be a long and hard road, but do not give up if it is what you really want 🙂

 

[demonicr]

A 23 on the DAt is very difficult to achieve. Some of us study endlessly and cannot come close to a 23. i'm not saying that you cannot be able to do it, its just since you haven't taken the DAT yet, don't plan on the DAT being the factor that will get you a spot in dental school. You want to reevaluate your undergraduate courseworks, and improve them first. either that, take graduate courses in biological sciences to show you have a strong understanding of the predental cirriculum. Also, i think if you go to hygiene school and do really well in it, you can be a competitive candidate for dental school when you apply, also you can have something to fall back on.

 

[ecdoesit]

You may have to take additional courses and year(s) to bring your GPA up. Could u retake ur pre-req and show a different GPA on ur transcript? (Need confirmation)
Apply for a post-bac program is another good idea.
If you really really really want to be a dentist, I would also call up dental schools to see if they could give u additional advice. Particularly, I heard AZ accepted a student with below average stats, but he/she has done many extraordinary things that caught adcom attention. Everyone's path is different. Dont give up, but work hard and be persistence. Good luck.

 

[fruity_trident]

don't give up!
if this is what you want to do...go for it!

i may not get in this year, maybe not even next year...but i'm gonna do whatever it takes for me to get in...because i want to become a dentist!

gdluck!
👍

 

[DEAN DDS]

thanks everyone for the comments. More advice is welcome..thanks again

 

[DEAN DDS]

You may have to take additional courses and year(s) to bring your GPA up. Could u retake ur pre-req and show a different GPA on ur transcript? (Need confirmation)
Apply for a post-bac program is another good idea.
If you really really really want to be a dentist, I would also call up dental schools to see if they could give u additional advice. Particularly, I heard AZ accepted a student with below average stats, but he/she has done many extraordinary things that caught adcom attention. Everyone's path is different. Dont give up, but work hard and be persistence. Good luck.

whats the school called in AZ?

 

[J2AZ]

ASDOH or Arizona School of Dentistry and Oral Health

 

[Dr.Smiley-OR]

hey
I don't want to be mean or rude, but I have to be honest here. I think your GPA is something that you need to improve on SIGNIFICANTLY. I don't think your stat will even make it at ASDOH. Although ASDOH will accept lower stat than most schools, but that is a little bit low. Many people from other threads have posted their stat similar to your, and got rejection letter from ASDOH without an interview. (With DAT score of 18/18, which is not a bad number for DAT).
With that said, please do not let me discourage you, Dean DDS, from applying. Just try your best to bring your GPA up and also do well on DAT. Have many extracurricular activities and community services as possible, ASDOH will love that. My suggestion is do not apply this year, try to make a great resume for yourself first before you apply so you don't have to waste money. and of course, APPLY EARLY (that is send in AADSAS application in June/July next year)!
Good luck! If you really want to become a dentist, just work hard for it! Ok?

 

[DEAN DDS]

hey
I don't want to be mean or rude, but I have to be honest here. I think your GPA is something that you need to improve on SIGNIFICANTLY. I don't think your stat will even make it at ASDOH. Although ASDOH will accept lower stat than most schools, but that is a little bit low. Many people from other threads have posted their stat similar to your, and got rejection letter from ASDOH without an interview. (With DAT score of 18/18, which is not a bad number for DAT).
With that said, please do not let me discourage you, Dean DDS, from applying. Just try your best to bring your GPA up and also do well on DAT. Have many extracurricular activities and community services as possible, ASDOH will love that. My suggestion is do not apply this year, try to make a great resume for yourself first before you apply so you don't have to waste money. and of course, APPLY EARLY (that is send in AADSAS application in June/July next year)!
Good luck! If you really want to become a dentist, just work hard for it! Ok?

thanks for the advice! i appreciate the honesty. i expect it from everyone here.

 

[BeachLuvr]

Now 'course you got a chance..............................but, (was trying to delay the "but") things would be SO much better if you could perhaps retake those courses and strive for not just a A/B...but for a better understanding. That way, on the DAT you not putting all your hopes on that score pulling you through. 'Cause if it's not 23-ish...you might be pretty bum-rushed. Plus, it's not just getting in to dental school....it's staying there and moving on. The better foundation you have on the basic science, the better your do with more hardcore studies. You CAN do it ~ If this is really what you want, make it happen ~
Beachluvr

 

[ItsGavinC]

Particularly, I heard AZ accepted a student with below average stats, but he/she has done many extraordinary things that caught adcom attention. Everyone's path is different. Dont give up, but work hard and be persistence. Good luck.

I think below average is 2.7-3.1 GPA.

 

[IcemanDDS]

Yea dude I'm in the same boat. 2.53 GPA and currently taking classes again to slowly bring GPA up. Planning on taking DAT first part of Jan. As far as that goes, Kaplan is a good choice for helping you learn all aspects of the DAT. Yes the curriculum at Kaplan is abbreviated and not all inclusive, but it is a great study guide. My best advice is, and I tell myself this, you gotta make up your mind and do it. If you're gonna half-ass this thing its a huge waste of time and money. Make up your mind, put in the TIME it takes, and dont lose focus. You can't procrastinate and cram for tests when you're trying to LEARN and RETAIN information needed for DAT and perhaps D-school. Good luck, and I know I'll need the same.

 

[DEAN DDS]

Yea dude I'm in the same boat. 2.53 GPA and currently taking classes again to slowly bring GPA up. Planning on taking DAT first part of Jan. As far as that goes, Kaplan is a good choice for helping you learn all aspects of the DAT. Yes the curriculum at Kaplan is abbreviated and not all inclusive, but it is a great study guide. My best advice is, and I tell myself this, you gotta make up your mind and do it. If you're gonna half-ass this thing its a huge waste of time and money. Make up your mind, put in the TIME it takes, and dont lose focus. You can't procrastinate and cram for tests when you're trying to LEARN and RETAIN information needed for DAT and perhaps D-school. Good luck, and I know I'll need the same.

thanks man...good luck to you too!

 

[DEAN DDS]

thanks man...good luck to you too!

I WAS WONDERING ALSO IF DENTAL SCHOOLS WOULD ACCEPT RE-TAKING CLASSES AT A COMMUNITY COLLEGE? SINCE ITS CHEAPER? ANY ADVICE? THANKS AGAIN.

 

[Biogirl361]

it depends on the dental school, i know most "frown" upon taking CC classes if you can take them at a university, but as to accepting them you would have to call each one to find out their policy.

 

[abina81]

I WAS WONDERING ALSO IF DENTAL SCHOOLS WOULD ACCEPT RE-TAKING CLASSES AT A COMMUNITY COLLEGE? SINCE ITS CHEAPER? ANY ADVICE? THANKS AGAIN.

Look in under 3.0 club. It is a SDNer who recently posted. He/she was in a similar situation as you. Retook their prereqs at CC and got 4.0. They got 6/9 interviews this time around.

I think they had a good DAT also.

 

[busupshot83]

Many past SDNers have gotten accepted with CC courses in the prereqs... Don't fret.

 

[Biogirl361]

you know what i love about this board. everyone's questions always get answered, usually with several different opinions or advice. even newbie/seemingly obvious questions get answered (i am not saying this was one, just a general observation). on other message boards about different topics i can post a question and wait for a week for one person to answer, if any. sdn is great 👍 😍

 

[busupshot83]

you know what i love about this board. everyone's questions always get answered, usually with several different opinions or advice. even newbie/seemingly obvious questions get answered (i am not saying this was one, just a general observation). on other message boards about different topics i can post a question and wait for a week for one person to answer, if any. sdn is great 👍 😍

i love you too biogirl 😉

and i also love hockeydentist, and aphistis, and...

 

[msf41]

I WAS WONDERING ALSO IF DENTAL SCHOOLS WOULD ACCEPT RE-TAKING CLASSES AT A COMMUNITY COLLEGE? SINCE ITS CHEAPER? ANY ADVICE? THANKS AGAIN.

I would be careful about taking pre-req classes at community college. Most of the schools I applied to required pre-req classes be taken at UNIVERSITIES.

 

[hockeydentist]

Man that is nice, people don't realize what a service your providing, easy to understand, save time an effort and money.

I am surprised ADA hasn't caught wind of your site, and asked you to close it down. your taking money from them.


Guys if you haven't thanked big B

Do so now.

THANKS BUCSUPSHOT83 nice job as always. Lookin out for SDNers'

HD 👍

 

[Darksunshine]

Many past SDNers have gotten accepted with CC courses in the prereqs... Don't fret.

I agree. I don't think that is really going to be a problem. Total package is key more than anything.

 

[wimmcs]

I agree. I don't think that is really going to be a problem. Total package is key more than anything.

I also agree with this post. I took ALL my pre-reqs from a CC and I haven't had any troubles, instead a number of interviews. 😀

 

[DEAN DDS]

thank you everyone! i appreciate everything. it helps me out so much. i love this site! 😀

 

[busupshot83]

Man that is nice, people don't realize what a service your providing, easy to understand, save time an effort and money.

I am surprised ADA hasn't caught wind of your site, and asked you to close it down. your taking money from them.


Guys if you haven't thanked big B

Do so now.

THANKS BUCSUPSHOT83 nice job as always. Lookin out for SDNers'

HD 👍

HD:

What the ADA doesn't know won't kill them. 😉

Anyhow, thanks for the appreciation. The reason I started the page is because pre-meds have so much resources, but us pre-dents have squat. It's hard being a pre-dent. 😡