Well, I'm new to this forum, and I want your opinions on something that has no doubt been requested by many others. My friggin' chances of being admitted. Let me give you my case, then decide. I apologize for the length of this, but if you have the time to read it & comment, please do.
First, the numbers. My overall gpa is 2.72. My science gpa is 3.44. My dat scores are 19 academic/19 pat.
An explanation of my low overall gpa is simple and in order. When I started school way back in '90 I didn't do so well. It was because I spent more time doing the fun things that college life offers, not frequently focusing on the academics. This went on in an off & on basis for seven years. Some of those semesters(5 or 6) I wasn't enrolled as a student.
My transcript contains, all from my "lost years", 12 F's(a couple changed administratively after a year where there was no report, a couple of U's in pass/fail classes(which are tatamount to an f), one WF, and, get this, 22 withdrawals. All of these, every single one, was a result of not attending the class, not lack of ability. It was unmitigated, irresponsiblity. I make no excuse for it. In hindsight, I could have at least dropped those F classes for a W, so as to not destroy my gpa. I did manage to do some good academic work in classes that I actually went to. I even had 78 hours of credit before I decided to become a good student.
Anyway, I finally decided that, at 27, playtime was over. Better late than never. The past three years I have done very well. My gpa was 3.4, my sci gpa 3.44. I have no withdrawals or bad grades. Fortunately, I had no science grades to speak of from my early years, unless math & psych count, in which case there will be an A, B & F. As I said, my dat is 19/19. I have shadowed several dentists totalling hundreds of hours, volunteered at a local hospital's dental clinic, too. I also feel that my recommendations are good. Certainly, dentistry wasn't something that I just decided on when I decided to be a decent student. It, along with many careers, had always held my interest since high school. After being around the profession through shadowing & volunteer work, seeing the intricacies of it, I knew I had found my calling.
If you would like to give me your comments on my chances, what I should do if I don't get in this time around, I'd appreciate it. You can respond to the list or email me it you'd like. Thanks for your time & good luck to all.
-Bill
First, the numbers. My overall gpa is 2.72. My science gpa is 3.44. My dat scores are 19 academic/19 pat.
An explanation of my low overall gpa is simple and in order. When I started school way back in '90 I didn't do so well. It was because I spent more time doing the fun things that college life offers, not frequently focusing on the academics. This went on in an off & on basis for seven years. Some of those semesters(5 or 6) I wasn't enrolled as a student.
My transcript contains, all from my "lost years", 12 F's(a couple changed administratively after a year where there was no report, a couple of U's in pass/fail classes(which are tatamount to an f), one WF, and, get this, 22 withdrawals. All of these, every single one, was a result of not attending the class, not lack of ability. It was unmitigated, irresponsiblity. I make no excuse for it. In hindsight, I could have at least dropped those F classes for a W, so as to not destroy my gpa. I did manage to do some good academic work in classes that I actually went to. I even had 78 hours of credit before I decided to become a good student.
Anyway, I finally decided that, at 27, playtime was over. Better late than never. The past three years I have done very well. My gpa was 3.4, my sci gpa 3.44. I have no withdrawals or bad grades. Fortunately, I had no science grades to speak of from my early years, unless math & psych count, in which case there will be an A, B & F. As I said, my dat is 19/19. I have shadowed several dentists totalling hundreds of hours, volunteered at a local hospital's dental clinic, too. I also feel that my recommendations are good. Certainly, dentistry wasn't something that I just decided on when I decided to be a decent student. It, along with many careers, had always held my interest since high school. After being around the profession through shadowing & volunteer work, seeing the intricacies of it, I knew I had found my calling.
If you would like to give me your comments on my chances, what I should do if I don't get in this time around, I'd appreciate it. You can respond to the list or email me it you'd like. Thanks for your time & good luck to all.
-Bill
