everyone please read

[snaangirl3]

Hi all

I just took my DAT and am about to die... ive been waiting to send my app in with my DAT scores because my gpa sucks. But now i have a shi**y gpa and mediocre dat score (2.5 17/16)(but i have amazing clinical experience and research)

Please advise me...

OPTIONS:

a) apply now with these stats and pray for a miracle
b) apply now and plan to retake the dat in 90 days
c) apply in 90 days when i have taken 2nd dat
d) get a reality check cuz i aint gettin in this cycle.

Thanks!
snaangirl

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[UBTom]

What you might do may also depend on other circumstances I think..

For example, if you are currently in college, it might not be a good idea to re-take the DATs in 90 days, during final exam season, when you got plenty of other exams to worry about.

Especially if you want to demonstrate an upwards trend in your GPA, taking the DAT during final exam season would only distract you from that effort.

Just my gut feeling, but if I'm in your shoes I would rather wait until I have a reasonable uninterrupted period of time to study before taking the DAT again (like next summer). As far as your GPA goes, I can sympathize-- My undergrad GPA was 3.0, which was respectable but not spectacular. I spent two years in a graduate biology program maintaining a 4.0 GPA before any dental school would accept me.

If becoming a dentist is a goal you really want to achieve and you are willing to put out the effort, you can do it no matter how long it takes.

Don't give up, and good luck!

 

[Centrum]

Originally posted by UBTom
What you might do may also depend on other circumstances I think..

For example, if you are currently in college, it might not be a good idea to re-take the DATs in 90 days, during final exam season, when you got plenty of other exams to worry about.

Especially if you want to demonstrate an upwards trend in your GPA, taking the DAT during final exam season would only distract you from that effort.

Just my gut feeling, but if I'm in your shoes I would rather wait until I have a reasonable uninterrupted period of time to study before taking the DAT again (like next summer). As far as your GPA goes, I can sympathize-- My undergrad GPA was 3.0, which was respectable but not spectacular. I spent two years in a masters program maintaining a 4.0 GPA before any dental school would accept me.

If becoming a dentist is a goal you really want to achieve and you are willing to put out the effort, you can do it no matter how long it takes.

Don't give up, and good luck!

Great Advice. It is ok to wait a year. Life is short. Enjoy yourself, work on your grades and work on improving your DAT. You will get in eventually!! Good luck.

 

[DesiDentist]

snaangirl3,

I apologize about your DAT. I know the pressure you probably had, I am in the same boat too, since my DAT is coming up in two weeks. However, I think the biggest mistake you probably made was you didn't apply earlier. You should have sent in the application ASAP and told them about your DAT.

I know you are a new comer here, but people have gotten into school with sub-3.0 gpa, but all of those people had excellent DAT's. YAH-E is the main example. He had to retake the DAT's and he aced them the 2nd time around and got into a dental school. But he also took post bacc classes.

I know you don't want to go to more school, but you have to get that GPA up. You no matter what have to retake the DAT and hit 20/20, this HAS to be done.

You must consider many things, money, time, but never think you are out of the game. If you want it bad enough you will attract the Adcoms. But the initial stage to attract adcoms is through numbers.

In my opinion, I would do the following:

1) Retake the DAT
2.) Take post-bacc classes (3.5+ in every class)
3.) keep in touch with schools
4.) APPLY THE FIRST DAY <--most important (if you decide not to apply this year)

Never ever doubt, if you doubt you have lost the battle there.

But anyways, regarding your DAT, how did you study? did you take enough practice exams? how were you doing on them?
Was the actual test harder? Did you study everything in the book?
Did you take Kaplan?

Feel free to PM me, I have many friends in this current cycle and in the past who are in similar situations as to yours. Last year two of my friends with sub-3.0 gpa's got into dental schools. I might be able to shed a little light on how they did it.

I hope this helps, and sorry for rambling.

DesiDentist

 

[DATMATT]

Unless you plan on studying like 4-8 hrs a day for the next 90 days I would say wait! 1 year to "catch up" and enter dental school with a stronger foundation will help you in the long run. You may want to see if you can get in with what you have. However, I am not sure how schools view applicants who apply 2 years in a row, but that is something I would also look into.

GOOD LUCK!

MATT

 

[ibo man]

snaangirl3,
sorry to hear how bad your dat went. If I were you I'll still apply this year and pray, hopefully you'll get in somewhere. Is not the end of the world. Worst thing that can happen you take the test again and aim for a better scores. Don't doubt yourself. Apply and things might workout for you this year, if not reapply,and retake the DAT next year. Hang in there and don't give up. We are all running the same race. Some get there before others, as long as you have the drive in you, you'll be fine.

 

[ItsGavinC]

Well, I might as well re-hash what everybody else has said, along with my own spin on it:

You aren't going to get in this year with those grades and DAT score. You need to significantly raise your GPA (or at least have an amazing upward trend -- the 2.5 wouldn't be bad if you've had several semesters of 3.7+ work). Your DAT scores are below average for the vast majority of schools, and average for just a handful. I believe your low GPA won't allow you to be competitive at that handful of schools.

Having said that, I *do* believe you have what it takes to make it in dentistry from a purely emotional standpoint. Volunteering, research, clinical experience, etc. show that you have a winners' heart and a heart that desires to enter the profession. The only problem is that those items won't gather you interviews. If you were to obtain interviews, then those items would be a huge plus to your application (and no doubt, your abilities in those areas would overshadow those of many other applicants).

Take a year to study and prepare yourself. Prepare heartily for the DAT, and do heavy research on which schools to apply to. The researching of schools will be key to your gaining acceptances. Also plan on applying very early in the application cycle, as this will boost your odds of interviews. Have your LORs and fees in order, and be prepared to enter the app. process next year.

Good luck with your plans, and remember that in the end the decision is yours. The opinions offered here (mine included!) are valuable, yet none of us knows your entire situation or your complete motivations.

And above all, know that your performance on the DAT does not say anything conclusive about who you are, how well you are suited to practice dentistry, or anything about your self worth. Just as people can have great days, they may also have bad days. If you feel that you were having a great day when you took the exam, perhaps a re-evaluation of study habits is in order. But foremost, don't put yourself down -- you'll need the strength in order to be a successful applicant, whenever you decide it is right for you to apply.

 

[tinker bell]

Hi,

So sorry to hear how your dat went. That's sad.
I have one advice for you. Don't apply this year. Save your money and do post-bac and buy yourself a new car, or a laptop, or some new clothes to wear and make yourself feel good.
If you read other thread, you'll know about me. I didn't make any cut 3 yrs ago with a better score and better gpa. I have research experience too, with papers published as first author and community service and on and on.....I called schools that interview me and they said that I didn't make the gpa cut in the final review.
I hope you don't feel bad or sad for too long. Take this year to study and improve your upward gpa trend. Take the DAT next year summer. And start practicing your math and english in oct or nov. Those skills take longer to improve than science.
And best of luck with your studying.
T

 

[sjdent]

Unless you have serious connections (or other such miracles), I would wait a year and take it again. It's only a year. One of my best friends and I took the DAT together last year and she didn't score as high as she wanted by any means. She chose to withdraw all her applications to save face and is retaking the DAT in a couple weeks. I talked to her yesterday and she feels much more confident about it this time. She has a perspective on it this time, knows what to expect, etc. She is going back to school this year to start working on post-bacc stuff. She's really happy with her decision. And, like everyone said above: one more year of good grades will HELP you! It's all about the upward trend.

That being said, I don't personally believe that most schools look down on reapplicants. Still want to apply this year? Well, then your name is out there. You will get a chance to talk to the admissions people....charm them....let them know that you're not happy with your grades or DAT scores. Then if you don't get in, go back to school, work HARD to score well on the DAT, and get accepted next year. Not everyone gets in on the first try. In fact, I think you'd be surprised HOW MANY people are reapplicants! If you want it, you'll get in eventually.

It's frustrating to have to take another year, though.

 

[Centrum]

Hey Gavin - I like the new pic of your son. He is adorable.