Few questions about Dental School

[MrDreamWeaver]

Hey guys, I have a few questions about dental school if you don't mind helping out:

#1. I have absolutely NO experience and I'm planning on applying for the 2007-2008 cycle. How much experience is usually needed? I was planning on starting up something really soon and continuing it through the summer.

#2. I haven't completed OCHEM LAB 2. Is this a problem? Can I do it in the summer at a CC? I can do it this semester but I kinda want to cut down on my # of units so I can study for the DATs. What do you guys think?

Thankz.

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[shamrock2006]

1. Get as much as experience as you can so as to pull a sweet LOR from your dentist(s) and to show the ADCOMs you have seriously thought this through.

2. Your chem requirements dont have to be completed before applying, just before enrolling. However, I would caution you about taking required courses at community colleges, it can cause some concerns..take them at a university if at all possible. As far as the DATs, go with what you said...take a load that gives you the most possible time to prepare and feel comfortable...after all, its probably the biggest part of your application. Best of luck!

 

[MrDreamWeaver]

alright, thanks a lot.
i better get the ball rolling on experience. i came from being a pre-med so i've shadowed doctors/ER stuff but no dentists. dentistry seems more appealing to me now (after shadowing doctors who LIVE in the hospital). as for the ochem lab, i'll try to do that @ uni.

i actually transferred from community college. i hope this doesn't hurt my chances I had an excellent GPA at CC so i'm just trying to keep it up

 

[reapply2007]

You may also check with the schools you intend to bless with an application to see if they limit cc coursework, or accept it at all. Some schools get pretty strange with cc classes. I agree that your LORs and shadowing probably need to get beefed up pretty quickly (before you submit to AADSAS in May) plus you'll need to study for the DAT. If you are taking fall classes, you might want to take some upper level biology over the summer and study for the DAT, then take the lab in the fall. That way, the biology can help your DAT efforts. It sounds like you have lots to do this spring. GL.

 

[MrDreamWeaver]

Hm..Alright.
Upper Div BIO ? What for? Even the MCAT doesn't require that.

 

[EnviroDentist]

One of the schools I applied to wanted a minum of 40 hours experience shadowing/volunteering/working, but some of them put more emphasis on it than this!

 

[Cyca24]

Hm..Alright.
Upper Div BIO ? What for? Even the MCAT doesn't require that.

They recommend taking upper div. bio because it better prepares you for the type of bio material you'll be studying in dental school. For example, micro, histology, A & P, molecular. They aren't represented on the dat, but after being exposed to the same basic bio materials over and over again, you get used to it. The schools like to see you can handle it.

 

[litldime]

I have a quick question...I need to take 6 more hours of biology. Does this have to be completed before I send out my application?

I am a Texas Resident and I know TMDSAS says you need 14 credits and right now I am going to have 11 by the end of Spring. I have all my other pre-reqs but my bio isn't complete.

Do I have to wait to take these classes and then have my application sent out or can I send my app out and then say I'll take these classes?

-thanks!

 

[Cyca24]

There's a section on the AADSAS application where you put your planned/in progress courses, so you don't have to have them complete yet. I don't know how the TMDSAS works though, but I'm sure it's similar

 

[TexDDS]

TMDSAS is similar. You do not need to complete your courses upon application. If you are accepted and have not completed all of the required courses, your acceptance will be conditional.

As for the chemistry course at CC mentioned above, I personally wouldn't touch a CC course in science with a ten foot pole. You are applying to professional school. Admission committees want you to have a solid foundation on which they can build upon. CC just does not offer as strong of a foundation as a university. Whether this is fact or not does not matter. It is their perception.

 

[Go Navy!!!]

As far as the CC classes go..I think that it all depends on the schools that you are applying to. I am in the process of finishing up my physics requirements at a CC right now and I will be atteding OHSU. It didn't seem to be a problem for me, however, physics is a lower division class and I don't think that it really makes much of a difference where you take it. CCs have a lot of benefits...less money, smaller class sizes, etc.

 

[diane07]

Community college courses are cheaper and easier academically. Do people take them and still get into dental school . . . sure.

But the flip side is that many dental schools do prefer pre-requisites to be taken at college/university. And since getting into dental school is very competitve, you may want to make yourself as strong an applicant as possible.

 

[marina1285]

I took all my prereqs at CC, every single one, including Orgo, and got all A's. I dont see why that would make a difference though if now in the university I'm taking things like Physiology, Histology, Endocrinology, Biochem, Neurobiology and still getting A's. CC saves money, and I didnt think it was easier, just more help from the professors.

 

[Snahster]

I took all my prereqs at CC, every single one, including Orgo, and got all A's. I dont see why that would make a difference though if now in the university I'm taking things like Physiology, Histology, Endocrinology, Biochem, Neurobiology and still getting A's. CC saves money, and I didnt think it was easier, just more help from the professors.

CC lower div requirements are easy. Upper divs are the same everywhere.

 

[MrDreamWeaver]

Arghh... Looks like I'm in a crappy situation.

#1 - Transferred from CC to save money
#2 - Haven't shadowed any DDS/DMD (did hospital work though).
#3 - No Upper DIV Bio work (I'm a biopsych major, does this count? we do pharmacology and neuroscience stuff).

Good things going for me:
#1 - Good GPA ~ 3.6-3.7 but took all pre-dent/med reqs at CC besides for ochem2/ochem3.
#2 - Worked throughout college on my own business. Nothing huge just to make some money for food/clothes/beer.
#3 - Did ER work / President of some clubs / etc
#4 - Full-scholarship to UCSB (which is why I picked to go here out of CC).


Argh... I really wanted to go to a dental school on the East. I hope I have a chance of getting into one of the good ones this cycle. If not, maybe I should just apply next cycle?

 

[Nasem]

you have ALOT of good things going for you. You have plenty of shadowing experiences in medical fields OTHER than dentistry, they really like to see well-rounded applicants and this shows them that.

as far as shadowing a dentists goes, You need to get started right away. that way you have atleast 40-50 hrs of shadowing with a dentist when may-june comes up.

Look at the bright side, if you don't get accepted this cycle, there is always next year's cycle

 

[marina1285]

CC lower div requirements are easy. Upper divs are the same everywhere.

I will say one thing about universities and the "easy" classes at CC, I go to Rutgers and let me tell you about the curves pre reqs get, there was no such thing at CC as a 47% in physics being a B, pre-reqs at Universities are only slightly more difficult and curve these kids ride is ridic. I got all my A's with no curve and it's bull**** if D school won't accept someone with the pre reqs from CC, if this was true for all, then CC would not exist, you have to take those classes to take the upper level classes at a 4 year, what about those who have to pay for college without mommy and daddy's help, maybe some schools won't accept CC, but I wouldn't want to go to those schools anyways. But to say that it's "unproffessional" or "the easy way out" is not at all true.

 

[Simiam]

We're lucky to get a 1 or 2% curve at my school. Our Chem department wants the class average to remain a C, so in Chemistry in a class of 250 there will be maybe 10 As.... It varies from school to school.

 

[marina1285]

We're lucky to get a 1 or 2% curve at my school. Our Chem department wants the class average to remain a C, so in Chemistry in a class of 250 there will be maybe 10 As.... It varies from school to school.

Well I think D school takes that into consideration also, I want to go to UMDNJ, which is affiliated with Rutgers and the dentist I shadowed for teaches there, he said if Rutgers accepted the credits then UMDNJ also accepts the credits. Basically what I'm trying to get at is that I don't think it's the end of the world if someone went to CC, it might matter to some schools, but I dont feel like I won't get accepted to any schools because of that fact as long as the rest of my app is strong.

 

[Simiam]

As long as they got As at a CC and followed it up by doing well in a 4yr university I would assume they would be ok.

 

[reapply2007]

I'm not sure who said anything about cc courses being harder or easier than a four year school. Usually cc is cheaper in terms of tuition. Regardless, if money is a concern then make sure you check the d-school website for their policy on cc coursework before you burn dollars on AADSAS and the DAT. Another good class to take is biochem - just to add to the previously mentioned upper level classes.