people are prejudicial. however, if you knew what went into the applicant selection criteria and the level of professionalism that is (generally) conducted at that kind of administrative level, you would quickly realize that participating in any organization has almost zero impact on acceptance criteria. zero. moreover, there are legal measures that PROTECT applicants (to colleges, jobs, organizations) from these kinds of prejudices. AND if you check on the mission statement webpage of most dental schools you will find a statement resembling the following (example taken from Columbia's Admissions homepage):
"The College of Dental Medicine seeks a diverse student body reflecting not only the many faces of the patients who will be treated by the graduates of the college, but also for the creation of a diverse body of thought and interest within this community of scholars. Our definition of diversity includes race/ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and more, but is certainly not limited to those considerations."
by your same notion, perhaps those in the Muslim Student Organization should not mention their participation in MSA because it might be too sensitive for certain admins (they should just forget even applying to schools in nyc right?)..... Or those in the College Libertarian Group should not mention their activities because they might be deemed as too extreme from a more modest political standpoint.......or those who are members of College Kitten Fanclub shouldnt mention their participation in fear that the admin reviewing the app might be a dog lover....
if the op contributed a substantial amount of time and effort into this organization (particularly a leadership position), why wouldn't you? It reflects charity, magninimity, philantropy, and potentially leadership......these are all qualities that adcoms look for, and which make a good practioner.
if you were aware of the day in which we live, you would realize that this is a silly issue, not only intrinsically, but because there are legal protections against this sort of discrimination. i'm not being idealistic - i'm just aware of the reality of the situation.
you're entirely missing the point. my comment and this thread do not pertain to intelligence. you stated that the OP's participation in the Gay-Straight alliance "...has nothing to do with dentistry". Neither does 50% of the activities a pre-dent does to prepare for dental school. Your college major, the clubs and orgs you particpate in, are all minimally important - adcoms only use it to gauge that your are not a social ****** - that's it. You think all those dumb organizations that you and every other predent (myself included) 'made be a better and more competitive applicant'? f*** no.
good DAT + good grades +/- research experience + not socially ******ed = acceptance to dental school. period
you're right, your are SO RIGHT. i forgot to mention the whole trolling on SDN thing.
