Grades and Extracurricular: balance out

[juan2197]

---

Members do not see this ad.

hey everybody, my question is if you have a good amount of extracurricular with a low gpa what chances are for getting into a dental school

right now i have about a 2.7 gpa which i should be able to raise to a 3.0, just finishing my sophomore year. Organic and regular chem were not nice to me. However, i have rather good extracurriculars i would say, this summer im doing research in bolivia with a professor, volunteering at the hospital, division 1 athlete, and also a TA for spanish. If i do manage to raise my gpa to a 3.0, should be able to since bio courses arent my trouble the chem is.

So what would you say my chances are like also what i could do to raise my chances?

thank you.

 

[AwesomeTeeth]

hey everybody, my question is if you have a good amount of extracurricular with a low gpa what chances are for getting into a dental school

right now i have about a 2.7 gpa which i should be able to raise to a 3.0, just finishing my sophomore year. Organic and regular chem were not nice to me. However, i have rather good extracurriculars i would say, this summer im doing research in bolivia with a professor, volunteering at the hospital, division 1 athlete, and also a TA for spanish. If i do manage to raise my gpa to a 3.0, should be able to since bio courses arent my trouble the chem is.

So what would you say my chances are like also what i could do to raise my chances?

thank you.

Extracurriculars will never make up for raw GPA/DAT scores. Raise your GPA as high as you can and do well on the DAT.

But then again, you are a URM I'm assuming by your name. So you do have a better chance with that.

 

[juan2197]

technically im from spain...

 

[AwesomeTeeth]

technically im from spain...

Say you're from mexico or south america on your app, no one is going to notice the difference 😉

 

[dentalWorks]

hey everybody, my question is if you have a good amount of extracurricular with a low gpa what chances are for getting into a dental school

right now i have about a 2.7 gpa which i should be able to raise to a 3.0, just finishing my sophomore year. Organic and regular chem were not nice to me. However, i have rather good extracurriculars i would say, this summer im doing research in bolivia with a professor, volunteering at the hospital, division 1 athlete, and also a TA for spanish. If i do manage to raise my gpa to a 3.0, should be able to since bio courses arent my trouble the chem is.

So what would you say my chances are like also what i could do to raise my chances?

thank you.

No amount of Extracurriculars, shadowing, skin color, and/or research will make up for a poor GPA.

The only way to improve is to work on your grades.... The good news is, your still in the early stages of undergrad, work hard your next few years and you'll have better odds.

all the best

 

[AwesomeTeeth]

No amount of Extracurriculars, shadowing, skin color, and/or research will make up for a poor GPA.

You'd be surprised haha.....but let's not get into that.

 

[doc toothache]

Ec are not much help in gross anatomy. Maybe time spent hitting the books would have been more productive.

 

[juan2197]

a good DAT score would help also, what should i aim for on the DAT obviously the higher the better but realistically to help my situation

 

[sacapuntas]

a good DAT score would help also, what should i aim for on the DAT obviously the higher the better but realistically to help my situation

I think it is too early to worry about the DAT...get your GPA up and ask the question again in another year or two when you are ready for the DAT. The better you do in your pre-req courses, the easier the DAT will be. Good luck sir.

 

[UBERlowGPA]

extraCURRICULAR. in addition to your curriculum... not in place of.

there are plenty of applicants out there who not only have TONS of extracurricular activities, but also the grades to go with it. take more classes and place your priority on the curricular aspect of the equation. i was in the same boat you were in and didn't even get a second look for any dental school i applied to. that was with 4 years of laboratory research, sports, holding office positions in a fraternity, 3 years of dental shadowing, and tons of volunteer work. it wasn't until my GPA rose that i was even considered competitive.

 

[dstu2011]

extraCURRICULAR. in addition to your curriculum... not in place of.

there are plenty of applicants out there who not only have TONS of extracurricular activities, but also the grades to go with it. take more classes and place your priority on the curricular aspect of the equation. i was in the same boat you were in and didn't even get a second look for any dental school i applied to. that was with 4 years of laboratory research, sports, holding office positions in a fraternity, 3 years of dental shadowing, and tons of volunteer work. it wasn't until my GPA rose that i was even considered competitive.

I think its more like EXTRAcurricular

 

[dentalWorks]

a good DAT score would help also, what should i aim for on the DAT obviously the higher the better but realistically to help my situation

25AA.....wait.... to be safe, just get a 27AA and you'll be set

 

[Osity]

Say you're from mexico or south america on your app, no one is going to notice the difference 😉

There's a big difference. Wait until they put that on their application and then they interview with someone from Spain.

 

[coolbeans123]

There's a big difference. Wait until they put that on their application and then they interview with someone from Spain.

The odds of you interviewing with someone from spain or mexico is maybe 2%. If you're that unlucky, then you can probably cross that school off your list.

 

[dentalWorks]

The odds of you interviewing with someone from spain or mexico is maybe 2%. If you're that unlucky, then you can probably cross that school off your list.

oh look, even adcoms are URMs