Hispanic Applicants

[DROCKINDAHOUSE]

Como estas fellow pre-dents,
I was wondering today if there were ANY hispanic applicants on this site. If so I wanted to see what some of you thought about where we need to be GPA and DAT-wise in order to be competitive....and also what schools should be considered if we wanted to apply somewhere other than in-state? The reason I ask is because I am a first-generation college student who does not come from the priviliged background several of my fellow applicants have enjoyed and as such I don't really have money to throw around applying to alot of schools. As it is I can barely afford to apply to the three here in Texas. Also, I have a 3.96/3.9 GPA and a 21 AA DAT so should I only apply to Texas schools?

If anyone could give me any advice it would be appreciated.

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[DRHOYA]

Como estas fellow pre-dents,
I was wondering today if there were ANY hispanic applicants on this site. If so I wanted to see what some of you thought about where we need to be GPA and DAT-wise in order to be competitive....and also what schools should be considered if we wanted to apply somewhere other than in-state? The reason I ask is because I am a first-generation college student who does not come from the priviliged background several of my fellow applicants have enjoyed and as such I don't really have money to throw around applying to alot of schools. As it is I can barely afford to apply to the three here in Texas. Also, I have a 3.96/3.9 GPA and a 21 AA DAT so should I only apply to Texas schools?

If anyone could give me any advice it would be appreciated.

You have great stats👍😉.

However, asking where Hispanics need to be GPA/DAT wise, is not itself a wise question to pose. Regardless of race, everyone should strive for competitive stats.

 

[TheGreenWave]

Como estas fellow pre-dents,
I was wondering today if there were ANY hispanic applicants on this site. If so I wanted to see what some of you thought about where we need to be GPA and DAT-wise in order to be competitive....and also what schools should be considered if we wanted to apply somewhere other than in-state? The reason I ask is because I am a first-generation college student who does not come from the priviliged background several of my fellow applicants have enjoyed and as such I don't really have money to throw around applying to alot of schools. As it is I can barely afford to apply to the three here in Texas. Also, I have a 3.96/3.9 GPA and a 21 AA DAT so should I only apply to Texas schools?

If anyone could give me any advice it would be appreciated.

first off, im glad to see there are other latinos on here. i love everyone on these forums (except maybe some of the trolls), but its nice to see there are people with similar backgrounds as mine. im also struggling to pay for all the application expenses, so i feel your money pains. I decided to apply to the three texas schools and three out-of-state schools. i was tempted to only apply to the texas schools, but didnt feel confident enough in my stats. the three out-of-state schools i applied to had lower stats than the texas schools (BU, Tufts, and USC). If i get interviews at the three texas schools, i plan on withdrawing these applications. I dont want to tell you to apply to only three schools, but i think you have a very strong chance of getting in to more than one of the texas schools. my stats are 20AA/ 21TS/ 19PAT with a cum GPA ~3.6 and sci GPA ~3.3 as you can see im more borderline than you are. anyways, good luck and i hope you get in to the schools you desire 🙂.

btw, where in texas are you from?? (im from h-town)

 

[TheGreenWave]

Regardless of race, everyone should strive for competitive stats.

👍 i totally agree with DRHOYA about this. its sad to imply that we dont need to meet the same standards as other applicants. everyone should aim for the best stats they can achieve.

 

[DROCKINDAHOUSE]

You have great stats👍😉.

However, asking where Hispanics need to be GPA/DAT wise, is not itself a wise question to pose. Regardless of race, everyone should strive for competitive stats.[/quote]

This is true...but I'm proud to say that me and some of my friends have all worked hard in college despite being considered "disadvantaged" or "minorities."

 

[DROCKINDAHOUSE]

Thats just the way it is though....Im from the Rio Grande Valley, an area of Texas with over 1 million people of which +80% are hispanic and I know that several of my classmates from this area also are counting on the fact that they are hispanic to help them get in to dental school. Like I said I've worked hard, and regardless of what race I am or what my heritage is, I feel that I've done my best to make myself competitive. I try my best not to play that card...

 

[TheGreenWave]

I understand. Presupposing that hispanics can aim for lower stats is hazardous though, which is why drhoya was warning you 👍. anyway, your stats show that you have worked very hard and you should be proud!!

 

[tinman831]

Actually Hispanics are considered the majority around these parts. What you need to be competitive is what everyone else needs to be competitive. There's no difference. 😉

 

[DRHOYA]

Bottom line man, your DAT and GPA are where they need to be based on stats from the ADEA guide from 2008. Back to your question though, like others have said, if you want to apply to 1-2 private schools out of state, then go right ahead, it can only help your chances of getting in. Look up a few private schools and see if they would be a good fit with where you want to go in Dentistry. One question though, being a Texas resident, did you fill out TMSAS (I think that's what it's called) only? Outside of Texas, to apply to private schools you'll need to fill out AADSAS, if you havn't already done so.

 

[DSpagnoli]

Como estas fellow pre-dents,
I was wondering today if there were ANY hispanic applicants on this site. If so I wanted to see what some of you thought about where we need to be GPA and DAT-wise in order to be competitive....and also what schools should be considered if we wanted to apply somewhere other than in-state? The reason I ask is because I am a first-generation college student who does not come from the priviliged background several of my fellow applicants have enjoyed and as such I don't really have money to throw around applying to alot of schools. As it is I can barely afford to apply to the three here in Texas. Also, I have a 3.96/3.9 GPA and a 21 AA DAT so should I only apply to Texas schools?

If anyone could give me any advice it would be appreciated.

I am a little slow...I really do not understand the point of this thread.
Being hispanic does not put you on a different playing field from everyone else. People from all races scrounge for application money too. Maybe I am reading this wrong.

I mean your stats are great...you should have no problem...being Hispanic has absolutely nothing to do with your GPA and DAT score 😕

Being disadvantaged and being Hispanic are not two mutually exclusive things. So you understand why I am confused as to why this thread applies only to Hispanics, and not to others who come from disadvantaged backgrounds (could be any race).

 

[TheGreenWave]

I am a little slow...I really do not understand the point of this thread.
Being hispanic does not put you on a different playing field from everyone else. People from all races scrounge for application money too. Maybe I am reading this wrong.

I mean your stats are great...you should have no problem...being Hispanic has absolutely nothing to do with your GPA and DAT score 😕

Being disadvantaged and being Hispanic are not two mutually exclusive things. So you understand why I am confused as to why this thread applies only to Hispanics, and not to others who come from disadvantaged backgrounds (could be any race).

Im pretty sure you are reading this wrong. The factors of being hispanic and poor were not tied to one another in the previous comments. I understand why you are confused. The op was trying to see where his/her stats were in respect to other hispanics. Later discussion showed that one should not presume that their race could afford them worse scores or GPAs. The op also explained that part of the reason he/she was worried about how their scores faired, was due to lacking sufficient money to apply to lots of schools.

 

[drju]

to answer your original question you might want to consider applying to as many schools as possible i know its alot of money but consider it an investment because dental schools tend to be small with only a hand full of prgms even reaching the hundred student plateau and with 4000 applicants in many cases you can start to see how chances of getting in start diminishing. as far as where latinos need to be is as high as physically possible because its a competition and race can't be a crutch and aside from that there are plenty of hispanics with great qualifications so just in that sense the competition is difficult, as a current latino dental student im telling you there is a lot of sound competition out there and you should think merit not race based. and remember its not only your stats that count its at what school you got your stats at and that personal interview how you handle yourself under the pressure and if you can make impress your interviewer enough so that they can vouch for you to the rest of the admissions committee. i know people with better stats than me who are sitting their reapplying b/c they didnt do well on their interviews, you have to distinguish yourself from the other 4000 options the school has. latinos we need to stand up but not on a crutch

 

[klpennin]

I agree with you guys. I know that I am not counting on the fact that I am hispanic to get into dental school. I have worked hard to get good DAT scores and a good GPA. I don't want to hear that I got into dental school because of my race. And I have to hold my tounge sometimes when I hear some of my friends that are banking on that.

 

[DROCKINDAHOUSE]

Yeah alot of ppl where I am from r countin on them being hispanic as their "crutch". I just really wanted to get some feed back. Yea hispanics do need to stand up too. But if u check my stats, u can see that I have stood up better than most. It hasnt been easy either, I been through some things in this life, but I've never wanted to use the whole minority card. I'm sure all of us r gonna be okay this cycle, but Im concerned about the future. Where Im from somethin like 15% of high school graduates attend college....and its like 90% hispanic. We as professionals have to try to give back to our communities once we make it and help ensure that more latinos have more chances at obtaining a better education. And for those ppl who posted that "hispanics were not the minority" why dont any of u check the stats at ANY d-school in the US and tell me how many (aside from TX schools) have them have MORE THAN 10 hispanics entering in any given year. I would bet some money there aint one. But its cool...we def underrepresented in dentistry, and its time we change that.


*Ur boy reppin that 956 dirty South Texas all day everyday

 

[drju]

yea we are underrepresented in dentistry and many of us have been through our share of set backs and adverse situations but it only makes you stonger and a more worthy candidate. and as far as once we get in we can't forget to help our fellow latinos out and its important to go back and be living breathing proof of what we can do b/c its one thing to hear about someone who is like you living your dream its another to be able to sit down with them ask questions. and as far as the future YOU HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO WORRIES WHAT SO EVER. there are over 30+ million hispanics and that poppulation is steadily growing and any psychologist will tell you people like to see a friendly face that they feel can relate to them so you will have patients hand over fist which is also why como latinos nunca se puede olvidar de su idioma b/c its going to pay dividends big time all the hispanics at my school have packed rosters and are the most in demand so dont worry it will work out just get in pass and get out and when you do remember how you feel now b/c there will be someone who feels like you who could use you as an example of the school route working not music or sports....BUT BRAIN POWER....

 

[Flipper405]

my cum gpa is about .25 lower than yours, my sci gpa is .4 lower, and the same DAT AA, and I already have 3 interviews... I'm sure you'll be fine.

good luck 👍