How Much Does P/F Hurt Chances for Endo?

[SonOfArathorn]

Starting dental school soon at a non-Ivy, pass/fail program. Planning to go for endo. I know class rank plays a big role, so I’m wondering how much P/F grading gets in the way of that. I’ll be putting in the work from Day 1, trying to get involved in research, build strong faculty connections, aae annnual meetings, and make my app as solid/well rounded as possible.

Just want to know if coming from a P/F school puts me at any disadvantage, or if it actually lets me focus more on building a strong app instead of chasing rank.

Thanks in advance.

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[OncePreDent]

A bigger role than you think. Yes, it can absolutely put you at a disadvantage. I will say that going to a P/F school class will feel more laid back. But at least at my school (non-Ivy, P/F), the people who get into residency get into the extremely expensive programs and only receive 1-2 interviews (all at expensive residency programs). These are people who are club presidents, class presidents, multiple publications, etc.

And then I know people who are top 20% in their class at ranked schools with multiple interviews (no extracurriculars, no research, etc.) and who get into top programs. The majority of programs care a lot about class rank. Rank outweighs any extracurriculars imo.

Only 1 person in the past 5+ years has gotten into endo directly from my school (they got into a very expensive program too).

 

[SonOfArathorn]

A bigger role than you think. Yes, it can absolutely put you at a disadvantage. I will say that going to a P/F school class will feel more laid back. But at least at my school (non-Ivy, P/F), the people who get into residency get into the extremely expensive programs and only receive 1-2 interviews (all at expensive residency programs). These are people who are club presidents, class presidents, multiple publications, etc.

And then I know people who are top 20% in their class at ranked schools with multiple interviews (no extracurriculars, no research, etc.) and who get into top programs. The majority of programs care a lot about class rank. Rank outweighs any extracurriculars imo.

Only 1 person in the past 5+ years has gotten into endo directly from my school (they got into a very expensive program too).

Thank you for your advice, I appreciate the honesty

 

[schmoob]

Starting dental school soon at a non-Ivy, pass/fail program. Planning to go for endo. I know class rank plays a big role, so I’m wondering how much P/F grading gets in the way of that. I’ll be putting in the work from Day 1, trying to get involved in research, build strong faculty connections, aae annnual meetings, and make my app as solid/well rounded as possible.

Just want to know if coming from a P/F school puts me at any disadvantage, or if it actually lets me focus more on building a strong app instead of chasing rank.

Thanks in advance.

Out of curiosity, how do you know that you want to do endo?

 

[SonOfArathorn]

Out of curiosity, how do you know that you want to do endo?

Family + mentors + shadowing, but it’s hard to say I want to do endo when I havent even started school yet 😂

 

[D1Bound]

Family + mentors + shadowing, but it’s hard to say I want to do endo when I havent even started school yet 😂

That’s a long winded way of saying “the money”

 

[schmoob]

Family + mentors + shadowing, but it’s hard to say I want to do endo when I havent even started school yet 😂

Okay just saying there is a reason that many programs want GP experience first. You’ll never forget that feeling when you separate your first instrument or your first perforation. I used to do all my own endo to include retreats. But I slowly started referring the harder cases out. As an endodontist you generally won’t be doing easy anteriors.

 

[LFA20]

Based on what I have seen:
Good rank at state school>P/F from IVY/state school>bad rank at state school>P/F no name school

Not saying you don't have a chance but it will be extremely difficult unless you have some connections.

 

[JacquesVallee]

Honestly, for specializing, a huge thing too is having a home specialty program. My dental school had multiple specialities and always did what they could to take our dental students. If the department chair and specialty faculty like you, it is a massive advantage.

 

[yappy]

That’s a long winded way of saying “the money”

Dentistry is one of the few fields where saying your family is in it means something… unfortunately.

Most people I know who did endo worked or did grp/aegd. If not they were rockstars and went to their school’s program.