How much does rank fluctuate throughout dental school?

[bamadentite]

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Finished with the first semester and I’m trying to get a realistic sense of how class rank changes once dental school gets harder.

I know rankings are based on exams and practicals, but I’m curious how much movement people actually see after D1 year.

Do students who start near the top or middle usually stay there?

How common is it for someone to move significantly up or down in rank over time?

Does rank tend to stabilize after a certain year, or does it keep shifting through D3/D4?

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Ranks definitely can change once you hit the clinic. At that point, your ranking includes your productivity and your competencies. Plenty of book smart people don't do well in clinic and vice versa.

 

[JacquesVallee]

Rank absolutely can fluctuate the first two years. By D3 year, things are stabilized because you've take so many credits. My roommate was #2 in our class at the beginning of D3 year. He quit studying so hard. He started getting B's fall of D3 in classes and he never dropped out of the top 5.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

See point #4 about production-based grading.

 

[JacquesVallee]

See point #4 about production-based grading.

Those schools should be named and shamed. That's wild to me. Does anyone know which specific schools do that?

 

[Ryxndek]

Those schools should be named and shamed. That's wild to me. Does anyone know which specific schools do that?

I believe VCU does

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Those schools should be named and shamed. That's wild to me. Does anyone know which specific schools do that?

Wouldn't programs known for their "clinical preparation" use such grading to incentivize production? (I can't drop names... 😉 )