How screwed am I?

[kew]

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I just took the DAT a week ago and got 16/17/18 on it with a 3.62 gpa. First of all, how screwed am I? Second, I am going to retake it in 3 months and should do a lot better, I was just wondering if it will be almost too late at that point to redeem myself for this cycle. I don't know how many interview offers I'll get. But I was just wondering what the outcome would be if I got like a 20+ on it in November. Do schools really look at people that well if a retake happens in November? I have a lot of strong extras to go with my application, so I know I could get into tons of places if I just get a decent DAT score, I just hope it's not too late. Any imput would be helpful. Thanx, Kenny

 

[dentalman]

You definitely still have a chance. Unfortunately, you might not get as many interviews initially with those scores, but you definitely will get some. The schools will take into consideration your new score, so make sure you do well. Even though most schools require having taken the DAT by a certain time, that probably would not apply to retakes. That is just an update of your current application, right? 🙂 The only problem I see is if you are interviewing before November, and before retaking it. Make sure you tell them you are retaking it, and they can tell you how to go about it. You will need good communication with the office without being annoying. In fact, if you are really annoying, just give up. I don't like annoying dental students.

For interviews after January, there shouldn't be any difference. If you actually do considerably better on the second try, I don't think you will be penalized. You should be prepared to answer the question, "Why did you retake it?". And for now, be prepared to answer, "Why are your scores average?". (Remember, your scores aren't ridiculously bad; they are just average.) If you get the same scores again, you will probably be worse off than before, so get yourself into gear! The rest of your application sounds good.

Third year dental student