How to help my chances of getting into the UW? Where to start?

[SAABsOfJoy]

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Okay, so I'm in high school, graduating next year, but I've finished a year at a university through dual enrollment. The thoughts of pre-med are long behind me, and I want to start focusing on what to do for dental school. I really, really want to have a shot at the University of Washington. What do I have to do to stay on track, and what other d-schools should I consider besides UW?

 

[dmitriyivanov]

Are you a resident of WA? UW is not an out of state friendly school

 

[SAABsOfJoy]

Yeah, I'm a resident. I'm hoping that'll boost my chances, even though it's still probably a long-shot.

 

[BruinDentist]

Okay, so I'm in high school, graduating next year, but I've finished a year at a university through dual enrollment. The thoughts of pre-med are long behind me, and I want to start focusing on what to do for dental school. I really, really want to have a shot at the University of Washington, I'm in-state, so that's one edge. Here's my tiny list of what I've done so far-

-took precalc I and II, with a 3.5 and a 3.8, and calc I with a 4.0
-took a first aid class (for high school, but at college) and with it came CPR/AED/first aid/oxygen administration certification
- >100 hours of volunteering at a mental health clinic in records; did the bulk of the time last summer, but I've started working there again

There's a pre dent society at my college, which I will join in the fall.

My current GPA is 3.92 and I should be able to graduate in 2013. What sort of things, like job shadowing, are highest priority? And which courses should I take before the DAT? I don't have a lot of flexibility (unless I add a year), but I was thinking this coming year I'd take a full course of gen. chem. The year after 15 credits each of gen. bio., physics, and organic. My last year will just be full of things like two quarters of microbiology, two of biochem, and degree requirements for my school like genetics.

In short, how am I doing so far, what do I have to do to stay on track, and what other d-schools should I consider besides UW?

You're getting way ahead of yourself... calm down. Why do you figure UW is a long shot for you? You're already way ahead of the game by taking university level classes during high school and volunteering, and you still have your entire college career ahead of you. Also, being a Washington resident doesn't give you the "edge," it just means you're a candidate. They're practically exclusively in-state so you do have the advantage of a smaller applicant pool, but you still have to compete with other residents.

Ok, first of all, what are these numbers you're pairing with the classes you took? A is a 4.000, A- is a 3.667, and B+ is a 3.333 according to the AADSAS GPA calculation formula. You can't get a 3.5 or 3.8 in individual classes. Also, why didn't you take precalc and calc in your high school? Second, though the first aid class and volunteering are worth mentioning, the bottom line is they're not related to dentistry. The first thing you should do is shadow a dentist to make sure its really what you want to do. Joining the pre-dental is a great step and you'll get a lot of support and find a lot of EC opportunities with it. Third, make sure you take all the required courses with a good courseload, meaning at least 3 classes (2 sci, 1 non-sci) if not 4. The requirements for UW in terms of prereqs are pretty lax, so don't limit yourself to just this school. Make sure you meet the requirements for other schools as well. Also, there's no reason you can't take more than 1 prereq class during the first year. I'd take Bio along with Gen Chem. Do not take the DAT until you've finished all your prereqs. This should be done by about your second year. Make sure you also get to know your professors and get letters of recommendation according to your schools' requirements.

The top things you need to focus on is GPA, DAT score, and shadowing/EC's. And try to have a little fun along the way!

 

[SAABsOfJoy]

Thanks. I figured that without DAT scores, chances are way harder to gauge, but it's nice to get some idea of how to do everything. The precalc, calc, and first aid classes were things I need to graduate from high school, and since I was faced with the choice of going to a nice college or a lousy senior high, what else would I pick?

I'm pretty confident that dentistry is the career for me to pursue. But, since job shadowing is basically required, what would be the best way to go about trying to get a job shadow? Cold calls, pleasant letters?

My fall schedule cannot be modified for various reasons, so the only time to start it in my second year would be in the spring and I can't continue it in the summer (not offered). So as far as taking multiple science courses in the coming year, is general biology something that can be broken up over a summer?

Sorry about the n00bish questions. I suppose most of them could be answered by an adviser in two minutes, but so far not one that I've asked has wanted anything to do with me. If it seems like these questions could be answered by another thread, please say so and perhaps post the link! 😳

 

[sassykat]

Ok, first of all, what are these numbers you're pairing with the classes you took? A is a 4.000, A- is a 3.667, and B+ is a 3.333 according to the AADSAS GPA calculation formula. You can't get a 3.5 or 3.8 in individual classes.

Um, things are different in Washington. The University of Washington does not grade on a letter scale. You can get any grade in 0.1 intervals.

 

[BlueQuasar]

I've heard that the University of Washington places a heavy emphasis on job shadowing (well, more so than average). Just what kind of hours would that mean?

 

[baseballjunkie]

UW looks heavily into volunteering within the dental community and also research. I didn't get in on my first application, and on my second, I had 5 months experience in a clinic and worked in a research lab. I would highly recommend doing research in undergrad.

In the Puget Sound area, there is a volunteer based mobile dental clinic through Medical Teams International. I would HIGHLY suggest volunteering with MTI, as it's great experience to see the need for dentists in low income dentistry.

If you have any more questions about getting into UW, feel free to PM me.

 

[BlueQuasar]

UW looks heavily into volunteering within the dental community and also research. I didn't get in on my first application, and on my second, I had 5 months experience in a clinic and worked in a research lab. I would highly recommend doing research in undergrad.

In the Puget Sound area, there is a volunteer based mobile dental clinic through Medical Teams International. I would HIGHLY suggest volunteering with MTI, as it's great experience to see the need for dentists in low income dentistry.

If you have any more questions about getting into UW, feel free to PM me.

Thanks, that's good to know. Really appreciate the tip about MTI- darn, that would be awesome chance for experience.

 

[SeattleRDH]

Are you going to UW? If you live in the Seattle area you can join Delta Delta Sigma without being a UW student. We have a lot of connections with UW dental school.

I'm an officer in the club (volunteer coordinator) so if you need help PM me.

 

[dawgpack]

Do well in your classes but have a life outside of dentistry, don't stress out too much now because there will be plenty of time for that once you apply. Enjoy UW as an undergrad take advantage of some of the interesting things the school offers. Volunteer in dental related things but also volunteer in things that don't involve dentistry like the food bank, roots homeless shelter etc or anything else that may interest you.

 

[Marmar tala]

Are you going to UW? If you live in the Seattle area you can join Delta Delta Sigma without being a UW student. We have a lot of connections with UW dental school.

I'm an officer in the club (volunteer coordinator) so if you need help PM me.

Hey,
I am applying to UW this cycle. do you think it would help if I join Delta Delta Sigma now?
Have the DAT in three weeks 😱

 

[SeattleRDH]

Hey,
I am applying to UW this cycle. do you think it would help if I join Delta Delta Sigma now?
Have the DAT in three weeks 😱

I would say yes because many of our members are interviewing this fall and we have at least one event where we discuss interview questions. Membership enrollment should open up again at the end of the summer. The website is going to look completely different in the fall so keep an eye out for that.

If you need/want more volunteering opportunities contact me.