I need some advice...

[denttobe]

Okay, here's the skinny on me....

I received a degree in journalism, and I have a license to teach speech therapy, but I've never really put that to use. A few years ago I decided to become a dentist so I've taken all of the prerequisite courses, not recommended ones yet. I took the DAT before I even finished the prereq courses a couple of years ago and totally bombed. I'm going to apply for dental school for the 2008 cycle.

I did well in most of my prerequ courses except for 1 bio class, I got a "D" in it, but i'll retake it.

Here's the breakdown on my gpa.....

undergraduate:
BCP 3.50
Sciences 3.45
nonsciences 3.05

graduate:
I have a cumulative gpa of 4.0
my graduate work had no science classes.

cumulative gpa:
bcp 3.50
sciences 3.45
nonsciences 3.15

Overall gpa is 3.24

I work parttime and fulltime while taking these classes and i've done volunteer work at dental clinics and at nondental-related places.

My question is this, what are my chances of getting into a california dental school with my background??

How bad does that "D" look when it's a prerequisite course and there are only 2 required bio classes?

Does my journalism background hurt my chances of getting into a dental school?

Does realworld/life experience count for anything while applying? I wasn't able to take full loads like you guys, because I had to work and I had obligations to my family....

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[darksky]

Okay, here's the skinny on me....

I received a degree in journalism, and I have a license to teach speech therapy, but I've never really put that to use. A few years ago I decided to become a dentist so I've taken all of the prerequisite courses, not recommended ones yet. I took the DAT before I even finished the prereq courses a couple of years ago and totally bombed. I'm going to apply for dental school for the 2008 cycle.

I did well in most of my prerequ courses except for 1 bio class, I got a "D" in it, but i'll retake it.

Here's the breakdown on my gpa.....

undergraduate:
BCP 3.50
Sciences 3.45
nonsciences 3.05

graduate:
I have a cumulative gpa of 4.0
my graduate work had no science classes.

cumulative gpa:
bcp 3.50
sciences 3.45
nonsciences 3.15

Overall gpa is 3.24

I work parttime and fulltime while taking these classes and i've done volunteer work at dental clinics and at nondental-related places.

My question is this, what are my chances of getting into a california dental school with my background??

How bad does that "D" look when it's a prerequisite course and there are only 2 required bio classes?

Does my journalism background hurt my chances of getting into a dental school?

Does realworld/life experience count for anything while applying? I wasn't able to take full loads like you guys, because I had to work and I had obligations to my family....

try your luck !! maybe youll catch some fishes. who knows ??

 

[denttobe]

try your luck !! maybe youll catch some fishes. who knows ??

Is my background that bad? What if I end up doing really well on the DAT the second time around??

 

[darksky]

Is my background that bad? What if I end up doing really well on the DAT the second time around??

i u ace the dat maybe u catch some big fishes.
no your background is unique. dental schools need
to diversify its students body.

 

[denttobe]

i u ace the dat maybe u catch some big fishes.
no your background is unique. dental schools need
to diversify its students body.

What do u think of my stats though?? good, bad not so bad??

 

[jackbauer!]

i have a couple blemishes in pre-reqs (think D's) but when i retook i got A's. i got 3 interviews......still waiting for that acceptance though

the key is to ace the class the 2nd time around, do well in upper division courses, and rock the DAT. easier said than done, i know. but if you really want it, you CAN make it happen!

during your interviews they WILL ask you about your poor pre-req performance--you need to be HONEST. turn that poor grade into a learning experience and make it clear that your refuse to make the same mistake again.

i wish you the best of luck. jb!

 

[KIMOANGELO]

What do u think of my stats though?? good, bad not so bad??

the numbers show that you are a good student.
dont let your past dictate your future but embrace
it and move ahead.

 

[amichail]

If you know that you REALLY want to pursue dentistry, then don't be too selective when applying... Cali schools seem to be harder than most others to get into... apply all over!
I am a California resident and applied to a total of 11 schools, 5 of which are in California... I was accepted to 4 schools, and wasn't even interviewed at one Cali school! However your luck might be different!

 

[seansk]

Okay, here's the skinny on me....

I received a degree in journalism, and I have a license to teach speech therapy, but I've never really put that to use. A few years ago I decided to become a dentist so I've taken all of the prerequisite courses, not recommended ones yet. I took the DAT before I even finished the prereq courses a couple of years ago and totally bombed. I'm going to apply for dental school for the 2008 cycle.

I did well in most of my prerequ courses except for 1 bio class, I got a "D" in it, but i'll retake it.

Here's the breakdown on my gpa.....

undergraduate:
BCP 3.50
Sciences 3.45
nonsciences 3.05

graduate:
I have a cumulative gpa of 4.0
my graduate work had no science classes.

cumulative gpa:
bcp 3.50
sciences 3.45
nonsciences 3.15

Overall gpa is 3.24

I work parttime and fulltime while taking these classes and i've done volunteer work at dental clinics and at nondental-related places.

My question is this, what are my chances of getting into a california dental school with my background??

How bad does that "D" look when it's a prerequisite course and there are only 2 required bio classes?

Does my journalism background hurt my chances of getting into a dental school?

Does realworld/life experience count for anything while applying? I wasn't able to take full loads like you guys, because I had to work and I had obligations to my family....

I'd say you have a really good shot... retake your DAT's and get 19's and 20's, better if you get 20's across the board you'll be good, for USC, and UOP for sure!!!

 

[soswank]

Realworld experience only comes useful to "present" yourself during the interview, but to get that you need to have the numbers. Don't worry too much about the D, retake the class and try to get an A. Remember that when you submit to ADSAS, they take average of both the grades. For the DAT, you NEED to get above 18 to be competitive this cycle and apply in May. This is a general advice, but this is what you need to do. Don't overdo the volunteering and focus on your studies. If you don't get in this cycle, apply next. Just keep at it, you need to show your commitment to this field in order to succeed. Good luck.

 

[4thQtrDreams]

I'd say you have a really good shot... retake your DAT's and get 19's and 20's, better if you get 20's across the board you'll be good, for USC, and UOP for sure!!!

i dont think you can say "for sure" about any school (especially UoP since they only interview about 200 applicants) but as someone else already said, apply to schools all over.. I would say the minimum should be 15 schools. with a decent enought DAT score the OP should be in somewhere

 

[diane07]

When you say you "bombed" the DAT, how low were your scores? Do you think you have the ability to score competitively? If you re-take the DAT and still score poorly - depending on how low the score is, that would affect your chances.

When you say you haven't taken the recommended pre-requisites, do you mean you haven't taken the upper level division science courses that a lot of schools prefer or that you haven't taken the REQUIRED pre-requisites like Biology, Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Physics, ect.

Now dental schools don't care what your major is, but they do want to know that you can handle the sciences. That's why a lot of pre-med/pre-dents are Biology or Chemistry majors because it gives them automatic exposure. However, you can have whatever major you want as long as you can demonstrate an ability to handle the sciences. You also want to think about the bigger picture - not only getting INTO dental school but STAYING in dental school. Doing well in the sciences gives you the double whammy of not only making you a competitive candidate but it also prepares you for the sciences in dental school.

And definitely, schools want well rounded individuals. But like soswank said, you have to have the numbers to get your foot in the door! (ie - good GPA/DAT in order to get an interview!)

Ultimately, the opinions of sdn posters are not what matter. What's important is what the SCHOOLS think. Call up some schools and see what their opinions/recommendations are.

 

[denttobe]

When you say you "bombed" the DAT, how low were your scores? Do you think you have the ability to score competitively? If you re-take the DAT and still score poorly - depending on how low the score is, that would affect your chances.

When you say you haven't taken the recommended pre-requisites, do you mean you haven't taken the upper level division science courses that a lot of schools prefer or that you haven't taken the REQUIRED pre-requisites like Biology, Inorganic Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Physics, ect.

Now dental schools don't care what your major is, but they do want to know that you can handle the sciences. That's why a lot of pre-med/pre-dents are Biology or Chemistry majors because it gives them automatic exposure. However, you can have whatever major you want as long as you can demonstrate an ability to handle the sciences. You also want to think about the bigger picture - not only getting INTO dental school but STAYING in dental school. Doing well in the sciences gives you the double whammy of not only making you a competitive candidate but it also prepares you for the sciences in dental school.

And definitely, schools want well rounded individuals. But like soswank said, you have to have the numbers to get your foot in the door! (ie - good GPA/DAT in order to get an interview!)

Ultimately, the opinions of sdn posters are not what matter. What's important is what the SCHOOLS think. Call up some schools and see what their opinions/recommendations are.

When I took the DAT the first time, i haven't even finished orgo or any bio. When I say low, I mean really low....like taking the test with my eyes closed. I was getting ahead of myself and just took the damn thing without even thinking.

I haven't taken any upper division recommended courses. I had to enroll in junior colleges to take the prerequisite courses. I did that because it was more affordable for me. I'm finally finally done with all of them except that I need to retake that one bio class i got a "D" in. I can take some of those recommended courses from here on out, but applications for the 2008 cycle are already coming up. Would it even matter at this point? I want to spend the time off to just work and continue shadowing dentists. The money saved up can help me pay off dental school. I can always pick up a few textbooks and read on my own, but dental schools i guess need proof that i actually know this stuff. that's the bad thing about academia, they need numbers huh? how about people like me who read up on this stuff on their own for fun? it's easier for me than enrolling into a class, it's hard to work around the schedule....if i did well on the DAT, can that just indicate to them that journalism majors can rock it??

 

[diane07]

I wish you the best of luck!

Honestly, I don't know the answers. I think you need to evaluate yourself as honestly as you can, and then do your best to be as competitive as possible.

Think about calling a couple of schools for their recommendations. Other people have done that and gotten good critiques. I hesitate to give advice because it doesn't matter what my opinion is - what matters is what the Admissions Committees at the dental schools think.

 

[skyisblue]

Hi Denttobe! I can help with strategies...pm me.