Just took the DAT. WAMC? + school lists, suggestions

[Haneul Song]

Date of submission: this upcoming 2023 cycle (June)
Overall GPA: 4.0
Science GPA: 4.0
Bio-Chem-Physics GPA: 4.0
DAT score (include AA and all sections): PAT:27 TS:21 AA:21
QR: 24 RC:17 Bio:22 GC: 20 OC: 21
State of Residence: Currently in D.C., but international student with F-1

Undergrad Attended: American University
Major: Biochemistry
Minor: No
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? Was in Korean Army for 2 years during pandemic
Time line = [2018-2020: freshman, sophomore, 2020-2022: Army, 2022-2024 (expected graduation): junior, senior]

Shadowing Experience: 186 hrs (106 hrs in States, 80 hrs in South Korea)
Volunteering Experience: ~60 clinical, 130 non-cllinical
Employment: Tutor for biochemistry course for junior year of undergrad
Research: 2022 Fall ~ 2024 Spring (expected) on neurotransmitter detection with voltammetry. No publication yet, but expected before graduation.
Other Extracurriculars: 18 months military experience in Korean Army
Relevant Honors or Awards: 3 Dean's list, 2 commendation medals in Army
LOR type and strength: 2 from cell bio and genetics professor, 2 from general dentist and oral surgeon that I shadowed
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags: No
School list:
NYU, Howard, UMD-Baltimore, Boston, UPenn, UCSF, UCLA, Western U, USC

I am planning to apply at least 20 schools to increase my chances. I understand that it might be very expensive and requires a lot of effort, but I really need to get in this cycle due to some personal reasons. I feel like my greatest weakness is my RC score. please give me some suggestions on school choices! I am okay with any schools as long as I have a high chance of getting in.

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[Ryxndek]

Yes, your RC score is low which doesn't help since you're an international student. Have you shown through your coursework that you are proficient in English?

I'm not sure your 80 hours of shadowing in Korea will really mean much since you want to attend school in the US but, 106 hours should meet all school requirements. You don't need 5 letters of rec, you can only upload 4 to AADSAS anyways. If you can, you should try to find a supervisor letter from your volunteer experience or someone that employed you instead of 3 dentist letters. You probably don't need the oral surgeon LOR, dental schools want to produce general dentists, not specialists.

And yes, you will need to increase your school list. I would add Touro, Tufts, and Temple if you can. They're also more international friendly.

Because you're applying to so many schools you need to make sure you have all the coursework needed. Some require more than others. Make sure you have Anatomy, Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Physiology if you want to cover all your bases. I would make a spreadsheet with each school to make sure you have the coursework you need to apply to that many schools.

The "Dental School Statistics" link in my signature might help you with the prerequisite coursework needed and what types of LOR's schools want. It's not 100% updated so double check for each school but it might be a good place to start.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Check if the schools you are thinking about take international students. It's not clear that you have US citizenship status, and that could affect your list. Refer to the DSE. I think 20 is too many.

Need more details on your volunteering experience (clinical and non-clinical).

That said, metrics-wise you should get attention provided you have the profile that the schools are looking for (again, US citizenship status). NYU and USC are the most expensive dental schools in the US, so unless you have full-tuition scholarships from HPSP or NHSC, you're asking for $600K+ of debt off the top.

 

[macsak]

Date of submission: this upcoming 2023 cycle (June)
Overall GPA: 4.0
Science GPA: 4.0
Bio-Chem-Physics GPA: 4.0
DAT score (include AA and all sections): PAT:27 TS:21 AA:21
QR: 24 RC:17 Bio:22 GC: 20 OC: 21
State of Residence: Currently in D.C., but international student with F-1

Undergrad Attended: American University
Major: Biochemistry
Minor: No
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? Was in Korean Army for 2 years during pandemic
Time line = [2018-2020: freshman, sophomore, 2020-2022: Army, 2022-2024 (expected graduation): junior, senior]

Shadowing Experience: 186 hrs (106 hrs in States, 80 hrs in South Korea)
Volunteering Experience: ~60 clinical, 130 non-cllinical
Employment: Tutor for biochemistry course for junior year of undergrad
Research: 2022 Fall ~ 2024 Spring (expected) on neurotransmitter detection with voltammetry. No publication yet, but expected before graduation.
Other Extracurriculars: 18 months military experience in Korean Army
Relevant Honors or Awards: 3 Dean's list, 2 commendation medals in Army
LOR type and strength: 2 from cell bio and genetics professor, 2 from general dentist and oral surgeon that I shadowed
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags: No
School list:
NYU, Howard, UMD-Baltimore, Boston, UPenn, UCSF, UCLA, Western U, USC

I am planning to apply at least 20 schools to increase my chances. I understand that it might be very expensive and requires a lot of effort, but I really need to get in this cycle due to some personal reasons. I feel like my greatest weakness is my RC score. please give me some suggestions on school choices! I am okay with any schools as long as I have a high chance of getting in.

research international friendly dental schools...