I am looking for some advice on whether or not I should keep trying to get into dental school. My undergrad GPA was not that great, so I went to grad school to boost my chances. I got a master's in Biomedical Science. My GPA in grad school was a 3.45. I feel considering how hard the courses in grad school were that a 3.45 was very respectable. I have taken the DAT three times and made a 15 three times. Obviously I know I need to do better on my DAT. Should I keep applying and hope that it works out? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Looking for advice on whether or not I should keep trying for dental school
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I dunno if you're allowed to retake but a 15AA is not acceptable for d-school. If you are somehow allowed a fourth attempt you need to crush it with a 20 or 21 to have a shot. The GPA is decent, but a 15AA is below average.
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Since that is the best you can do, the game may be over.
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You sat for the DAT three times and scored a 15 each time? Or did you get a 15 on a certain section but did ok on the other parts? You said that you know you need to do better, but you cannot take the DAT more than three times.
Applying with those scores is not going to cut it. If you still have a passion for dental school, then I would recommend getting in touch with admissions of the schools you're interested in. Maybe they can give you some positive advice.
How did you prepare for your first DAT and what did you do differently to prepare for your 2nd DAT, and 3rd DAT? If that really is your grad school GPA, then the DAT doesn't seem very indicative of your intellectual ability and I think you should completely revise your study method...one last time... especially if you have your heart set on dentistry. You can do it but you need to put in absolutely everything you've got if you really want to become a dentist.
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Don't give up!! I think you will have a great chance if you boost your DAT score by some points. Doing well on the DAT all boils down to what materials you have and the quality of studying time. If you haven't done so already, invest in Chad's videos for OC and GC, Crack Dat Pat for PAT, Cliff's AP Bio, Alan's notes, and Anki for the bio section, Destroyer and Math Destroyer, and TopScore. Utilize these materials well and I'm pretty sure you will do well. You can do it! 🙂 Good luck! 🙂 If you need help, feel free to PM me.
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I feel that if you got a 3.45 masters in Biomedical Science with a 3.45 GPA you should be able to pull at least an 18AA on the DAT if you prepare correctly. I'd give the DAT at least one more sincere shot before calling it quits. You can totally do it! 👍
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Some people are encouraging the OP to retake the DAT, which of course could help him/her out. However, the OP said that he/she had taken the DAT three times. From my understanding, you cannot take the DAT more than three times. Or is this incorrect? I'm just curious.
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According to www.adea.org: "You should also note that the DAT can be taken a maximum of three times. Applicants who wish to take the DAT more than three times must apply for special permission to take the test again."
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Whoever suggested that you have sit downs with the adcom's at your best chance schools is right. Your in a tough spot, but just level with them. Tell them how badly you want it. With the boards being pass/fail now I have to assume that they can take bigger chances than before.
Don't give up yet. You've got the touch. Youve got the power.
Don't give up yet. You've got the touch. Youve got the power.
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How can you sit down with adcoms? I keep calling the school and have not gotten an answer.
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What's there to" level with them"? He/she keeps coming up to bat and keeps striking out even with an MS. Each year there are about 7k applicants that want to make just as "badly". There is little convincing evidence that even if accepted, he/she will actually make it through ds.
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I'm a few years removed, but I did 3 sit downs that were very easy to facilitate. Each of these were midwest state schools who had staff that would handle nothing but admissions.
Worst comes to worst try showing up to the school and politely ask who you could talk to schedule a 20 minute sit down.
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He was asking if he should give up...sdn experts can't give him a definitive answer. Going into speak with an adcom will give him a definitive answer.
And I don't believe that undergraduate grades or even DAT scores correlate to a good dental student in every scenario.
I think you'll agree the skill set needed for year one is different from year 2 and drastically different from year 3 and 4.
And boards are P/F. Idk, I applied to 7 schools and got accepted at 7 schools so I suppose it's easy for me to say never give up. But even with worse stats than I had I wouldn't stop trying.
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Since he/she has applied previously, Adcoms have already given him/her about as "definitive" an answer as he/she can get. What we happen to believe about the correlation between grades/dat scores and a "good dental student" is not affect the cosmos. Unless your gpa/dat scores were identical to yours, the acceptances you received will have little relevance to his/her situation.
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I took the DAT three times as well. The first time I scored a 15;15;16...the second time a 15;16;18. At this point I knew I had one last shot. Schools normally don't like to see 4 attempts, but if you can improve dramatically, it would obviously speak volumes. My gpa is 3.53, 3.55sci, 3.63 bcp. Because of my gpa, I was never advised to enter a masters, but only advised to improve on the DAT, I kept telling myself "easier said than done". Nearing my thrid attempt I knew I had to change things around. I devoted my entire life, left my girl, took a leave from work. I also purchased new prep materials, just read some of the posts in the DAT Discussion forums. I also hired one of the best professors in NY to better prepare me, and no I'm not a trust fund baby. All this effort yielded a 19;20;21 on my third attempt. I think the drive is there but your dedication to the material and preparation is lacking. After taking the test the thrid time, I felt I was under-prepared and shouldn't have even taken the test those first 2 times. I forgot to mention that I suck at standardized tests so I feel that if I was able to overcome the hurdle, so can you. If you live in northeast region, PM me and ill give you more information on the prep course I used. Believe in yourself, you can do it!
To the OP, nobody can decide for you or give you a definite answer about whether or not you should keep trying. Only you can answer that. My opinion is that if you don't think you can get closer to a 20 on the DAT, then you should give up. But again, that's what I'd do if I was in your situation, and I'm not you.
It is true that DAT and GPA does not correlate with how well someone will do in dental school in every scenario, but it's the best they have right now. Is it possible that someone with a 15AA and 3.45GPA can get into dental school and do well? Sure. Is it likely? Probably not. The truth is there are a limited number of seats in dental school and there are a lot of people out there with better stats than you, and there's no reason for the schools to take you over them. In fact, I would argue that it is unfair if they do.
There is a system that's in place to get into dental school. You have to be able to work that system and get in. There's really no other way around it.
Work hard and bring up that DAT.
It is true that DAT and GPA does not correlate with how well someone will do in dental school in every scenario, but it's the best they have right now. Is it possible that someone with a 15AA and 3.45GPA can get into dental school and do well? Sure. Is it likely? Probably not. The truth is there are a limited number of seats in dental school and there are a lot of people out there with better stats than you, and there's no reason for the schools to take you over them. In fact, I would argue that it is unfair if they do.
There is a system that's in place to get into dental school. You have to be able to work that system and get in. There's really no other way around it.
Work hard and bring up that DAT.
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Well there's always people that get in after a couple of rejections...so I don't agree with your first statement.
And do you see any harm in him sitting down with an adcom? Maybe they'll give him insight he didn't have before.
And I think you may have misread my last statement, I was saying that my persevering attitude may be the result with my easy acceptance dental school and perhaps doesn't apply to him.
He asked for opinions, those are mine. Sit down with the adcom, take 1 hour out of your life to see if anything can be done.
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Even if you can take one more DAT, many dental schools won't care, because they usually look at first three DAT scores. Some dental schools take average. I am sorry to say this, but unless you are not a URM, it will be really rare for you to get interviews. 15 DAT especially with your master degree really look bad.
Last thing we can do is.. call dental schools you are most interested in and ask them about your situation.
-Good Luck!
Last thing we can do is.. call dental schools you are most interested in and ask them about your situation.
-Good Luck!
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You can get permission to retake the DAT fairly easily, just show a reject letter from a school.
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To answer your question, my vote is "NO", you shouldn't keep applying.
But ultimately it's your call. If you're up to spending a lot more time and money applying, then do it. The worst thing that happens is that you don't get in. I'd start looking at back-up plans at the very least.
But ultimately it's your call. If you're up to spending a lot more time and money applying, then do it. The worst thing that happens is that you don't get in. I'd start looking at back-up plans at the very least.
1. Talk to an adcom. See what he has to say.
2. Give it a last shot. Retake your DAT. Study for it like your life depends on it. Make a 20.
3. Start looking for a backup plan as I go along.
If things don't work out like the way you want it to be, just to make sure that you give it your best. You are better than thousands of people who say they will do it but never have enough courage to do so.
Good luck with your application.
2. Give it a last shot. Retake your DAT. Study for it like your life depends on it. Make a 20.
3. Start looking for a backup plan as I go along.
If things don't work out like the way you want it to be, just to make sure that you give it your best. You are better than thousands of people who say they will do it but never have enough courage to do so.
Good luck with your application.
