Meeting with the Director of Admissions

[MilesJ]

Hello everyone,

I have been lingering around these forums for quite some time now, but this is my first post. In a couple of days I have a meeting with the Director of Admissions from a dental school I am interested in (heard you are not supposed to talk about who you meet with so I will leave that out). I am currently a sophomore working towards a B.S. in Cell Biology with a GPA of 3.37. I was asked to bring a resume to the meeting, but it seems pretty weak at the moment. I only have 65 hours in the lab at my fathers dental office, and my ECs only include dental club, Sigma Alpha Lambda Honors society, coaching a little league team, and playing sports myself for many years. My volunteering is also on the low side with only a couple of hours. This is not an application interview but more of a meeting to ask questions and see where I am at in relation to others. I am just worried that he will look at my resume and think I am not willing to do what it takes to get into dental school. Will dental schools see my uninvolment the first two years of college as a negative factor? If I step up my game and obtain more shadowing and volunteering hours will this dramatically help my chances of getting into DS? I guess I am just worried that the Director of Admissions will think I am unmotivated, and not capable of "surviving" in dental school. I have also never had a "real" job, except for the lab experience...This whole process is very nerve racking.

Other than that it is good to finally post on these forums, and thanks in advanced for any advice or suggestions you are willing to give me.

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[userah]

I think just the fact that you're going in for an informal meeting with the director shows that you are motivated and really want to do dental school. Don't worry too much about all those extracurricular activities. Those things are basically just icing on the cake. The #1 and #2 thing that admissions will look at is your GPA and your DAT score. Everything else looks nice but it won't make/break your chances for at least an interview. Obviously the opinion differs based on schools but I think most people will agree with me in that your DAT score and your GPA are your biggest factors in gaining acceptance into dental school.

Seeing as how you're still a Sophomore, you still have plenty of time to work on those extracirriculars so don't worry too much about them but at the same time, don't ignore them. They are important. Just don't place too much of an emphasis on them and ignore what's most important.

Hope that helps. Good luck!

 

[MilesJ]

Thanks Userah. That really puts me in a more relaxed state. Also, I had a list of questions, but after reviewing the schools website most of them are found there. Should I still ask questions that I already know the answer to? Does anyone have any suggestions of "good" questions to ask that would not be found on the website?

 

[AmpedUp]

Thanks Userah. That really puts me in a more relaxed state. Also, I had a list of questions, but after reviewing the schools website most of them are found there. Should I still ask questions that I already know the answer to? Does anyone have any suggestions of "good" questions to ask that would not be found on the website?

Ask for their advice

ask about special programs

ask about the school

ask about other courses students think is helpful for them in dental school

etc.

i hope that gives you some ideas

i, too, have a meeting with a director of admissions in a couple of weeks at my top school. im so excited to visit!!

 

[MilesJ]

The interview went great. The director of admissions was extremely laid back and did not make me feel uncomfortable in anyway. Overall it was an excellent experience and I was extremely glad i decided to meet with him. The person who interviewed me actually remembered my dad when he was attending so that helped a lot as well. My advice to anyone who is scheduled to meet with an official from their top pick is to not worry at all and be your self.

 

[doc toothache]

The interview went great. The director of admissions was extremely laid back and did not make me feel uncomfortable in anyway. Overall it was an excellent experience and I was extremely glad i decided to meet with him. The person who interviewed me actually remembered my dad when he was attending so that helped a lot as well. My advice to anyone who is scheduled to meet with an official from their top pick is to not worry at all and be your self.

That's great but what was the bottom line?

 

[MilesJ]

That's great but what was the bottom line?

The bottom line was that I need to get my GPA up, their range was 3.4-4.0, and to do great on my DAT. I also needed to become more involved in a community service program that was recurring and showed commitment; he did not say this exactly but definitely hinted at the fact. Also, seeing that I have only shadowed a prosthodontist, I needed to have more shadowing done at general practices. That was also obvious due to the fact that dental school is geared toward learning general dentistry. The meeting was mainly to become more familiar with the school, and what i needed to do to become a competitive applicant. All in all they wanted their students to be well rounded and have competitive GPA's with an average of 19 on the DAT.