My interesting trajectory to medicine..or dentistry?!

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CornellHumDevNeuro

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An important aspect of your GPA would be your Science GPA and how you did on your prereqs, a 3.0 cumulative is pretty low for admission. Also, don't give up on what you truly want just because of one test.

Have you considered osteopathic medicine as well? Most schools take grade replacements which could help tremendously with your low GPA. Most D.O. schools don't require a remarkable MCAT score either.
 
The poor GPA at your undergrad will raise eyebrows, even if it is Cornell. What kind of upward trend are we talking about? 4.0's are much different than 3.5's. You should really be trying to crush your MS (as close to a 4.0 as possible).
Combine that with your devotion to medicine and it may rub some people the wrong way. Dental schools want people who are and have been committed to the field. If you want to pursue dentistry, start shadowing a general dentist right away. Work your way into shadowing other specialties through networking. The best gap year for you would be something related to dentistry (work at an office, research, etc.).
You do seem to have great ECs though, but again, they are very medicine heavy. You will have to be able to explain yourself well and find a way to relate them to dentistry.
 
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Hello,
So..I've always had a passion for the medical and dental sciences and all the similarities that fall between them. More specifically I initially had an interest in neuroscience, hence my degree in it. However that interest in neuroscience evolved into an interest in public health and more so patient care.
I have a biology degree from a community college - a human neuroscience and development degree from an ivy league school and currently working on my master's in a public health related domain at an ivy league school. Tons of research experience and volunteer experience all in either neuroscience, biology, medicine, and pharmacology. Although those ECs seem very different - they all have a common direction towards the medical sciences and public health.
That being said - the plan has always pointed towards medicine as you can see via my academic, research, and volunteer experiences. However, I never done well with standardized tests. Excelled in my science classes, however the MCAT is something I am unable to defeat. When I took it I scored so low it was as if I didn't study, however I took a semester's worth & an online kaplan class to study. I am scheduled to retake it, but it's still not looking good. I haven't taken biochemistry, but I don't think that's the problem - it's the way the questions are framed with the passages.
I however looked at the DAT and found it along the lines of how I study/take exams. I found the questions, although some difficult more straight forward. As well as a math/quantitative section that I can shine in.
I have always had an interest in primary care, facial reconstruction surgery, and the neurological sciences (neurosurg and neurology). So in a nutshell I seem to be giving up on medicine due to their gating process of the MCAT. In other words, I might have had a shot if the MCAT wasn't a factor. I still want to stay in the healthcare realm. Dentistry seems like a good option.
Hence, if I was to do well on the DAT do I have a shot at dental school?
Applying to med school this cycle doesn't even seem likely - what should I do for another gap year? (my master's served as a gap year). This has really been stressing me out. I feel like I worked so hard these past 5 years for nothing.

Associates in Bio - 3.9
BS in Human neuro / development - 3.0 (yes my GPA took a dive due to a transition process to the new school my first semester - upward trend there after)
Master's - currently 3.6+
You're gonna be doing this career the rest of your life. Pick your passion. DO school is a great option for people with your life experiences. Applicants tend to be older with more "real world experience" than academic stats. I'd go for the MCAT again and try and get into a DO school.
 
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Stick to medicine, don't give up. The MCAT is a barrier now, but what if you encounter other exams in dentistry that would give you similar outcomes?
Your interests in primary care, facial reconstruction, and neuro are all very different. But your best bet would be to stick to medicine as you would have the best chance at attaining a goal that interests you. Reconstructing faces as an OMFS is something that a very tiny fraction of dentists do, so don't bank on that.
Keep your head up, study for the MCAT, and take it again. Don't let it destroy your confidence or stand between you and your goals.
Good luck!
 
An important aspect of your GPA would be your Science GPA and how you did on your prereqs, a 3.0 cumulative is pretty low for admission. Also, don't give up on what you truly want just because of one test.

Have you considered osteopathic medicine as well? Most schools take grade replacements which could help tremendously with your low GPA. Most D.O. schools don't require a remarkable MCAT score either.

Oddly enough, most of my science classes were taken at a state university and during my bio degree. So my cumulative science GPA is more so 3.5-ish. My first semester as a transfer student, during my junior year was terrible. I took orgo on top of some other challenging courses and didn't do so well. Retook orgo and got an A and a B+ in I and II respectively. It was an uphill battle ever since that first semester. By getting a mix of As and Bs to A+s and B+s.
 
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