need a little help

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devyl

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currently i am going to be a junior at a 4 year university and i am having some troubles in making decisions. so far i have taken chem and gotten a C+ (my first semester was covered), and sophomore year i took physics and got a B first semester and an A second. now i know i have to take orgo and bio but i also have to take the DAT it seems somewhat impossible to do that all by the end of my junior year and apply, so should i took orgo my junior year and bio my senior year, and then take the DAT during my senior year. i don't think i can do any sort of post-bacc program seeing that my science gpa is decent, but my overall gpa is very poor at 2.4 my goal is to do really well junior and senior year and hopefully bring it up to a 3.2 but what should i do after the four years are up, take more classes to boost my gpa? i also have 100 hours of shadowing.
 
You may have to take a heavier science course load for your upcoming semesters considering you have not taken orgo or general bio yet. Even though the bio section on DAT covers general biology, a lot of the concepts it tests you on are reinforced and better illustrated in your upper level biology courses, such as genetics, embryology, cell bio, etc.

I would take general bio and orgo 1 your next fall semester, and start taking additional bio courses in spring 2010. Additionally, take orgo 2 during spring 2010 as well. If you feel comfortable, take the DAT next summer as well. It probably would not be absolutely necessary to take upper level bios before you take the DAT b/c you can probably pick up supplemental material to help you understand and learn the material. I would suggest taking orgo I and II though since material from both will be tested.

As far as a post bacc, usually I hear of students having a higher cumulative rather than a science GPA. Even if you say your science GPA is decent, dental schools still look at your overall GPA, and a 2.4 definitely won't cut it. Since you're only a junior, it's hard to say whether to do a post-bacc now, since you still have 2 more years of undergrad work to go. Just study hard now and make sure you get as many A's as possible.
 
yeah, i would definitely not wait till senior year to just take general bio! even though it's a minimum requirement, they want to see that you've taken at least a couple extra bio classes!
 
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