Need advice on how many course credits to take over the summer, since I'm applying in August

[alasra]

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I'm enrolled in a 40 credit hour, 1 year Masters program. I was admitted late into the program, so I didn't have a lot of classes available to me. Unfortunately, I was only able to take 8 credit hours in the Spring, so I want to take at least 16 hours in the summer. Basically, the summer schedule sucks and to take 16 credit hours, I have to go to school everyday.. which is hard since I commute one hour one way to get to campus.

My question: how bad does it look to take 8 hours in the spring and 12 hours in the summer? I'll be applying with only 20 credit hours. Note: I will also be teaching a couple of labs in the summer.

Other info:
~GPA: undergraduate- 3.1s, 3.3 overall; 1 semester postbacc- 4.0; 1st semester Masters- pretty confident I'll have a 4.0
~DAT: haven't taken yet, but am averaging ~20AA on practice tests
~300 shadowing hours by the time I apply
~ 200 volunteer hours
~200 research hours (in an immunology lab)
~leadership position in pre-dental club and a food kitchen where I volunteer every week.

 

[alasra]

It doesn't necessarily look bad to have enrolled in less hours in the spring. The final grades you receive matter more than how you spread out your classes. Be careful not to spread yourself too thin this summer and risk tanking your grades, especially in a master's program.

That is such a relief to hear, but from what I keep reading on the forum is that dental schools want to see that you can handle a large course load. That is why I am hesitant to take less than 16 hours in the summer.

Thanks for replying! I appreciate your advice.