No dental shadowing or volunteering = no admittance? Help me resolve the weakness of my application.

[SollertiaSomniu]

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So,

The cycle is over and I think I both under-applied and devalued the importance of volunteering and dental experience. I go to a major state university and I am about two graduate as a double major.

My GPA is approximately 4.16 (Bio, Chem, and Phys GPA all above 4.0)... For those of you who are interested, my AADSAS GPA w/o +/- is a straight 4.0.
My DAT score had several 24s and a 25, with the lowest being an 18 in QR (whooops, still, I was in the 86.6 percentile there. Not bad, but not great). My TS was a 23/ in the 99.3 percentile.

Although my numbers are competitive, I was rejected. One obvious flaw with my application was that I have essentially no experience in the dental profession. As a caveat to that, I did have internship experience in a medical clinic in what amounted to a job as a medical assistant.

I was rejected from my state school and from the other school I interviewed at. I was not even wait listed at my state school, and my raw stats far exceed that of the average student admitted. I thought my interview went well, and, as far I know, there's nothing terribly wrong with my application. No one asked me any questions about anything specific on my application during the consideration process... I applied in the middle of the cycle in early September. I was rejected at the absolute end of the admission cycle, so it's not like I was rejected out-right or immediately following the interview.

That begs the question, was the dental experience more of a required component than a highly recommended one? Admittedly, I focused almost exclusively on academics during my undergraduate years but I would think there would be more abhorrent things to do than to trade experience for the most comprehensive understanding of the basics as possible.

Any advice or insight about why I might have been rejected on the basis of no specific dental experience would be greatly appreciated. I'm fairly crushed, and I feel that I've somehow failed as a student. I feel extremely foolish, but I still want to pursue an education in dentistry.

 

[sjv]

Won't gain admission without shadowing, volunteering may be overlooked with your exceptional stats in combination with other ECs but definitely not shadowing.

 

[fungames]

are you an international student? how many schools did you interview at?
ECs are important but so are interviews...perhaps do mock interviews

 

[rmw3]

The whole idea of shadowing is to show them you've experienced what dentistry is all about and shows that it's something you know you want to do based on that experience. Stellar grades and stellar DAT are great, but ADCOMs want to know you're committed to dentistry and not shadowing doesn't reflect that. Sorry

 

[shulk]

Just get some shadowing in before you apply again. Some volunteer work too if you have the time. The # of hours you put into these will probably be far less than you ever put in studying. Shadowing is very easy and stress free and you will almost certainly be asked to talk about your experiences with it. If you are having trouble finding someone, many big universities have a list of dentists on their website who are willing to let students shadow (I found a good dentist this way)

Apply earlier as well, and to a larger # of schools than you did the first time. Do you have good recommendations? A committee letter?

Surely you didn't think you could get in without even one hour of shadowing... just be grateful we don't have to jump through the hoops that pre-meds have to.

 

[haiKUHN]

Getting into dental school is extremely competitive, so schools are looking for applicants who have displayed some sort of commitment to the field through shadowing; this also lets them know that you know what you're getting yourself into. How can you say you love chocolate if you've never tasted it? Also, I think the lack of volunteer hours is pretty detrimental as volunteering shows your compassion and willingness to help others.. qualities you'd want in a dentist. I think when ADCOMs see that someone went through college without EC's/volunteering experience, the value of their GPA drops slightly because they literally weren't doing anything besides studying. It's safe to say that the large majority of applicants are super smart and all could have achieved a 4.16 GPA provided they participated in no EC's and solely devoted their collegiate career to academics. You need something to make you stand out!

 

[Glimmer1991]

Oh yes, you HAVE to have shadowing. No exceptions.

I'd say that dental-related volunteering isn't quite as necessary, but it certainly helps. Just ask the dentist you shadow if there is anything you can do to "help out" (ie. volunteer) around the office. Most are more than happy to give you some stuff to do! Voila--easy volunteering.

 

[doc toothache]

I was rejected from my state school and from the other school I interviewed at. I was not even wait listed at my state school, and my raw stats far exceed that of the average student admitted. I thought my interview went well, and, as far I know, there's nothing terribly wrong with my application. No one asked me any questions about anything specific on my application during the consideration process... I applied in the middle of the cycle in early September. I was rejected at the absolute end of the admission cycle, so it's not like I was rejected out-right or immediately following the interview.

Hmm.. The "absolute end of he admission cycle" could be as late as the first week of school.

 

[gn4]

just curious, but if you didn't shadow, how did you get a dentist to write you a letter of recommendation?

 

[Glimmer1991]

just curious, but if you didn't shadow, how did you get a dentist to write you a letter of recommendation?

Not all schools require it... so maybe that's how. 🙂

 

[No Pulp]

Shadowing/volunteering is important.
Also, I believe applying earlier (June or beginning of July) should help your chances. After applying very late to my state school and getting waitlisted, I applied in June the following cycle with a few small improvements to my application, and was accepted.

 

[Silent Cool]

So,

The cycle is over and I think I both under-applied and devalued the importance of volunteering and dental experience. I go to a major state university and I am about two graduate as a double major.

My GPA is approximately 4.16 (Bio, Chem, and Phys GPA all above 4.0)... For those of you who are interested, my AADSAS GPA w/o +/- is a straight 4.0.
My DAT score had several 24s and a 25, with the lowest being an 18 in QR (whooops, still, I was in the 86.6 percentile there. Not bad, but not great). My TS was a 23/ in the 99.3 percentile.

Although my numbers are competitive, I was rejected. One obvious flaw with my application was that I have essentially no experience in the dental profession. As a caveat to that, I did have internship experience in a medical clinic in what amounted to a job as a medical assistant.

I was rejected from my state school and from the other school I interviewed at. I was not even wait listed at my state school, and my raw stats far exceed that of the average student admitted. I thought my interview went well, and, as far I know, there's nothing terribly wrong with my application. No one asked me any questions about anything specific on my application during the consideration process... I applied in the middle of the cycle in early September. I was rejected at the absolute end of the admission cycle, so it's not like I was rejected out-right or immediately following the interview.

That begs the question, was the dental experience more of a required component than a highly recommended one? Admittedly, I focused almost exclusively on academics during my undergraduate years but I would think there would be more abhorrent things to do than to trade experience for the most comprehensive understanding of the basics as possible.

Any advice or insight about why I might have been rejected on the basis of no specific dental experience would be greatly appreciated. I'm fairly crushed, and I feel that I've somehow failed as a student. I feel extremely foolish, but I still want to pursue an education in dentistry.

1. Shadow multiple dentists.
2. Get one to write a letter speaking to your glowing character and charm.

Then end.

 

[Luna724]

Shadowing experience is important in a sense that you get a relatively solid idea on what the work life of a typical dentist is like and how you see yourself getting involved in it. Yes, some schools require their applicants to have certain number of shadowing hours and also require a recommendation letter from a dentist but (plenty of them don't) it is mainly for you to get a 'glimpse' at the profession to say the least.

 

[predentalgirl]

Every Adcom I spoke to before applying stressed how important shadowing was. There was no sugar-coating it, it was something that absolutely had to be done.
And not just at one place, it was important to do multiple places so you know how different practices work.

That was my experience. 6 shadowing experiences, and I got one admission at my state school with a decent DAT and below average stats.

So yea, definitely shadow.

 

[WastedTime]

how did u get a letter of recommendation from a dentist without shadowing?

 

[omgroll]

Another thing you could do is to apply to canadian schools. If you are set in not doing shadowing/volunteering

 

[morning92]

When dental schools say that something is highly recommended, they really mean that it's a minimum requirement. I'd definitely recommend putting in at least 100 hours shadowing at dental clinics, making sure that you have the opportunity to see both rural and urban dentistry. If possible, try to get 100 hours at the same clinic and then shadow for a few days each at as many other clinics as you can manage. While it may be tempting to shadow extensively at an orthodontist or periodontist's office, try to focus more on general dentistry, as that's what most programs will be asking you questions on.

While you're shadowing, make sure that you're not just sitting there. Interact with the staff (all of them - not just the dentists) and ask questions about their opinions on procedures, equipment, and their experiences in the dental profession. If allowed, talk to the patients. Doing this will not only make you more familiar with how offices and the field in general work, but you'll also discover where your strong and weak points are in terms of interaction. This is great material for personal statements, interviews, etc. 🙂

Volunteerism is a lower priority, but it's still important. Try and find a nonprofit clinic if you can. A quick web search shows that there are free dental clinics in Iowa City and Mercy Creek. One of those might let you help out with office work and charts. I think there's also a Mission of Mercy event at some point, but I'm not sure how you'd go about volunteering for that.

Part of this may just be poor luck, as well. From what I've seen, you applied to the University of Iowa and they're known for being incredibly selective. You should be proud to have even received an interview offer from them! That means that, even if you aren't accepted this cycle, that you're definitely on the right track. Next year will go much better, I'm sure of it. Best of luck!

 

[str8ner]

It is important to be passionate about your profession. Otherwise you won't be good at it and you won't be happy. From a business perspective, schools stand to lose revenue if a student gets a year into school and then drops out. There aren't a bunch of people with exactly one year of dental school under their belts to fill the empty spot. So, for three more years that spot would remain empty and not producing income. For that reason, schools deem it a failure to loose a single student.

Regardless of the point of view of schools, you need to find out what it is truly like to be a dentist for your own good. You are smart and could probably do anything, seriously. Make sure you do what makes you happy. Shadowing/volunteering will open your eyes and make you more certain of your decision to pursue dentistry. As result, you will interview better.

That said, I have seen people far less qualified get into dental school which tells me you have no connections (some of the worst dental students I have ever seen, got in because of a connection) and you didn't apply to enough schools. If you really want in, do the shadowing and apply to many more schools. However, your first move should be to contact the dean of admissions to ask what he or she would recommend. Believe it or not, they keep records of what they recommended you do. If you do what they recommend, they will obviously be impressed.

 

[Ferneezy]

Everyone ITT knows an lor from a dentist isn't absolutely required for all schools, but a personal statement is required at the aadsas level.

I can't help but wonder how OP's statement read without a shred of dental experience.