I'll add my story! Where to start.... I'm 24 currently and this year, I will have applied three times. I've applied to Colorado (i'm a resident of colorado for two years now), AT still, Roseman, Oregon. I've also taken the dat twice. This process is literally one of the most stressful things I've ever had to deal with.
First time I applied I got a 17 DAT overall, Math: 15, Bio: 16, PAT: 17 TS:17 Reading: 19 Gen Chem: 18 OChem: 17. I wasn't really confident I was going to get in. It was more to show that I was going to continue to apply and improve my scores and other extra circular activities each time so they would see i'm continuing to work at this. I had a 2.85 science GPA (Got one D in Bio II which really screwed me) also did terrible my first year of college and by terrible, I mean just more C's than I would have liked. I eventually left that college after the first year and received maybe two C's the rest of my college career. I also have a masters in health science. I did that immediately after graduating with my bachelors. I received a 3.3 in my bachelors and a 3.6 in my masters. What I did wrong is not doing my masters with all science classes, I did all health science (thinking more of patient care). Still kicking myself in the ass for that. Ive been a dental assistant 3 years, so I have a ton of experience. I have great 4 letters of recommendation and I have two research projects that dealt with two important topics in dentistry (one that my masters teacher wanted to publish to the ADEA). Anyway, didn't get in.
Second time, retook the DAT to try and improve my score. Got 17 once again (so heartbreaking) Math: 15, Bio: 17, PAT: 17, Reading: 20, OChem: 17, Gen chem: 14..... Terrible score. SO bio and reading improved by one point which is a plus for retaking it a second time. I have no idea what happened the second time with gen chemistry, I'm hoping that they see I received an 18 the first time knowing I'm capable of getting that score. Well I applied later in the cycle because I wasn't confident that I would actually get in, probably around October. I just wanted to keep showing that I'm going to continue to apply until they let me in. I was lucky enough to receive a phone call from admissions of Colorado (I sent an email to admissions asking what I could do to improve to get in, also a school i'm dying to get into) that went over what the admissions commented on my application and basically I didn't receive an interview because I applied so late, they said I was a good student in their eyes, i've taken every science class I possibly could, my letters of recommendations were excellent, my GPAs have significantly improved at an upward slope from freshman year to senior year but they think I would have to try very hard in dental school (which is fine because I'm willing to do what it takes to get in). She had said on the phone if I were to retake the dental exam and received ONE more point, I would of basically gotten in. Taking that exam was very stressful, emotionally and mentally so to redo that for one more point was a tough decision for me. I feel as though it would of just been about the range they want their students testing at when they do their statistics. I was studying 16+ hours a day when I could, I've always been a good student, gotten great grades (other than freshman year of college). It's very hard to reteach yourself everything you went to college to learn. If i could afford a class that would teach me all these subjects, I feel as though I would of done significantly better but I honestly did my best for what I could afford and if they ask me why I didn't take it over a third time, I'll be honest and say I couldn't afford it. But all in all, VERY shocking news considering with that DAT score. Felt like that was a mile stone.
This time around: I didn't retake the DAT. I decided to go back to school this spring to retake the Bio II class that ruined my science GPA and one other science class in hopes to get that science GPA up. I ended up with my first 4.0, received an A in bio II w/ lab (from a D) which is incredible, I can't even believe I did it. This time around, I applied early, I got my science GPA up from 2.85 to 3.1 (Still not the best but an improvement, I about cried), all the important GPAs were above a 3.0, and I had my master's professor that worked on my dental project with me write me a letter this time. I feel like having a teacher that saw my progression with a topic in dentistry was very important. I only applied to colorado this time because I feel like I'm on their radar right now and I might have an actual chance this time with the things I improved. I would love to apply to more schools but I can't waste more money. I also am going to their pre dental weekend this upcoming weekend in hopes to show my interest in the school and maybe talk to someone important that handles admissions, a face is better than an email. All in all, I'm hoping and praying that this is three times the charm. It's been an exhausting ride and I feel for everyone going through this too. I hope they can see that I am literally doing everything I can to improve to get in. I also feel if I were to get an interview, they could really see my dedication to this career and here my story.
The best advice I can give anyone is keep trying. They do keep notice on the amount of times you apply and see your dedication. Also apply early!! That seemed to screw me the second time where I actually stood a chance.
