OMFS (undergrad's grades)

[kokokaware3]

hello guys.... i am starting dental school this fall, and i am intersted in OMFS residency. i was looking over some programs, and i notice that they require you to send your undergrad transcripts. My undergrade grades are not that pretty is that going to make me a less competetitive applicant ? or if i do really good in dental school (top 5 % of my class), researches, externships, and extra cir. i know nbde starting to be p/f so yeh, do i still have a shot ?

thank you !!!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[servitup]

work hard. you will be fine.

 

[skatertudoroga]

Hey I have a question about competitiveness of residencies also. I.e. they want you to be top 5-10% of your dental class? I can see somebody aiming for top 5-10% in the basic sciences. But how can someone entering the 1st year of school have any confidence that he would be among the top 5-10% in the clinical dentistry?? And if you are that good in clinical dentistry, why would you want to specialize? You might just be one of the top general dentists...

 

[live]

being a "top general dentist" unfortunately often has little to do with how well you can prep a class II or carve an amalgam. Making a lot of money (I'm assuming this is what you mean for the most part) as a GP has just as much to do, if not more, with being a people person and being business savvy. Also... like anything in dental school, if you work/practice hard enough at something you will excel at it. Anyone can do well in dental school.. it just takes busting your a** sometimes.

 

[smogdodger]

Hey I have a question about competitiveness of residencies also. I.e. they want you to be top 5-10% of your dental class? I can see somebody aiming for top 5-10% in the basic sciences. But how can someone entering the 1st year of school have any confidence that he would be among the top 5-10% in the clinical dentistry?? And if you are that good in clinical dentistry, why would you want to specialize? You might just be one of the top general dentists...

There is so much more to being a strong candidate than being in the top 5-10% of your class and only certain specialties are going to want you to be at the top.

About being good at clinical dentistry- sure, of course you don't know how your hand skills match up until dental school. That being said, great hand skills make for excellent oral surgeons just like they make good GPs. MANY strong dental students pursue careers as GPs but I hope that my associates in OMS, for instance, were all great dentists before becoming specialists. Specializing, IMHO, is more about pursing excellence in a specified area rather than escaping clinical ineptitude in other areas.

 

[skatertudoroga]

Thanks for the answers. I will not be going to dental school.

 

[wantchurwizzys]

Hey I have a question about competitiveness of residencies also. I.e. they want you to be top 5-10% of your dental class? I can see somebody aiming for top 5-10% in the basic sciences. But how can someone entering the 1st year of school have any confidence that he would be among the top 5-10% in the clinical dentistry?? And if you are that good in clinical dentistry, why would you want to specialize? You might just be one of the top general dentists...

I am sorry to hear you will not be going to dental school. Even without OMFS Dentistry is one of the finest professions out there! As far as being in the top 5-10% keep in mind the following... By the time you get to 3rd year of dental school, you will have taken so many credits in didactic courses, which you should be nailing, that the clinical component during your 3rd year, will have very little effect on your GPA. For instance at my school, 1st and 2nd year I probably racked up 130 or so quarter credits giving me a GPA of 3.77. Well clinical restorative dentistry is worth 12 credits throughout my 3rd year, if I bomb it... that 12 credits will hurt a little, but compared to how many credits we have already taken it won't be too bad. Usually you are applying at the end of your 3rd year and not too much of 4th year is taken into account in your OMFS app.

 

[smogdodger]

Based on previous posts, I think that skatertudoroga is more interested in medicine than dentistry. Good luck to skater whether he/she reapplies to medicine or decides otherwise.