Pre Reqs at a CC will I be taken seriously?

[kpetr005]

Hello all, I’m currently 25yrs and making a career change to go to dental school. I need to take my pre reqs first which I think I can do in 5 semesters. I have bachelors in dental hygiene and have been an RDH for 3 years now and will be working full time still while I take my classes.
It would be a million times more convenient for me to take them at a community college because I’m working full time and the universities in my area are each an hour away. But I’m worried I won’t be taken seriously with my application. I know that some schools flat out reject CC credits so I won’t apply to those. But do I have a shot at the other schools?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[1942]

Like you said, some schools flat out reject CC credits and other schools, although they accept CC credits, highly discourage it.

make sure to research every school thoroughly before applying. If the school does not explicitly mention that CC units are discouraged/Pre-Reqs at Uni preferred or have a CC unit cap, then I don’t think it matters much to those schools.

Also if you want to look into it, there’s several extension programs at schools (UCLA, UNE etc) that may offer online courses where you can fulfill the pre-reqs. It will obviously cost more money and it may not really be worth it but it’s an option.

 

[S_Diamond_DDS]

Take them at CC, just make sure you do well in those classes (A’s) and demonstrate that your cc classes weren’t a joke by studying hard and scoring well on the DAT. I know it’s possible, since I took nearly all of my prereqs at a CC (while starting from a low undergrad gpa from my bachelors) and got several interviews/acceptances. There’s only like three schools that flat out don’t take cc’s. It’s like tufts, bu, and one other expensive private school (forget which).

 

[1942]

^Above poster is wrong. Take them at CC, just make sure you do well in those classes (A’s) and demonstrate that your cc classes weren’t a joke by studying hard and scoring well on the DAT. I know it’s possible, since I took nearly all of my prereqs at a CC (while starting from a low undergrad gpa from my bachelors) and got several interviews/acceptances. There’s only like three schools that flat out don’t take cc’s. It’s like tufts, bu, and one other expensive private school (forget which).

Lol you clearly cannot read. What part of my post was erroneous??????

Temple, Indiana, Creighton, BU, and Tufts flat out reject CC credits. Meharry explicitly states to take pre-reqs at a university. NYU only allows 1 CC class per subject. Buffalo, Marquette, Ohio State, UNC, UDM, Case Western, Loma Linda, UMKC, and Oklahoma strongly suggests classes to be taken at a 4 year. Many schools have limits in place (typically around 60 units) and others are a bit more strict with the limits (Oregon). All of this information is in the dental explorer.

Taking pre-reqs at a CC is largely fine unless you want to go to one of the 17 schools I listed. 29 other schools list a maximum number of CC credits allowed. Obviously for many of these schools, you can still get in by taking CC courses. However, if you want to optimize your chances and be strategic when applying you have to consider all variables and research each school which is what I was basically getting at. Even if you take every single class at a CC there’s still ~30 schools who don’t have any limits or mention any preference one or way another. It’s up to OP to decide what route is best for them based on where they want to go, their financial situation, how many CC units they have already completed etc.

I tried to be more nuanced and give OP things to consider. I basically even recommended the CC route at the end of my original post. You clearly cannot read.

 

[2thPirate🦷]

Lol you clearly cannot read. What part of my post was erroneous??????

Temple, Indiana, Creighton, BU, and Tufts flat out reject CC credits. Meharry explicitly states to take pre-reqs at a university. NYU only allows 1 CC class per subject. Buffalo, Marquette, Ohio State, UNC, UDM, Case Western, Loma Linda, UMKC, and Oklahoma strongly suggests classes to be taken at a 4 year. Many schools have limits in place (typically around 60 units) and others are a bit more strict with the limits (Oregon). All of this information is in the dental explorer.

Taking pre-reqs at a CC is largely fine unless you want to go to one of the 17 schools I listed. 29 other schools list a maximum number of CC credits allowed. Obviously for many of these schools, you can still get in by taking CC courses. However, if you want to optimize your chances and be strategic when applying you have to consider all variables and research each school which is what I was basically getting at. Even if you take every single class at a CC there’s still ~30 schools who don’t have any limits or mention any preference one or way another. It’s up to OP to decide what route is best for them based on where they want to go, their financial situation, how many CC units they have already completed etc.

I tried to be more nuanced and give OP things to consider. I basically even recommended the CC route at the end of my original post. You clearly cannot read.

Lol you brought out the receipts😂😂 Your original post was spot on, you even told OP to research the schools and see what they think about CCs, not really sure where Diamond thinks you went wrong. But seriously OP, as @1942 said, do your research and maybe even contact schools to see how they feel about CC classes, it would suck to apply to schools that will end up passing up your app bc of some credit you took at a CC rather than a University.

 

[S_Diamond_DDS]

In the real world, it’s sometimes hard/expensive to go the “ideal” route. Which I would argue is not worth the uphill battle it may cause. The cc route sounds suitable for OP, but I’m glad I am a sounding board for you both to flesh out the finer details of the topic for OP.

 

[1942]

Lol you brought out the receipts😂😂 Your original post was spot on, you even told OP to research the schools and see what they think about CCs, not really sure where Diamond thinks you went wrong. But seriously OP, as @1942 said, do your research and maybe even contact schools to see how they feel about CC classes, it would suck to apply to schools that will end up passing up your app bc of some credit you took at a CC rather than a University.

Lmao I was appalled. I had to clear my name 😂

But you’re exactly right. It’s important to equip yourself with all the information and understand all options before making a decision. I tried to highlight things OP may not have considered and offer a potential alternative in case they decided to take a different route. OP is smart enough to take the information, do their homework, and make an informed decision based on their own individual circumstance.

In the real world, it’s sometimes hard/expensive to go the “ideal” route. Which I would argue is not worth the uphill battle it may cause. The cc route sounds suitable for OP, but I’m glad I am a sounding board for you both to flesh out the finer details of the topic for OP.

lol. Not only are you projecting after being called out (as if my advice was not practical) but you’re basically paraphrasing what I said originally. You’re ~5 years removed from applying. Check your information before making any more unintelligent comments.

 

[DocStranger]

Temple, Indiana, Creighton, BU, and Tufts flat out reject CC credits. Meharry explicitly states to take pre-reqs at a university

Actually got accepted this cycle with 60+ credits taken at CC. Some were definitely science prereqs. I also have friends that attend IU’s dental school and have taken science pre-reqs at a community college.

I also noticed on IU’s ADEA dental explorer page that it said they DO NOT ACCEPT community college credits, but they do. Not sure why it’s contradicted there.

Hope this helps OP.

 

[DocStranger]

Many dental schools will say it’s recommended to take science pre-reqs at a University...keyword “recommended”. Do your best, regardless whether you go to a CC or a University, it will not matter for the most part if you aren’t able to perform well in the courses. I’d personally take them at a CC from my own experience knowing I’ve been accepted going that route. Ik there’s many many others that have done the exact same and got accepted.

 

[S_Diamond_DDS]

Lmao I was appalled. I had to clear my name 😂

But you’re exactly right. It’s important to equip yourself with all the information and understand all options before making a decision. I tried to highlight things OP may not have considered and offer a potential alternative in case they decided to take a different route. OP is smart enough to take the information, do their homework, and make an informed decision based on their own individual circumstance.

lol. Not only are you projecting after being called out (as if my advice was not practical) but you’re basically paraphrasing what I said originally. You’re ~5 years removed from applying. Check your information before making any more unintelligent comments.

Not here to fight, got bigger fish to fry. Just here to give my two cents. Out of fairness to your original reply, I removed the “above poster is wrong” remark