Rank the following!!

[CORNELL PreDent]

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Admission factors considered for dental school admissions:

Which would you rank first and why? Which would you rank last and why? Please provide justification wherever needed.

1. GPA
2. DAT
3. Dentistry experience/shadowing (paid)
4. Dentistry experience/shadowing (unpaid)
5. Clubs and leadership
6. Volunteer and community service (unrelated to dentistry, such as volunteering at a hospital ER)
7. Work experience (w/ retail and grocery stores, etc.)
8. Work experience (w/ childcare centers, hospitals, environmental organizations)
9. Research experience (paid or unpaid)

 

[jigabodo]

Hi,

I am a Cornell pre-dental student and new to this board. I wanted to start off by getting your opinions and rankings on the following factors that are considered for dental school admissions. Which would you rank first and why? Which would you rank last and why? Please provide justification wherever needed.

1. GPA
2. DAT
3. Dentistry experience/shadowing (paid)
4. Dentistry experience/shadowing (unpaid)
5. Clubs and leadership
6. Volunteer and community service (unrelated to dentistry, such as volunteering at a hospital ER)
7. Work experience (w/ retail and grocery stores, etc.)
8. Work experience (w/ childcare centers, hospitals)
9. Research experience (paid or unpaid)

If I REALLY have to rank, the most important would be DAT, followed by GPA.

The least important would probably be number 7.

 

[TheWiredNerv]

Hi,

I am a Cornell pre-dental student and new to this board. I wanted to start off by getting your opinions and rankings on the following factors that are considered for dental school admissions. Which would you rank first and why? Which would you rank last and why? Please provide justification wherever needed.

1. GPA
2. DAT
3. Dentistry experience/shadowing (paid)
4. Dentistry experience/shadowing (unpaid)
5. Clubs and leadership
6. Volunteer and community service (unrelated to dentistry, such as volunteering at a hospital ER)
7. Work experience (w/ retail and grocery stores, etc.)
8. Research experience (paid or unpaid)

Very serious in your posting.

You forgot personal experiences, which I would rank up there.

1. Personality (Personal experiences, challenges in your life, etc.)
2. DAT
3. GPA
4. Leadership. (Clubs are okay but they are really looking for leadership.)
5. Dental Experience (paid or unpaid, doesn't matter)
6. Research Experience (You don't need to do research to get accepted to D school. It is however, crucial if you are going for a dual degree PhD program.)
7. Work Experience

 

[Lodo]

I'd say your 1 & 2 are interchangable, your 3 & 4 are interchangable, and your 5, 6, 7, & 8 are interchangable. Your 9 (research) ranks in with your 3 & 4 for research schools and schools with higher percentages of students going into a specialty and is pretty much insignificant to schools with purely a clinical focus.

why?...b/c that's what schools looks for.

 

[jigabodo]

Very serious in your posting.

You forgot personal experiences, which I would rank up there.

1. Personality (Personal experiences, challenges in your life, etc.)
2. DAT
3. GPA
4. Leadership. (Clubs are okay but they are really looking for leadership.)
5. Dental Experience (paid or unpaid, doesn't matter)
6. Research Experience (You don't need to do research to get accepted to D school. It is however, crucial if you are going for a dual degree PhD program.)
7. Work Experience

Our answers are very similar!

 

[TheWiredNerv]

Our answers are very similar!

Wonder Twins Power, Activate!

 

[Jem27]

From my experience in applying, I'd rank

1) DAT
2) Personal experiences - life experiences, hardships, etc
3) GPA
4) Dental Experience - shadowing, exposure to the field

Though, aside from DAT being definitely #1, #2-4 could be interchanged depending on an individual's #2.

I don't have any other of the numbers. I mean, I had a job at Petco once which is just about as good as having nothing under jobs.

Oh, but I was asked about volunteer stuff.

 

[jigabodo]

From my experience in applying, I'd rank

1) DAT
2) Personal experiences - life experiences, hardships, etc
3) GPA
4) Dental Experience - shadowing, exposure to the field

Though, aside from DAT being definitely #1, #2-4 could be interchanged depending on an individual's #2.

I don't have any other of the numbers. I mean, I had a job at Petco once which is just about as good as having nothing under jobs.

Oh, but I was asked about volunteer stuff.

You had a job at Petco? It's my dream to work there ever since I was a child. 😍

 

[CORNELL PreDent]

Seems like volunteer experiences not related to dentistry, even hospital work, isn't as important as finding many opportunities to assist and shadow dentists. Am I correct in this statement?

Jem, what were you asked about volunteer stuff? Is it necessary?

 

[Jem27]

You had a job at Petco? It's my dream to work there ever since I was a child. 😍

Haha. Oh my god. That's how I felt til I worked there. You get to see the ins and outs of places like that and it's not pretty. Not as bad as PETA makes you think but still, not heaven like Petco wants you to think either.

I worked there for a semester to get some cash to go to Disney World - fun! During that time, I amassed a small army of dwarf hamsters. I had like 11. They were so cute. I think I bought one every other week. Looking back, it's so funny and so darn sad at the same time. 😳

Then one time, this guy wanted me to show him a rat and I tried really hard to stay away from them. So being that it's my job, I show him. And the rat pees all over my shirt. Fortunately, I was wearing my blue Petco shirt and it's got super laminated fibers of plastic in it or something and it just rolls off me. After all that, the guy just says, okay, I just wanted to see it. 😡

Then I ran home to my hamsters and cried in their bellies.

 

[Jem27]

Seems like volunteer experiences not related to dentistry, even hospital work, isn't as important as finding many opportunities to assist and shadow dentists. Am I correct in this statement?

Jem, what were you asked about volunteer stuff? Is it necessary?

They asked what volunteer experience I had. I didn't do anything official like some number of hours at the local church/hospital/shelter. I like biking and I took part in the NYC Multiple Sclerosis bike tour. Figured this was a good way to donate to a good cause (I'm not very good at fundraising) and bike through NYC. That was win/win/win/win and win on all fronts. I was doing something I really enjoy doing and I was "volunteering". I mean I was honest with my interviewer and told them, I was incorporating what I liked to do with charity work.

Find what gets you going and do it. Nothing is more apparent than true passion. Cuz if you told me I had to volunteer at a hospital for some # of hours, I'd find it meaningless and i'd feel that time could be better spent.

Is volunteer work necessary? I don't believe so.

 

[Regmata]

GPA, DAT are both probably bout equally as important. Although, I would give the nod to GPA because it is harder to perform well for 4 years than it is to ace a test. As for the rest, who cares as long as you are able to provide the adcoms with evidence that you have are adequately interested in dentistry.

 

[CORNELL PreDent]

After just getting out of high school and into a college environment, it seems like the resume credentials required to get into a top-tier US undergraduate college are completely different from those necessary to get into a good dental school. Would you say this is so?

 

[Regmata]

What are the credentials to get into a top tier undergrad school...a decent SAT and the money to pay for it? Yes, it is very different...

 

[jackbauer!]

After just getting out of high school and into a college environment, it seems like the resume credentials required to get into a top-tier US undergraduate college are completely different from those necessary to get into a good dental school. Would you say this is so?

😕

 

[NewMexDent]

After just getting out of high school and into a college environment, it seems like the resume credentials required to get into a top-tier US undergraduate college are completely different from those necessary to get into a good dental school. Would you say this is so?

Hey, do you go to Cornell? I wasn't sure if I could tell from your screen name.

Just joking.

Applying to dental school is about 1,000,000 times different than applying to college (even if it is a "top-tier" school).