Reapplying: what to do in my case?

[haburo]

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Hello everyone,
This is my first post on this forum, even though I've been reading people's post for a while now. Nice to meet you all.

Here is my story. I applied ten schools for the entering class of 2011, but I didn't get a single interview. I kinda already know the reasons. The schools I applied to have high standards, and my application was too messy (yeah I was stupid and didn't know what I was doing). I got 3.5 total GPA (3.44 for science) during undergrad. My DAT scores are as follow: 19 Science, 22 PAT, 20 Reading, and 21 QR. These are pretty okay scores right?

However when I applied during July last year, I didn't have any dental experience. Though I had volunteered at a hospital for 2 years, none of those experience was dental-related (I intended to go to med school you see). Then I started shadowing at a dental office after submitting my application, summing up to about 80+ hours now. Around February I got my dentist to submit an additional letter of recommendation verifying my shadowing experience, but I guess that was too late.

Because of all these mistakes, I want to reapply for next year. This time I will apply early, choose more schools, fix my statement to include the dental shadowing, and maybe retake the DAT to improve my scores more. Do you think these are sufficient? What other things that I should notice for this next application?

I also want to ask this question. For letters of recommendation, is it required to have a letter from your pre-health advisor? I really didn't know my pre-health advisor and she doesn't know me, so I feel the letter will not be very personal 🙁. Can I just get LORs from my dentists and my professors who know me better?

Thank you guys. I appreciate any input.

 

[bing12]

Hello everyone,
This is my first post on this forum, even though I've been reading people's post for a while now. Nice to meet you all.

Here is my story. I applied ten schools for the entering class of 2011, but I didn't get a single interview. I kinda already know the reasons. The schools I applied to have high standards, and my application was too messy (yeah I was stupid and didn't know what I was doing). I got 3.5 total GPA (3.44 for science) during undergrad. My DAT scores are as follow: 19 Science, 22 PAT, 20 Reading, and 21 QR. These are pretty okay scores right?

However when I applied during July last year, I didn't have any dental experience. Though I had volunteered at a hospital for 2 years, none of those experience was dental-related (I intended to go to med school you see). Then I started shadowing at a dental office after submitting my application, summing up to about 80+ hours now. Around February I got my dentist to submit an additional letter of recommendation verifying my shadowing experience, but I guess that was too late.

Because of all these mistakes, I want to reapply for next year. This time I will apply early, choose more schools, fix my statement to include the dental shadowing, and maybe retake the DAT to improve my scores more. Do you think these are sufficient? What other things that I should notice for this next application?

I also want to ask this question. For letters of recommendation, is it required to have a letter from your pre-health advisor? I really didn't know my pre-health advisor and she doesn't know me, so I feel the letter will not be very personal 🙁. Can I just get LORs from my dentists and my professors who know me better?

Thank you guys. I appreciate any input.

What schools you apply to?

 

[haburo]

Columbia, OSU, UMB, UMDNJ, UNC, UPenn, UPitt, UTHSCSA, VCU, WVA

 

[bing12]

Columbia, UMB, UMDNJ, UNC, UPenn, UPitt, UTHSCSA, VCU, WVA

Wow man, wheres
1.NYU
2.Temple
3. BU
4.TUFTS
5.Nova (nova:if ur a bio major).

Your stats seems competitive, I really think it is cause what you said, your choices of where to apply. You must apply to the schools I just listed, its almost a given.

 

[Pennywisdom]

Columbia and U.Penn are extremely competitive, so you should have applied to more private schools.

 

[haburo]

How about my question about LOR? Can someone answer it please. Thanks.

 

[healthcaree]

How about my question about LOR? Can someone answer it please. Thanks.

If your undergrad has pre-health committee letter system, then I think you need to get it from them + 1 dentist rec. letter. Other wise I think it'll be 2 science professors + 1 dentist letter. It really depends on the school. UNLV asks for 4 total I believe.

 

[haburo]

Do most schools require LOR from health advisor?

 

[mfoti1]

Wow man, wheres
1.NYU
2.Temple
3. BU
4.TUFTS
5.Nova (nova:if ur a bio major).

Your stats seems competitive, I really think it is cause what you said, your choices of where to apply. You must apply to the schools I just listed, its almost a given.

why do you say NOVA, if your a Bio major?

 

[JcRoughriders]

given u mean they're easier to get in? but i've seen some stat, like NYU, and they dont seem that low

i really have no ideas which schools are easier to get in... i have 3.37 GPA in bioengineering with 21 AA, 21 TS, 25 PAT

 

[haburo]

So besides applying for those schools, what else should I do to improve my chance?
Thanks in advance.

 

[dentalWorks]

Hello everyone,
This is my first post on this forum, even though I've been reading people's post for a while now. Nice to meet you all.

Here is my story. I applied ten schools for the entering class of 2011, but I didn't get a single interview. I kinda already know the reasons. The schools I applied to have high standards, and my application was too messy (yeah I was stupid and didn't know what I was doing). I got 3.5 total GPA (3.44 for science) during undergrad. My DAT scores are as follow: 19 Science, 22 PAT, 20 Reading, and 21 QR. These are pretty okay scores right?

However when I applied during July last year, I didn't have any dental experience. Though I had volunteered at a hospital for 2 years, none of those experience was dental-related (I intended to go to med school you see). Then I started shadowing at a dental office after submitting my application, summing up to about 80+ hours now. Around February I got my dentist to submit an additional letter of recommendation verifying my shadowing experience, but I guess that was too late.

Because of all these mistakes, I want to reapply for next year. This time I will apply early, choose more schools, fix my statement to include the dental shadowing, and maybe retake the DAT to improve my scores more. Do you think these are sufficient? What other things that I should notice for this next application?

I also want to ask this question. For letters of recommendation, is it required to have a letter from your pre-health advisor? I really didn't know my pre-health advisor and she doesn't know me, so I feel the letter will not be very personal 🙁. Can I just get LORs from my dentists and my professors who know me better?

Thank you guys. I appreciate any input.

You have good numbers (GPA + DAT are good combo). the 10 schools you applied to SHOULD have gotten you couple of interviews... I think that didn't happen because you didn't follow the LOR requirements properly. And I wouldn't retake the DAT.

Schools are so picky with LORs, even some of them won't even tell you if you are missing LORs.... if you are missing LORs and you never turn them in , your application will remain "incomplete" until you do so.

A committee letter is probably "smarter" choice than individual LORs, but it is not necessary. Some schools don't offer such service, and in which case you resort to submitting individual LORs.

This time around before you apply, make a list of all the schools you are interested in, and call up or visit each schools website and write down each schools LOR requirement. This is such a crucial step, you can have everything turned in on time (AADSAS, DAT, personal statement, etc) but if you don't have proper LORs, that school will put your application on hold and not review it until all LORs are in.

all the best

 

[doc toothache]

Here is my story. I applied ten schools for the entering class of 2011, but I didn't get a single interview. I kinda already know the reasons. The schools I applied to have high standards, and my application was too messy (yeah I was stupid and didn't know what I was doing). I got 3.5 total GPA (3.44 for science) during undergrad. My DAT scores are as follow: 19 Science, 22 PAT, 20 Reading, and 21 QR. These are pretty okay scores right?
However when I applied during July last year, I didn't have any dental experience. Though I had volunteered at a hospital for 2 years, none of those experience was dental-related (I intended to go to med school you see). Then I started shadowing at a dental office after submitting my application, summing up to about 80+ hours now. Around February I got my dentist to submit an additional letter of recommendation verifying my shadowing experience, but I guess that was too late.

It is hard to take seriously any applicant who cannot be bothered to shadow before applying, and it looks like none of the adcoms were fooled. The public schools where you are considered oss must have thought X-mas came early.