Should I pursue a masters/post-bacc or retake the DAT along with other science courses?

[futureDDS1999]

Hi everyone,

So for the Fall 2023 cycle, I was waitlisted at a school, had an interview for another, and was rejected by the other 7.

My DAT scores (took it 2x) are TS- 18, PAT-19, QR- 18, RC-19, AA-18. Saw improvement by 1 or 2 points in every category, besides TS, which stayed the same. My oGPA is 3.143 and my sGPa is 2.879.

From the schools that I've heard back from (including the rejections), they loved my PS and extracurriculars. They were willing to bypass the oGPA but their primary concern was my sGPA.

I really need advice here from anyone who's been gone through similar circumstances as me, or anyone really. I'm not sure if I should retake the DAT, retake science courses over the summer, or go through a year of post bacc/masters?..

My biggest concern is time. I'm 23 and I'm really trying to avoid starting dental school by Fall 2025 if I were to go down the post bacc route. Not that there's anything wrong with it, just a personal preference of mine.

And, if I were to retake the DAT and courses over the summer, I could apply late august before the majority of deadlines have passed and take that risk.

OR I could do both and maybe exit the program if I get in during the school year?

I have no idea what to do. Any guidance would be extremely appreciated. Thank you!

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[macsak]

Hi everyone,

So for the Fall 2023 cycle, I was waitlisted at a school, had an interview for another, and was rejected by the other 7.

My DAT scores (took it 2x) are TS- 18, PAT-19, QR- 18, RC-19, AA-18. Saw improvement by 1 or 2 points in every category, besides TS, which stayed the same. My oGPA is 3.143 and my sGPa is 2.879.

From the schools that I've heard back from (including the rejections), they loved my PS and extracurriculars. They were willing to bypass the oGPA but their primary concern was my sGPA.

I really need advice here from anyone who's been gone through similar circumstances as me, or anyone really. I'm not sure if I should retake the DAT, retake science courses over the summer, or go through a year of post bacc/masters?..

My biggest concern is time. I'm 23 and I'm really trying to avoid starting dental school by Fall 2025 if I were to go down the post bacc route. Not that there's anything wrong with it, just a personal preference of mine.

And, if I were to retake the DAT and courses over the summer, I could apply late august before the majority of deadlines have passed and take that risk.

OR I could do both and maybe exit the program if I get in during the school year?

I have no idea what to do. Any guidance would be extremely appreciated. Thank you!

please follow the WAMC template...

 

[Ryxndek]

If you do a DIY post-bacc you'd be able to finish the current coursework and start the program the following year. I agree with what the admissions told you. The combination of the low DAT score and low sGPA probably made the biggest red flag for schools and they were hesitant that you could handle the difficult graduate courseload. I definitely think if you could increase your DAT score by 2-4 points overall you could see some app improvement.

An ideal situation to maximize your chances would really be to take more science credits and do exceptionally well (get your sGPA >3.0) while also retaking the DAT and doing well there. Applying in late August would be your worst option if you're trying to get into dental school. Applications open on June 1st, you'd be setting yourself back since your app isn't strong and applying in August is starting to get late into the cycle. Rolling admissions for dental schools means you are at a better chance of receiving an interview, and possibly admission, the earlier you apply.

What have you been doing to improve your application?

Be realistic with yourself here, I think you really need to take a year and fix your app with upper-level coursework and really strive for a 20+AA DAT score and apply for the following year which would, yes, mean you'd be entering in 2025. But there are plenty of folks who take more time than that to make a good application.

I also think you need to apply to more schools should you choose to not retake the DAT. With a score of 18AA, you should be applying to 12-15+ schools if you are trying to maximize your chances of admittance.

Hope this helps

 

[macsak]

If you do a DIY post-bacc you'd be able to finish the current coursework and start the program the following year. I agree with what the admissions told you. The combination of the low DAT score and low sGPA probably made the biggest red flag for schools and they were hesitant that you could handle the difficult graduate courseload. I definitely think if you could increase your DAT score by 2-4 points overall you could see some app improvement.

An ideal situation to maximize your chances would really be to take more science credits and do exceptionally well (get your sGPA >3.0) while also retaking the DAT and doing well there. Applying in late August would be your worst option if you're trying to get into dental school. Applications open on June 1st, you'd be setting yourself back since your app isn't strong and applying in August is starting to get late into the cycle. Rolling admissions for dental schools means you are at a better chance of receiving an interview, and possibly admission, the earlier you apply.

What have you been doing to improve your application?

Be realistic with yourself here, I think you really need to take a year and fix your app with upper-level coursework and really strive for a 20+AA DAT score and apply for the following year which would, yes, mean you'd be entering in 2025. But there are plenty of folks who take more time than that to make a good application.

I also think you need to apply to more schools should you choose to not retake the DAT. With a score of 18AA, you should be applying to 12-15+ schools if you are trying to maximize your chances of admittance.

Hope this helps

it's going to be difficult to raise sgpa if you've already taken a bunch of credits
post baccs are undergraduate courses, masters programs are a totally separate graduate gpa
my feeling is that it's going to take at least a year to prove yourself
one semester of 4.0 in grad school would not convince me you are ready for d school...

 

[Ryxndek]

it's going to be difficult to raise sgpa if you've already taken a bunch of credits
post baccs are undergraduate courses, masters programs are a totally separate graduate gpa
my feeling is that it's going to take at least a year to prove yourself
one semester of 4.0 in grad school would not convince me you are ready for d school...

All good points. Just trying to lay out some type of foundation for OP to guide him on his options. Agreed A post-bacc will most likely not be enough, but their current GPA may not be high enough to get into a master's program. OP, you will have an uphill battle if you want to go to dental school, and there are things you've gotta try and improve if you don't want to be stuck at an extremely expensive private school. Your ECs though not stated, seem fine if the dental school you interviewed with says so. I would try to keep with it to keep your application from being stagnant.

 

[OncePreDent]

Hi everyone,

So for the Fall 2023 cycle, I was waitlisted at a school, had an interview for another, and was rejected by the other 7.

My DAT scores (took it 2x) are TS- 18, PAT-19, QR- 18, RC-19, AA-18. Saw improvement by 1 or 2 points in every category, besides TS, which stayed the same. My oGPA is 3.143 and my sGPa is 2.879.

From the schools that I've heard back from (including the rejections), they loved my PS and extracurriculars. They were willing to bypass the oGPA but their primary concern was my sGPA.

I really need advice here from anyone who's been gone through similar circumstances as me, or anyone really. I'm not sure if I should retake the DAT, retake science courses over the summer, or go through a year of post bacc/masters?..

My biggest concern is time. I'm 23 and I'm really trying to avoid starting dental school by Fall 2025 if I were to go down the post bacc route. Not that there's anything wrong with it, just a personal preference of mine.

And, if I were to retake the DAT and courses over the summer, I could apply late august before the majority of deadlines have passed and take that risk.

OR I could do both and maybe exit the program if I get in during the school year?

I have no idea what to do. Any guidance would be extremely appreciated. Thank you!

What schools did you interview at, and where are you waitlisted? Do they have a master's or post-bacc?

Do a master's, and make sure it's connected to a dental school. PM me if you would like some recommendations