sincere advice

[madamepreDO]

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Hello,

I am looking for honest feedback/advice regarding my situation. I graduated from engineering school in 2011. I had one W and one semester of all C's. I took a gap year after graduating where I shadowed and volunteered in medical clinics. I then got an engineering job, but after the training it was not the best fit. So then I went back to volunteering at free clinics and mentoring an at risk child while taking refresher courses at the community college. I was then offered a scribe job. In August 2015, I was in a MA Biomedicine program and got a 3.6. I was withdrew from the Spring semester as I had to go back home to take care of a personal issue, which is now resolved.

My final undergrad gpa was a 3.08; not sure about science. In community college, I got all A's but there is one F from a class i took while I was a senior in high school that will be on record.

I have not taken the DAT yet. Also, I have 2 connections to the dental school in my state. I am considering dentistry at this point because I am able to feel the patient's "pain" as I have been in the dental chair my whole life. I had baby bottle syndrome, teeth extractions, braces and expander, dental implants with gum surgery, and have had my teeth whitened. I know how important it is to have a pretty smile because it truly builds confidence. I was much happier when my silver crowns got replaced with pretty white crowns. I plan on shadowing a dentist soon as well as observing more at a free clinic near by. I am aware I may have to retake a few courses due to expiration limits.

I am just confused if I should go back the school to finish my MA; it will take me 2.5 years instead of 2 and I will be a few months shy of turning 29 when I graduate. I believe I have a 3.4 science gpa. My biggest fear is not getting an interview because I took a break.

I appreciate all advice and honesty about my chances of getting into Dental school.

 

[madamepreDO]

Well I am not sure what my science GPA is at this point in time.

 

[hellofuturedentists]

Taking a break shouldn't be too much of an issue if you get back on track. What would likely be an issue is applying to DO schools and dental schools at the same time. You should really pick one based off of what you'd rather be: a physician or a dentist. Do some shadowing and go from there. If you end up not picking dentistry, you save yourself the effort of shadowing more, taking the DAT, etc.
Also, If your overall GPA was a 3.08 I'd be very surprised if your science GPA was a 3.4.

Good luck!

 

[madamepreDO]

Taking a break shouldn't be too much of an issue if you get back on track. What would likely be an issue is applying to DO schools and dental schools at the same time. You should really pick one based off of what you'd rather be: a physician or a dentist. Do some shadowing and go from there. If you end up not picking dentistry, you save yourself the effort of shadowing more, taking the DAT, etc.
Also, If your overall GPA was a 3.08 I'd be very surprised if your science GPA was a 3.4.

Good luck!

thanks for the advice! yea the 3.4 is the DO science gpa due to grade replacements.

 

[hellofuturedentists]

thanks for the advice! yea the 3.4 is the DO science gpa due to grade replacements.

Ok. I don't think AADSAS does grade replacement so both of your grades will still be used to calculate GPA if you do retake.

 

[madamepreDO]

Ok. I don't think AADSAS does grade replacement so both of your grades will still be used to calculate GPA if you do retake.

i think my sGPA is around 3.1 but not sure how my grad school science classes would impact it.

 

[Cranjis McBasketball]

i think my sGPA is around 3.1 but not sure how my grad school science classes would impact it.

So are you wondering what your chances are in getting accepted? Its hard to say without a DAT. That is kind of the make or break point. You could have a killer GPA and stuff but a 17 on the DAT and you won't have success applying. Then again you can have like a 3.3-3.4 GPA and get a 23+ on the DAT and have great success. Once you take the DAT, its a lot easier to gage your chances.

 

[madamepreDO]

I think my biggest problem is explaining the gap from a masters program. My friend told me that I can no longer apply due to the gap

 

[1passbbsSHAVE]

I had a pretty long gap year too and I think it could have played a role, negatively if at all. Thankfully, I was just accepted to a school, but my failed attempts to gain an acceptance last year and this year at most schools I applied to could possibly be due to gap year and the fact that I haven't really been showing genuine interest. At least I don't think my EC's really reflect my interest well enough.

I was supposed to graduate around 2008~2009 with only about 9 credits of gen ed classes left to take. Around that time, I had a death in the family and it completely destroyed me. I was thinking to myself I was okay, but I guess I was depressed, lost motivation,, etc ,etc. It took me a while for me to find a reason to do anything. Since around 2010, I've been working in the hospital, not necessarily doing dental stuff. From 2011~2013, I took 1 class at a time to finish those 9 credits. After receiving the diploma, I took a few upper level bio classes, but couldn't take too many because of full time job. Now that I think about it, I maybe could have taken more than 1 class at a time, but I didn't want to risk doing badly on them by over-exerting myself, so I limited myself to taking 1 class per semester.

OP, I am not telling you this story to discourage you, but to tell you that it can be done. However, I think my journey to get into the dental school would have been a little easier if I had the motivation, drive and determination and if they all reflected better on my application. 5~6 years of gap year isn't short, even though I have been doing things here and there. Convincing them that I have genuine interest in the field was the most difficult part and I think that is the biggest reason why I didn't have success at other schools (applied to 20 schools, 6 interviews, 4 waitlist, 1 rejection, 1 acceptance, about 9~10 rejections without interview)

Make sure you shadow enough. Shadow general dentist first, then if time allows, shadow some specialists too. Specialist shadowing isn't required, but I almost feel like it would have only helped me by broadening my horizon and expanding my knowledge and interest in dentistry. You would also have more things to talk about on the personal statement and at the interview if you have seen cool stuff at specialist's offices. I also have been to a mission of mercy - mission trip. It was only 4 days and it was a great experience, which I was asked about in detail at my last interview at Touro.


Your GPA doesn't look devastatingly low, so matched with DAT scores of 22+, you might have a chance. Like I said, just be ready to explain and convince them why it took you some time to arrive at the conclusion to become a dentist. It's never wrong to have a back up plan, but if you can't convince the adcom that you are genuinely interested in the field, it might be very difficult to gain an acceptance.

Like one of the members suggested, I suggest you make up your mind about dent vs DO before starting to apply. DO's a great choice if you are not dead 100% set of dentistry since they do grade replacements.


Good luck to you.