Some advice on my situation would be appreciated!

[dentdavis]

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So I'm a third year undergraduate majoring in Molecular Biology. As of right now my gpa is a 3.0 because I didn't do too well in my lower division science classes. BUT..and its a big but...as my level of science classes has gone up and gotten harder I've been doing much better in my upper division science classes and there has been a good improvement. This quarter I have a 3.8. I have yet to take the DAT but am going to study for it this summer and take it in Mid-September. I still have a lot of other classes to contribute to my gpa so I know it'll rise at least to a 3.3 and that's my goal gpa before I apply to dental schoo. I'm taking a year in between undergrad and dental school and was wondering what anyone thinks of that?

Additional Info:
- interned at orthodontist office 11th and 12th of high school.
- interned/shadowed with a general dentist for two summers ( freshman and sophomore yr of college.)
- currently interning at a retirement home. 70 hours so far.
- work at the campus newspaper-science section.
- dental work in Costa Rica/Panama this summer.

I'm hoping since I've been working with dental professionals for the past 4 years that it shows a good amount of interest and background.

If you can just give me any advice on what else to do, how I should go about this whole process. Help me plan a timeline. Its all very overwhelming and I just want it to go as smooth as possible. Keep in mind I want to take a year in between so how will that affect when I apply and such. I'm just looking for a clear perspective.

Thank you!

 

[prk15]

I've been wondering...

are lower div science classes easier than upper div ones? I found the first two years to be harder than the last two years.

I'm sure doing poorly in the lower div can be made up if you do well in your upper div classes. Whatever the reason maybe you can always go the "i matured" route.

 

[baseballjunkie]

I took 2 years off after undergrad and am glad that I did. I'm really excited to go back to school, instead of dreading another 4 straight years of education without a break. If you ask mostly anyone that went directly into dental school from undergrad, they usually say they wish they would have taken a year off to relax before starting dental school.

As far as your science classes, if you spin your personal statement saying that you "learn to to become a better student" deeper in your science classes, using evidence of your upper division classes to back that statement, you should be alright. If you do well on the DAT in the science sections, then you'll be even better with that statement.