The Under 3.0 Club part 01

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Hey guys, I'm going to retake the DAT.

Any advise on how far out one should start studying for the DAT and what study materials should be used?


Pre-dentalguy
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Considering the GPA, I'd say you have to aim for 20+ on everything. My advice is to study 3 hr. a day, 6 days a week, for 2 months. Use Kaplan book and Topscore.
 
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Here's my question:

AADSAS application submittance is 15 May ever year and most school's start the interview process in Sep. Hyperthetically, if I were to put in my app. in May 07 and interviewed in Sep 07. I would start at the Dnt Sch in the fall 08, right? Also, I would have most likely found out that I got accepted in Feb - March 08? Thanks.

Clarence
 
pre-dentalguy said:
Hey guys, I'm going to retake the DAT.

Any advise on how far out one should start studying for the DAT and what study materials should be used?


Pre-dentalguy
Click to expand...

i used kaplan's online course $1000, and read baron's "chem the easy way" and "bio the easy way" (free, rented from library) to refresh on those areas since it has been awhile since i had gen chem and gen bio. then a week before taking the dat i downloaded dat achiever for like $50 and took 2 or 3 of the mock dat's. dat achiever is TERRIFIC. it is not a "study aid" in the sense that you will learn concepts from it -rather it lets you get familiar with the computerized format, timing, and target any weak areas.

study, study, study!!!!!
 
pre-dentalguy said:
Here's my question:

AADSAS application submittance is 15 May ever year and most school's start the interview process in Sep. Hyperthetically, if I were to put in my app. in May 07 and interviewed in Sep 07. I would start at the Dnt Sch in the fall 08, right? Also, I would have most likely found out that I got accepted in Feb - March 08? Thanks.

Clarence
Click to expand...

correct:)

i started studying in feb. of this year for the dat, took the dat 6/01, and submitted my aadsas app. the same day 6/01
 
Hey guys...

I just wanted to share my story and to gain some advice from you guys.

In May I graduated from Indiana University with a BS in Psych., a minor in Bio and a 2.898 cum. My stats look like this:
Bio 1 - B+
Bio 2 - B
Bio Lab - B+
GC 1 - C+
GC 2 - D-:( - currently retaking it...
O1 - C
O2 - C
Olab - B
Phys. 1 - B
Phys. 2 - N/A (currently enrolled)
Calculus - C-
Molecular Bio - C+
Genetics - C-
DAT - N/A - havent yet taken.
Extra currics - PLENTY shadowing time - since High school. Also volunteered at a dental clinic for the underserved population during a summer. Additionally went to Upenn to do a 3 week internship with head of the periodontal program there. I have research experience in a neuroscience lab and did some research at Miami med school during a summer. I was also born and lived in South Africa for 10 years - although I am not minority, do you think that could help my application?

My first sem. of junior year I graduated with a 1.55 GPA including that ugly D- GC 2. My long time girlfriend and I broke up and my parents split up - all of which took a tremendous toll on me...The following semester I had to attend UCF which was closer to home because of the difficult financial situation that resulted. They got back together my senior year and I returned back to IU.. Obviously that 1.5 just killed my overall GPA. All other semesters were 3.0 or better.

After graduating this May I felt extremely discouraged and that dentistry was no longer possible for me - I decided to end my pursuit of it. I began interviewing for jobs in the business world and I even looked into law. I did this up until about 2 weeks ago when I finally realized that dentistry was everything to me and that I needed to continue my pursuit of it.

I am now enrolled in Physics 2 and I am retaking GC 2. I am also going to be attending a Kaplan DAT class and studying my tush off for it. Next semester I plan on taking upper level/medical classes - Physiology, Histology, Biochem, and perhaps anatomy to give me some boost.

With that all said I was wondering what you guys think of my performance so far and if my plan for the next several months is a good one?

Also, given the difficult situation of my junior year, do you think the dent schools would cut me some slack - particularly for GC 2??

Any advice as to how I should approach my classes that I will be taking and how I should study and work to succeed in them would be great. Any additional advice as to what score I should be shooting for (other than a 30:)) on the DATs and what other things I should be doing to further myself would also be very helpful.

Most importantly for now though - I plan on taking the DATs in Dec/Jan. Would it reflect negatively if I just took GChem 2 this semester (as apposed to GC 2 AND physics 2) - so that I have more time to invest in the DATs. If I did that I would instead take Phys. 2 next semester with the other upper level science classes like physiology, biochem, histology....

Thanks for reading my looooong post and I look forward to many more discussions on this forum...

-Steve
 
Do well in the classes you are taking right now and do the same for the upper div courses next semester.

The only thing about taking physics next semester with the upper div courses is whether will have enough time to do well in all of the classes. It defeats the purpose if you overload your schedule and get mediocre grades - you want to make sure your transcript is clean from here on.

You have a lot of time at hand if you are planning on taking the dat in jan. I would suggest you take the ochem & the physics this semester, and spend a few hours each week on the DAT material amping if up the closer you get to the test date - the Kaplan course is a good start. Def. set the test date soon, so you have a time frame to work with. Once the semester ends in early Dec. seriously start studying for the DAT and take it before the next semester starts (mid jan?).

Supplement the Kaplan w/ Shaum's, Acheiver, TopScore, Destroyer...pick your poison

If everything goes accordingly you will be ready to apply first thing next June. Good Luck!
 
With stats similar to drteeth's, what are the best schools to apply to?
 
Maroon said:
With stats similar to drteeth's, what are the best schools to apply to?
Click to expand...

If you go to predents.com, you can list schools by average entry GPA, sGPA, DAT scores and more. Hope that helps
 
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hello everyone. first timer here.. i fell upon this forum and thread by doing a google search using my gpa and dental school as key words. i've been browsing old and new threads well, here's the breakdown, senior year, 2.65 gpa, taking a bunch of GE's that will hopefully raise my gpa to 2.75-2.78, 4 months dental assisting/office experience, and no DAT score. i'm just in the beggining process of opening a file and gathering up letters of rec, personal statements, and advice from people. my GPA worries me the most as i'm sure it does with everyone in this club. i'm gonna take kaplan test prep and take the test in january hopefully. i have lifesavings i'll probably blow on applying to most of the schools. it's a long shot but i hope i can do this... and i hope the best for everyone in here. :) -josh.
 
pre-dentalguy said:
Hey guys, I'm going to retake the DAT.

Any advise on how far out one should start studying for the DAT and what study materials should be used?


Pre-dentalguy
Click to expand...

I suggest getting your hands on everything related to the DAT. Get TopScore, DATAchiever, KAPLAN. 3 hours a day? Try to study more than that. Way more. It's your future we're talking about here. As for me, I used Kaplan for 1 week, and I used Achiever and TopScore for another. Then I reviewed all my notes (stuff I jotted down that I didn't know and topics that I sort of know but not in depth) for 2 days, and I scored 22/22/20. (My GPA isn't that great at Sci 2.9; CGPA 3.0) I regret not studying more. PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE. BTW, Kaplan's PATs suck. Their paper folding is REALLY easy. Use Achiever or Topscore more religiously for the PAT. Finally, pray hard. :)
 
Thanks for your comment guys! I dunno if I can do this, but Im gonna give it my best!
 
drteeth said:
Thanks for your comment guys! I dunno if I can do this, but Im gonna give it my best!
Click to expand...

YOU CAN DO IT!!!

I was in a very simial situation 2 years ago. I graudated with a BS in CompSci, with a 2.90 GPA. I was so unsure of myself then, but after taking a few science classes and managing good grades the ball started rolling. Nothing has stopped it even the recent death of my Best Friend right before the application process and DATs. Just make sure to do really well on your DATs (20+). Most importantly NEVER GIVE UP if this is what you really really want to do.

Good luck.
 
714guy - thanks for the encouragement! Honestly, its stories like yours and the others, and the encouragement that this thread brings that keeps me going. Every morning when I wake I feel like I can't do this, but then I read a few things on this forum and it makes me feel a whole lot better...
 
through others you find strength and hope, eventually it will come down to what you believe. Go through a mind change every morning. Wake up and tell yourself you will make all the necessary moves to get into dental school today. Do it day in and day out, then the load is not too big. Piece by piece my friend.
 
Thanks for the encouragement! I echo the words of drteeth...your advice and suggestions give me (and us all) hope. We got to get serious about this. Best wishes to everyone :)
 
Does anyone have any C's in there pre-req's (chem, ochem, bio, etc etc)?
 
I got a C in intro to bio but then a B Bio I and a B+ in Bio II and an A in Micro to make up for it
 
i posted in this thread about a year ago, desperate for anything that would help me understand what i could do to continue the pursuit the dentistry as a career.

since that time, i've taken orgo (B+), Mammalian Phsyio (A-), Genetics (A-), Orgo2 (A-), Orgo lab (A), Cell Bio (A) and have taken my DATs (see sig)

for my efforts, I have one interview at Columbia. Although it doesn't seem like much, I am beyond grateful for it - i wasn't even planning on applying this cycle (which, by default would have rendered zero interviews)

I didn't want to post in this thread until I had something substantial to show (by example) that hard work and dedication can and will pay off. There are hundreds of oppurtunties - just start reaching out and grabbing them.

For those who have a long road ahead: if dentistry is truly what you want to dedicate your life to, start now.

pre-dent guy: if you look at my first 2 posts - you can see the kinds of grades and odds I was up against. In brief: 1 W, D+ in calc 2, C in gen bio 1 and 2, C in gen chem 2, C+ in micro (taken over summer).

I hope that this can bring some ray of hope to those who are in the same position I was in. By no means am I set, just that I've got the ball rolling -- if only I can do that about going to the gym . . i think i'd be truly perfect then :laugh:
 
Clover said:
i posted in this thread about a year ago, desperate for anything that would help me understand what i could do to continue the pursuit the dentistry as a career.

since that time, i've taken orgo (B+), Mammalian Phsyio (A-), Genetics (A-), Orgo2 (A-), Orgo lab (A), Cell Bio (A) and have taken my DATs (see sig)

for my efforts, I have one interview at Columbia. Although it doesn't seem like much, I am beyond grateful for it - i wasn't even planning on applying this cycle (which, by default would have rendered zero interviews)

I didn't want to post in this thread until I had something substantial to show (by example) that hard work and dedication can and will pay off. There are hundreds of oppurtunties - just start reaching out and grabbing them.

For those who have a long road ahead: if dentistry is truly what you want to dedicate your life to, start now.

pre-dent guy: if you look at my first 2 posts - you can see the kinds of grades and odds I was up against. In brief: 1 W, D+ in calc 2, C in gen bio 1 and 2, C in gen chem 2, C+ in micro (taken over summer).

I hope that this can bring some ray of hope to those who are in the same position I was in. By no means am I set, just that I've got the ball rolling -- if only I can do that about going to the gym . . i think i'd be truly perfect then :laugh:
Click to expand...


Thanks for the counsel guys. That's great intel... just what I needed.
 
AADSAS: BCP: 2.65 Science: 2.67 Non Science: 3.79 Cumulative 3.14

Microbiology teaching assistant: 2 Years
SHadowing: 60+ hours
High School Athletic Coach: 2 Years (about 550 hrs total)
Biology major
senior year: 32 biology credits
screwed up freshman year, Cs in all entry level bio classes. As and Bs since then.
DAT: September 30th, anticipating 21-25 AA, depending on how this last week goes.
UDMercy undergrad
Applying to: UDM, Michigan, Case, USC, NYU, SUNY Buffalo, Arizona, Tufts, and Boston

science committee interview for letter told me "I need to ace the DAT to get into a school of choice"
Pressure?

any advice, help, words of wisdom, stories, anything welcomed
 
Hi, I have graduated this year and I am trying to take DAT next month.
The problem is that I haven't got any recommendation letter yet.
I am wondering if there is a special recommendation form or is it literally a written letter.
oh,,another question is one of the professor said she need to see my transcript and CV.
what is CV:confused:
and my grades are no good..
is it going to affect how she writes me the recommendat letter?
Please someone help me..I know so little about this application process.
 
Tare said:
Hi, I have graduated this year and I am trying to take DAT next month.
The problem is that I haven't got any recommendation letter yet.
I am wondering if there is a special recommendation form or is it literally a written letter.
oh,,another question is one of the professor said she need to see my transcript and CV.
what is CV:confused:
and my grades are no good..
is it going to affect how she writes me the recommendat letter?
Please someone help me..I know so little about this application process.
Click to expand...

The LR's are written literature from your academic professor. Your CV stands for curriculum vitae or, in other words, a more extensive resume'. A curriculum vitae means "course of one's life". It's a document that gives much more detail than does a resume about your academic and professional accomplishments. Hope this helps!!

Pre-dentalguy
 
usc dental was at my school today and said my 2.7 wouldn't cut it, but they said if i went to graduate school they would most likely interview me once i finish it. they said i'd have a better chance of out state. the lady was from the admissions office and she was really nice and honest and helpful. she said i should apply to dental schools and graduate schools at the same time incase the dental doesn't follow through, i don't have to wait around for graduate school registration/application.
 
slashnroses19 said:
usc dental was at my school today and said my 2.7 wouldn't cut it, but they said if i went to graduate school they would most likely interview me once i finish it. they said i'd have a better chance of out state. the lady was from the admissions office and she was really nice and honest and helpful. she said i should apply to dental schools and graduate schools at the same time incase the dental doesn't follow through, i don't have to wait around for graduate school registration/application.
Click to expand...


Did she mention anything about your sgpa or DAT scores?
 
Okay guys, it's been approx. 2 weeks and we haven't had any activity on the forum. Let's get it back going!
 
I am new to the club, but w/e, just letting you know that there is hope for us.

I have an interview at BU this Monday!

5 of 7 schools I applied have sent me a secondary appl.

__________


AA/TS/PAT
20/22/17

BCP:3.03
ovr gpa:2.86
 
It's encouraging to see others in my situation. I have a GPA slightly under 3.0 and this is my third time applying, but I have interviewed at Creighton, UNC, and ASDOH this year. Persistence and passion pay off, just keep pursuing a dream.:)
 
3xCharm said:
It's encouraging to see others in my situation. I have a GPA slightly under 3.0 and this is my third time applying, but I have interviewed at Creighton, UNC, and ASDOH this year. Persistence and passion pay off, just keep pursuing a dream.:)
Click to expand...
3XCharm: Could you tell me how did you improve your appl. each time?
 
no need to defend armor, I was just asking a question. as long as there isn't a tooth at the end of his armor, then we are buds.
 
amsie said:
In defense of armorshell, he also did better on the DAT than anyone I know(this cycle).
Click to expand...
Haha, no worries amsie, that UNLV calc. works out great for me. If 50 is what it takes to get in, I think my stats came out to a calc of like 39.4, and the interview counts for up to 25 points!
 
Great stats on part one, mine was also in the high 30's. So as long as we weren't/aren't ******ed in our interview, we should feel good about our chances there.
 
If I'm applying for the 2008 cycle, would taking the DAT for the 1st time in April 2007 be a good plan? My GPA is also sub 3.0 for both sci and overall.
 
3xCharm said:
It's encouraging to see others in my situation. I have a GPA slightly under 3.0 and this is my third time applying, but I have interviewed at Creighton, UNC, and ASDOH this year. Persistence and passion pay off, just keep pursuing a dream.:)
Click to expand...


If you don't mind me asking, how did you improve your application?
 
For Maroon
Yes and submit early to improve your chances. Make sure you take the exam once and only once! Use your entire resources take a min. of nine practice full lengths!
 
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