Hi! Just took my DAT today, here was my breakdown:
22AA | 21TS | 23Bio | 21 Gc | 20Orgo | 26RC | 21Qr | 19PAT.
Studied only using bootcamp. Do you think my scores are competitive enough to get into top programs? I go to a challenging school and my GPA is a 4.0.
Congratulations on finishing the DAT! Super challenging part of the application process, so it's good to have behind you.
Your GPA is fantastic, which will definitely help a ton when it comes to applications. There is a bit of a GPA-DAT score discordance, which I know some of the more competitive schools don't like much. That being said, so long as you have something special about your application that sets you apart from other applicants (besides just your DAT), I think you have a great shot to get accepted somewhere!
To be entirely honest, there are no "top" dental school programs. One year in, I realize this is much more true than I thought when I was choosing where to apply and attend. There are definitely more competitive programs though, with names you can probably imagine yourself. Those programs really look much further than your GPA and DAT, so having that "special thing" on your application becomes much more important. Regardless, like
@Sibito said, you need to apply to less selective schools where your stats are higher than average, so you don't need to go through another application cycle if things go awry with your top choices.
Hopefully this gives you a bit of reassurance and realism. Apply broadly and you should be just fine!
Best of luck!
