Tough Situation

[bing12]

I have a friend that has come to me for advice, but I am split on how to advice them because I believe their situation is a bit complicated. He has recently decided to pursue dentistry. Some info on him:

Just graduated from a relatively competitive school with a BS Psychology
ogpa: 2.8
-taken only 4 science classes that are pre-reqs, 3 of them with a C-, one of them with a C+, so must retake 3 of the classes. the classes with a retake are orgo 1, genchem 2 and one of the intro bios. These classes were taken during his freshmen and sophomore year, but his grades have an upward trend.

I have personally said that taking classes at this relatively uncompetitive 4-year school would be a good idea, but then i started thinking that ADCOMS might look down on someone who did poorly in their undergrad sciences at a competitive school and does well in a fairly uncompetitive school would not look great ( want to stress that this school is known to be uncompetitive, but to be fair I have taken 1 pre-req at this college during the summer, so its not THAT bad).

He also has the opportunity to take the GRE before it changes( aug 1st the GRE becomes essentially more difficult), but I am not sure if a masters program would help his situation very much. The only way i think it would help is if he was trying to prove them self by possibly doing 1 year in this uncompetitive 4 year school, then transferring to a 1 year masters?

Question is, WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THIS STUDENT TO DO WITH THIS SITUATION?

Any comments/criticisms are welcome.

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[doc toothache]

If he has a hard time with sciences isn't it a bit premature to worry about what adcoms think? Is there a guarantee that all courses taken at a cc will translate into A's?

 

[bing12]

If he has a hard time with sciences isn't it a bit premature to worry about what adcoms think? Is there a guarantee that all courses taken at a cc will translate into A's?

At the time he was very immature, and had very poor time management skills ( like anyone else who had problems in their freshmen year). And there is a very high probability that he could get at least a B+, but more likely an A-/A. I would anticipate a min of a 3.5 or above at the uncompetitive school( I have graduated at the same undergrad he has, and have taken classes at both the competitive and uncompetitive school that i mentioned).

 

[bing12]

bump

 

[NguyenDDS]

Hi bing12 🙂

Just my opinion... but I think the best route would be to retake the classes he got a C- in AT his competitive school and he must make A's in them... then take the rest of his prereqs at a CC and he MUST make A's in them. If he knows he can make A's on the rest of his prereqs at his competitive school, then he should do that instead of at a CC. After he takes his prereqs, study hard for the DAT and do well on it. He should be getting all A's on the rest of his prereqs, so his cGPA should be about or above 3.0 at this point. Then, apply for a 1-year formal postbacc/master's program with his DAT score. No need to take the GRE 🙂

So in summary...
1. Retake C- courses at the competitive school.
2. Take the rest of the prereqs at CC, ALTHOUGH taking it at his competitive school is highly recommended.
3. Take DAT and do well.
4. Get into a 1-year postbacc/master's program in biomedical sciences with the DAT score.
5. Apply for dental school.

 

[iralex801]

Retake the courses at a 4 year university. I don't understand why he would go take courses at a uncompetitive school if he doesn't have stressful circumstances where he has to.

If he doesn't have a good reason for switching to the uncompetitive schools, it makes it seem like he was unable to do well at the competitive school and took the easy route out. If he is still unable to do well after he retakes the courses with 100% focus at the competitive university, then maybe dentistry isn't for him. The science courses in dentistry will be a lot harder.

 

[Winter Wind]

I agree with the post above. He should retake his courses at his competitive institute and do well so he can show that he has what it takes and doesn't shy away from challenges. I think it will look much better than him going to a university that is known for it's uncompetitiveness as you say. If he can't step it up at his competitive university, I think it would make one question if he could succeed in dental school.

 

[dentalWorks]

I have a friend that has come to me for advice, but I am split on how to advice them because I believe their situation is a bit complicated. He has recently decided to pursue dentistry. Some info on him:

Just graduated from a relatively competitive school with a BS Psychology
ogpa: 2.8
-taken only 4 science classes that are pre-reqs, 3 of them with a C-, one of them with a C+, so must retake 3 of the classes. the classes with a retake are orgo 1, genchem 2 and one of the intro bios. These classes were taken during his freshmen and sophomore year, but his grades have an upward trend.

I have personally said that taking classes at this relatively uncompetitive 4-year school would be a good idea, but then i started thinking that ADCOMS might look down on someone who did poorly in their undergrad sciences at a competitive school and does well in a fairly uncompetitive school would not look great ( want to stress that this school is known to be uncompetitive, but to be fair I have taken 1 pre-req at this college during the summer, so its not THAT bad).

He also has the opportunity to take the GRE before it changes( aug 1st the GRE becomes essentially more difficult), but I am not sure if a masters program would help his situation very much. The only way i think it would help is if he was trying to prove them self by possibly doing 1 year in this uncompetitive 4 year school, then transferring to a 1 year masters?

Question is, WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THIS STUDENT TO DO WITH THIS SITUATION?

Any comments/criticisms are welcome.

IMO, he needs to fix his numbers (duh ~ this is priority #1). Also, it would be wise for him to do post-bacc at a university (not CC). Even if the university is "less" competitive than his initial one, it doesn't mean anything. People's studying/work ethics change, and this is usually reflected by the upward trends (should he do well).

Upward trend > name or reputation of university

also, it would VERY wise for him to do post-bacc (not masters) since he doesn't have much undergrad sciences under his/her belt. There are PLENTY of upper level bios for him to take, it will significantly bring up the sGPA and BCP