Undergraduate School

[HawkNelson]

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Does the college I attend for Undergrad affect my acceptance to Dental school? And if so, by how much? Say you are comparing two students with equal stats, one from University of Washington, the other from Eastern Washington University.

 

[AlbinoPolarBear]

I would say it does matter, but not significantly.
Just as long as both schools are 4-year universities.
Either way, your GPA and DAT score is more important than what school you go to.
A 4.00 GPA at EWU is a lot more impressive than a 3.20 GPA at UW.

The DAT is the great equalizer that dental schools use compare applicants from different institutions.

 

[amanda9717]

If you use the search function you'll find that there are a ton of threads on this topic already.

 

[DentalJedi]

The only way it matters is if your DAT doesn't back up your GPA. So if you go to an unknown school and have a great GPA but a 17 AA they're going to assume you aren't as smart as your GPA makes you seem. But I go to a small public school that isn't well known at all, but I was still able to get a good number of interviews and acceptances.

 

[dentalprodigy]

It does. Community college applicant is at an disadvantage compared to an normal 4 year university applicant

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[woolloo]

Does the college I attend for Undergrad affect my acceptance to Dental school? And if so, by how much? Say you are comparing two students with equal stats, one from University of Washington, the other from Eastern Washington University.

Yes. I received this statement from one of the schools I applied to: "...many other factors come into our consideration of a candidate: community service, experience in dentistry, motivation toward dentistry, letters of recommendation, applicant essay, credit hours/course load and competitiveness of undergraduate institution, etc..."

 

[devz4lf]

the undergrad school matters, not by a huge margin but it is def a factor for admission.

 

[FLOSS UR TEETH]

Does the college I attend for Undergrad affect my acceptance to Dental school? And if so, by how much? Say you are comparing two students with equal stats, one from University of Washington, the other from Eastern Washington University.

No it doesn't! Go to the cheapest accredited 4-year undergrad that you can find offering your major and save the money for professional school! It's all about the numbers (GPA, DAT, EC).

 

[wired202808]

no it doesn't! Go to the cheapest accredited 4-year undergrad that you can find offering your major and save the money for professional school! It's all about the numbers (gpa, dat, ec).

+1

 

[HawkNelson]

No it doesn't! Go to the cheapest accredited 4-year undergrad that you can find offering your major and save the money for professional school! It's all about the numbers (GPA, DAT, EC).

So if I went to Eastern Washington University, a real low profile college and got a 4.0 it'd mean more than say a 3.7 at University of Washington?
And when should one start studying for the DAT? If you know. Thanks though!

 

[FLOSS UR TEETH]

So if I went to Eastern Washington University, a real low profile college and got a 4.0 it'd mean more than say a 3.7 at University of Washington?
And when should one start studying for the DAT? If you know. Thanks though!

It is not so much about the name of the school, but more so what you accomplish at a given school.

Both a 3.7 and a 4.0 would look good at any 4-year university accompanied by a good DAT score. In other words, you will not gain acceptance into so and so school soley because you attended UW.

It is actually smarter and more effective to attend a school where you will do best at. While you are at this school do things that make you stand out (study abroad, lots of shadowing hours, research, etc.). This is what matters the most.

A 3.4 with a 20 DAT and excellent/interesting EC's from EWU will look much better than a 3.4 with a 20 DAT and mediocre/low EC's from UW.

The MOST important thing is your GPA and DAT followed by your EC's, NOT the name of your school unless it is maybe any Ivy League. You are better off saving your money. I can name off many people who got into great d-schools including Ivy's who came from not as well-known undergrads.

 

[HawkDent16]

No it doesn't! Go to the cheapest accredited 4-year undergrad that you can find offering your major and save the money for professional school! It's all about the numbers (GPA, DAT, EC).

I agree fully. The only reason it would matter is if the Dental School you are interested in selects most of their instate students from their own university or a specific one. For example, University of Iowa takes a good 30 out of 54 in state students from University of Iowa. Even then though, I'd go to the cheapest school, get high grades and kill the DAT.

 

[UltimateHombre]

No it doesn't! Go to the cheapest accredited 4-year undergrad that you can find offering your major and save the money for professional school! It's all about the numbers (GPA, DAT, EC).

I am UltimateHombre and i endorse this message.