very low gpa

[axa5033]

i noticed that some people will criticize me for having an excuse for a low gpa, but i had 2 people close to me pass away over 2 years causing me to sink into a deep depression..

anyways i switched my major 5 times while in school..finally settling on biochem..my overall gpa is 2.04

if i do really well this semester, which i am so far i will end with a 2.14, this summer im taking some pre reqs which could potentially bring me to a 2.45 and i have about 22 credits to graduate which means i could take some buffer classes to bring up my overall gpa

i havent taken the dat yet, but i took a practice test and did ok like 15-17 i dont remember

im doing research now, and working 2 jobs

i plan on applying at the end of this spring semester..I DONT CARE IF YOU SAY ANYTHING NEGATIVE..i am more then a sum of my parts..i am NOT JUST A GPA..even though thats what represents me, i have at least 3 great proffesors writting reqs for me and at least one from a very well known orthodontist

i know my stats are horrendous but its not impossible for me to get to my goal..just dont be *******s..i understand realistically im a poor if not horrible candidate but im going to try anyways..

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[dentalWorks]

Not impossible at all for you to get into dental school one day. But you will not get in this cycle if you apply.... save your money. Spend 1 additional year doing post-bacc courses, you really need to bring that GPA to something higher than 3.0

You took a practice DAT and got 15-17, Im sorry but with your stats thats not considered "okay".... I'll use your own word here, thats "horrendous". However I am one of these believers that practice DAT scores have nothing to do with how you'll actually perform on the DAT.

I am not trying to put you down, I underestand you've had a hard time with some of the unfortunate events that took place, but, most dental schools wanna see students bounce back. You are trying to bounce back, but you haven't done so yet. Work on that, bring that GPA to a respectable level then you can start throwing statements like "i am more then a sum of my parts"

One final note I'd like to add is that everything I said so far is not based on actual facts, but its simply an opinion I developed from being a 3-year nontraditional pre-dental student.

Good luck to ya

 

[axa5033]

ive been debating whether or not to wait and apply next year

my family is saying be positive it will happen but deep down i know i should wait, why rush something very important ya know..

i do consider myself a nontrad student bc i was an expat for most my life living in the states for only 3 years before going off to college..which kinda sucks bc i had different study habits and experiences then regular teens.NOT AN EXCUSE just a fact, europeans are different than americans

so my best chances would be to wait a year?..and do what after that..just work and do research? what do you mean by post bacc study? i dont want to go to grad school..and spend a **** ton and then go to dental school and spend even more..stupid

 

[psi169]

.

 

[ToothFairy88]

I know how you feel man... it feels like it is so hard to hold your head above the water when you have everything else going in life. I wish I had gotten serious earlier... I thought I was serious, but I wasted like 2 years in a community college because I thought it would be cheaper. It turns out I took a bunch of unneccessary classes, and not all of them transferred when I transfered to a university. I have been in college since 2006 and just this semester I am considered a Junior. On top of that, it's tough to pay bills and student loans when my work hours are limited. Just keep trying!

 

[spud daddy]

There is no way you will be accepted this cycle so I agree with dentalworks do some post bacc work. Post bacc is not a masters program per se but just classes to take after you graduate. You need to bring up your GPA and then kill the DAT. Ok on the DAT is an 18 or 19, not a 15 or 17. Take a year to take courses to boost your gpa and study for the DAT and take it early spring of 2011.

 

[Rubber Dam Man]

I highly recommend saving your money and waiting to apply at least next year. Although you have your reasons for a low GPA, it is highly unlikely that you would get into dental school with those numbers. I have been in the application cycle for a number of years and have spoke to several schools and they need to see a solid GPA and DAT scores. I'm not saying you have no shot at all because you never know, but from my experiences, I recommend taking a bunch of upper-level science classes and acing them. Subsequently, I would suggest you look for a one-year masters program in Biology - this will give you a fresh start with your GPA and allow you to prove that you can handle rigorous graduate level classes. A post-bacc is also an option, but even if you get A's in every class of your post-bacc, your GPA will only come up to about a 3.0 which kind of puts you on the fence. So all in all, do well from here on out... get yourself into a one-year M.S. program... aim for at least a 20 on your DATs... and keep up with your volunteer work.

In the end, it might take you 2-3 years to get back on track to show adcoms that you can handle dental school, but you certainly can still make it. gl

 

[ToothFairy88]

Rubber Dam Man, I love your icon

 

[Rubber Dam Man]

Rubber Dam Man, I love your icon

Thanks!

 

[subdoc]

Unfortunately, I don't even think a one year post-bacc will help. 1 year of solid A course work will only put a small dent on your GPA. Look for a two year program and crush ALL your classes. You want...go get it.

You would be foolish to waste your money on applying and/or DAT until you get your grades up. Wait until you get somewhere north of 2.75 before you even think about signing up for the DAT. If you get a great score (think over 20) then consider applying. In the meantime, still take practice tests and keep the DAT plate spinning in the background.

Showing very upward trends on GPA after what you have been through CAN be a tremendous positive; however, you don't stand a chance until you get your GPA above a 2.75ish.

Best of luck.

 

[DatRat86]

Yeah bro, but I agree with the rest, dont apply this year! Save your money!!!!! you will not be concidered at all tell you have at least 2.75, I had a 3.2 gpa and an average dat score, and the only reason I got in was because I knew everyone at USC! Besides that I got rejected from most all of the other schools!

 

[Mycuspidissharp]

axa,
Keep your head up, take a deep breath, know that life is good, and don't ever stop trying. Good Luck.

 

[dentalWorks]

My response = in blue

ive been debating whether or not to wait and apply next year
you really should, maybe wait 2 years. Just because you want to be a dentist doesn't mean you have to apply RIGHT away? Take 1-2 years off doing "post-bacc" (I'll explain what this is in a little bit)

my family is saying be positive it will happen but deep down i know i should wait, why rush something very important ya know..
excellent advice, don't rush something this big

i do consider myself a nontrad student bc i was an expat for most my life living in the states for only 3 years before going off to college..which kinda sucks bc i had different study habits and experiences then regular teens.NOT AN EXCUSE just a fact, europeans are different than americans

so my best chances would be to wait a year?..and do what after that..just work and do research? what do you mean by post bacc study? i dont want to go to grad school..and spend a **** ton and then go to dental school and spend even more..stupid
post-bacc is when you go back to any college (try to avoid community colleges) and start taking undergrad level courses. They call it "post-bacc" cause its after your graduate. This is a very important thing because post-bacc does add into your overall GPA, so you can increase that overall GPA.

Let me run some numbers by you. Lets assume right now You have a 2.0 GPA with (say 120 credit hours). If you want to bring that 2.0 to a 3.0, you will need to take another 120 credit hours in your post-bacc (hell you might as well go for a 2nd bachelors degree) and 4.0 EVERY COURSE to bring your overall from 2.0 to 3.0. Cause at the end of it, they add EVERYTHING together, you'll have 240 credits with an overall GPA of 3.0. This is why I was telling you to not apply this year, you need time and HEAVY effort to bring that GPA back up.

Another thing I want to add is, you might want to avoid doing a masters program now because master classes do NOT add into your overall undergrad GPA (like the way post-bacc courses do). So even if you ace your masters and get a 4.0 in it, your application will show your original undergrad GPA (say 2.45) and masters GPA 4.0

The major problem with this is, many schools nowadays have undergrad GPA cutoffs of 3.0 (some are like 2.75), so UNLESS you hit that mark, you are sure to get automatically rejected from their system before they even get a chance to interview you

The smartest thing you can do for yourself right now is fixing that GPA. Take upper level sciences (like microbiology, physiology, anatomy, biochemistry, etc etc etc) and try to get a 4.0 in all of them. Dont' worry about the DAT yet, just fix that GPA.

 

[axa5033]

THANKS EVERYONE!

you all had great input and just helps solidify my choice to wait and take some more classes once i graduate to help boost my gpa