Volunteering

[FutureDDS98]

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Hey guys so I'm starting college in a few months and I was wondering about volunteering. Should I start to volunteer during my freshman year? Where should I volunteer as a pre-dental? Also I'm going to school in the middle of NYC. Is that good or bad?
Thanks [emoji1]


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[Advance]

You can start freshman year sure. You can do any volunteer activity you want. It doesn't have to be dental related. The location of your college doesn't matter.

 

[FutureDDS98]

You can start freshman year sure. You can do any volunteer activity you want. It doesn't have to be dental related. The location of your college doesn't matter.

Thanks for replying. How many hours do you think is necessary for getting into a dental school?


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[Advance]

Thanks for replying. How many hours do you think is necessary for getting into a dental school?


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That really all depends on other aspects of you application.

 

[JLT223]

I had over 2000 service hours but only 140 or so were dental related. That should be very manageable over 4 years of college.

 

[Ollivander]

ASDOH and MOSDOH require the most and you need at least 500 to be competitive for an interview. Aim for 750.

 

[FutureDDS98]

I had over 2000 service hours but only 140 or so were dental related. That should be very manageable over 4 years of college.

This may seem like a dumb question but how do I go about proving these hours? Do I need to have some system to prove all that?


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[Ollivander]

This may seem like a dumb question but how do I go about proving these hours? Do I need to have some system to prove all that?


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You don't have to prove all of them. Loads of people fudge their numbers. However, when you're in an interview and you need to give a recollection about the things you did, your responsibilities, or what you learned from doing said volunteer activity you're going to be in trouble if you are unethical in reporting those numbers. Some of my numbers are guesstimates from earlier on, but I've been keeping track with mine for the last year and a half on an Excel spreadsheet. You should also keep in mind that you can only list 10 volunteer activities on the AADSAS.

 

[FutureDDS98]

You don't have to prove all of them. Loads of people fudge their numbers. However, when you're in an interview and you need to give a recollection about the things you did, your responsibilities, or what you learned from doing said volunteer activity you're going to be in trouble if you are unethical in reporting those numbers. Some of my numbers are guesstimates, but I've been keeping track with mine for the last year and a half on an Excel spreadsheet. You should also keep in mind that you can only list 10 volunteer activities on the AADSAS.

Thanks for for replying. When you say I don't have to prove "all of them" what do you mean?


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[Scumbag_Steve]

.

 

[FutureDDS98]

He or she means there is nothing really besides the honor system that holds you accountable for not augmenting your hours. Schools do not contact the person who supervised you for each of your service activities to provide proof that the number of hours you listed on AADSAS is actually the number of hours you spent there. If they did, it would be if there is something fishy or a discrepancy of some sort. They don't have time to actually vet the thousands of legitimate applicants each year. Just be a good person and karma won't get you later on in life.

Thanks for the help.


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[Ollivander]

He or she means there is nothing really besides the honor system that holds you accountable for not augmenting your hours. Schools do not contact the person who supervised you for each of your service activities to provide proof that the number of hours you listed on AADSAS is actually the number of hours you spent there. If they did, it would be if there is something fishy or a discrepancy of some sort. They don't have time to actually vet the thousands of legitimate applicants each year. Just be a good person and karma won't get you later on in life.

@FuturePharmD2022, I would say this is spot on. The only exception is if you are required by the dental school to provide a letter of recommendation from a "volunteer coordinator". ASDOH and MOSDOH both require that, and Western might. I'm not sure about Western for sure, but they are slightly more volunteer oriented than others schools.