WAMC 2024-2025 Cycle - Average EC, any advice ?

[acerdat1]

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Date of submission: June
Overall GPA: 3.89
Science GPA: 3.79
DAT score (include AA and all sections): 24 AA 23 TS 27 Bio, 24 GC, 19 OC, 22 PAT, 26 RC, 24 QR
State of Residence: FL
Undergrad Attended: UF
Major: Psychology with concentration in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? No, 1 gap year
Shadowing Experience: 140 hours
140 hours at general dentist
~90 hours (Cosmetic dentist during the senior year of High school - will not use it but mention in the PS)
Non Dental Shadowing Experience: (will not use it but mention in the PS to compare between dental and non dental related medical fields) : 330 hours
30 hours at Nephrologist
~300 hours shadowing at different medical specialities
Volunteering Experience: 172 hours
28 hours in Community care clinic
32 hours (south florida charitable organization)
12 hours in Food bank (will be continuing to volunteer)
100 hours in college club involved in fundraising, community service etc
Employment: 351 hours
104 hours as Kumon instructor during High school (will not use it)
270 hours as Clinical Psychology Associate
81 hours at a general physician clinic - worked at front office (also will mention in the PS about the time spent at the clinic to compare between
dental and non dental related medical fields)
Research: 167 hours
167 hours - Neuroscience research project during 2 semesters, no publication
Other Extracurriculars: 30 hours
30 hours - Physics 2 Learning Assistant
Have you volunteered/shadowed/attended events at any dental schools?
Fundamentals of Dental Assisting Certification from UFCD
Relevant Honors or Awards:
Deans list mostly on all semesters
Phi Beta Kappa - Invited during Junior year (actually as a sophomore as I already have credits worth junior level)
LOR type and strength:
3 profs (2 science, 1 non-science), 1 Supervisor, 1 Dentist
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags:
None, still completing prerequisite courses over this summer - Anatomy & Physiology that seems to be required at quite a few colleges and should be done and graduate out of the college by the end of this summer.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Connecting with admissions professionals or attending recruitment events (like the upcoming ADEA GoDental Virtual Fair) will help you better understand "what adcoms are looking for."

I would make your community service experience more consistent (i.e., food bank), as you noted. Get that up to 100-150 hours.

You can downplay the physician shadowing. None of the specialties you shadowed interact with dentists. The front office work though, you can mention.

Catch up on issues affecting dentistry. You want to go into this profession with eyes wide open. Have a plan for how you intend to manage the student debt.

 

[Ryxndek]

Don't include the HS shadowing hours.

Definitely need more volunteering hours, that seems too low for now.

5 LOR's is over the 4 LOR limit, anticipate having the dentist send to your top schools if they accept additional LOR's outside of AADSAS

I'm not getting mega premed from your app, I think you're okay. But definitely need to get your volunteer hours up.

 

[macsak]

Date of submission: June
Overall GPA: 3.89
Science GPA: 3.79
DAT score (include AA and all sections): 24 AA 23 TS 27 Bio, 24 GC, 19 OC, 22 PAT, 26 RC, 24 QR
State of Residence: FL
Undergrad Attended: UF
Major: Psychology with concentration in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? No, 1 gap year
Shadowing Experience:
140 hours at general dentist
~90 hours (Cosmetic dentist during the senior year of High school - not sure if I can use it)
Non Dental Shadowing Experience:
30 hours at Nephrologist
81 hours at a general physician clinic - worked at front office and shadowed the doctor
~300 hours shadowing at different medical specialities (done while in High school Pre-Med track - again not sure if I can use it)
Volunteering Experience:
28 hours in Community care clinic
32 hours in Food bank (will be continuing to volunteer)
Employment:
104 hours as Kumon instructor during High school (not sure if I can use it)
270 hours as Clinical Psychology Associate
Research:
167 hours - Neuroscience research project during 2 semesters, no publication
Other Extracurriculars:
30 hours - Physics 2 Learning Assistant
100 hours - Phi Delta Epsilon club related activities and events (no leadership)
Have you volunteered/shadowed/attended events at any dental schools? No dental school events
Relevant Honors or Awards: Deans list mostly on all semesters, Phi Beta Kappa - Invited during Junior year (actually as a sophomore as I already have credits worth junior level)
LOR type and strength: 3 profs (2 science, 1 non-science), 1 Supervisor, 1 Dentist
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags: None, still completing prerequisite courses over this summer - Anatomy & Physiology that seems to be required at quite a few colleges and should be done and graduate out of the college by the end of this summer.

As you can see, I don't have any strong and consistent EC's. I have shadowed doctors in non-dental field across various medical specialities as well as a dentist during High school years. In comparing different health specialties, I have found that dentistry is more hands on and something I always liked. I have decided to commit to dental path late in my undergrad years, in fact the bulk of shadowing (140 hours) I have done at a local dentist starting from the beginning of this year. I am now 100% certain that I can really focus on this path and is something I would like to pursue.

(P.S - I did not take MCAT and took DAT only once)

Can you suggest how this late career path decision will be viewed by the adcoms, and should I skip this cycle and work as a dental assistant to enhance my chances. Also I do not have any consistent community volunteering service at any specific place and might use the time to really spend some quality time at a local food bank.

Any thoughts ??

the only part about your app that is weak is your volunteering
and the fact that you have not attended any events at dental schools

do not list high school ECs...

 

[macsak]

Date of submission: June
Overall GPA: 3.89
Science GPA: 3.79
DAT score (include AA and all sections): 24 AA 23 TS 27 Bio, 24 GC, 19 OC, 22 PAT, 26 RC, 24 QR
State of Residence: FL
Undergrad Attended: UF
Major: Psychology with concentration in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? No, 1 gap year
Shadowing Experience:
140 hours at general dentist
~90 hours (Cosmetic dentist during the senior year of High school - not sure if I can use it)
Non Dental Shadowing Experience:
30 hours at Nephrologist
81 hours at a general physician clinic - worked at front office and shadowed the doctor
~300 hours shadowing at different medical specialities (done while in High school Pre-Med track - again not sure if I can use it)
Volunteering Experience:
28 hours in Community care clinic
32 hours in Food bank (will be continuing to volunteer)
Employment:
104 hours as Kumon instructor during High school (not sure if I can use it)
270 hours as Clinical Psychology Associate
Research:
167 hours - Neuroscience research project during 2 semesters, no publication
Other Extracurriculars:
30 hours - Physics 2 Learning Assistant
100 hours - Phi Delta Epsilon club related activities and events (no leadership)
Have you volunteered/shadowed/attended events at any dental schools? No dental school events
Relevant Honors or Awards: Deans list mostly on all semesters, Phi Beta Kappa - Invited during Junior year (actually as a sophomore as I already have credits worth junior level)
LOR type and strength: 3 profs (2 science, 1 non-science), 1 Supervisor, 1 Dentist
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags: None, still completing prerequisite courses over this summer - Anatomy & Physiology that seems to be required at quite a few colleges and should be done and graduate out of the college by the end of this summer.

As you can see, I don't have any strong and consistent EC's. I have shadowed doctors in non-dental field across various medical specialities as well as a dentist during High school years. In comparing different health specialties, I have found that dentistry is more hands on and something I always liked. I have decided to commit to dental path late in my undergrad years, in fact the bulk of shadowing (140 hours) I have done at a local dentist starting from the beginning of this year. I am now 100% certain that I can really focus on this path and is something I would like to pursue.

(P.S - I did not take MCAT and took DAT only once)

Can you suggest how this late career path decision will be viewed by the adcoms, and should I skip this cycle and work as a dental assistant to enhance my chances. Also I do not have any consistent community volunteering service at any specific place and might use the time to really spend some quality time at a local food bank.

Any thoughts ??

do you feel you can write an excellent personal statement that explains "why dentistry?"...

 

[acerdat1]

do you feel you can write an excellent personal statement that explains "why dentistry?"...

Yes I am working on it now. I understand your point, how important it can be, especially in my situation since I had no meaningful dental related experiences throughout my undergrad years except for the most recent one. But I did spend good amount of time in my High school dedicated to exploring the dentistry. Even though I cannot list the HS experience under shadowing, do you think I can bring this up in my PS. Because I think it really helped me compare with shadowing experiences I had in other areas of medical field and make an informed decision where my interest lies. The last experience I had with the dentist on longer term really solidified my decision.

 

[acerdat1]

Don't include the HS shadowing hours.

Definitely need more volunteering hours, that seems too low for now.

5 LOR's is over the 4 LOR limit, anticipate having the dentist send to your top schools if they accept additional LOR's outside of AADSAS

I'm not getting mega premed from your app, I think you're okay. But definitely need to get your volunteer hours up.

Thanks for your feedback..and yes I will continue to spend most of my time volunteering at the community service.

 

[acerdat1]

the only part about your app that is weak is your volunteering
and the fact that you have not attended any events at dental schools

do not list high school ECs...

Certainly I will continue to volunteer and also plan on attending ADEA GoDental Virtual Fair for more insights! Thanks

 

[acerdat1]

Connecting with admissions professionals or attending recruitment events (like the upcoming ADEA GoDental Virtual Fair) will help you better understand "what adcoms are looking for."

I would make your community service experience more consistent (i.e., food bank), as you noted. Get that up to 100-150 hours.

You can downplay the physician shadowing. None of the specialties you shadowed interact with dentists. The front office work though, you can mention.

Catch up on issues affecting dentistry. You want to go into this profession with eyes wide open. Have a plan for how you intend to manage the student debt.

>> You can downplay the physician shadowing. None of the specialties you shadowed interact with dentists. The front office work though, you can mention.

I will definitely look into it and thanks for your advice. I had a dual role partly shadowing and woking at the front office. The later part I can use to categorize it under work experience (although it is not paid). Is that more or less aligns with your thinking ?

 

[macsak]

Yes I am working on it now. I understand your point, how important it can be, especially in my situation since I had no meaningful dental related experiences throughout my undergrad years except for the most recent one. But I did spend good amount of time in my High school dedicated to exploring the dentistry. Even though I cannot list the HS experience under shadowing, do you think I can bring this up in my PS. Because I think it really helped me compare with shadowing experiences I had in other areas of medical field and make an informed decision where my interest lies. The last experience I had with the dentist on longer term really solidified my decision.

yes, you can talk about it in your PS

 

[Mr.Smile12]

>> You can downplay the physician shadowing. None of the specialties you shadowed interact with dentists. The front office work though, you can mention.

I will definitely look into it and thanks for your advice. I had a dual role partly shadowing and woking at the front office. The later part I can use to categorize it under work experience (although it is not paid). Is that more or less aligns with your thinking ?

In your activity description, emphasize the patient interactions of your front desk work (including managing scheduling). You can discuss if necessary your shadowing in a way to compare between medicine and dentistry, but I wouldn't highlight your physician shadowing otherwise.

 

[acerdat1]

Date of submission: June
Overall GPA: 3.89
Science GPA: 3.79
DAT score (include AA and all sections): 24 AA 23 TS 27 Bio, 24 GC, 19 OC, 22 PAT, 26 RC, 24 QR
State of Residence: FL
Undergrad Attended: UF
Major: Psychology with concentration in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? No, 1 gap year
Shadowing Experience:
140 hours at general dentist
~90 hours (Cosmetic dentist during the senior year of High school - will not use it but mention in the PS)
Non Dental Shadowing Experience: (will not use it but mention in the PS to compare between dental and non dental related medical fields)
30 hours at Nephrologist
~300 hours shadowing at different medical specialities
Volunteering Experience:
28 hours in Community care clinic
32 hours (south florida charitable organization - Morning Day)
12 hours in Food bank (will be continuing to volunteer)
100 hours in college club involved in fundraising, community service etc
Employment:
104 hours as Kumon instructor during High school (will not use it)
270 hours as Clinical Psychology Associate
81 hours at a general physician clinic - worked at front office (also will mention in the PS about the time spent at the clinic to compare between dental and non dental related medical fields)
Research:
167 hours - Neuroscience research project during 2 semesters, no publication
Other Extracurriculars:
30 hours - Physics 2 Learning Assistant
Have you volunteered/shadowed/attended events at any dental schools? Fundamentals of Dental Assisting Certification from UFCD
Relevant Honors or Awards: Deans list mostly on all semesters, Phi Beta Kappa - Invited during Junior year (actually as a sophomore as I already have credits worth junior level)
LOR type and strength: 3 profs (2 science, 1 non-science), 1 Supervisor, 1 Dentist
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags: None, still completing prerequisite courses over this summer - Anatomy & Physiology that seems to be required at quite a few colleges and should be done and graduate out of the college by the end of this summer.

As you can see, I don't have any strong and consistent EC's. I have shadowed doctors in non-dental field across various medical specialities as well as a dentist during High school years. In comparing different health specialties, I have found that dentistry is more hands on and something I always liked. I have decided to commit to dental path late in my undergrad years, in fact the bulk of shadowing (140 hours) I have done at a local dentist starting from the beginning of this year. I am now 100% certain that I can really focus on this path and is something I would like to pursue.

(P.S - I did not take MCAT and took DAT only once)

Can you suggest how this late career path decision will be viewed by the adcoms, and should I skip this cycle and work as a dental assistant to enhance my chances. Also I do not have any consistent community volunteering service at any specific place and might use the time to really spend some quality time at a local food bank.

Any thoughts ??

Thanks for all of your valuable input so far....!! I have changed the format a bit accounting for the latest and continuing volunteering experience as well as time spent in my school club where I was involved in the fund raising and other community service. I was not sure if I could include the hours from the club as part of community service volunteering but after taking a look at the ADEA community service guidelines in the link here it looks like I can re-categorize it. I have also taken your feedback into consideration to categorize my activities at the physician clinic as work experience and highlight my work at the front office where I have spent majority of my time. Also I have added the DA certification obtained at UFCD.

Here are my latest EC stats after revisions

Volunteering = 172 hours (and ongoing)
Teaching experience = 30 hours
Work experience = 351 hours
Dental Shadowing = 140 hours
Research = 167 hours

I would continue to volunteer during the gap year and also work at a dentist office as a DA till I matriculate (hopefully) next year. I will list them as continued activities in my application this cycle as these will be my main focus areas. Do you think if there is any other aspect of my application that might be weak that you can point out ?

Also in addition to applying to all the 3 Florida schools (UF, NOVA & LECOM), can you suggest any schools that are OOS friendly ?

Here are the schools I have shortlisted and will further refine it down to ?? (Any number you suggest). Any other schools you suggest thats missing in this list ?

Basically I went over the reports from ADA website that are OOS friendly and where more Asians applied/enrolled. Also geographically I have focussed on North East and East Central regions with some schools in the West.

My order of preference would be to In State > North East > East Central > West. This is simply because somewhere I have read yield management comes into play where a school might not be interested in offering an interview if they dont think there is a likelihood for the candidate to accept an offer if it is too far out from their hometown. Not sure how much of it is true and so thats why I had it categorized it this way. But personally I am good to go to any one of these schools below that see me fit for their incoming cohort.

Your advice is very much appreciated!!

In state:

UF - Florida
NOVA - Florida
LECOM -Florida

North East:

UNE - Maine
UOM - Maryland
BU - Massachusetts
Tufts - Massachusetts
UOM - Minnesota
NYU - New York
Touro - New York
Temple - Pennsylvania
UPenn - Pennsylvania
University of Pittsburgh - Pennsylvania
VCU - Virginia

East Central:

Midwestern - Illinois
UOL - Kentucky
UOD Mercy - Michigan
CWRU - Ohio
OHSU - Ohio

West:

ATSU - Arizona
Midwestern - Arizona
Herman Ostrow USC - California
UNLV - Nevada
University of Washington - Washington
University of Utah - Utah
OHSU - Oregon

 

[macsak]

Thanks for all of your valuable input so far....!! I have changed the format a bit accounting for the latest and continuing volunteering experience as well as time spent in my school club where I was involved in the fund raising and other community service. I was not sure if I could include the hours from the club as part of community service volunteering but after taking a look at the ADEA community service guidelines in the link here it looks like I can re-categorize it. I have also taken your feedback into consideration to categorize my activities at the physician clinic as work experience and highlight my work at the front office where I have spent majority of my time. Also I have added the DA certification obtained at UFCD.

Here are my latest EC stats after revisions

Volunteering = 172 hours (and ongoing)
Teaching experience = 30 hours
Work experience = 351 hours
Dental Shadowing = 140 hours
Research = 167 hours

I would continue to volunteer during the gap year and also work at a dentist office as a DA till I matriculate (hopefully) next year. I will list them as continued activities in my application this cycle as these will be my main focus areas. Do you think if there is any other aspect of my application that might be weak that you can point out ?

Also in addition to applying to all the 3 Florida schools (UF, NOVA & LECOM), can you suggest any schools that are OOS friendly ?

Here are the schools I have shortlisted and will further refine it down to ?? (Any number you suggest). Any other schools you suggest thats missing in this list ?

Basically I went over the reports from ADA website that are OOS friendly and where more Asians applied/enrolled. Also geographically I have focussed on North East and East Central regions with some schools in the West.

My order of preference would be to In State > North East > East Central > West. This is simply because somewhere I have read yield management comes into play where a school might not be interested in offering an interview if they dont think there is a likelihood for the candidate to accept an offer if it is too far out from their hometown. Not sure how much of it is true and so thats why I had it categorized it this way. But personally I am good to go to any one of these schools below that see me fit for their incoming cohort.

Your advice is very much appreciated!!

In state:

UF - Florida
NOVA - Florida
LECOM -Florida

North East:

UNE - Maine
UOM - Maryland
BU - Massachusetts
Tufts - Massachusetts
UOM - Minnesota
NYU - New York
Touro - New York
Temple - Pennsylvania
UPenn - Pennsylvania
University of Pittsburgh - Pennsylvania
VCU - Virginia

East Central:

Midwestern - Illinois
UOL - Kentucky
UOD Mercy - Michigan
CWRU - Ohio
OHSU - Ohio

West:

ATSU - Arizona
Midwestern - Arizona
Herman Ostrow USC - California
UNLV - Nevada
University of Washington - Washington
University of Utah - Utah
OHSU - Oregon

you have a high gpa and really high dat scores
your ECs are not average, they are above average
you need to only have 8-12 schools, and only the higher number if you have a number of reach schools
right now, you only have one, upenn

my advice to you would be to remove the west schools and research the rest of your list and choose 8-10 schools to apply to
look at mission fit rather than oos acceptance/asian acceptance...

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Not to downplay your importance of being in a supportive student culture for AAPI dental students, but at this time, there is no national coordination of such organizations in US dental schools that I am aware of. Cross check if such organizations exist. Otherwise/Also, contact ASDA and SNDA chapter officers.

Will come back with thoughts on your list.

 

[EnchantedCookies]

If you explored the medical field in college, put it down. They like to see you explored your options in every which way, but do NOT focus on it or claim it as something you want to do. If you mention it, describe how it relates to dentistry and how dentistry is the best option for you after your exploration. As for your school selection, if you do not see yourself in the west, don’t waste your money. You have the luxury of being picky with your school choice, so research into the schools that are more likely to give scholarships.

 

[EnchantedCookies]

I think Louisville, UMichigan, Boston, Maryland, Ohio State (check pre-reqs), Upenn, and a New York school would be good additions.

 

[acerdat1]

you have a high gpa and really high dat scores
your ECs are not average, they are above average
you need to only have 8-12 schools, and only the higher number if you have a number of reach schools
right now, you only have one, upenn

my advice to you would be to remove the west schools and research the rest of your list and choose 8-10 schools to apply to
look at mission fit rather than oos acceptance/asian acceptance...

Thanks that’s reassuring. I will further trim the list after pending feedback and try to align with mission fit

 

[acerdat1]

I think Louisville, UMichigan, Boston, Maryland, Ohio State (check pre-reqs), Upenn, and a New York school would be good additions.

Thanks..
UMich - originally I had it as reach but then removed it as I thought of waste of money to apply there - not oos friendly and TOP dental school in the world, hear lots of competition

Ohio State - I am pretty sure I checked the pre-reqs in terms of courses required, LOR, scores, oos acceptance rates etc. Let me know if there is anything else besides these I might be missing. And yes I am currently reviewing the mission fit aspect of all the schools and it’s a bit of work and that’s on me.

Also already have Touro and NYU on the list with the exception of UBuffalo which is another great public school with lots of competition and might not be oos friendly. It’s definitely a big reach I guess.

 

[acerdat1]

Not to downplay your importance of being in a supportive student culture for AAPI dental students, but at this time, there is no national coordination of such organizations in US dental schools that I am aware of. Cross check if such organizations exist. Otherwise/Also, contact ASDA and SNDA chapter officers.

Will come back with thoughts on your list.

Thanks for the pointer and in fact what a coincidence, May is the AAPI month and did not even know there is something like this and really helps. Although will have to see how well it is established among the dental school network. There is a mention of it in ADA though.

 

[acerdat1]

you have a high gpa and really high dat scores
your ECs are not average, they are above average
you need to only have 8-12 schools, and only the higher number if you have a number of reach schools
right now, you only have one, upenn

my advice to you would be to remove the west schools and research the rest of your list and choose 8-10 schools to apply to
look at mission fit rather than oos acceptance/asian acceptance...

Thanks for the pointer. Yes definitely that’s the plan and bring that number down to something I can manage but at the same time being conscious about the highly selective nature of the schools and what they are looking for in an applicant, apart from maintaining strong academics.

I tried to include Columbia but again it is another far reach school I guess and mainly I skipped it because they are looking for 3 LOR from college professors but I have only 2 from science professors at the moment. From my school list I have 2 science, 1 dentist and 1 supervisor satisfied the requirements.

 

[macsak]

Thanks..
UMich - originally I had it as reach but then removed it as I thought of waste of money to apply there - not oos friendly and TOP dental school in the world, hear lots of competition

Ohio State - I am pretty sure I checked the pre-reqs in terms of courses required, LOR, scores, oos acceptance rates etc. Let me know if there is anything else besides these I might be missing. And yes I am currently reviewing the mission fit aspect of all the schools and it’s a bit of work and that’s on me.

Also already have Touro and NYU on the list with the exception of UBuffalo which is another great public school with lots of competition and might not be oos friendly. It’s definitely a big reach I guess.

please remove touro, NYU, and UDM...

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Coming back. Read

Beyond MSAR: Additional Resources for Building Your School List | SDN

Access free resources, expert advice, and tools to advance your medical career.

www.studentdoctor.net

Now let's go to your list. If the goal is to get it down to 10-12 schools, my thoughts:

Are you itching to specialize or run the academic dentistry route? Maybe you are gunning for OMFS (an example). If you decide to keep Penn, why not Columbia or Harvard?

Is your passion in rural dentistry? If not, knock out UNE.

Minnesota is in the Central region, not the Northeast. Check IS/OOS. Similarly, check IS/OOS for Maryland. I would exchange Marquette for Minnesota (private for public) or UDM (private for private), and Temple for Maryland (you have Temple already). You already have Case so I'd drop Ohio State (fewer chances as an OOS applicant). I see you meant Louisville, not UKentucky (different school).

Having 3 in-state options helps you, and some of the OOS schools will be considering whether you are serious about attending their (OOS) program if you have a cheaper option or want to stay closer to home/family. I'm not sure you are at risk of OOS "yield protection" without knowing more of your motivation and purpose as a dentist.

 

[macsak]

Coming back. Read

Beyond MSAR: Additional Resources for Building Your School List | SDN

Access free resources, expert advice, and tools to advance your medical career.

www.studentdoctor.net

Now let's go to your list. If the goal is to get it down to 10-12 schools, my thoughts:

Are you itching to specialize or run the academic dentistry route? Maybe you are gunning for OMFS (an example). If you decide to keep Penn, why not Columbia or Harvard?

Is your passion in rural dentistry? If not, knock out UNE.

Minnesota is in is the Central region, not the Northeast. Check IS/OOS. Similarly, check IS/OOS for Maryland. I would exchange Marquette for Minnesota (private for public) or UDM (private for private), and Temple for Maryland (you have Temple already). You already have Case so I'd drop Ohio State (fewer chances as an OOS applicant). I see you meant Louisville, not UKentucky (different school).

Having 3 in-state options helps you, and some of the OOS schools will be considering whether you are serious about attending their (OOS) program if you have a cheaper option or want to stay closer to home/family. I'm not sure you are at risk of OOS "yield protection" without knowing more of your motivation and purpose as a dentist.

IMO, OP is at risk of yield management, gpa is pretty high and 23/24 DAT is high 90s percentile

 

[EnchantedCookies]

Thanks..
UMich - originally I had it as reach but then removed it as I thought of waste of money to apply there - not oos friendly and TOP dental school in the world, hear lots of competition

Ohio State - I am pretty sure I checked the pre-reqs in terms of courses required, LOR, scores, oos acceptance rates etc. Let me know if there is anything else besides these I might be missing. And yes I am currently reviewing the mission fit aspect of all the schools and it’s a bit of work and that’s on me.

Also already have Touro and NYU on the list with the exception of UBuffalo which is another great public school with lots of competition and might not be oos friendly. It’s definitely a big reach I guess.

Umich, with your scores, is definitely not a reach. They generally stick to their averages, which you are above on. If you see yourself there, definitely apply bc they give a lot of their scholarships to OOS. If you look at their statistics, they accept many from FL. Ohio has anatomy lab which many don’t take and prevents them from applying

 

[acerdat1]

Umich, with your scores, is definitely not a reach. They generally stick to their averages, which you are above on. If you see yourself there, definitely apply bc they give a lot of their scholarships to OOS. If you look at their statistics, they accept many from FL. Ohio has anatomy lab which many don’t take and prevents them from applying

Thanks for your insights, I will then definitely consider UMich for sure if there is any chance. Do you think my mediocre research involvement which is mainly my major related, would help since it is big on research ?

 

[acerdat1]

IMO, OP is at risk of yield management, gpa is pretty high and 23/24 DAT is high 90s percentile

This threw me off lol…can you please put it in simple terms if there is anything I should be aware of 😀 just curious

 

[acerdat1]

Coming back. Read

Beyond MSAR: Additional Resources for Building Your School List | SDN

Access free resources, expert advice, and tools to advance your medical career.

www.studentdoctor.net

Now let's go to your list. If the goal is to get it down to 10-12 schools, my thoughts:

Are you itching to specialize or run the academic dentistry route? Maybe you are gunning for OMFS (an example). If you decide to keep Penn, why not Columbia or Harvard?

Is your passion in rural dentistry? If not, knock out UNE.

Minnesota is in the Central region, not the Northeast. Check IS/OOS. Similarly, check IS/OOS for Maryland. I would exchange Marquette for Minnesota (private for public) or UDM (private for private), and Temple for Maryland (you have Temple already). You already have Case so I'd drop Ohio State (fewer chances as an OOS applicant). I see you meant Louisville, not UKentucky (different school).

Having 3 in-state options helps you, and some of the OOS schools will be considering whether you are serious about attending their (OOS) program if you have a cheaper option or want to stay closer to home/family. I'm not sure you are at risk of OOS "yield protection" without knowing more of your motivation and purpose as a dentist.

No idea about any specialization at the moment..😀 and did not even give it a thought yet..

If UNE is heavily rural focused then it is really hard for me to justify and nothing to backup my assertion otherwise. I guess it can be off the list then..

Maryland is one of my reach school and would love to get into as it is not only a great school but also tuition cost wise it is a great option. Again I can anticipate severe competition ahead.

Why not UDM, seems to be a common consensus by others too. Just out of curiosity.

It was disheartening looking at for example 2023 Marquette stats for the number of Asian Americans applied vs actually enrolled. However I have to say the report is missing key piece of information on the number accepted which I guess is very important than the enrolled.

I will consider dropping Ohio state but it is too tempting as it’s a great public school but if you think “yield management” comes into play, I am not sure then no point applying.

Yes I meant University of Louisville, a public school.

I will keep temple for sure as I have my cousins going there and will definitely help!

The only cheaper in state option is UF which is again long shot and is very research focused. But I will take my chances and see.

Thanks for taking time for your detailed analysis. Very much appreciate it!!

please remove touro, NYU, and UDM...

I had it as safety schools purely based on stats. However it does not mean they are guaranteed as there is no such thing I guess. If you think of any specific reason why I should avoid then I can cross off the list.

 

[macsak]

This threw me off lol…can you please put it in simple terms if there is anything I should be aware of 😀 just curious

what is the THEORY of yield management/ yield protection?

there will be people that disagree, which is fine schools have a finite number of interview spots, and also a finite number of seats they have to spend their time/effort/$$$ on interviewing great candidates to be part of their class a school could theoretically offer interviews/acceptances to...

forums.studentdoctor.net

 

[macsak]

I had it as safety schools purely based on stats. However it does not mean they are guaranteed as there is no such thing I guess. If you think of any specific reason why I should avoid then I can cross off the list.

read my post about yield management
more specifically, since you asked, there are many better, cheaper, and less problematic schools closer to your stat range for you to apply to than these...

 

[EnchantedCookies]

Thanks for your insights, I will then definitely consider UMich for sure if there is any chance. Do you think my mediocre research involvement which is mainly my major related, would help since it is big on research ?

no, they’re class is made up half that are interested in research and half that have never done research

 

[acerdat1]

Here is my revised list (not filtered yet). Request your help to narrow it down. Frankly this step, out of everything involved in the process seems most daunting!!

I have removed all west coast schools and a few but this time around I have added few more schools (adding to my agony...) that are geographically closer to me (Florida). Please help me if you could trim the list significantly and hope to bring it down to about 10 to 12 (hoping to stick to southeast and northeast, possibly midwest)

Thank you for your time!

Kept the same:

Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine School of Dental Medicine (would definitely want to apply)
Nova Southeastern University College of Dental Medicine (would definitely want to apply)
University of Florida (would definitely want to apply)

Midwestern University College of Dental Medicine - Illinois
University of Louisville School of Dentistry
University of Maryland School of Dentistry (would definitely want to apply)
Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine
Tufts University School of Dental Medicine
University of Detroit Mercy School of Dentistry
Touro College of Dental Medicine at New York Medical College
Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine
The Ohio State University College of Dentistry
Oregon Health & Science University School of Dentistry
The Maurice H. Kornberg School of Dentistry, Temple University (would definitely want to apply)
University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine (would definitely want to apply)
University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine
Virginia Commonwealth University School of Dentistry

Added:

University of Michigan School of Dentistry (would definitely want to apply)
University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry
Dental College of Georgia at Augusta University
Indiana University School of Dentistry
University of Kentucky College of Dentistry
Louisiana State University Health New Orleans School of Dentistry
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, School of Dental Medicine
Stony Brook University School of Dental Medicine
University at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine
Medical University of South Carolina James B. Edwards College of Dental Medicine
University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Dentistry
University of Utah School of Dentistry (made an exception with this west coast school)
Roseman University of Health Sciences College of Dental Medicine – South Jordan, Utah (made an exception with this west coast school)

Removed:

A.T. Still University Arizona School of Dentistry & Oral Health
Midwestern University College of Dental Medicine - Arizona
Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC
University of New England College of Dental Medicine
University of Minnesota School of Dentistry
University of Nevada, Las Vegas, School of Dental Medicine
New York University College of Dentistry

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Please help me if you could trim the list significantly and hope to bring it down to about 10 to 12 (hoping to stick to southeast and northeast, possibly midwest)

Stop adding schools that aren't in the Southeast and Northeast.

Whatever happened to this list of 14?

In state:
UF - Florida
NOVA - Florida
LECOM -Florida

North East:
UNE - Maine
UOM - Maryland
BU - Massachusetts
Tufts - Massachusetts
UOM - Minnesota
NYU - New York
Touro - New York
Temple - Pennsylvania
UPenn - Pennsylvania
University of Pittsburgh - Pennsylvania
VCU - Virginia

 

[acerdat1]

Stop adding schools that aren't in the Southeast and Northeast.

Whatever happened to this list of 14?

thanks for keeping me in track..😃

Thoughts on the list below and trim it down to - 10 to 12?

In state:

UF - Florida
NOVA - Florida
LECOM -Florida

Out of state:

BU - Massachusetts
Tufts - Massachusetts
UOM - Minnesota
Temple - Pennsylvania
UPenn - Pennsylvania
UPitt - Pennsylvania
VCU - Virginia
Marquette - Wisconsin
Rutgers - New jersey
UMich - Michigan
UAB - Alabama
UOL - Kentucky (Louisville)
Case - Ohio
Harvard - Massachusetts (if possible)
Columbia - New york (if possible)

About Colombia & Harvard LOR's:

Colombia - Requires 3 science. I have 2 science and need to check with admissions to see if the one I have from my Psychology prof is accepted

Harvard - Requires 3 faculty who taught (can use the 3 prof letters who taught)

I have 2 science who taught, 1 dentist and 1 supervisor stored in AADSAS (got from Interfolio into AADSAS 4 Max). This covers majority of the schools I am applying.

How can I send the one I have from from non-science prof which is stored in Interfolio directly to the school without going through AADSAS. Is that possible ?

Thank you!

 

[macsak]

thanks for keeping me in track..😃

Thoughts on the list below and trim it down to - 10 to 12?

In state:

UF - Florida
NOVA - Florida
LECOM -Florida

Out of state:

BU - Massachusetts
Tufts - Massachusetts
UOM - Minnesota
Temple - Pennsylvania
UPenn - Pennsylvania
UPitt - Pennsylvania
VCU - Virginia
Marquette - Wisconsin
Rutgers - New jersey
UMich - Michigan
UAB - Alabama
UOL - Kentucky (Louisville)
Case - Ohio
Harvard - Massachusetts (if possible)
Columbia - New york (if possible)

About Colombia & Harvard LOR's:

Colombia - Requires 3 science. I have 2 science and need to check with admissions to see if the one I have from my Psychology prof is accepted

Harvard - Requires 3 faculty who taught (can use the 3 prof letters who taught)

I have 2 science who taught, 1 dentist and 1 supervisor stored in AADSAS (got from Interfolio into AADSAS 4 Max). This covers majority of the schools I am applying.

How can I send the one I have from from non-science prof which is stored in Interfolio directly to the school without going through AADSAS. Is that possible ?

Thank you!

even suggesting a school number for you is variable
you have 4 reach schools (UPenn UMich Harvard Columbia)
the number of schools you need to apply to varies depending on how many of these you have on your list
i think for starters you could take off minn and marquette

have you looked at OOS/FL numbers at all the schools on your list?
have you checked mission fit?