WAMC - CA resident, applying to 25 schools to be safe

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Date of submission: Early to mid July, depending on the school
Overall GPA: 3.79
Science GPA: 3.66
Bio-Biochem-Chem-Physics GPA: 3.54
DAT score (include AA and all sections):
AA: 21
TS: 21
QR: 19
Reading Comp: 22
Organic Chemistry: 22
PAT: 23
Bio: 21
Gen Chem: 21

State of Residence: CA

Undergrad Attended: UC Berkeley
Major: Molecular Environmental Biology
Minor: N/A
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? No

Shadowing Experience: 177, General dentists and a periodontist
Volunteering Experience: 363, tutoring underserved kids, educating elementary students on oral health, volunteering at local dental clinic
Employment: 960, as sterilization technician at an orthodontists office
Research: 200, 2 papers under review with famous lab, 50 hours of research done as class research projects
Other Extracurriculars: Hours and type; includes athletics, military, leadership, etc.
Have you volunteered/shadowed/attended events at any dental schools? No
Relevant Honors or Awards: Deans List
LOR type and strength: 2 from science professors, 2 from dentists. 1 superbly strong, 1 very strong, 1 strong, 1 unknown but likely strong
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags: Transfer student, did 3 years at CC before Berkeley
School list:
ATSU Arizona
Midwestern Arizona
Loma Linda
Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni
USC
WesternU
Midwestern
Illinois
Maryland
Detroit Mercy
UMichigan
ATSU Missouri
Nevada
NYU
Touro
Case Western
OHSU
UPenn
Roseman
Utah
Marquette
West Virginia
UCLA
UCSF
Midwestern Illinois

 

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You stand no chance bud...

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I don't know why you are spending so much money on such a long list. Dental school admissions is mostly regional (except some of the large-enrollment privates). Specifically, I don't know what your connection would be with Illinois (UIC had zero OOS enrollees, very in-state focused). West Virginia is not a typical destination for Californians, but who knows. What is your purpose as a dentist?

 

[macsak]

Date of submission: Early to mid July, depending on the school
Overall GPA: 3.79
Science GPA: 3.66
Bio-Biochem-Chem-Physics GPA: 3.54
DAT score (include AA and all sections):
AA: 21
TS: 21
QR: 19
Reading Comp: 22
Organic Chemistry: 22
PAT: 23
Bio: 21
Gen Chem: 21

State of Residence: CA

Undergrad Attended: UC Berkeley
Major: Molecular Environmental Biology
Minor: N/A
Minority? No
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? No

Shadowing Experience: 177, General dentists and a periodontist
Volunteering Experience: 363, tutoring underserved kids, educating elementary students on oral health, volunteering at local dental clinic
Employment: 960, as sterilization technician at an orthodontists office
Research: 200, 2 papers under review with famous lab, 50 hours of research done as class research projects
Other Extracurriculars: Hours and type; includes athletics, military, leadership, etc.
Have you volunteered/shadowed/attended events at any dental schools? No
Relevant Honors or Awards: Deans List
LOR type and strength: 2 from science professors, 2 from dentists. 1 superbly strong, 1 very strong, 1 strong, 1 unknown but likely strong
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags: Transfer student, did 3 years at CC before Berkeley
School list:
ATSU Arizona
Midwestern Arizona
Loma Linda
Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni
USC
WesternU
Midwestern
Illinois
Maryland
Detroit Mercy
UMichigan
ATSU Missouri
Nevada
NYU
Touro
Case Western
OHSU
UPenn
Roseman
Utah
Marquette
West Virginia
UCLA
UCSF
Midwestern Illinois

way too many schools
start off removing WVU, NYU, UDM, Touro, Maryland, USC
gets you down to 16, which is still too many...

 

[macsak]

way too many schools
start off removing WVU, NYU, UDM, Touro, Maryland, USC
gets you down to 16, which is still too many...

wait
you have "midwestern arizona", "midwestern illinois", AND "midwestern"

 

[dds coming soon]

I don't know why you are spending so much money on such a long list. Dental school admissions is mostly regional (except some of the large-enrollment privates). Specifically, I don't know what your connection would be with Illinois (UIC had zero OOS enrollees, very in-state focused). West Virginia is not a typical destination for Californians, but who knows. What is your purpose as a dentist?

Maybe it was a mistake to apply to so many schools, but applying is a numbers game and I want to decrease any chance of having to take a gap year as much as possible. There is a lot of opportunity cost to becoming a dentist a year later, which makes the cost of applications seem like pennies.

 

[macsak]

Maybe it was a mistake to apply to so many schools, but applying is a numbers game and I want to decrease any chance of having to take a gap year as much as possible. There is a lot of opportunity cost to becoming a dentist a year later, which makes the cost of applications seem like pennies.

your stats don't require anywhere near the amount of schools you selected, and your ECs are stellar
you are going to have yield protection issues at many schools
in addition, there are many more appropriate schools that you could have chosen...

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Maybe it was a mistake to apply to so many schools, but applying is a numbers game and I want to decrease any chance of having to take a gap year as much as possible. There is a lot of opportunity cost to becoming a dentist a year later, which makes the cost of applications seem like pennies.

Remember, we don't have your AADSAS application, and your interviews haven't occurred yet. We can only go by the impression you are making, and schools are not privy to your school list.

Many schools have a stated cap on the number of CC credits they want to see for desired applicants (which you could have discovered if it were really enforced with pre-application networking). California schools will have a better idea about taking students with prior CC courses before starting undergrad, and I'm assuming your CC GPA is higher than your undergrad, even though you haven't broken this information down.

For @macsak, since "Midwestern" and "Illinois" are on separate lines, I'm going to chalk that up to a mistaken carriage return, because I don't know why OP applied to Illinois (UI-Chicago) as I stated above. I don't have clues about OP's involvement on campus as a leader; that's what's making me pause.

 

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wait
you have "midwestern arizona", "midwestern illinois", AND "midwestern"

Oops

your stats don't require anywhere near the amount of schools you selected, and your ECs are stellar
you are going to have yield protection issues at many schools
in addition, there are many more appropriate schools that you could have chosen...

thats a problem I am okay with
also, I tried applying to schools that accepted the most californian students in 2024