WAMC Debating Taking a Gap Year or Not

[Bey145]

Hi,

Explanation after WAMC Template:

Overall GPA: 3.55
Science GPA: 3.52
Bio-Chem-Physics GPA: 3.71 (triple-checked, somehow this is right)
DAT score (include AA and all sections): Haven't taken
State of Residence: IL

Undergrad Attended: UIUC
Major: BIOE
Minority? Yes
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? No

Shadowing Experience: 17 so far, General Dentist
Volunteering Experience: ~200 tutoring
Employment: EMT, part-time
Research: ~500 no pubs/posters, left lab
Other Extracurriculars: Various leadership positions at different engineering/athletic clubs (president of one)
Have you volunteered/shadowed/attended events at any dental schools? No
Relevant Honors or Awards: N/A
LOR type and strength: N/A
Misc Info/Things not stated elsewhere/Red Flags:
School list: Ideally SIU and UIC, anywhere else that isn't super expensive I guess

I'm currently a Junior at a public, 4-year college in IL and only recently started considering dentistry. I've started getting my shadowing hours (currently have 17 from over winter break and scheduled ~10 hrs/week between a general dentist and endodontist near campus) and applied to volunteer at a free community dental clinic (still waiting to hear back). I am not concerned with meeting course prerequisites or getting adequate volunteer hours.

What has me bent out of shape is how recent all of my dental-related ECs are. The shadowing hours are also assuming the practices are ok with me returning long-term, and maybe I won't be able to get to 100 hours by June. I don't know if dental schools will look poorly on how recent everything is or if it's worth it to study for the DAT this semester if I don't have a reasonable shot at dental schools since my stats are nothing crazy. I'm also concerned if I don't do well and need to take it again if dental schools will see my old score and if that would negatively impact my application.

The problem is that this will determine what I'm doing this summer. If I have a decent shot at dental school, I would accept an internship offer that pays well over the summer and look to volunteer in my off-time with something dental-related. Otherwise, I would either shadow a bunch this summer with my general dentist or take a 10-week DA course and hope to work on campus my senior year.

My summer plans matter bc I don't want to take a gap year, but if I do, I'd rather take the internship so I could ideally get a better engineering (majoring in BME/BIOE) position to make more money that I could use towards dental school tuition. Money is probably the biggest factor for dental school, so I'm shooting for SIU and UIC, but I'm worried that I might not be a competitive applicant without a gap year.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

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[Ryxndek]

First off, filling out a full WAMC template would really help us out as it helps us identify any weaknesses/strengths in your application. You can re-edit what you have and put the template at the start (And I will move your thread to the WAMC page).

For your shadowing hours, you want to focus primarily on general dentist hours as that's what schools accept and expect hours to be completed from. Shadowing specialists is fun and cool, but understand schools pump out general dentists, not specialists, so having an understanding of their day to day is crucial since it's a big financial decision. Aim to have 100 hours. You don't need to have all of them by the time you apply, most schools would like that, but you can keep shadowing and update later on. I know for my school, they will accept 30 hours for applying and want 50 by the time you enroll. But double check with each school bc some can be very specific.

Dental schools also don't expect you to have dental related EC's. Do what you love, not what you think dental schools want. This isn't medical school where you have to have hospital hours etc. If you love a specific club, do that over something dental related if it means more to you. Dental schools, in my experience, seem to care more about you being human and having joys outside of dentistry. But if you love it that much and want to do EC's then by all means, the world's your oyster. But don't stress about them having to be recent. Most of my EC;s were from junior/senior year because of COVID. So it's okay, just try to keep up with it if you can. They shouldn't look too poorly if you write a well written PS with why you want to be a dentist. I studied for the DAT during my junior fall when I had a 2 hour break during the day. I studied for 4 months and then took it over winter break. If you can take less credits and do this, I found it really nice since if I didn't do well I still had time to take it in the spring and apply early still. But take it when you think you're ready, ideally by the spring (may) before you apply in June.

Yes, schools will see your old score, they see every score. However, they generally won't factor in your old score and will look at your new score. If you do poorly on the retake is what will hurt you the most. Just try your best to do well the first time, so if you need more time to study like me, I'd do that.

I'd also say to take the internship. We have a couple engineers in my class. Again, do what you like, not what you think schools like. If you want the internship then do it and just keep up with your volunteering on the side. That really shouldn't be an issue and certainly a point you can talk about in your interviews. Not many engineers apply to dental school. You don't need to be a DA to get into dental school either. The ONLY dental experience I had on my app was shadowing. And I was still a successful applicant.

You don't want to be a cookie-cutter applicant, everyone has their way of getting into dental school. But do it the way you want to, because it will make your interview more memorable and help you stand out against others who have tried to do what schools want, vs what you love.

And if you're not ready, you're not ready. Take a gap year, it doesn't hurt you and frankly, a lot of my classmates took one or more gap years before applying and enrolling. Everyone has their journey. When I was interviewing more than half of the interviewees were taking a gap year too, I was in the minority with applying to go straight out of college. So do what feels right. You will know when. Good luck!

 

[Bey145]

First off, filling out a full WAMC template would really help us out as it helps us identify any weaknesses/strengths in your application. You can re-edit what you have and put the template at the start (And I will move your thread to the WAMC page).

For your shadowing hours, you want to focus primarily on general dentist hours as that's what schools accept and expect hours to be completed from. Shadowing specialists is fun and cool, but understand schools pump out general dentists, not specialists, so having an understanding of their day to day is crucial since it's a big financial decision. Aim to have 100 hours. You don't need to have all of them by the time you apply, most schools would like that, but you can keep shadowing and update later on. I know for my school, they will accept 30 hours for applying and want 50 by the time you enroll. But double check with each school bc some can be very specific.

Dental schools also don't expect you to have dental related EC's. Do what you love, not what you think dental schools want. This isn't medical school where you have to have hospital hours etc. If you love a specific club, do that over something dental related if it means more to you. Dental schools, in my experience, seem to care more about you being human and having joys outside of dentistry. But if you love it that much and want to do EC's then by all means, the world's your oyster. But don't stress about them having to be recent. Most of my EC;s were from junior/senior year because of COVID. So it's okay, just try to keep up with it if you can. They shouldn't look too poorly if you write a well written PS with why you want to be a dentist. I studied for the DAT during my junior fall when I had a 2 hour break during the day. I studied for 4 months and then took it over winter break. If you can take less credits and do this, I found it really nice since if I didn't do well I still had time to take it in the spring and apply early still. But take it when you think you're ready, ideally by the spring (may) before you apply in June.

Yes, schools will see your old score, they see every score. However, they generally won't factor in your old score and will look at your new score. If you do poorly on the retake is what will hurt you the most. Just try your best to do well the first time, so if you need more time to study like me, I'd do that.

I'd also say to take the internship. We have a couple engineers in my class. Again, do what you like, not what you think schools like. If you want the internship then do it and just keep up with your volunteering on the side. That really shouldn't be an issue and certainly a point you can talk about in your interviews. Not many engineers apply to dental school. You don't need to be a DA to get into dental school either. The ONLY dental experience I had on my app was shadowing. And I was still a successful applicant.

You don't want to be a cookie-cutter applicant, everyone has their way of getting into dental school. But do it the way you want to, because it will make your interview more memorable and help you stand out against others who have tried to do what schools want, vs what you love.

And if you're not ready, you're not ready. Take a gap year, it doesn't hurt you and frankly, a lot of my classmates took one or more gap years before applying and enrolling. Everyone has their journey. When I was interviewing more than half of the interviewees were taking a gap year too, I was in the minority with applying to go straight out of college. So do what feels right. You will know when. Good luck!

Whoops. I'm new here and didn't know the format, but it should be fixed now.

Thanks for the thorough reply! Yea, that makes sense with the shadowing. The only reason I got to the point of calling a specialist to request to shadow was bc I had exhausted all of the nearby general dentist offices I found. I'll definitely try to prioritize shadowing general dentists.

Sounds like I may as well start studying for the DAT. I'd rather have a score than no score.

Once again, thanks for all the info. I really appreciate it!

 

[Mr.Smile12]

How do you identify as a minority? You should check when schools are hosting recruitment events via ASDA or SNDA. Check if you qualify for FAP.

As mentioned, a gap year is not a negative. Take the time to really work in a dental office. Even a few offices. They will each be very different, so appreciating the flexibility of a dental clinic versus the relative uniformity of a hospital will help you figure out if dentistry is what you want.

 

[Bey145]

How do you identify as a minority? You should check when schools are hosting recruitment events via ASDA or SNDA. Check if you qualify for FAP.

As mentioned, a gap year is not a negative. Take the time to really work in a dental office. Even a few offices. They will each be very different, so appreciating the flexibility of a dental clinic versus the relative uniformity of a hospital will help you figure out if dentistry is what you want.

I'm Hispanic but don't think I qualify for FAP bc of my family income.

Yeah, I guess it's not a negative and would actually help my application because I'd have more time to build up my experiences. I just don't want to take a year off of school and then go back. Obviously, I'd do it if I need to, but I'd prefer to avoid it.

Thanks for your response!

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I'm Hispanic but don't think I qualify for FAP bc of my family income.

Yeah, I guess it's not a negative and would actually help my application because I'd have more time to build up my experiences. I just don't want to take a year off of school and then go back. Obviously, I'd do it if I need to, but I'd prefer to avoid it.

Thanks for your response!

Add contacting HDA and similar student organizations to the list. Plenty of people take gap years before starting dental school. Of course, plenty also take postbac courses or go through SMPs.

 

[Bey145]

Add contacting HDA and similar student organizations to the list. Plenty of people take gap years before starting dental school. Of course, plenty also take postbac courses or go through SMPs.

By HDA do you mean the Hispanic Dental Association?

Just to double check, are you suggesting that I take postbac courses or go through SMPs to make my application competitive enough to apply to dental school? I kinda hope that's not the case.