WAMC? First-Time Applicant, Non-Trad

[uwu]

Hello! I know it's difficult to predict, but I was hoping to get some honest and realistic feedback on my chances of receiving an interview. I'm a non-traditional applicant, and this will be my first time applying. I'm a Texas resident and plan to apply only to the four Texas dental schools.
I understand that admissions committees take a holistic approach, but I'm concerned that my low overall GPA may hold me back. I’d really appreciate any insight or advice you can offer. Thanks 🙂


Date of submission: I will have everything ready to submit by the end of May to mid June (with the exception of DAT scores).

Overall GPA: 3.00.....
Science GPA: 3.90
DAT Score: I am planning on taking the DAT on June 26th.
State of Residence: Texas

Major: Nursing
Minority?: No, I am a white male.
Reapplicant? No
Nontrad? Yes, I've spent the last 4 years working as a travel RN working overnights and going to school during the day.

Shadowing Experience: Around 125 hours total. ~80hr coming from 3 general dentists and the remaining hours are from OMFS. I work in surgery and they let me come in and observe when we have OMF cases.
Volunteering Experience: Around 300 hours, I volunteered at a crisis intervention hotline, my local children's museum, and a nursing home.
Leadership Experience: I've been fortunate enough to have lots of leadership experience from nursing.

• Simulation Coordinator in nursing school, so I was responsible for integrating the concepts from class into simulations and running them with my classmates.
• Peer Facilitator in nursing school. I helped student's transition into nursing school and help with studying/etc.
• Charge Nurse at a large level 1 trauma center in the Texas Medical Center, so I was responsible for the entire surgery department overnight.
• Nurse Preceptor: I helped new nurses transition from student nurse role into practicing nurses.
• Travel Charge Nurse: I had to go into hospitals where I didn't know any of the team and be expected to adapt and lead the surgery department during my contract.
• I'm currently the trauma team leader at my current job, so I teach how to recognize a crisis and the appropriate interventions to take when they occur.
• After I got my Bachelor's in nursing, I attended a smaller university near Houston so that I could balance work and pay for my classes. Since there was no pre-dental club on campus, I took the initiative to start one and served as its President for a year.
• I have a few more, but they are smaller leadership roles
  
  

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Clinical Experience/Employment: While completing my pre-reqs, I worked full-time as a registered nurse, gaining thousands of hours of hands-on patient care experience.

Research: Nada

LOR type and strength: I received one letter of recommendation from my Organic Chemistry professor, one from my Biology professor, and one from a general dentist with who I developed a strong professional relationship during my shadowing experience.

Additional Context / Potential Red Flags:

• I’m a first-generation college student and didn’t have much guidance navigating higher education early on.

• My mom encouraged me to take dual credit courses in high school, but I struggled due to a lack of academic readiness, which negatively impacted my GPA.
• During my first year of college, I had no clear direction and lacked the study skills and maturity needed to do well.
• As I began to improve in school and develop stronger study habits, the COVID pandemic disrupted in person learning. The transition to online courses (which did not suit my learning style at all) led to another dip in my grades.
• However, once I committed to pursuing dentistry and returned to school after earning my Bachelor's degree, I earned A's in all of my science prerequisite courses, including Biology I & II, General Chemistry I & II, Organic Chemistry I & II, and Physics I & II. I plan to take Biochemistry this fall after completing the DAT.
• The main factor preventing my science GPA from being a 4.0 was an Intro to Chemistry course I took during my first year of college, before I had clarity on my career goals or how to succeed academically.

School list (as of now): Texas A&M, UT Health Houston, UT Health El Paso, Texas Tech (Only Texas schools)

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[Mr.Smile12]

Welcome to the forums.

So your low cGPA/oGPA is because of your nursing courses? Because that sGPA/BCP will attract some attention if your calculations are accurate.

Many schools also value the last 30-60 credits of biomedical science courses taken. What is your GPA for that stretch of courses (above bio 1/2)?

I can't really give you a list until you get your DAT scores back, but you should anticipate why you are pivoting to dentistry. Figure out how you may include it strategically in your written TMDSAS essays and any secondaries/interviews.