What am I doing wrong?

[DutchFarmers]

3.53 GPA/3.4sGPA from a top public university (UCLA)
23 DAT, 22AA, 20 PAT
1500+ hours of assisting experience
100 hours of shadowing
80 hours of volunteering at a dental school
got 3 letters from professors and a letter from the dentist I worked for
Asian from middle class background

Got one interview last cycle and I just found out that Midwestern WAITLISTED ME AGAIN. What am I doing wrong? On paper it seems like I have a perfect application but I keep getting rejected.

Update 12/16/20: if you are stumbling onto this topic and are as dejected as I was, have some hope. Ended up getting in. What I did to increase my chances was work as a DA. I got a great LoR out of it and I think that made a big difference. I hope your path is smoother than mine but it's not hopeless if it isn't

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[SirBrotherJam]

Here's somethings that it could be:
1. There is a red flag that you don't know about or wont tell
2. You are not a good interviewer and need to work on in person presentation
3. Your school selection for applying is not good. (private v public, instate ect.)
4. Your LORs may not be as good as you think
5. Did you show face as any of the schools you visited?

It's no secret that each year gets harder than the last and you need to make sure that you show them you want to be there. My initial guess is that #2 and #3. Hard to say though as you gave very limited info on you and where you live. I think there is a format that you can follow that people can help you out with on this thread. Honestly just look at most of the other WAMC posts. Btw, didn't mean to be mean with any of the listing and I hope that you can figure it out and get in!

 

[NJ_Doc]

2 things I'm thinking of. First is, do you have any other extracurricular or volunteering that you didn't mention? You have great stats and clinical exposure but someone can get 80hrs of volunteering in like 2 weeks; shows little commitment to helping those under-served and the community. Also no real leadership examples were mentioned.

Second thing is mentioned above. Breadth and depth when applying.

 

[artist2022]

I think it's #1 from SBJ's list because OP said this not too long ago:

Hey, everyone. I desperately want to get into dental school this cycle after getting burned badly last cycle (I am a reapplicant) because I messed up a lot along the way in preparing to apply.

It looks like there are things you're not being clear about because yes, with the things you listed, you seem like a good applicant, and your school list looked decent. Something's off.

 

[DutchFarmers]

The mistakes I made were logistics related, not academic

I think it's #1 from SBJ's list because OP said this not too long ago:

It looks like there are things you're not being clear about because yes, with the things you listed, you seem like a good applicant, and your school list looked decent. Something's off.

He mig

 

[DutchFarmers]

Yeah volunteering is definitely something I need to look into. Are leadership positions that important?

2 things I'm thinking of. First is, do you have any other extracurricular or volunteering that you didn't mention? You have great stats and clinical exposure but someone can get 80hrs of volunteering in like 2 weeks; shows little commitment to helping those under-served and the community. Also no real leadership examples were mentioned.

Second thing is mentioned above. Breadth and depth when applying.

 

[NJ_Doc]

Yeah volunteering is definitely something I need to look into. Are leadership positions that important?

yes

 

[Castellar]

On paper it seems like I have a perfect application but I keep getting rejected.

I think this is the main issue here. You're not even close to a perfect application. If anything, your application seems slightly above average at best. That mentality is probably why you're not getting in. What have you done to grow your application over the years/months? Where are you applying and how many schools? You should have at least had more than 1 interview with your app.

You need to ask yourself these questions or at least give us more details so we can accurately help you.

 

[BeggarsCantBeChoosers]

Why do you think your application is perfect? If that is your mentality coming into dental school then you're in for a rude awakening. You know how many people apply per year who came from a "top public" school with similar stats or even better? My advice to you is never overestimate yourself. Apply broadly. If you have red flags academic or non academic, address them.

 

[S_Diamond_DDS]

It’s usually #3, you didn’t apply broadly enough or to the right schools. He also forgot- you didn’t apply early enough. How many schools did you apply to? Which schools? (are you a CA resident?) And when did you complete all of your applications?

 

[sparkinthedark]

3.53 GPA/3.4sGPA from a top public university (UCLA)
23 DAT, 22AA, 20 PAT
1500+ hours of assisting experience
100 hours of shadowing
80 hours of volunteering at a dental school
got 3 letters from professors and a letter from the dentist I worked for
Asian from middle class background

Got one interview last cycle and I just found out that Midwestern WAITLISTED ME AGAIN. What am I doing wrong? On paper it seems like I have a perfect application but I keep getting rejected.

OP, I just DMed you.

 

[axiumgod]

How many schools did you apply to each cycle? If it’s <10 that could easily be where you went wrong

 

[knewstance]

100 hours of shadowing
80 hours of volunteering at a dental school

I'd say these two things are on the weak side.

Shadow multiple dentists for an extended period of time. Pick 2-3 dentists and spend maybe a day in their office once a week or every other week for ~5+ visits. That will give you 3 dentists x5 visits x8 hours/visit = 120 hours. Seeing different offices and different doctors will give you a new perspective. Even better would be to pick a public health dentist, low-income area dentist, and high income/cosmetic dentist. That will give you a good taste of multiple areas and you will have more to discuss and share in your personal statement.

Volunteer in something non-dental related and something you care about for a long time span (3+ months). You need to look like you are continuously committed to your community and to a cause, rather than just doing volunteering to gain hours (even if that is the reason).

 

[DocStranger]

It looks like there are things you're not being clear about because yes, with the things you listed, you seem like a good applicant, and your school list looked decent. Something's off.

Something is ALWAYS off with what everyone says lmao.

 

[DocStranger]

3.53 GPA/3.4sGPA from a top public university (UCLA)
23 DAT, 22AA, 20 PAT
1500+ hours of assisting experience
100 hours of shadowing
80 hours of volunteering at a dental school
got 3 letters from professors and a letter from the dentist I worked for
Asian from middle class background

Got one interview last cycle and I just found out that Midwestern WAITLISTED ME AGAIN. What am I doing wrong? On paper it seems like I have a perfect application but I keep getting rejected.

I’ve seen people get in with way lower stats tbh. None of this makes sense.

 

[0Mik3cho]

I’ve seen people get in with way lower stats tbh. None of this makes sense.

OP said they had logistics issues. That's awfully vague but if I had to guess, their application was completed and reviewed late in the cycle.

 

[DentGent13]

With those stats, You’re getting waitlisted to midwestern???

Are you getting other interviews?

If yes, then your interviewing skills suck.

if no, your personal statement and supplemental sucks.

 

[DK2]

When did you apply?

I have a 3.16sGPA/GPA + 25AA/22TS/21PAT and only got one interview (then waitlisted), but I asked and people think it was largely due to me applying in late-September/mid-October.

Why do you think your application is perfect? If that is your mentality coming into dental school then you're in for a rude awakening. You know how many people apply per year who came from a "top public" school with similar stats or even better? My advice to you is never overestimate yourself. Apply broadly. If you have red flags academic or non academic, address them.

And yeah don't be a pompous prick. Nobody likes someone who's full of themselves, especially admissions staff.

 

[pink.peonies]

I just found out that Midwestern WAITLISTED ME AGAIN. What am I doing wrong? On paper it seems like I have a perfect application but I keep getting rejected.

Midwestern AZ is REALLY big on the interview, they put a lot of stock into how personable/well-spoken you are and thus how you'll fit into the campus culture (I did the Master's program there and got accepted to class of '24, this is what I observed from my own interview and talking to a bunch of dental students there and from speaking with faculty)