A 3.8 GPA and 19 DAT (biology major)
or 2.70GPA and 26 DAT?
or 2.70GPA and 26 DAT?
What would you rather have? GPA vs DAT
- Thread starter casiouser
- Start date
we will never know. I think most adcoms will take the high GPA with avg DAT score due to the student being able to handle school? i dunno
- Joined
- May 13, 2012
- Messages
- 304
- Reaction score
- 0
Definitely 3.8 GPA and 19 DAT.
4 years of hard work V.S. a 5 hour test?
I know you can say that GPA from good school> GPA from ****ty school but in general GPA is more important.
- Joined
- May 10, 2012
- Messages
- 410
- Reaction score
- 2
This is not an equitable comparison. It should have been 3.8(high GPA)/19(average DAT) vs. 3.6(average GPA)/24(high DAT).
And I don't want either.
- Joined
- Sep 4, 2011
- Messages
- 287
- Reaction score
- 4
If there's anything I've learned this cycle (no interviews) it's that a high GPA is far more valuable than a high DAT.
Suzy with her 3.8 and 17AA is going to get an interview sooner than me (3.16 overall GPA, great science and BCP), which I don't agree with, but that has been my experience. Not to offend anyone but the DAT wasn't even a hard test and anything less than an 18 on any section should be a serious red flag. That's just my opinion but adcoms are clearly on another page.
Suzy with her 3.8 and 17AA is going to get an interview sooner than me (3.16 overall GPA, great science and BCP), which I don't agree with, but that has been my experience. Not to offend anyone but the DAT wasn't even a hard test and anything less than an 18 on any section should be a serious red flag. That's just my opinion but adcoms are clearly on another page.
Haha, those are my exact stats, hope you are correct!
bluesprite13
Full Member
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2012
- Messages
- 343
- Reaction score
- 0
Man that's tough! A high GPA can show consistency in your academic performance throughout your 4 years of college especially if you come from a high ranking institution, but this is not always the case. The DAT is also a good way to equalize everyone since GPAs are based off of different schools with different educational curriculums. Personally, I think a high GPA is slightly more preferred because it is literally a grade point average of your entire academic performance. If you do terrible in one class, you have other classes to help you bring up your GPA if you do well in them. If you had a bad day on your DAT, then there goes your DAT score. You can retake your DAT again, but your DAT score is based on one test performance at a time. Still, that's a tough decision, and this is just a personal opinion. :/
Tragictrend
Full Member
- Joined
- Aug 13, 2012
- Messages
- 41
- Reaction score
- 0
- Joined
- May 13, 2012
- Messages
- 304
- Reaction score
- 0
I don't understand why people keep saying that DAT is there to equalize, bla bla bla.
There are thousands of different DAT versions out there. Some students might get the easier ones and some might not. Luck plays an important role here.
Getting easy teachers through 4 years of undergrad? chances are slim to none.
There are thousands of different DAT versions out there. Some students might get the easier ones and some might not. Luck plays an important role here.
Getting easy teachers through 4 years of undergrad? chances are slim to none.
bluesprite13
Full Member
- Joined
- Jul 17, 2012
- Messages
- 343
- Reaction score
- 0
Hey, I was just saying that the DAT is the closest thing that they could use to compare others. Remember, there are always many many many different exceptions and factors to this and this is a general statement. Yes, everyone has a different DAT exam, but the difficulty is roughly around the same. I personally think I got lucky on my bio section of the DAT. Bio was pretty random, but a lot of the questions on my exam were things that I had been tested on in college. Also, with GPA, different schools operation differently. You may have some classes that run on a percentile vs. classes that run on a curve. My classes run on a curve, so my grades were relative to how well others performed in my classes (this can be a good and bad thing). There are good and bads to GPA and DAT. However, in general, I think GPA is more important than DAT and I'm agreeing with you cuz 4 years of hard work is much more important than a 5.5 hour DAT exam!
- Joined
- Jun 25, 2009
- Messages
- 5,650
- Reaction score
- 168
you are more likely to get more acceptances with 3.8/19 than 2.7 / 26
for the record, both applicants above are strong, but 3.8 THEORETICALLY should take the lead.
hmmm there seems to be mixed results between pre-dental students. Simply, what is more important a high GPA, or a high DAT? Like will the 2.70 GPA and a 24 DAT gain acceptance? How about a 3.80 and a 20 DAT, whose got the upper hand?
I personally believe, a high GPA is more important, because dental school is more about handling the material and writing exams, just like an undergrad in science is concerned. And if you can handle a full science load, and do well, then you have a high probability of doing well in dental school. The DAT, i know, is an standardized test; it might seem to even everyone out, but most people do it in the summer and study all day long for basically 1 exam in 3-4 months...And again, writing a 5.5 hour test doesnt really mimic dental school type of education. I think it's used mainly for those with high GPA and make sure they arent getting high GPA's by certain other means...(ie. cheating, easy courses, school is relatively easy, etc..).
Any ideas?
I personally believe, a high GPA is more important, because dental school is more about handling the material and writing exams, just like an undergrad in science is concerned. And if you can handle a full science load, and do well, then you have a high probability of doing well in dental school. The DAT, i know, is an standardized test; it might seem to even everyone out, but most people do it in the summer and study all day long for basically 1 exam in 3-4 months...And again, writing a 5.5 hour test doesnt really mimic dental school type of education. I think it's used mainly for those with high GPA and make sure they arent getting high GPA's by certain other means...(ie. cheating, easy courses, school is relatively easy, etc..).
Any ideas?
Holy crap, they're both important. Probability? WTF different schools have different preferences.
looks like someone got rejected.....calm down...it's a forum, you dont like it; then by all means dont respond...
I want both! I want my cake and eat it too!
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2010
- Messages
- 187
- Reaction score
- 2
GPA! You just study and retake the DAT in a snap. There's no retaking undergrad. It follows you, always.
I have a 3.85 oGPA and 3.90 sGPA but i have a really terrible DAT score 19AA/22TS/18 PAT/GC 21/OC23/Bio 23/ Rc 16/ Qr14.. So because of this I got my first rejection from Loma Linda and accordng to them it was due to the 16 in RC not the 14 in Qr ( they said they are not bothered with the QR score being low) ... So i would have to agree with the people that say it ALL depends on the school. In addition to my GPA , I also have very good LORs from professors and usc faculty/dentist and 2000+ hrs of shadowing, 100+ dental laboratory experience/research. So i would say some schools put more emphasis on the DAT than GPA. At least i am speaking from my own experience... or perhaps my stats do really suck !!!
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2011
- Messages
- 1,555
- Reaction score
- 500
With those numbers your gonna get plenty...hang tight dude....P.S. I would take the 3.8 + 19 any day, so long as none of the subsections were below 17, I would break all cutoffs!
Dude you and your 16 posts are clueless. Notices of rejection or acceptance don't come around until around Dec. 1st. I should definitely respond to posts that I don't like. I'm not going to let a few bad posts stumble another predent. Who makes ******ed comparisons between 3.8 gpa and 19 DAT (Above average w/ average) against a 2.7 and 26 dat (Below average w/ above average)? They are not in the same league.
What is wrong with you? If your idea of rejection in December holds any validity, other than the fact thats when they decide, then this entire forum is garbage. Clearly not the case, it's a place where we ask questions, about pre-dentistry, including: what dental schools look for getting advice. And the answers people are giving isnt out of the blue, rather, it's from previous years and the ADEA handbook. So we dont have to wait, some of us like to know what kind of a chance we have, the wait is sometimes too much to bare lol. Furthermore, it's good for all those pre-dent out there who are thinking of dentistry, gives them a motivational boost. Trust me, i did it for me 2 years ago....
Your reasoning is appalling. Non sequitur.
Should I really trust someone on the internet who just joined this month and made 16 posts?
you have not been around long enough
sacapuntas
Verified Account
- Joined
- Feb 25, 2011
- Messages
- 1,544
- Reaction score
- 115
What's with all the canadians going off on the site this cycle?
- Joined
- Aug 26, 2011
- Messages
- 1,555
- Reaction score
- 500
lol...+1 someone finally said it!! THEY MADDDD!!
Well maybe i switched email addresses (forgot old password), and made a different account...has that crossed your brilliant mind? I dont lie, and if i would i wont say something that can be disproved in a matter of seconds...
iDentastic
Full Member
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2012
- Messages
- 198
- Reaction score
- 3
Both!
Last edited:
iDentastic
Full Member
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2012
- Messages
- 198
- Reaction score
- 3
I have the same number of posts as you... for this very reason
. But I doubt that applies to you.
dymm
Full Member
- Joined
- Sep 16, 2011
- Messages
- 168
- Reaction score
- 0
You seem to have a slightly skewed idea of what a "low" DAT is.
Let's take UCSF for example... their minimum DAT requirements are 17 for both TS and AA sections. (As for the GPA, their minimum requirements are 2.7 for residents and 3.0 for all others.) Thus, your low DAT and high GPA example should look something like this... "17 DAT and 3.8gpa"
