when to apply

[Plopper]

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If i apply to dental schools in the beginning of august, (like the first week) would that reduce my chances or is that still early enough. (assuming i do well on the dat)
Thanks.

 

[Kane]

Well, naturally the sooner the better, right? And also, the better your stats, the more relaxed you can be.

Why can't you just bang it out now?

 

[lphiewok]

Applying in the beginning of August will not be early at all.
Early applying is usually finished by June (so schools will have files ready by July) and interviews will be given out starting in September.

When you apply, it usually takes about 3-4 weeks for them to send it out to schools so if you apply first week of August, it'll probably get to schools by September and it'll be processed from there on.

Try to finish application before your DAT and if you have solid stats, I guess it may not be a big deal but August will be considered late

 

[SugarNaCl]

August will reduce your chances definitely. If your stats are good, you probably will still get interviews, but if your stats are < or =3.3 and a 18-19 on the DAT, you have severely hurt your chances. Most first round interview invites go out in the middle of August, which means these applicants have been reviewed and decided upon... your application (even if you apply early august) likely wouldn't be among those reviewed for the first round. That hurts BIG TIME!

 

[dentaldentist]

If i apply to dental schools in the beginning of august, (like the first week) would that reduce my chances or is that still early enough. (assuming i do well on the dat)
Thanks.

I agree with what everyone else is saying here. I would get your application in now. I remember seeing some statistics from the ADEA that said that first week of August was when about 50% of the applications during a cycle had been submitted by, so you will be submitting later than the average applicant if you wait. If you have good stats though, it wont affect your chances all that much. I know of a couple of people in my dental school class that did not apply until October/November and they still got in, but just know that in reality, the earlier you apply, the better chance you have at acceptance. There is no reason not to submit your application right now. You DO NOT have to take the DAT before applying - those scores are submitted to schools seperately, so you can apply now and take your DAT in August if you want (your application will not be reiviewd until your DAT has been taken, but it takes a good 6 to 8 weeks for your application to be processed while your DAT scores are sent to schools with in a week or two after having completed the exam). Also, you do not have to have letters of recommendation submitted before applying either, as those can be added onto your application later. Start filling out the ADEA application and work on your essay and try to submit in the next week or two and you will be better off. Good luck.

 

[Plopper]

I agree with what everyone else is saying here. I would get your application in now. I remember seeing some statistics from the ADEA that said that first week of August was when about 50% of the applications during a cycle had been submitted by, so you will be submitting later than the average applicant if you wait. If you have good stats though, it wont affect your chances all that much. I know of a couple of people in my dental school class that did not apply until October/November and they still got in, but just know that in reality, the earlier you apply, the better chance you have at acceptance. There is no reason not to submit your application right now. You DO NOT have to take the DAT before applying - those scores are submitted to schools seperately, so you can apply now and take your DAT in August if you want (your application will not be reiviewd until your DAT has been taken, but it takes a good 6 to 8 weeks for your application to be processed while your DAT scores are sent to schools with in a week or two after having completed the exam). Also, you do not have to have letters of recommendation submitted before applying either, as those can be added onto your application later. Start filling out the ADEA application and work on your essay and try to submit in the next week or two and you will be better off. Good luck.

you are a king of men sir, thank you, this i did not know. I have started filling out the application, but i thought it had to be complete before submitting. I'll finish filling it out, and i have most of my letters save 2 and the reference from a dentist.

My stats are i think good, my overall gpa is a 3.7ish and my science is about a 3.6ish, so i think as long as i do well on the dat i should be golden (hoping lol)