When to take the DAT/ Life Advice- VERY Complicated Case

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Ok so i'll try to make this as short as possible. My overall gpa is 2.69, and I am in second year university with a bit less than half of my courses completed in my degree (took a bit less than a full course load these two years) . I have been getting almost all A's so far in second year (just one B+), and the gpa i listed doesn't include my second semester of second year. This summer i have planned: organic chemistry,a possible retake of a class i did bad on, AND 4 months of research. The problem here is that im from Canada, so I know i wont get into Canadian dental schools no matter what happens. So im dead set on Australian , or US schools. NOW, the main problem is that I need to do the DAT, but Im conflicted as to if i should do the Canadian or US DAT . The reason for this is because I feel if i do the Canadian DAT it may be easier (not sure) and i can (possibly) can a better chance at applying to Australian schools, but i wont have access to apply to a lot of US dental schools. BUT, if i do the US DAT i might be risking a lower mark, but i'll have more schools to apply to. What should i do ? (take candadian dat next year, or US?)

also, please nobody laugh at me, i know i made stupid mistakes in the past but im looking for everything i can do to get into dental school, and am trying my best. And i made a promise to myself to put in 200% effort. So any other life advice I can get is already TREMENDOUSLY appreciated because I want to get my life back on track

thank you
- p.s i would really appreciate ANY help or advice related/unrelated to this topic I can get

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[Canadiandude93]

I dont have an answer for everything but can share my experience as i was/am in a similar position. I had a low GPA first and second year and while i have near perfect third and fourth years my GPA remains offset. I dont have some huge success story to share with you as im not yet accepted but i can give you some of my experiences.

I took both the canadian and american DAT and scored higher in every section on the american. (This is the same for the majority of my friends who have written both). For myself, the american exam felt easier in every section. That said, the american DAT chem section focuses more on ochem than the canadian and i am much better at ochem than general. I used DAT destroyer for the QR portion that is not present on the candian DAT.

You do not meet the required gpa for the 5 year australian schools (they range from 3.0-3.7) so you will not be able to apply to the 4 year schools until you have your degree (2.75 and some with a 3x2x1x weigh scale on your years). I used OzTrekk application services and they are very quick to answer questions. They will apply for you at no cost and will give you any information on competitive scores and how to get accepted. Applications open in January for the following years February semester. applications should be completed by May. Additionally, as far as i know Aus schools do not have a preference for which DAT you take. None of them take into consideration the manual dexterity portion. (some of the schools have a dexterity test as part of the interview).

Doing lots of research into schools international acceptance rate is important. I applied to a few schools that i had not looked into enough and realized afterword’s that they havent accepted a canadian for 4 or 5 years. Most private schools accept canadian students but with that comes the higher tuition paired with our dollar exchange and it gets a little overwhelming to think about.

American schools take into account shadowing and dental experience much more than canadian. I recommend finding shadowing opportunities soon and being consistent so that you can have a large amount of them before application. (same for volunteer) Australian schools dont even ask about dental experience.

PM me if you are wondering anything else.


Edit: dont get down on yourself or compare yourself to people on SDN. Do your best in your classes and things will work out. I like to think SDN is a fairly safe place and it is very well moderated so dont stress about being laughed at