Applying to Dental School - 3rd timer

[virajpatel]

Hey everyone,

As you can tell by the title of the thread I will be applying for the 3rd time to dental school, and am hoping the expression "third times the charm" really applies here. Anyways, I would like to know what some of you who are either already in dental school or are accepted to start Fall 2016, have done in terms of getting the application in on time to give yourself the competitive advantage.

A little background about myself, I am doing my Master's in Basic Medical Sciences at Wayne State University at present. I also received my undergraduate degree here but with a low 2.8 GPA. Since graduating in Summer 2014, I have enrolled in 10 credits of Post-Bacc spread out between the Fall 2014 (6) and Winter 2015 (4) semesters. Unfortunately, I was plagued with a severe back injury that winter so I was only able to take one class, which my parents had to wheelchair me to. Long story short, I am well now and started my masters last Fall 2015. I took Biochemistry, Molecular Cell bio and Physiology 1 my first semester and received A's. This semester I am taking Pharmacology and Physiology 2 and hoping to repeat that. I will have completed 20 credits in the program by the May. I intend on sending the application as soon as it opens. Are there any tips and things I can do to have stuff ready once the app opens so I can submit it right away?

I also I have DAT of 22 AA. So along with some tips on the application cycle I would greatly appreciate feedback on my chances?

As far as extracurriculars are concerned, I currently volunteer at a dental clinic for underprivileged, I have over 150 hours of shadowing, I setup a dental camp in India this past summer where we served over 500 people through the duration of my camp (3 days). I have held some officer positions in organizations that I was a part of during undergrad, as well.

Thank you all for the feedback and I apologize for the extensive post but would really love to have some expert opinions.

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[Scumbag_Steve]

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[Hi Im Dent]

Hey everyone,

As you can tell by the title of the thread I will be applying for the 3rd time to dental school, and am hoping the expression "third times the charm" really applies here. Anyways, I would like to know what some of you who are either already in dental school or are accepted to start Fall 2016, have done in terms of getting the application in on time to give yourself the competitive advantage.

A little background about myself, I am doing my Master's in Basic Medical Sciences at Wayne State University at present. I also received my undergraduate degree here but with a low 2.8 GPA. Since graduating in Summer 2014, I have enrolled in 10 credits of Post-Bacc spread out between the Fall 2014 (6) and Winter 2015 (4) semesters. Unfortunately, I was plagued with a severe back injury that winter so I was only able to take one class, which my parents had to wheelchair me to. Long story short, I am well now and started my masters last Fall 2015. I took Biochemistry, Molecular Cell bio and Physiology 1 my first semester and received A's. This semester I am taking Pharmacology and Physiology 2 and hoping to repeat that. I will have completed 20 credits in the program by the May. I intend on sending the application as soon as it opens. Are there any tips and things I can do to have stuff ready once the app opens so I can submit it right away?

I also I have DAT of 22 AA. So along with some tips on the application cycle I would greatly appreciate feedback on my chances?

As far as extracurriculars are concerned, I currently volunteer at a dental clinic for underprivileged, I have over 150 hours of shadowing, I setup a dental camp in India this past summer where we served over 500 people through the duration of my camp (3 days). I have held some officer positions in organizations that I was a part of during undergrad, as well.

Thank you all for the feedback and I apologize for the extensive post but would really love to have some expert opinions.

With your DAT and continued education, I definitely cannot see why won't be offered a good amount of interviews as long as your post-bacc and graduate GPA is above a 3.5. My main tip for you is writing a strong personal statement, find a good advisor or unbiased person who can give honest feedback and help you portray WHY you want to be a dentist as show off YOU as a person. Everything else looks good.

 

[SableFire]

What is your GPA now? Here is a helpful calculator to figure it out.

 

[jokersmiles]

Do well on your masters and I believe you will have a solid chance for interviews. DAT of 22 is perfect and your experience is ok, have you done any research or other community service?
If available by mid-June, I would wait until you have your final transcript and GPA for your masters program before submitting your application so that they can see your complete improvement.

 

[virajpatel]

Thank you all for the amazing feedback. I wouldn't have my masters degree until December 2016. I started this past fall. I have will, however, by May have transcripts and accumulated 20 credits.

 

[virajpatel]

@jokersmiles I do community service consistently at dental clinic that serves the underprivileged populace of Detroit. I have been volunteering here for over a year now with the exception being during my injury. And my travel to India. Other than that I volunteered earlier this year at the Mens Health Event with UDM Dental students.

 

[virajpatel]

What is your GPA now? Here is a helpful calculator to figure it out.

Just calculated my overall GPA, if I was to get A's this semester as well then it would put me at 3.02. But I would have 4.0 graduate GPA if that happens.