Preparing to Apply to Dental School
Author: ALEXANDER TAKSHYN, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA SCHOOL OF DENTAL MEDICINE C/O 2022
Now that you have made the ambitious decision of choosing to pursue dentistry, there are several things you need to know moving forward. The application process involves assessing the individual as a whole. This means the admissions committee will be assessing your academics, extra-curricular activities, volunteering, shadowing, research, work experience, etc. when choosing candidates for interviews and making final acceptance decisions. The point I’m trying to make is that dental school admissions follow a holistic approach, and many factors are taken into consideration. Therefore, it is important to begin preparing to apply early in your undergrad years if not sooner, because this will give you time to build up your portfolio and make you a stronger candidate.
Contents
Academics
I will begin my discussion of the pre-application process with academics. The average first-year enrollee into dental school in 2017 had a mean cumulative GPA of 3.54 and a mean science GPA of 3.52. As you can tell, these are well above average GPAs at your institution and will take a lot of effort to attain. The key is to figure out what study habits work for you and then stick to them. Personally, I preferred to either read the textbook or listen to lecture recordings on a multiplied speed. This saved me a ton of time, and I was able to move on to other classes as I found lectures to be slow paced. A few bad marks here and there won’t affect your application greatly. However, there is an exception: most dental schools want to see at least a letter grade of C or higher in the prerequisite courses and oftentimes a minimum grade of a B is recommended—meaning get at least a B. Also, it is important to keep in mind your GPA trends: an upward trend in GPA is very favorable, especially if you take upper level science courses and do well in them. This will show the admissions committee that you can handle a heavy course load and that you learn from your shortcomings.
The general prerequisite courses dental schools require are:
- Full year of general chemistry with lab
- Full year of introductory biology with lab
- Full year of introductory physics with lab
- Full year of organic chemistry with lab
- Full year of introductory English
In addition to the general prerequisites each school may have additional requirements; however, each individual dental school may have its own set of requirements. The AADSAS portal will have the necessary prerequisite information for each school when you begin applying to specific programs. The following are some of the additional required courses at certain dental schools, and I recommend that you take them regardless of school requirements.
- 1 semester of biochemistry
- 1 semester of microbiology
- 1 semester of anatomy
- 1 semester of physiology
Extracurricular Activities
When you begin your post-secondary education, take advantage of all the valuable resources you have available to you. Join some clubs, take part in athletics, and attend events which can build your social network. Building valuable connections is extremely important; you never know who knows who, and what they can offer you in the future. Participating in extracurricular activities (ECs) will not only allow you to have a more enjoyable experience at university but they will enhance your application. You want to show the admissions committee that you’re more than just an educated individual, and you have commitments outside of academics. If you join a club in your freshman year and then become the vice president or president later on, this would be a very favorable EC to add to your application. One of the worst things you can do as an aspiring dental student is having excellent academics and nothing else; you want to be a complete applicant. ECs are a great way to strengthen your application. For example, if you have a sub-par GPA, but stellar ECs, this will work in your favor. I have seen many students who had average or below average stats get into some top schools because they were heavily involved in many ECs.
Volunteering
Volunteering is a must on your application. It shows that you are a humanitarian and the type of candidate dental schools want. Every dental school stresses their community involvement and expects their students to be a part of the community. Ideally, you want to have several hundred hours of volunteer experience. You can volunteer at the dental office, the homeless shelter, food bank or even tutor your classmates. It’s a great way to build your character and demonstrate a commitment to helping others.
Shadowing
Shadowing is also an essential part of your application. How do you know you want to be a dentist if you haven’t observed their work? Shadowing will allow you to get a first person view of a dentist’s role and work environment. Each school has their own minimum requirement of shadowing hours. However, I recommend that you have at least 120 hours to cover almost every school’s requirement. There are a couple of schools who have larger requirements such as Augusta which requires 200 hours of dental shadowing—keep that in mind. Also, try to shadow at a few different dental clinics to gain a better understanding of how different offices operate and the different specialities within dentistry. Most people shadow a general dentist and 1-2 specialists. However, shadowing for a long period of time at a single office is not a deal breaker—just be ready to explain your reasoning if asked during an interview. As a side note, the majority of your shadowing should be done with a general dentist.
Research
Having research will greatly improve your chances of getting into an Ivy League or a top tier school. It is looked upon highly at these schools because they are heavily focused on research. Start talking with some of your professors and try to gain at least some research experience, as it is a great addition to your application. Although I personally didn’t do any research, I feel if I had, I would have been a more competitive applicant. Research is becoming more expected of dental school applicants these days.
Work Experience
This is another valuable experience to have. When dental schools see that you maintained a strong GPA, volunteered, shadowed, and participated in school clubs, having work experience will show responsibility and let the admissions committee know that you are a mature applicant with real-world experience.
Commonly Asked Questions
How many experiences should I have on my AADSAS application?
Quality over quantity, However, I would say aim for 8-10 different experiences. Ideally you should be diverse but quite involved in whatever you’re putting down.
How do I enter my hours?
On the AADSAS portal page they ask you the average weekly hours and the number of weeks that you participated in the experience. For example, let’s say you completed 48 hours of dental shadowing over 12 weeks. This will yield 4 hours of shadowing a week. Does it matter if you did 8 hours of shadowing 1 week and none the next? No, as long as the total is correct. Just be sure to explain this if asked during an interview. Also, be sure you remind every person you use a reference on your application of what you’re putting down, so all records match.
Can I combine my dental volunteer and dental shadowing hours?
Generally speaking, yes. Oftentimes volunteering and shadowing will entail the same roles. However, if your shadowing experience was different from volunteering, you should separate your hours. Be sure to always let the dentist you shadow know the amount of hours you’re putting to what experience.