Need some serious advice.

[orgolover]

Just need some advice whether to pursue 5th year or MSc or just give up!

Here is my GPA:

1st year= 3.3

2st year= 3.4

3rd year= 3.94 (not full course load: 8 courses in each semester and 2 is summer)

4th year= 3.9

EC: Shadowing experience, Research, Volunteering, Teaching

Still need to do DAT.

I understand that getting into UofT is next to impossible with this GPA. I can go for Western but I didn't take full course load in 3rd year

I can run to US but I will be in shitload of debt and same issue with Australia (although less debt compared to US). 

Or I can just go ahead and do 5th year with full course load and qualify for Western and perhaps UofT.

Any advice or feedback is highly appreciated.

[cleanup]

Your worst year-dropped GPA is 3.74. Let's say you did a fifth year and got a straight 4.0, then with your 1st year dropped you'd have 3.81. Also if these aren't OMSAS GPAs then it will drop a bit more presumably.

Unfortunately both of those would be a tough upward battle with both schools. 

If you are set on staying in Canada (which I highly recommend you try to do), I'd go for the Masters. Kill that, and you will be attractive to several schools. THEN, spread your seed. Apply to the States as well, but try to go to a school that is cheaper, will offer you a scholarship (I was offered scholarships from NYU & CWRU that made the cost of attendance much, much closer to that of U of T), is only 3 years, etc. With the CAD as weak as it is and the dental market in Canada as it's going, I really don't recommend going abroad for dental schools these days.

I'm pretty confident though that if you do a post-graduate degree and kill it, and come at Canadian schools with a strong DAT & other things to round out your application, with your upward GPA trend you stand a pretty good shot. If you look at some of the past acceptance threads there are people getting in with lower GPAs but only because they worked their ass off afterward to make up for it.

Good luck!

[Distancea]

I don't think grad school is worth the hassle unless u are very interested in doing one. With your last 2 years you can get into Queens and Western thanks to their wGPA. I would do the MCAT this summer and try to kill it. If you hit the western cut offs it is an automatic interview.

[orgolover]

1 hour ago, cleanup said:

Your worst year-dropped GPA is 3.74. Let's say you did a fifth year and got a straight 4.0, then with your 1st year dropped you'd have 3.81. Also if these aren't OMSAS GPAs then it will drop a bit more presumably.

Unfortunately both of those would be a tough upward battle with both schools. 

If you are set on staying in Canada (which I highly recommend you try to do), I'd go for the Masters. Kill that, and you will be attractive to several schools. THEN, spread your seed. Apply to the States as well, but try to go to a school that is cheaper, will offer you a scholarship (I was offered scholarships from NYU & CWRU that made the cost of attendance much, much closer to that of U of T), is only 3 years, etc. With the CAD as weak as it is and the dental market in Canada as it's going, I really don't recommend going abroad for dental schools these days.

I'm pretty confident though that if you do a post-graduate degree and kill it, and come at Canadian schools with a strong DAT & other things to round out your application, with your upward GPA trend you stand a pretty good shot. If you look at some of the past acceptance threads there are people getting in with lower GPAs but only because they worked their ass off afterward to make up for it.

Good luck!

I thought UWO only look at two highest years. if I do Masters, will they still accept my 3rd year knowing that it is not a full course load ? Also, I am missing 0.5 credit in Physiology for both UofT and UWO. How would that work out? 

[orgolover]

 

10 minutes ago, Distancea said:

I don't think grad school is worth the hassle unless u are very interested in doing one. With your last 2 years you can get into Queens and Western thanks to their wGPA. I would do the MCAT this summer and try to kill it. If you hit the western cut offs it is an automatic interview.

 

Well UWO only look at 2 highest years and I don't have a full course in 3rd year so I don't think they will accept me even if I rock the MCAT. I do have a chance for Queens but thats the only med school that will take me with MCAT in Ontario. Therefore, I don't think it is worth it for me to do MCAT just for 1 school.

[Distancea]

2 hours ago, Dan- the DDS said:

Sorry, i am talking about next cycle. UWO will take 1 of your years (with full course load) and the one u are about to do this year (5 th year). 

 

Well UWO only look at 2 highest years and I don't have a full course in 3rd year so I don't think they will accept me even if I rock the MCAT. I do have a chance for Queens but thats the only med school that will take me with MCAT in Ontario. Therefore, I don't think it is worth it for me to do MCAT just for 1 school.

 

[cleanup]

I have no idea how it would work for UWO. I think the rules have changed since I applied.

If you're missing the credit then you definitely need it. It's a pre-requisite. You would be ineligible for application without it. From what I recall it's fairly common for American schools as well to require it.

Also I'm confused. Do you want to go to med school or dental school? Honestly I think with a more rounded, holistic application you stand a better chance of getting into a med school in Canada than a dental school.

[Waves]

You'd have a good chance at UWO if you did a full course load 5th year (with 3.0/5.0 courses at 3rd year level or above), especially since you'd have another year to bolster your autobiographical sketch.

[garlerey]

I agree with some of the others in this thread. Do a 5th year instead of starting a Masters and not finishing it up. Just make sure most of your courses are at the senior level or higher. Additionally, try applying out of province because you never know! I've had many friends who have done a 5th year of undergrad and got accepted into professional colleges, so it's not to say that a 5th year is a waste of time. 

Or, you could do a Masters if you are passionate about diving into research and commit the 2 years to it. 

But definitely start thinking about the DAT now and review material because it's mostly 1st and 2nd year chemistry and biology courses that could take some time to review because you're finishing up 4th year already. 

[orgolover]

10 hours ago, sel397 said:

I agree with some of the others in this thread. Do a 5th year instead of starting a Masters and not finishing it up. Just make sure most of your courses are at the senior level or higher. Additionally, try applying out of province because you never know! I've had many friends who have done a 5th year of undergrad and got accepted into professional colleges, so it's not to say that a 5th year is a waste of time. 

Or, you could do a Masters if you are passionate about diving into research and commit the 2 years to it. 

But definitely start thinking about the DAT now and review material because it's mostly 1st and 2nd year chemistry and biology courses that could take some time to review because you're finishing up 4th year already. 

I don't think applying out of province is a good option because even with 5th year I won't have a chance for UBC. Their overall average for Non-BC student was 88.46% and the max I go with 5th year is only 85% (depending on how they convert 4.0 scale to percentages and realizing that they will drop my 1st year). They also don't accept LORs anymore which means that even with excellent ECs, getting into UBC is next to impossible. I think my only shot is UWO and UofT (obviously with MSc). 

[chingp]

On 5/8/2018 at 7:06 PM, orgolover said:

I don't think applying out of province is a good option because even with 5th year I won't have a chance for UBC. Their overall average for Non-BC student was 88.46% and the max I go with 5th year is only 85% (depending on how they convert 4.0 scale to percentages and realizing that they will drop my 1st year). They also don't accept LORs anymore which means that even with excellent ECs, getting into UBC is next to impossible. I think my only shot is UWO and UofT (obviously with MSc). 

Just a reminder that the average grade for acceptance is an average so people get in with lower percentiles and higher percentiles etc. Someone at my interview for UBC was OOP with a 85% avg and he was accepted. It's not impossible, but you will definitely need very high DAT scores to make up for the difference. It's worth a shot, since you dont have to put in any ECS or anything like that so the application is quite simple. 

[Thrashaaa]

4 hours ago, chingp said:

Just a reminder that the average grade for acceptance is an average so people get in with lower percentiles and higher percentiles etc. Someone at my interview for UBC was OOP with a 85% avg and he was accepted. It's not impossible, but you will definitely need very high DAT scores to make up for the difference. It's worth a shot, since you dont have to put in any ECS or anything like that so the application is quite simple. 

 

I had a 86.5% this year at UBC OOP and was accepted. A bit higher than 85 but also lower than the average lol. Don’t let it stop you from applying, if you can get a solid DAT score you might have a chance!

 

[ysoNaCly]

Does UBC weigh the DAT higher than other schools? I’m thinking about applying to more schools next year but I would most likely have to retake the DAT because my scores arent the best 21 AA 21 RC 18 PAT

[chingp]

14 hours ago, ysoNaCly said:

Does UBC weigh the DAT higher than other schools? I’m thinking about applying to more schools next year but I would most likely have to retake the DAT because my scores arent the best 21 AA 21 RC 18 PAT

From the threads I've seen so far and the people I have talked to, it seems like people either get in with very high GPAs, or very high DAT scores for UBC. I think as long as you have a good GPA your DAT score should be ok. I think someone on the UBC thread had a 16 PAT and was accepted. But that's just my theory anyways, take it with a grain of salt. 

[rocmarc]

15 hours ago, ysoNaCly said:

Does UBC weigh the DAT higher than other schools? I’m thinking about applying to more schools next year but I would most likely have to retake the DAT because my scores arent the best 21 AA 21 RC 18 PAT

Pre-interview, UBC used to only consider GPA and DAT. After the interview only the interview matters. No ECs, references, essays etc. They didn't say how GPA and DAT are weighed but it's pretty clear that it was 50/50 or close so an above avg DAT could make up for a below avg GPA and vice versa. This year they've started to include CASPer as well though so it's three things that they consider pre-interview. Not sure how that changes things.

[Ms. Chip Skylark]

About the physiology credit, Western lets you take an exam to get in if all that's missing from your application is the physiology credit.

It says this on the admissions website:

The Physiology Challenge Exam is offered to candidates invited to interview who will not have been able to fulfill the physiology course requirement by the end of the application cycle. http://www.schulich.uwo.ca/dentistry/future_students/doctor_of_dental_surgery_dds/admission/admission_requirements.html

 

my advice: do your fifth year and apply to Western and UofT, but also apply to schools for your plan B career option so that if you still dont get in for dentistry, you won't spend a year off and you'll go straight to plan B