Before we explore the quantitative requirements asked of most schools throughout the country let us first discuss the aspects of a dental career that are often overlooked by students.
Before considering a career in dentistry, you should consider your skills as a "people person" and whether or not they are suited or can be developed into becoming a good dentist.
As we all know, a visit to the dentist is - for most - a traumatizing experience. Often avoided, going to the dentists is not a priority for most people. Some may even suffer in pain until it becomes unbearable before finally giving-in to the need to make a visit.
Given this situation, dentists are required to not only be skilled at practice of dentistry but to also be skilled at the art of comforting and soothing a patient. It will be you performing the work on your patient and you alone will build the trust between yourself and the patient. So, before you consider a career in dentistry you should consider if your personality is best suited for being that comforting face and voice in a time of trauma. Dentists must be good communicators, had a strong desire to truly want to help people, enjoy working with your hands and your mind, and display some artistic skills (think caps, fillings, and veneers). And while good grades should definitely be on your mind before ever considering an application to a top dental school you should also know that grades will be just one item on a long list of things that dental schools will consider. In fact, your interview(s) will play a large part in your acceptance or denial to a good dental school.
Now, for the quantitative requirements required for dental school. Realize first that no particular major is required to enter dental school but you will require some pre-dental courses to qualify. First, you should consider at least 2 semesters of Biology (with lab), 2 semesters o Chemistry (with lab), Organic Chemistry (2 semesters with lab), Physics (2 semesters), and Calculus (2 semesters). If you are not already completing or have completed these courses then you better add them to your course list going forward.
All pre-dental programs will be built around a course-load such as the one mentioned above. But, if you are truly serious about a career in dentistry then you should make sure that your pre-dentistry program includes the courses that are required by the dental schools you will be applying to. For example, it is possible that a top school may place extra focus on sciences, or even an English course (yes! You read that right), so place careful attention to the requirements of the top 3 to 5 schools that you are focused on attending. This will save you grief and time come graduation from your senior year.
Most schools require that students also take the DAT (Dental Aptitude Test). You can apply to take this test at the American Dental Association's website. And most testing centers should offer this test for a fee. You can and should prepare for the DAT by taking extra test preparation courses offered by various private learning centers. All tests (such as the LSAT, GMAT, and DAT) have similar layouts every year and there are methods you can apply to better prepare yourself. A small investment in a pre-test training course may pay huge rewards come test time. These courses teach you various tips and strategies to better handling and preparing for the exam.
The last piece of advice we can give you before considering a career in dentistry is to truly display interest in this field via extracurricular activities. Given two applications and only one spot for admission, dental schools need to look further into a candidate’s bio to determine who truly wants to pursue this as a career. If you have been volunteering or mentoring with a dental professional for a semester or two this will help separate your application from all of the others that also have good grades and solid interviews.
So to recap, you should consider these important things as part of your exploration into the field of dentistry:
- Is your personality suited for a career in dentistry?
- Do you have the required courses that your schools demand of you before admittance?
- Have you displayed a true passion for a career in dentistry through volunteer work or extracurricular activities?
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