Frequently Asked Questions

• Volunteering: can be healthcare-related but does not need to be
  • tutoring is a popular option

• Work experience (jobs): this is one way to differentiate yourself from other applicants. You can learn something from each job that you have; think of them as meaningful experiences.

• Research: if this is something you want to try out, try to find a job as a Research Assistant or email professors whose work you’re interested in, see if it’s something you’d be interested in (doesn’t have to be research in the natural sciences)

• Shadowing: This is pretty necessary and most dental schools require a certain number of shadowing hours so make sure to do your research (aim for at least 50 hours). Try and shadow general as well as some specialties to get a feel for the different fields in dentistry. You can start by asking your own dentist/oral surgeon/orthodontist. I’m sure most would be happy that one of their patients is interested in dentistry. *Just a note that it is probably going to be hard to do a lot of shadowing while at Duke, especially if you don’t have access to a car. Most of the dentists near campus don’t take students in for shadowing. Usually, winter and summer breaks would be a good time to do some shadowing. Make sure you keep a record of your experiences (names of dentists, hours, dates, notes about what you saw/what struck you). Schools want to see that you have knowledge about the field of dentistry and that you want to attend dental school -shadowing is one of the best ways to figure that out!

• Manual dexterity: dental schools will ask you about this in the application. They want to know about your creative side. This can include drawing, painting, playing instruments, knitting, art & crafts, other hobbies, or even working in a lab (pipetting).

• General Tips: I know this is something that you have probably heard over and over again, but get involved in activities that you enjoy! You probably signed up for every club at the Activities Fair, but try to limit yourself to a few clubs/activities. There’s no reason to join 8 clubs and serve on 8 exec boards. When you interview at schools, they want to hear your personal stories and they really just want to get to know who you are and what is important to you. Your activities should be meaningful to you, and you should be able to explain their significance in your life. If you receive an interview, it means that you’ve met the academic standards of the school and the admissions committee are interested in your personality and who you are as a person (looking at your activities/clubs is one way they can do so, but remember that you must be able to explain why an activity is meaningful to you). It is much easier to talk about something you enjoy than something you’re involved in just to put on a resume.

Honestly, it does not matter as long as you take the prerequisites for dental school and a few extra upper-level science courses. Most people who are pre-health end up majoring in a science because the prereqs are usually the same, and this makes it easier to complete your major requirements.

In general, you should aim to keep your GPA above 3.5. Schools like to see an upward trend in grades rather than a downward trend. Some schools require at least a “C” in all prerequisites, but definitely try to get at least a B. There are some schools that will reject you right off the bat if you do not have at least a 3.0 GPA. Aim for DAT scores above 20 in each section.