<p>I am interested in getting the “dean’s scholarship” for dental school which halves the tuition. I don’t know much else about this scholarship besides the fact that you need to be in the top 20 of the 120 applicants with a 3.8 GPA. </p>
<p>Please tell me more about this “dean’s scholarship”</p>
<p>How hard is a 3.8? I don’t think I am very naturally gifted (pretty good at math) but I am willing to work pretty hard.</p>
<p>bump…</p>
<p>I dunno about reg. classes, but in science ones, it is a bit harder. Like ~30% of intro sci classes get As and 40% Bs, etc. To get a 3.8, u’ll have to be consistently in the top 20-25% of your class.</p>
<p>20-25% seems pretty hard seeing that kids from penn are at the top 10% of their class… but definitely possible. thanks. Anymore responses?</p>
<p>not that challenging. Many people I know are in this range. If you want to cheat yourself of an education to get an uber GPA, you can even pretty much guarantee a 3.9+</p>
<p>necrophiliac, what do you mean when you say “cheat yourself of an education?”</p>
<p>Taking easy classes that will deceitfully buffer your grade at the expense of actually learning something.</p>
<p>Getting an education isn’t all about getting grades. Going to college is much about transitioning from being a child to an adult, and so you have golden opportunities to develop friendships and explore interests. I have learned as much from my extra curricular activities (if not MORE) than from my classes. Case in point, my job for this summer is in marketing/sales; I got an interview because I was able to present a sample of work I’ve done as publicity manager of the Penn Glee Club, and I got the job because I’ve developed my ability to sell myself as a good employee while not being self-consumed. None of that relates at ALL to my political science major. </p>
<p>Many of my friends have very similar stories. One, for example, graduated in 2008 with a degree in a language and a sub-3.0 GPA, but makes around $60,000 a year at a media relations firm, and he got that job due to the experiences he had outside of the classroom; his major has literally NOTHING to do with his job!</p>
<p>thanks for the responses. What if I were to take some real classes (pre-dental track)… is 3.8 hard to get?</p>
<p>harder but still feasible. Pre-dental is same as pre-med so as long as you’re taking 1 relevant course and 4 other courses where you’re getting A’s, you should have your 3.8+</p>
<p>I think in most cases it isn’t that difficult to get good grades at Penn, but it requires significantly more time and discipline than in high school. You can’t just be intelligent and cram anymore. So people’s GPA’s tend to reflect how much effort they put into studying (plus what major they’re in).</p>
<p>I see thanks.</p>
<p>getting A’s isn’t hard but its easy to just relax and let loose. Its not inherently harder, college just has more temptations. </p>
<p>That said, I’ve been pulling A’s off cramming the night before (I don’t even go to many classes lol). The annoying thing are the problem sets. </p>
<p>So long as you’re above average, a 3.8 won’t be THAT much work. You just need to be disciplined and not get lazy haha.</p>