Aracely Vela is a third-year dental student at California Northstate University's College of Dental Medicine — and the only CNU mentor on our platform. She went through the CA dental school application process recently and understands exactly what admissions teams are looking for.

Before applying, Aracely completed roughly 200 shadowing hours across general practice and multiple specialties including endodontics and oral surgery. She was an active member of her school's pre-dental club and wrote a personal statement that stood out — one that wove together her genuine love for both art and science into a compelling narrative.

When she was going through the application process, she found herself relying on Reddit and SDN to fill in gaps that nobody could answer clearly. She created this mentorship specifically to give pre-dental students a direct line to someone who has been through it — covering everything from school selection strategy and study approaches to interview prep and time management.

California Northstate is one of California's newer dental schools, which means smaller class sizes, a strong emphasis on community health, and an admissions process that rewards applicants who've done their homework on the school's mission. Most applicants treat it as a backup — the ones who research it seriously and show genuine fit often find it more accessible than the older programs.

Aracely can help you build a smarter CA school list, understand how to frame your personal statement, and walk into your interviews with real preparation — not just generic advice from forums.