- Joined
- Nov 1, 2016
- Messages
- 133
- Reaction score
- 129
Disclaimer
I just finished my DAT and like many of the helpful posts I had read on SDN before I began studying, I wanted to give my section Break down and what I used to study for each section. I write disclaimer on here because I wanted you to be aware before reading that I crammed all of my studying into one month. I finished my last final for the Fall semester and began studying the same day. It was a long month and I had to give up some time with family on Christmas and New Years but I felt it was worth it. My logic behind taking a January DAT was to give myself a safety net. I want to apply for Dental School in June the day that application open and I wanted to make sure I was satisfied with my DAT before applying. If I had taken the DAT in late May/early June and I had bombed it (Not in the good way) than I would not have to wait the 90 days during the summer before submitting my application. By taking my DAT in January I gave myself time should I need to take the test again.
I did do hours and hours of research before I started studying. I wanted to make sure I planned out my month. I was limited on time and wanted to make the most out of every hour I spent studying.
Scores
Perceptual Ability - 24
Quantitative Reasoning - 20
Reading Comprehension - 19
Biology - 17
General Chemistry - 19
Organic Chemistry 21
Total Science - 19
Academic Average - 19
Perceptual Ability
This was easily my favorite section to study for because for me it was like playing a game. I was disappointed I did not score higher; I did have some tricky Keyhole and angle problems. I started off studying in late October. I had the Kaplan DAT 2016 book and it was dreadful to use. You had limited practice problems and it doesn't explain (for me at least) each section in the depth it should be explained in. Once I purchased Bootcamp my scores went up. His explanation videos are the best and you have hundreds of practice problems. I did get caught up on cube counting. Most of Ari's have 3 questions per picture but most of my pictures had two questions. Maybe it was just my exam but I caught myself moving too fast and had to slow down.
Quantitative Reasoning/Reading Comprehension
I'm going to include these into one because I honestly didn't study for these sections. I like Ari's examples for RC but I only did one of his exams. I needed to focus on my weaker areas. Like many have said before me, my questions were in order I read them and unlike Ari I did not have any of the "If this then that is true." questions. Math I did not study for at all. I did Ari's first QR exam and got 36/40 correct and I was satisfied. I do recommend knowing your trig. I had a few questions on that. I could have scored higher on both sections but I cut myself short for time on each section. I hadn't practice much of either section so I was pressed for time. (Oh and you can highlight in RC)
Biology
I almost cried when I saw I scored a 17. Biology is my least favorite subject. I watched Chad's videos and did Ari's tests 100 times over trying to memorize each and every point and definition he made (And not just the answers but why something was not the answer). There is so much in Biology it overwhelms me. My best tip is to absorb as much as you can; its such a vast topic they can test you over anything. I read Ari's notes, watched Chad's videos, and even watch videos on you tube. I'll post the link below by my favorite videos to watch are "Biology Crash Course." Its a playlist with about 40 videos made by a guy who tries to be funny explaining biology. A good 8 hours of videos over general subjects in biology. I'm a visual person and his animations in the videos helped me get a general idea before I dove into each topic. Highly recommend watching the videos. (They are free!)
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3EED4C1D684D3ADF
General Chemistry
Disappointed in this score because every practice exam I did (2007, 2009, and the two exams you get when purchasing Kaplan DAT book) I scored well over 20-22. Most of the questions weren't as straight forward and there was a lot of stuff I wasn't 100% clear on. You know how in class you decide to not focus on an area/subject because you think to yourself "That will NOT be on the exam." Well, it was. So I trapped myself. Also I did this section last because I felt confident in my ability for GC. As far as studying goes. All I did was watch Chad's videos and took notes. Lots and lots and lots of notes. I had my old GC book from freshman chemistry and I worked practice problems out of there and of course used Ari's Bootcamp. When I got a question wrong I would read the explanation and try it again. Kaplan's book I did not used; I was pressed for time and I did not like the explanations it gave.
Organic Chemistry
This was the section I was most scared for. Luckily last fall I had retaken O-Chem 1 to help my GPA for the application cycle and the Professor I had is amazing. SN1/SN1/E1/E2 questions I know like the back of my hand. To make sure I was up to date I still watched all of Chad's Videos. Amazing tool. When I got to EAS and other reactions I was so fuzzy on the material Chad explains them perfectly. From there I did practice after practice. I wish I had more time because the questions are so general that this not that hard. Ari's questions are amazing. If you get a question wrong (or right) watch the explanation videos he provides. I took each OC test 100000 times over and if I got a question wrong I would watch the video. Again I used kaplan for this but did not like the explanations. Also I found this PDF online (I have no idea where to find this PDF or who wrote it because it was glued to my side at all times), and he explains every reaction that you could see on the DAT with pictures and explanations. Where ever you are mysterious PDF creator, I salute you.
Summary
To say a weight was lifted off my shoulder is an understatement. I was so nervous about Biology I considered just waiting until June. I taking Bio 2 and O-Chem 2 in the Spring so I felt like waiting would not be a bad thing. Waking up I honestly went in with the mindset that I need to start saving up another $430 to take the DAT again, I did not sleep, and I was stressed out of my mind but I guess I knew more than I thought. One tidbit of advice before I finish is to have confidence in yourself. My friends and family knew of the time I had sacrificed for this exam and were confident in my ability so I should be too. I might retake the DAT again because I do feel like a 17 in Bio is low but I'll see how everything pans out come June.
I just finished my DAT and like many of the helpful posts I had read on SDN before I began studying, I wanted to give my section Break down and what I used to study for each section. I write disclaimer on here because I wanted you to be aware before reading that I crammed all of my studying into one month. I finished my last final for the Fall semester and began studying the same day. It was a long month and I had to give up some time with family on Christmas and New Years but I felt it was worth it. My logic behind taking a January DAT was to give myself a safety net. I want to apply for Dental School in June the day that application open and I wanted to make sure I was satisfied with my DAT before applying. If I had taken the DAT in late May/early June and I had bombed it (Not in the good way) than I would not have to wait the 90 days during the summer before submitting my application. By taking my DAT in January I gave myself time should I need to take the test again.
I did do hours and hours of research before I started studying. I wanted to make sure I planned out my month. I was limited on time and wanted to make the most out of every hour I spent studying.
Scores
Perceptual Ability - 24
Quantitative Reasoning - 20
Reading Comprehension - 19
Biology - 17
General Chemistry - 19
Organic Chemistry 21
Total Science - 19
Academic Average - 19
Perceptual Ability
This was easily my favorite section to study for because for me it was like playing a game. I was disappointed I did not score higher; I did have some tricky Keyhole and angle problems. I started off studying in late October. I had the Kaplan DAT 2016 book and it was dreadful to use. You had limited practice problems and it doesn't explain (for me at least) each section in the depth it should be explained in. Once I purchased Bootcamp my scores went up. His explanation videos are the best and you have hundreds of practice problems. I did get caught up on cube counting. Most of Ari's have 3 questions per picture but most of my pictures had two questions. Maybe it was just my exam but I caught myself moving too fast and had to slow down.
Quantitative Reasoning/Reading Comprehension
I'm going to include these into one because I honestly didn't study for these sections. I like Ari's examples for RC but I only did one of his exams. I needed to focus on my weaker areas. Like many have said before me, my questions were in order I read them and unlike Ari I did not have any of the "If this then that is true." questions. Math I did not study for at all. I did Ari's first QR exam and got 36/40 correct and I was satisfied. I do recommend knowing your trig. I had a few questions on that. I could have scored higher on both sections but I cut myself short for time on each section. I hadn't practice much of either section so I was pressed for time. (Oh and you can highlight in RC)
Biology
I almost cried when I saw I scored a 17. Biology is my least favorite subject. I watched Chad's videos and did Ari's tests 100 times over trying to memorize each and every point and definition he made (And not just the answers but why something was not the answer). There is so much in Biology it overwhelms me. My best tip is to absorb as much as you can; its such a vast topic they can test you over anything. I read Ari's notes, watched Chad's videos, and even watch videos on you tube. I'll post the link below by my favorite videos to watch are "Biology Crash Course." Its a playlist with about 40 videos made by a guy who tries to be funny explaining biology. A good 8 hours of videos over general subjects in biology. I'm a visual person and his animations in the videos helped me get a general idea before I dove into each topic. Highly recommend watching the videos. (They are free!)
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3EED4C1D684D3ADF
General Chemistry
Disappointed in this score because every practice exam I did (2007, 2009, and the two exams you get when purchasing Kaplan DAT book) I scored well over 20-22. Most of the questions weren't as straight forward and there was a lot of stuff I wasn't 100% clear on. You know how in class you decide to not focus on an area/subject because you think to yourself "That will NOT be on the exam." Well, it was. So I trapped myself. Also I did this section last because I felt confident in my ability for GC. As far as studying goes. All I did was watch Chad's videos and took notes. Lots and lots and lots of notes. I had my old GC book from freshman chemistry and I worked practice problems out of there and of course used Ari's Bootcamp. When I got a question wrong I would read the explanation and try it again. Kaplan's book I did not used; I was pressed for time and I did not like the explanations it gave.
Organic Chemistry
This was the section I was most scared for. Luckily last fall I had retaken O-Chem 1 to help my GPA for the application cycle and the Professor I had is amazing. SN1/SN1/E1/E2 questions I know like the back of my hand. To make sure I was up to date I still watched all of Chad's Videos. Amazing tool. When I got to EAS and other reactions I was so fuzzy on the material Chad explains them perfectly. From there I did practice after practice. I wish I had more time because the questions are so general that this not that hard. Ari's questions are amazing. If you get a question wrong (or right) watch the explanation videos he provides. I took each OC test 100000 times over and if I got a question wrong I would watch the video. Again I used kaplan for this but did not like the explanations. Also I found this PDF online (I have no idea where to find this PDF or who wrote it because it was glued to my side at all times), and he explains every reaction that you could see on the DAT with pictures and explanations. Where ever you are mysterious PDF creator, I salute you.
Summary
To say a weight was lifted off my shoulder is an understatement. I was so nervous about Biology I considered just waiting until June. I taking Bio 2 and O-Chem 2 in the Spring so I felt like waiting would not be a bad thing. Waking up I honestly went in with the mindset that I need to start saving up another $430 to take the DAT again, I did not sleep, and I was stressed out of my mind but I guess I knew more than I thought. One tidbit of advice before I finish is to have confidence in yourself. My friends and family knew of the time I had sacrificed for this exam and were confident in my ability so I should be too. I might retake the DAT again because I do feel like a 17 in Bio is low but I'll see how everything pans out come June.
Congrats again!!!
