- Joined
- Jul 6, 2016
- Messages
- 41
- Reaction score
- 42
Note to self: welcome to summer!
I would like to thank God and @Luther2016 (SDNer who sent me the materials to study for the DAT without asking for anything in return, even shipping
). SDN is an amazing community!
23AA/23TS/24BIO/21GC/23OC/24RC/22QR/20PAT
I took Luther2016's advise on how to study. I studied for a month (first 3 weeks average 4 hrs/day, little more on weekends; the last week 12hrs/day). I did not take any full practice exam except for Bootcamp #1 (and Kaplan #1- just don't even) to see where I was (day 1 study). First three weeks: finished all BC exams (except reading and math). Last week: attempted the science section of the 2007 and 2009 + a ton more work.
BIO: Extremely weak background in physiology, taxonomy, developmental biology and immunology (shame on me - being a bio major). Went through Destroyer once and one more time the day before the exam. DON'T JUST MEMORIZE, UNDERSTAND. As I went through, I could explain why an answer was wrong and what was the correct answer (talk out loud, explain it to yourself - you'll be amazed how quickly you pick up the materials!). Some random questions on the real exam as always, but for the most part Destroyer and BC did a good job preparing me for this section.
GC: Forgot most of this. Used Dr. Mike's videos only(BC). Sorry Chad. I was low on $$ at that point so I decided to use everything BC has to offer. Honestly thought my score should be a little higher for GC, but hey, not gonna complain. Did Destroyer GC a week before the exam. Easier on the real thing (still wondered what I got wrong )
OC: fresh out of Orgo II, so I didn't study this section a lot. Did Destroyer orgo two days before the exam and finished the next day to refresh (whoops!)
RC: My only advise for this section is to have confidence in yourself! This is perhaps the only section I stop practicing after the first week. I tried BC RC exams, and man, felt asleep after the second article. It got so bad I literally had to end the exam and took a nap, EVERY SINGLE TIME. However, I found out that I'm pretty good at highlighting the stuffs that got asked on (don't highlight the whole passage, of course). Exam day: The pressure kept me awake, thankfully. First passage I got was 21 or 22 paragraphs long, and it was incredibly boring (yikes), but I kept telling myself I can't let this section bring down my AA. Thankfully, what I highlighted were asked (super pleased about this), which helped me "search and destroy" quickly!
QR: Did most BC exams, but only focus on statistics/probability questions (my weak area). I did get one trig question on the real exam (thought there would be none). I picked out my weak- type-of-questions in Destroyer and did them during that last week.
PAT: Bootcamp, Bootcamp and Bootcamp. Did one BC exam a day that 4th week :> Scored 19-20 on all of them, so that was accurate. The real thing was on par (slightly easier), but I was dying to go to the bathroom I couldn't focus. Keyholes sucks!
As you can tell, I got a lot done that last week leading to the exam. Things click for me when I'm under pressure (know thyself
). IMPORTANT: I think it's super important to take breaks (I finished a few K-dramas by watching an episode whenever I needed a break ). I think what helps most was my attitude walking into the exam: feel confident about your prep work! I was completely calm during the entire exam (kept telling myself you got this). Once you start to panic, it'll go downhill very quickly .
Best of lucks, SDNers!
and pls forgive my grammars :>
*For those who wonder: score 17AA on Kaplan #1, all section (maybe most) below 20 LOL.
I would like to thank God and @Luther2016 (SDNer who sent me the materials to study for the DAT without asking for anything in return, even shipping
). SDN is an amazing community!23AA/23TS/24BIO/21GC/23OC/24RC/22QR/20PAT
I took Luther2016's advise on how to study. I studied for a month (first 3 weeks average 4 hrs/day, little more on weekends; the last week 12hrs/day). I did not take any full practice exam except for Bootcamp #1 (and Kaplan #1- just don't even) to see where I was (day 1 study). First three weeks: finished all BC exams (except reading and math). Last week: attempted the science section of the 2007 and 2009 + a ton more work
.BIO: Extremely weak background in physiology, taxonomy, developmental biology and immunology (shame on me - being a bio major
). Went through Destroyer once and one more time the day before the exam. DON'T JUST MEMORIZE, UNDERSTAND. As I went through, I could explain why an answer was wrong and what was the correct answer (talk out loud, explain it to yourself - you'll be amazed how quickly you pick up the materials!). Some random questions on the real exam as always, but for the most part Destroyer and BC did a good job preparing me for this section.GC: Forgot most of this. Used Dr. Mike's videos only(BC). Sorry Chad
. I was low on $$ at that point so I decided to use everything BC has to offer. Honestly thought my score should be a little higher for GC, but hey, not gonna complain. Did Destroyer GC a week before the exam. Easier on the real thing (still wondered what I got wrong )OC: fresh out of Orgo II, so I didn't study this section a lot. Did Destroyer orgo two days before the exam and finished the next day to refresh (whoops!)
RC: My only advise for this section is to have confidence in yourself! This is perhaps the only section I stop practicing after the first week. I tried BC RC exams, and man, felt asleep after the second article. It got so bad I literally had to end the exam and took a nap, EVERY SINGLE TIME. However, I found out that I'm pretty good at highlighting the stuffs that got asked on (don't highlight the whole passage, of course). Exam day: The pressure kept me awake, thankfully. First passage I got was 21 or 22 paragraphs long, and it was incredibly boring (yikes), but I kept telling myself I can't let this section bring down my AA. Thankfully, what I highlighted were asked (super pleased about this), which helped me "search and destroy" quickly!
QR: Did most BC exams, but only focus on statistics/probability questions (my weak area). I did get one trig question on the real exam (thought there would be none). I picked out my weak- type-of-questions in Destroyer and did them during that last week.
PAT: Bootcamp, Bootcamp and Bootcamp. Did one BC exam a day that 4th week :> Scored 19-20 on all of them, so that was accurate. The real thing was on par (slightly easier), but I was dying to go to the bathroom I couldn't focus
. Keyholes sucks!As you can tell, I got a lot done that last week leading to the exam. Things click for me when I'm under pressure (know thyself
). IMPORTANT: I think it's super important to take breaks (I finished a few K-dramas by watching an episode whenever I needed a break ). I think what helps most was my attitude walking into the exam: feel confident about your prep work! I was completely calm during the entire exam (kept telling myself you got this). Once you start to panic, it'll go downhill very quickly .Best of lucks, SDNers!
and pls forgive my grammars :>*For those who wonder: score 17AA on Kaplan #1, all section (maybe most) below 20 LOL.
