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After a lot of studying, cramming, and not sleeping... I finally took the DAT. I just want to start off by giving a HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE shoutout to @Ari Rezaei and DAT Bootcamp, as well as Chad's Videos. Their study tools were probably the sole reason why I managed to pull this off. Anywho, here's the breakdown and all that good stuff.
Actual DAT
BIOL : 21
Pretty surprised here. Biology is honestly a shot in the dark (at least for me it is). You could study every detail there is to know about the subject, and then they'll throw that one term at you that you never heard of. I knew bio was my weakest subject going into this test, since I spent the least amount of time studying it. A 21? I'll take it. Chad's biology videos provided breadth, and Bootcamp provided depth to my biological studies.
CHEM : 22
As test-day approached, I felt really confident about my chemistry knowledge. I was honestly shooting for a 23+ but I can't complain with a 22. I felt that Chad's + Bootcamp provided sufficient knowledge to do well here.
OCHEM : 30
I knew I was gonna score fairly well here, but I was NOT expecting a 30. Holy crap.
Again, I felt that Chad's + Bootcamp provided sufficient knowledge to do well here.
PAT : 26
After going through Ari's generators every day (okay, okay... every couple days...), I felt really confident for this section. I always had a knack for visualizing things in my head, so it's great to have a score that reflects it.
RC : 26
Pretty much used S&D and hoped for the best. I consider myself to be a strong reader, but definitely not a fast reader. Be sure to use a strategy that works to your strengths and weaknesses.
QR : 22
A pretty big slap to the face. I considered math to be my strongest, most consistent subject. I completed up to Calculus II with straight A's, so I thought this section was going to be a breeze. My practice tests scores convinced me so, but again.. I can't be mad with a 22. Regardless, Bootcamp did an excellent job of presenting DAT-style questions.
DAT Bootcamp [test 1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
BIOL : 19, 18, 19, 18, 19
CHEM : 18, 21, 24, 22, 19
OCHEM : 18, 19, 18, 26, 30
PAT : 21, 21, 22, 23, 20
RC : 20, 17, 21, 21, 20
QR : 20, 22, 19, 19, 21
DAT practice test [2007, 2009]
BIOL : 20, 23
CHEM : 25, 22
OCHEM : 30, 22
PAT : 23, 28
RC : 25, 21
QR : 29, x
NOTE : DO NOT LET YOUR BOOTCAMP SCORES SCARE YOU. It definitely scared me all the way till test day. But just know that the questions on Bootcamp are much, much more in depth than the actual DAT. When I took the 2007 DAT, I was actually shocked at how easy it was in comparison (but then the 2009 DAT smashed my confidence back down to Earth).
Study materials :
DAT Bootcamp
Chad's Videos
Princeton Review's "Crack the DAT"
Google
Week 0 (before the storm) :
I'm a 4th year biology major, so I put a lot of faith in my background knowledge. My study plan was to quickly review subject material and go straight into practice problems. Before any of this, I spent some time researching about the DAT and figuring out what kind of test it was. I wanted to know the format, time schedule, etc. Basically, I used this time to mentally prepare myself for the journey ahead. I also bought a subscription to DAT Bootcamp and Chad's videos, since they were the most acclaimed internet-based study materials out there. From here till my test day, I used DAT Bootcamp's PAT generators (15-20 min a day) to master this section.
Week 1 : [chem]
I spent this time going through Chad's Videos. In particular, I spent the first week watching the chemistry videos, since it was one of my weaker subjects. I took notes and stuff, but the real benefit of Chad's (in my opinion) is the quizzes. They really help to solidify your understanding of the concepts in each video. I HIGHLY recommend that you go through every single quiz question and understand the reasoning behind each answer.
Week 2 : [ochem]
I went through all of Chad's organic chemistry videos and quizzes. Not much difference from week 1.
Week 3 : [bio]
I took a risk and used Chad's biology videos for my primary source of biology review. In my opinion, it did a good job covering a lot of concepts, but it isn't without holes. Fortunately, there aren't as many BIO videos (in comparison to CHEM and OCHEM), so you'll have time afterwards to use Google and other materials to fill in the gaps. I personally used "Crack the DAT" from the Princeton Review. I did NOT read the book cover-to-cover, so I can't really vouch for it. It definitely helped clarify certain concepts such as embryology and the musculoskeletal system, though.
Week 4 : [BOOTCAMP]
Bootcamp Bootcamp Bootcamp. I used the first 2 practice tests as study material. In other words, I took them separately and under non-stressful conditions to sort of get the feel of an actual DAT section. It was also a wake-up call for me, because I scored really bad on my first couple tests. From this point on, I really took it upon myself to understand the material across all subjects of the DAT.
Week 5 : [more bootcamp?]
I took the 3rd and 4th DAT Bootcamp practice tests during this week. I took each in one go to simulate the actual DAT and work on my timing. After each test, I would go through each question and really dive into the material. If I didn't know what some answer choices were, I would google it. Then I would go broader and see how it fits into a larger biological context. Maybe studying this way is inefficient, but I wouldn't know.
Week 6 : [bootcamp and 2007 DAT]
Same procedure as last week. For the 2007 DAT, Ari uploaded an answer sheet, which was a big help.
Week 7 : [2009 DAT + cramming]
I spent most of my last week reviewing all the material I learned. Three days before my test, I took the 2009 DAT. All I can say is... skip the math section. It isn't worth the stress and anxiety it will cause. For the last 2 days, I just reviewed and prayed to the gods.
TEST DAY :
For breakfast, I ate some oatmeal and drank some orange juice. I also reviewed my notes for about an hour before I drove off to the testing site. Now... I want you to keep telling yourself that today is just another practice test. Panicking won't help you at all, so you may as well try to psych yourself out of it. It certainly helped me, and I didn't start sweating beads until I was midway through the QR section.
Hope you enjoyed the breakdown. Good luck on the DAT!
Actual DAT
BIOL : 21
Pretty surprised here. Biology is honestly a shot in the dark (at least for me it is). You could study every detail there is to know about the subject, and then they'll throw that one term at you that you never heard of. I knew bio was my weakest subject going into this test, since I spent the least amount of time studying it. A 21? I'll take it. Chad's biology videos provided breadth, and Bootcamp provided depth to my biological studies.
CHEM : 22
As test-day approached, I felt really confident about my chemistry knowledge. I was honestly shooting for a 23+ but I can't complain with a 22. I felt that Chad's + Bootcamp provided sufficient knowledge to do well here.
OCHEM : 30
I knew I was gonna score fairly well here, but I was NOT expecting a 30. Holy crap.
Again, I felt that Chad's + Bootcamp provided sufficient knowledge to do well here.PAT : 26
After going through Ari's generators every day (okay, okay... every couple days...), I felt really confident for this section. I always had a knack for visualizing things in my head, so it's great to have a score that reflects it.
RC : 26
Pretty much used S&D and hoped for the best. I consider myself to be a strong reader, but definitely not a fast reader. Be sure to use a strategy that works to your strengths and weaknesses.
QR : 22
A pretty big slap to the face. I considered math to be my strongest, most consistent subject. I completed up to Calculus II with straight A's, so I thought this section was going to be a breeze. My practice tests scores convinced me so, but again.. I can't be mad with a 22. Regardless, Bootcamp did an excellent job of presenting DAT-style questions.
DAT Bootcamp [test 1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
BIOL : 19, 18, 19, 18, 19
CHEM : 18, 21, 24, 22, 19
OCHEM : 18, 19, 18, 26, 30
PAT : 21, 21, 22, 23, 20
RC : 20, 17, 21, 21, 20
QR : 20, 22, 19, 19, 21
DAT practice test [2007, 2009]
BIOL : 20, 23
CHEM : 25, 22
OCHEM : 30, 22
PAT : 23, 28
RC : 25, 21
QR : 29, x
NOTE : DO NOT LET YOUR BOOTCAMP SCORES SCARE YOU. It definitely scared me all the way till test day. But just know that the questions on Bootcamp are much, much more in depth than the actual DAT. When I took the 2007 DAT, I was actually shocked at how easy it was in comparison (but then the 2009 DAT smashed my confidence back down to Earth).
Study materials :
DAT Bootcamp
Chad's Videos
Princeton Review's "Crack the DAT"
Week 0 (before the storm) :
I'm a 4th year biology major, so I put a lot of faith in my background knowledge. My study plan was to quickly review subject material and go straight into practice problems. Before any of this, I spent some time researching about the DAT and figuring out what kind of test it was. I wanted to know the format, time schedule, etc. Basically, I used this time to mentally prepare myself for the journey ahead. I also bought a subscription to DAT Bootcamp and Chad's videos, since they were the most acclaimed internet-based study materials out there. From here till my test day, I used DAT Bootcamp's PAT generators (15-20 min a day) to master this section.
Week 1 : [chem]
I spent this time going through Chad's Videos. In particular, I spent the first week watching the chemistry videos, since it was one of my weaker subjects. I took notes and stuff, but the real benefit of Chad's (in my opinion) is the quizzes. They really help to solidify your understanding of the concepts in each video. I HIGHLY recommend that you go through every single quiz question and understand the reasoning behind each answer.
Week 2 : [ochem]
I went through all of Chad's organic chemistry videos and quizzes. Not much difference from week 1.
Week 3 : [bio]
I took a risk and used Chad's biology videos for my primary source of biology review. In my opinion, it did a good job covering a lot of concepts, but it isn't without holes. Fortunately, there aren't as many BIO videos (in comparison to CHEM and OCHEM), so you'll have time afterwards to use Google and other materials to fill in the gaps. I personally used "Crack the DAT" from the Princeton Review. I did NOT read the book cover-to-cover, so I can't really vouch for it. It definitely helped clarify certain concepts such as embryology and the musculoskeletal system, though.
Week 4 : [BOOTCAMP]
Bootcamp Bootcamp Bootcamp. I used the first 2 practice tests as study material. In other words, I took them separately and under non-stressful conditions to sort of get the feel of an actual DAT section. It was also a wake-up call for me, because I scored really bad on my first couple tests. From this point on, I really took it upon myself to understand the material across all subjects of the DAT.
Week 5 : [more bootcamp?]
I took the 3rd and 4th DAT Bootcamp practice tests during this week. I took each in one go to simulate the actual DAT and work on my timing. After each test, I would go through each question and really dive into the material. If I didn't know what some answer choices were, I would google it. Then I would go broader and see how it fits into a larger biological context. Maybe studying this way is inefficient, but I wouldn't know.
Week 6 : [bootcamp and 2007 DAT]
Same procedure as last week. For the 2007 DAT, Ari uploaded an answer sheet, which was a big help.
Week 7 : [2009 DAT + cramming]
I spent most of my last week reviewing all the material I learned. Three days before my test, I took the 2009 DAT. All I can say is... skip the math section. It isn't worth the stress and anxiety it will cause. For the last 2 days, I just reviewed and prayed to the gods.
TEST DAY :
For breakfast, I ate some oatmeal and drank some orange juice. I also reviewed my notes for about an hour before I drove off to the testing site. Now... I want you to keep telling yourself that today is just another practice test. Panicking won't help you at all, so you may as well try to psych yourself out of it. It certainly helped me, and I didn't start sweating beads until I was midway through the QR section.
Hope you enjoyed the breakdown. Good luck on the DAT!
Last edited:
Regardless, Bootcamp did an excellent job of presenting DAT-style questions.
