Hi everyone,

I know most people in here have successfull averaged 20+ on the academic and PAT section of the DAT. Could you answer the following.

1. What were your DAT scores?

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

Okay, rookies, you want to score well on the DAT?

1. I'm not gonna tell u my scores, because it's irrelevant to your DAT prep. Just tell you that I scored well enough to get me into quite a few very good schools.

2. I used Princeton review book. In addition, I used gre sample tests (downloand from gre website) to practice math and english. I also used Campbell to study bio. Solomons to study O-chem, and my old college text for g-chem.

3. My DAT rock and roll started in June 10. I took the test on Aug 19, and I studied only DAT for the whole time.

4. I spent all day long study and study, practice test after practice test. You know the saying.

5. I think getting 20 for aa is what one should get if he/she studies in his/her undergrad time. Getting above 20 is totally a doable thing. The DAT is not an earth shaking, killing test or CA dental board.

EVERY THING IS DOABLE.

GOOD LUCK TO ALL THE ROOKIES OUT THERE.

The secret to the DAT is TIME. Spend a lot of it studying. Study the sciences using text books and study guides at the library. I particularly liked Schaumm's Biology review. Just study everything you can get your hands on. I even studied an AP Biology review book. I studied full-time. I started beginning May 1st and took the test June 20th. I studied at least 6 hours a day. I had already studied in my free time during my last semester of school, so I spent all this time working on my weak areas. My recommendation to you is to study your arse off and then study some more. My GPA was very bad my freshman and sophmore year so I knew that my only shot at dental school was to do well on the DAT. I think everyone should study like their future depends on that test, because it actually does.

I scored a 22 in every category except I got 21s in math and perception. On the practice test that the DAT people send you I got a 26/26. Needless to say I feel the real exam is much more difficult. Some people disagree, but it is probably just attributed to a little luck either way. The real DAT was much more difficult than I expected. I really thought I would pull off a score in the mid-twenties. While I was taking the test I felt my dream of being a dentist slip through my fingers. I figured I was only gonna get like a 17 at best. When it came time to hit the button to see my scores I was about to break down. When I saw I got a 22 I almost passed out with relief. Still, I immediately felt that I should have studied even more. Still, my score was good enough to get me into 5 schools.

Just a FYI on why I was so paranoid, I took freshman Biology 3 times. Got a C-, F, and C- in that order. Not to mention a C in Calculus, C- in Gen. Chem I, C+ in Botany, and a D+ in Gen. Chem II. They were all in my first 2 years. My next to year were much, much better.

Moral of the story- STUDY, STUDY, STUDY. And as a side note don't drink too many beers your first 2 years, particularly when you go to a school like BYU. Needless to say I didn't quite fit in.

To give you a lil background, I graduted in 99 and took the DAT in 2001 so I was 2 years out of hard science courses and 3-5 years removed from the pre-requisites needed for dental school! And I averaged around a B- to a B on those pre-req's I took. Undoubtedly, I was really rusty on the material you need to know for the DAT.

So I made it a point to study as hard as I could for the DAT because I knew that would be the only way to redeem myself. And it is definitely possible to kick ***** on the test! You just have to put in the work.

I basically didn't see the sun between June to end of August. I took the Kaplan course which was EXTREMELY helpful...not because of the instruction, but because of the amount of material and practice tests they had. I also looked into a couple of retail books for some extra test questions and tricks. Here's the rundown:

1) Kaplan course - The live classes are useless...however, their taped classes are helpful. Do ALL the practice tests and look at the explanations for each answer you got wrong.

2) Barron's DAt prep book - I needed more help on math and PAT. They had some good tricks for the PAT and their explanations for the math questions were actually better than Kaplan.

3) TopScore DAT CD - Do ALL the tests. These tests are the most similar to the real DAT in terms of test layout and difficulty of questions.

I didn't open my old textbooks at all. :)
21 AA, 20 PAT. 27 on my general chem section (my weakest subject) and 17 :( on math.

Hit the sciences hard! I scored 27 gchem, 23 ochem and 20 bio. My other sections were average and I scored over 20 still. I prepared using the Kaplan DAT book, topscore and the texts form class. Studied for seven weeks over the summer on my own. The week before the exam I studied around the clock.

I think you should try and get your hands on as many practice tests as possible. By doing this you will become very familiar with the test format, find out what you might need to brush up on, and ultimately you will breeze through the DAT. It's definately not a difficult test and I agree with RSXer; you can definately do awesome on it.

1. My scores ranged from 21-29

2. I used the Kaplan guide and some class notes to review material

3. Probably a month before my scheduled DAT exam

4. I got my hands on as many practice tests/sections as possible.

5. I think you should put as much time into the different sections that you feel you need....Only you know if you are confident in certain areas.

6. I actually thought I was going to have to relearn alot, but fortunately I remembered alot more than I thought I was going to.

7. Prepare yourself and be confident. You will do fine.

Thanks everyone for the amazing replies. Your advice is helping me and many other students. I'll let you know how I did...good or bad. :cool:

And if anyone else would like to add his or her plan, feel free to chime in. I'm still reading.

hey mcataz..
thanks for posting this thread.. it's nice of all you guys who've been spending time giving us some good feedback. I've been studying for the DAT and plan to take it in a couple months. All these posts have been helping me a lot. Good luck to everyone in all your endevors.

I agree with Brand that the key is time. STUDY, STUDY, STUDY until your completely sick of looking at the same material. I have around a 3.2 gpa and new I really needed to do well, so I waited until I knew I was ready.

I read the Kaplan book cover to cover in the sciences more times than I'd like to remember, this is very good to cover the generals of every concept. I read my bio book through, and then read the sections I didn't feel comfortable with again. I used my old O-Chem book to study, and only looked at Kaplan for the stuff I didn't know yet to help with general ideas (I haven't taken O-Chem 2 yet). Gen Chem I got the basics with Kaplan and then found as many practice problems as I could, including AP, SAT II, anything that covered Gen Chem. I agree, take as many practice tests as possible.

Anyways, I studied from August to Feb when I finally took my test. I was working full time while studying, so it took me a long time, and then took a week off work right before the test. I ended up with 23 academic (24 science), 19 PAT and could have done even better on PAT if I would have spent more time on it.

mcataz,

I wasn't able to spend that much time studying each day, as I was working full time, plus had over an hour bus ride each way to work every day. I did study on the bus, but it is very difficult to study on public transportation, and often my travel was very early in the morning or late at night, so I ended up sleeping. This created like 12 hour days with work every day. The days I worked early shifts, I would go to the library after from around 5-9, then take the bus back home, and I studied a lot on my days off. Most of the time, though, I just studied on my way to work and back. However, I was so busy, there were a lot of days I didn't study at all, and felt like I had to catch up because I wasn't seeing the material every day. Also, since I haven't taken O-Chem 2, I had to teach myself all of that material, and I hadn't takedn GChem or Bio in 2 1/2 years. It was a long, stressful process where I felt like I had it hanging over my head, but I didn't want to take the test before I was ready, and I knew I didn't want to re-take the exam because I did poorly. Maybe I over did it, but maybe that extra month gave me a couple of extra points in my sciences. Looking back it was all worth it, but I'm sure glad to be finished, knowing I did well.

Kevin

1) Overall 25, Science 24, PAT 23

2) Bought $50 Kaplan book from Barnes and Noble

3) 2 weeks before test

4) I memorized the book from front to back. Spent 10+ hours a day for 14 days. Ended up going over the book about 5 or 6 times. Took 1 practice test from Kaplan book (useless) and the one included in the DAT application packet (very helpful)

5) 1) All you have to do is write down every O-Chem reaction on several sheets of paper (6 for me) and then memorize them. I found that to be the most helpful. 2) You don't need to study for the reading section - all that is involved is being able to speed read and look for keywords (in other words, read the question first and then find the answer within. NO need to read the passage). 3) Practice the PAT! The angles are going to kill you regardless, but the other parts of it are easy to conquer. 4) If you're not used to taking timed tests (and remaining calm), then I guess you should practice taking more practice tests than I did (I had practice taking MCAT)

6) Firm understanding of the material.

7) I think that perhaps the best way to succeed on the DAT is to know HOW to take it. Be confident, understand how to manage time, work fast and efficiently, know how to quickly eliminate incorrect answer choices, etc.. If you are good at memorizing information, you should do fine. Not much of the DAT requires analytical type of thinking so don't expect to see anything too surprising on the test. Another thing, I found that the DAT is different from the MCAT by the answer choices that they give you. The MCAT will always give you a "trick" answer that a significant number of people will select since it is the answer you would get if you did the problem the wrong way. On the DAT, I found that most every question had one clear answer and that's it. I did not have a hard time eliminating the wrong answers quickly.

Good Luck!

I focused on my weak areas. I knew going in that I would be up against a lot of bio people & this was my weakest area; so I studied it way more than any other area. Little to no studying math & chem since these were my major & minor 5 years ago. I also just finished up my orgo courses just before DAT so I did not study it. I scored about a 20 (almost an exact 20) in every section. This surpised me. My math & chem scores were lower than expected (20/19) and my bio was higher than expected (20). All in all I looked to be well rounded w/ 20's in every category. What would I do different? Study my math & chem a little more, that is about it. BTW, I used the Kaplan book exclusively & studied the bio section inside out.
GOOD LUCK!
matt

bump

Hi guys, I'm applying this summer, so I don't know the effects of my scores on admittance and such, but here's the info i can give:

1. my scores were all in the low 20s, except a 26 in reading and a 19 on PAT :(
so my scores aren't amazing, but good enough that I'm not too worried about them keeping me out of any schools

2. I used a Kaplan course, and I hafta agree that for me the live classes were useless, but the books and all the practice tests at the center were INCREDIBLY useful, to me at least
the only problem I have with Kaplan is their prep for the PAT. They use all these huge figures and I got a rude awakening when these tiny figures appeared on my screen during the test. So I'd look for a more accurate PAT prep than Kaplan

3/4. Yeah, so I'm one of those procrastinators and I also was working until the end of July, so I just started really studying 2 weeks ahead of time, hence the not so amazing scores, but still not bad for just two weeks. I would drive up to New Brunswick (where the Kaplan center is), spend a few hours in the Rutgers library reading through the Kaplan DAT book, taking notes, and taking the practice test at the end of each section. Then at the end of the day I would go to the Center and take the practice tests there. At the end I took all the comprehensive tests too, which helped.

5. Again, I wish I had used a different prep book for the PAT part of the test -though I still got some useful tips from Kaplan. I also wish I had looked over more science. I was under the impression that everything that could be on the test was in the Kaplan prep book, which looking back is obviously not true. So looking at old text books from bio especially would have helped.

6. Hehe, I can't even remember now how much I remembered before the test, all i know is it seemed like alot. And the entire test is practically blocked out of my mind now, so I don't remember how I felt during it.

7. As everyone has said, as long as you study lots, you should be fine. It's not like the SATs at all, just straight questions.

And the thing helped me stay calm during that summer was thinking how grateful I was that I wasn't taking the MCATs :p

Spring Haze

You are being much too humble my friend. You did very well on the DAT. I think most of us would be thrilled to achieve the same score.

My academic average was a 24. I got a 19 on the PAT. It's not just the time but it's how you use that time. Anyone jackass can say he studied 6 months for the DAT but if he is only putting in 2 hours a day, then that should tell you something. Also be aware of people telling you about studying for only 2 weeks. Trust me, it takes more than 2 weeks to prepare for the DAT. It takes at least 6 weeks and in my opinion a good 12 weeks to score well. Those who studied for only 2 weeks are people who already knew the material really well and they just needed to review. For your average Joe Applicant who is not a genius, I would say put in 12 weeks of at least 5 hour days. Here is what you should do.

1. Memorize the Kaplan book. Read it three times first. Then start memorizing the book by breaking it into flash cards. Go over these flash cards every day until the material becomes innate.

2. Do tons of practice problems. Do each practice problem at least twice.

3. This is something that no one has brought up, but improve your conceptual understanding of the material each day. Go bother professors, fellow students anyone. Try to see if you can understand it in a different way. Try to recite it to yourself. A concept should be crystal clear on the DAT. If there is any haziness to the concept you won't do well. You should know the material so that it is innate.

4. Print out the Top Score exams and understand why the wrong answers are wrong. Then take the Top Score exam a couple times.

5. I agree in that you should buy the GRE math book. The algrebra is much more difficult on the real thing. This is what I did as well. I did a lot of GRE Math.

6. Do a lot of MCAT verbal reasoning passages. Buy 101 passages from Examkrackers.

7. Mentally prepare yourself to be miserable for 3 months. It's okay to be unhappy. Just deal with it and don't whine like a sissy.

8. Study ecology, intverterbrate biology and genetics. Those were the most non-emphasized topics in Kaplan that are heavily emphasized on the real DAT.

9. The PAT will come to you. Don't give up. Just practice. Your brain starts adopting to PAT perspective. It's weird. Just do it. Get help if you need to.

10. Don't give up. There will be times that you will want to quit. The most important thing in life is not quitting. Don't quit even if you are tired, hungry or unmotivated. Push yourself. You will need it. This is good discipline.

Now you know what to do. Whether you do it or not is up to you. I took you to the water. Now let's see if you can drink

great post by zazzookode!!!! Thanks for the motivation!!!

bumpity bump:D

My scores ranged from 20 to 23 (except for 18 in bio... :p ....it's funny too cuz that was my undergrad major)......overall average was 21 and PAT was 23.

I took the unconventional method of studying. I went out and bought MCAT review books (Berkeley Review for MCAT) and started attacking it 3 months before the exam date.....I was also in school full time, so I probably spent ~2 hr a nite on the materials. It was a very comprehensive book with detailed explanations.....it tells you why the other choices are stupid! Just like the guy who posted earlier (forgot the name)......know what answers to eliminate! Dont just memorize the correct answers when you do the practice tests......know why the other choices are wrong!! It really re-inforces you of the terms and what nots that will be used in the DAT"s.

I kinda forgot what the DAT's are like, to be honest......hehe. So I probably wont be too helpful to you guys.

Just make sure you study on a regular basis so you can keep on drilling in what you have studied the day before.

Oh....one more thing.....some of you probably know this trick already.....but...... When doing the PAT section, for the angle comparisons.........hold the tip of you pencil and use it as a reference point......it's gonna make it a lot easier! :D

bump

This is a great thread, but now it belongs in the new DAT discussions forum. I'm moving all these as a favor to DesiDentist, the new mod over there!! So follow the link....

wow lots of good scores. i think the percentiles cannot be accurate. it said i was in the top 1% with my academic average (23) but yet Ive seen enough posters on this board with scores that meet or beat it... hmm...

either there are a lot more people taking the DAT and scoring poorly or those percentiles are inaccurate. oh well hopefully you all can get in this year and everyone next year will be more modest :-D

Veterans,
how much of your success is attributed to smart test taking skills(i.e. eliminate the wrong answers until you are down to 2 possible answers and guess if not sure) vs. actually knowing the subject matter?

know the subject matter all the way! You can only guess so much, but it usually goes against you.

Originally posted by Yah-E
know the subject matter all the way! You can only guess so much, but it usually goes against you.

How is the subject matter tested in DAT compare to the course work? I know the coursework is probably a bit more detailed in general.

My score is kinda average.
Donno y. science, bio, chem, ochem have the same score of 21.
Bio was a struggle for me since I didnt have evolution, classification, and other topics, so I focused on those.
Quite importantly, study what u donno.
I read somewhere in kaplan that students just study what they know for too long and too less time for what they donno.

Be careful. I think this is the major key to determine your success. Read the question and answer choices carefully, since the test-makers will always try to "trick" you.

BTW, I bought the Kaplan book and Barron.
For bio, Kaplan is quite good.
For GChem, I have to use my textbook. There are only certain ways to ask questions, so the textbook provides method and practice to solve these problems.
So is ochem. For me, I cant remember any rxn just by reading the Kaplan book. I need to review mechanisms in order to understand each rxn better.

I used barron for PAT section. the reading portion will boost your confidence. (but this is my worst section, so find other supp)

This might be a repost since I wrote a lengthy response to Daelroy's inquiry

My scores were 26 AA, 21 PAT.

I know most of you will read that and think I'm some genius but I really studied hard. I never studied in college so I barely passed my classes. My recollection of ochem, gen chem and math was quite weak. I had some recollection of biology.

I spent 6 months of intense preparation. I put no less than 5 hours of study each day. 3 weeks prior to the exam, I put in 10-12 hour days. I also incorporated many different styles of preparation. I used flash cards and reread the Kaplan book twice from cover to cover. I used Exam crackers to do problem sets and I bought used Kaplan practice exams from my friends.

The key to do welling on the DAT is really understanding the material. If you understand what you are studying, it makes it much easier to remember the concepts. There is some stuff that you just have to memorize. I think if you do this, you achieve a score of 18-20 on AA.

But if you want above 20 which is what I sought then it comes down to practice. I did tons of practice sets until I couldn't stand it any longer. Repetition is key to succeeding on the DAT. The more you go over something and practice, the more innate the material will be to you.
The most important thing is to do timed practice sets and simulate actual testing conditions. As a result I never ran out of time on the real DAT.

The PAT is all about repetition and practice. That's all I can say for that. There are no short cuts to the PAT.

My GPA was less than stellar (3.15) but I received interviews to every school I applied including some of the Ivy schools.

It just takes hard work, sacrafice and commitment.

The thing that I'm wondering is how do I retain what I learned in class. There's nothing worse than getting a A and when it comes time to prep for the DAT you barely remember the stuff and don't do so well on the DAT because it's just tons of stuff to refresh.
Right now I'm having a lame holiday break. Can't believe I was studying on christmas day(actually reviewing) last semester's material.

I know most people in here have successfull averaged 20+ on the academic and PAT section of the DAT. Could you answer the following.

1. What were your DAT scores?

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?


I will stick to the originals posters format.

1. AA/TS/PAT = 21/24/19: Bio 22, Chem 25, Ochem 27, RC 18, QR 14
2. What books/ prep course did you use? I used Kaplan Blue book, Top score cd, Rudman's questions and answers on the DAT (highly NOT recommended), and college text books.
3. I started studying for the DAT after spring quarter, around June and finished Sept. 30.
4. I studied at least 5 hours a day. I also studied with a partner. I would refresh my self on materials well known, and take notes on materials not known. With these notes, I would regularly review them.
5. I found trying to improve RC as a waste of time. I personally can not increase my reading speed. I do not like to read in the first place.
6. For those people who are starting there freshman year, Ace Ochem, Gchem, and Bio. Then you can get a job as a tutor and get paid to refresh your self. I only recently decided to become a dentist, and I was lucky that I did tutor Ochem and Gchem. When I first started, I would score 17, and 16 on the Kaplan practice DAT. I did a lot of review and am pleased. It was amazing how fast I forget every thing even after tutoring the classes. I did underestimate the QR portion of DAT big time.
7. I use to believe that anyone could score 20 if they tried hard enough, until I witness my study partner score 16 and 15's. She worked harder them I. I felt very bad for her, and it was her second time taking it. I still think it is possible to do, but at what expenses.

:clap:

any more suggestions?

Recommended time to take to study for the DAT? 2 months before the exam date? 1 month before?

How do you study for the DAT subjects? Do you study a specific subject area for a whole day or do you mix it instead of dedicating whole days in one area?

How much info do you retain from the classes and what grade did you get from the class(gen. chemistry, organic, and biology)?

Did any of you do any review of the class materials(notes, homework problem sets, etc..) before officially beginning the studying of the DAT? What I mean is when you were taking the courses after finishing up on one did you go back and review it before moving on to the next course?

Originally posted by mcataz
Hi everyone,

I know most people in here have successfull averaged 20+ on the academic and PAT section of the DAT. Could you answer the following.

1. What were your DAT scores?

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

This is a great thread. Even though it's relatively old, it seems very useful. I wish I knew of SDN before I took my DAT. There's a lot of info that would have been useful to me...but that being said, hopefully my thoughts might help someone.

1. AA = 24, TS = 24, PAT = 20

2. I used Kaplan book, Kaplan Subject Tests (part of the class), Top Score, and my science textbooks (for reference purposes). I wish I would have looked at ExamKrackers and more reading comp material. I could have used a tutor.

3. Took exam in July, and started studying lightly in Jan but crammed in May and Jun. In the last two month, I studied 40 - 60 hrs/wk. I wish I would have started studying hard about 4 months before the DAT. You need time to memorize some material. You need time to understand the methods to some problems. Both those things take time.

4. I studied up to 60 hrs/wk for 2 months leading up to the exam. I did not have anything else on my plate (no work, no school). I wish I would have started earlier.

5. What worked? Working as many problems as you can, over and over again. When you understand how to do the problem (not just memorize the answer choice), then go over wrong answer choices and understand the definition of every wrong answer and/or why it's wrong.

6. At the time I started studying for the DAT, I was strong in GChem, OChem, QR. My weakness was in Bio and RC. Regardless of prior knowlege, I studied all areas because the DAT tests very specific content. There are only certain types of questions the DAT asks, so again, practice by working a lot of problems. And yes, it is possible to improve your RC score. It just takes practice.

7. IMO, almost anyone can get 20's. It's more a matter of how much time and resolve you have. You DAT scores depend on how highly motivated you are, your level of understanding of the material (which can be improved with time), your ability to assess your weaknesses and strengths.

Good luck all.

what do you guys think of the examkrackers 1001 chem and ochem books? what is the best book for the qr section?

I am posting because I think it may be helpful to some non-traditional applicants who work full-time and who have a family to care for.

1. What were your DAT scores?

I just took it today.
AA: 24
TS: 22
PAT: 19 (but I still qualify for this tread, right?)

Bio: 20
Gchem: 23
Ochem: 23
RC: 27
QR: 28

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

Kaplan red book with CD (old edition)
Kaplan review book for MCAT biology (1999 edition)
Topscore CD
Barrons DAT book (only for PAT)
Kaplan course (video taped lectures, practice exams and problem sets)

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

2 years ago. To be more exact, I took Kaplan course in summer, 2002 and began studying for DAT.

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

I read and memorized the Kaplan review books several times. Since I took gchem, ochem, and bio about 10 years ago, I needed to go through the review books 3-4 times.

On average, I studied for 1-2 hours a week over two years.
I am a graduate student working full time as a research assistant, and I am also a mother with a preschooler. Thus, my studying time was very limited. Once in a while, I needed to take off a few months from studying for DAT because of school works or family matters. After taking off a few months, I would forget I had studied. So I had to begin reviewing again.

A month before taking DAT, I had a spring break. So I studied for DAT 6 hours a day for five weekdays. After then, I just practiced on Topscore for 1-2 hours a day afterward.

I am especially surprised at my score on RC, because English is not my first language. But I guess reading a lot of science journals helped me. (I need to read lots of papers for my research at school.) Reading newspapers (NY times) on internet also helped me to get used to reading articles on screen.

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

Kaplan lectures (video-taped) were useless.

If I have to study for it again,
I will get a Kaplan book from any book store, and study it by myself.
After I get used to basic concepts, then I will practice problems.
I will register for Kaplan course, and just use their problem sets to practice (and not go to lectures)
I will also get Examkrackers books and practice problems.
By solving a lot of problems, I can identify my weak points, and I can go back to text books or review books to study them again??.

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

I got 12-13 for my diagnostic exam at Kaplan. I was totally lost on gchem, orchem, and bio.

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

Yes.
Practice, practice, practice??
Repeat, repeat, repeat??

mnrji,

I just wanted to tell you that I find your story very inspirational. Working full time and being a mother. That's two full time jobs!!! Plus making time to study and acing the DAT. That's incredible.

HBomb.

Thank you so much, HBomb888!

It was very very very helpful and encouraging for me to read postings on SDS.
So I thought now it is my turn to make some contribution by sharing my story. :-)

Now, I need to go through all the threads about writing SOP, applcation process, and interviews.
I hope I can also share good stories about those steps too...

Originally posted by marshall
wow lots of good scores. i think the percentiles cannot be accurate. it said i was in the top 1% with my academic average (23) but yet Ive seen enough posters on this board with scores that meet or beat it... hmm...

either there are a lot more people taking the DAT and scoring poorly or those percentiles are inaccurate. oh well hopefully you all can get in this year and everyone next year will be more modest :-D

Actually a 23 AA --> 99 percentile sounds about right. The percentiles change with scaled scores every year depending on how people do in the test. I'll bet that the test started out centered at 15 across the board which would be 15 at the 50th percentile. Now it takes something between 16 and 17 (usually closer to 17) to get be in the 50th percentile depending on the section. The official DAT registration booklet offers some conversions that are good to look at but probably already outdated. If dental admissions get more and more competitive the centering might end up being as high as 18 or 19. This is when they might need to recenter the test as they did for the SAT around 1995/1996. The test is standardized so a scaled score from years ago should be equivalent to a scaled score today, but the percentiles will be different. At least that's how I understand it.

Originally posted by HBomb888
This is a great thread. Even though it's relatively old, it seems very useful. I wish I knew of SDN before I took my DAT. There's a lot of info that would have been useful to me...but that being said, hopefully my thoughts might help someone.

1. AA = 24, TS = 24, PAT = 20

2. I used Kaplan book, Kaplan Subject Tests (part of the class), Top Score, and my science textbooks (for reference purposes). I wish I would have looked at ExamKrackers and more reading comp material. I could have used a tutor.

3. Took exam in July, and started studying lightly in Jan but crammed in May and Jun. In the last two month, I studied 40 - 60 hrs/wk. I wish I would have started studying hard about 4 months before the DAT. You need time to memorize some material. You need time to understand the methods to some problems. Both those things take time.

4. I studied up to 60 hrs/wk for 2 months leading up to the exam. I did not have anything else on my plate (no work, no school). I wish I would have started earlier.

5. What worked? Working as many problems as you can, over and over again. When you understand how to do the problem (not just memorize the answer choice), then go over wrong answer choices and understand the definition of every wrong answer and/or why it's wrong.

6. At the time I started studying for the DAT, I was strong in GChem, OChem, QR. My weakness was in Bio and RC. Regardless of prior knowlege, I studied all areas because the DAT tests very specific content. There are only certain types of questions the DAT asks, so again, practice by working a lot of problems. And yes, it is possible to improve your RC score. It just takes practice.

7. IMO, almost anyone can get 20's. It's more a matter of how much time and resolve you have. You DAT scores depend on how highly motivated you are, your level of understanding of the material (which can be improved with time), your ability to assess your weaknesses and strengths.

Good luck all.

A lot of people have recommended EXAMCRACKER. CAn someone please tell me where I can buy it? I don't think I have seen it at any bookstore. Thanks for you help. Reading this thread is really inspiring.It makes me really want to study. It's comforting to know that a good performance is very possible.

you can either buy it from their website www.examkrackers.com

Or you can buy it cheap at www.amazon.com

How were you guys doing on practice tests? I am tired of studying for the DAT now!!!! I keep getting around 18 to 20 overall on practice tests. On the topscore tests I got an 18 on the first one, and 19 on the last two. I guess I will just take the test next week when I registered for it. Just wanted to know how you guys did on your practice tests!!!! thanx

All my scores generally went up a point or two from TopScore, except for the PAT, which went down a couple points. In general, I think that is fairly consistent with other people who have posted on this topic. Most people's actual DAT scores go up (or stay the same) except in the PAT.

Originally posted by stealth-sigrho
How were you guys doing on practice tests? I am tired of studying for the DAT now!!!! I keep getting around 18 to 20 overall on practice tests. On the topscore tests I got an 18 on the first one, and 19 on the last two. I guess I will just take the test next week when I registered for it. Just wanted to know how you guys did on your practice tests!!!! thanx

My actual score improved by 4-6 points for AA from the practice test scores. For PAT my actual score dropped by 1 point from the practice test.

I guess I'm a member of the 20 and up club of rookies. :laugh: I spent about 2 hours studying for the DAT the night before and ended up with 22 PAT, 21 AA, and 20 TS. My low score was 18 on organic and my best was 27 on reading.

My secret? Studying for the MCAT. The only thing that sucks is I took the MCAT before the DAT but I still don't have my score from it. Oh well, its great being done :)

I have my DAT scores posted in my signature, at the bottom.

I studied for about 4-7 hours/day for a month and a half. I took the weekends off to relax except for the last two during which I took extra practice exams.

Materials used: Kaplan book form local books store, Topscore, and DATachiever.

Method: I made outlines for each sections of all the material, then as I did practice questions I would add info that I would miss. Everyday I reviewed my outlines a few sections at a time. By the exam date I knew it all very well. As for the PAT, that is just practice. Some people are naturally good spatial thinkers while others have to build up their skills.

Take all the practice exams you can, then before looking at the answers go through the exam again and see if you change any of the answers and ONLY then got to the exam key. The best study took is to understand the concept behind the questions and not to memorize the correct answer.

If you guys have any more questions email me, I will be glad to help.

Hi everyone,


1. My scores are 23/21/21 (25gc, 20bio, 20 oc, 29rc, 20 qr) so kinda consisitant...

2. What books/prep courses did you use? I used the Kaplan blue book, topscore CDs, and an extra bio prep book (don't remember which one, not very good)

3 - 4. I started studying about 3 months before my exam but in the middle of my studying I got engaged and hence distracted for a couple weeks and only studied about 2 hours a day during that time. The rest of the time I studied about 5-6 hours a day.

5. I think that none of my study methods were a waste of time. I didn't study at all for RC (I'm just a fast reader, always my strong area) and barely studied for the PAT and QR. PAT, once I knew how to do each type of problem, kinda got the hang of it. I scored about the same as I did on the practice exams on the PAT. QR I just went as fast as I could. It is just like SAT math in my opinion, not much you can study for. I also barely studied for the organic chem section because I just got out of O chem at school. I really spent the bulk of my time studying bio (like a maniac) and chem (because I got a C+ in chem 2). I memorized the kapan bio section and went over flashcards everyday but it was not enough by a long shot. Chem studying paid off.

6. I knew literally no gchem before the exam. I have a very weak background in the area so I was really behind. Lucky for me, the gchem on the exam was easier than I expected/studied for. In bio, you can never know it all/enough in my opinion. I studied bio nonstop.

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability? I think it is possible with lots of work to get a 20 in most sections no matter what. However, I know plenty of ppl who aren't fast enough readers or quick enough at math do get a 20 on those sections. I think those sections are more innate ability, in my opinion.

Hi everyone,

I know most people in here have successfull averaged 20+ on the academic and PAT section of the DAT. Could you answer the following.

1. What were your DAT scores?

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

Just took the DAT today, thought I could share some thoughts since I got so many valuable tips from this forum.

1. My DAT score is 23 (TS), 23 (AA) and 20 PAT.

2.
Biology: Kaplan, Schaum (very helpful after reading kaplan- Thank you SDN for recommending this book- This is a must read), Campbell (very useful for connecting different concepts together, but may be too much detail), Topscore (most similar to the real DAT), DAT achiever (harder than the real thing), Barron (lots of mistakes, but the difficulties is about the same as the real one).

Chemistry: Kaplan, Barron, Topscore, and DAT achiever. For this section, Kaplan is enough, but some of the concepts are not well explained. I just browsed through the web. it's amazing how many useful websites there are. The most important thing in this section is practice, practice and practice a lot of problems. The real thing is a lot more easier than all of the practice tests.

Organic Chemistry: Kaplan, Topscore, Barron and DAT achiever. Also went through my textbook and study guides for the textbook, and make up reaction sheets. Again, just do a lot of problems from practice tests and textbook. I find the real organic chem test harder than the practice tests. Know your concepts: Markovnikov, anti-Markovnikov, radical stability and stereoisomers (chirality).

Reading Comprehension: The passages were very easy (easier than all of the practice tests), I was a little surprised at the test. I just scan the passage for the first 8 minutes (I just jot down numbers and names of studies only). The questions are very similar to top score, but there are also a lot of tone and purpose questions. There's no need to practice for this section, just make sure you manage your time well. Once you know you can finish the test on time, thre is no problem at all.

Quantitative: There weren't that many words problems, mainly a lot of algebra. Know your probability and trignometry relations. The section isn't that hard. Just pace yourself throughout the test. My strategy is to skip the hard questions and do all the easy ones as fast as possible. Then I go back to the hard questions. Just make sure you get at least 30 questions right. The real test is about the level of Barron, and easier than Kaplan and DAT achiever.

PAT: This is the hardest section of the DAT. I thought I was ready because I did so many practice tests. The real thing is easier than DAT achiever, but harder than Kaplan, Barron and topscore. I guess you can't really improve on perceptual ability. The angles were pretty hard, some angles were very similar. Top front end, keyholes and cube counting were extremely easy and very similar to that of Topscores. Aperture passing and pattern recognition were very hard. The most important thing is to pace yourself, just make sure you can finish the test on time. I finished it with 3 minutes to go. DAT achiever is the best for studying PAT! Study DAT achiever first and then do the other practice tests.

3,4. Started studying at May this year, and at least 7 hours every day. However, I thought I overstudied for the DAT. I probably was ready at August.

5. Study method:
First of all, the Kaplan course is useless. Just buy the book and the review material and don't waste money on the course. I can't believe I wasted close to a thousand dollar on this bad review course. The instructors just basically repeat the same thing in the textbook. I get better studying by myself than in class.

I thought Kaplan reading comprehension method was useless. The keyword method really wasted a lot of time. I just jot down numbers and names of specific study only. There's just too many scientific terms to jot down. I regretted practicing so much for the reading comprehension, I did like 18 reading comprehension tests.

6. Before studying for the DAT, I only know the molecular biology and microbiology stuff. Never took any human biology, physiology and Ecology courses in University. Schaum was the best in integrating all the concepts together. I was totally clueless with all the classification and ecology concepts until I read Schaum (kaplan is really bad at explaining ecology and classification concepts).

I took Organic chem like 3 years ago. I forgot everything already. I just read through Kaplan and then my textbook again.

7. I think hard work can lead to a respectable score, but test taking ability is the most important thing for the DAT. You need to know how to pace yourself for the whole test. Also, don't dwell too much time on one question, and make sure you do all the easy questions on the test as fast as possible.
Just study a lot and do a lot of practice tests, and you will do fine.

Thank you SDN for many advices on the DAT!

Well, I got 23 AA ...

The only materials I used were the Kaplan book and TopScore CD. All the materials you need to know are in the Kaplan book. Don't waste money by taking the course. Generally, TopScore q's are a lot tougher than the actual exam, except for PAT. In terms of PAT, practice practice practice. I studied semi-intensively (~2-3 hours a day) for a month and it was good enough. Then again, I was a Bio major in college and also got a masters degree in microbio and immuno, so that probably helped.

I started at the very beginning (don't know what DAT is and what application to file for dental schools) at the end of April this year. Then things picked up speed as I googled and researched online all days long. I signed up for Kaplan course in May and finished it at the end of June. In early July I also finally finished all application materials and sent them in except DAT (taken mid-August).

During the time I studied about 6 hours a day in average. On good days I was able to finish more pages, while on bad days I felt paralyzed and only to study a couple of pages. Of course, I started off as a senior with chemistry BS in research. So the DAT was not too much to bear originally. For Biology I focused on Kaplan and actually "carpet-bombed" the tome textbook by Campbell & Reece.

At the end of August I got my DAT AA 24, TS 25, PAT 27 (my parents are both textile/ fashion artists and I used to draw comics) and immediately faxed the scores. 10 days later the Columbia interview letter was the first to arrive.

Hi everyone,

I know most people in here have successfull averaged 20+ on the academic and PAT section of the DAT. Could you answer the following.

1. What were your DAT scores?

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

1. 25AA, 24TS, 22PAT
2. TPR MCAT Biological Sciences for Bio, Found online notes for plant bio, Textbooks for G chem and O chem. (I got a 29 in Ochem, reading the textbook helps a lot. I never got an A in any Ochem class.)
3. Studied for 1.5 months, although practiced PAT for a while before
4. Spent 6 hours daily. Eventually read Gchem/Ochem textbooks 3-4 times over. Read TPR bio book in the bathroom :)
5. Nothing was a waste of time, maybe rereading what an atom was.
6. G chem and O chem were hazy just review and repetition. Bio, I had to teach myself plant bio and ecology. Other than that, I learned new concepts from the TPR MCAT bio book (great detail).
7. Most definitely, its just absorbing material for the sciences. The rest is practice.

wow i thought i did well with my scores before reading this post...

Anybody reccommend sudying MCAT material as well in addition to DAT material? (except for Physics stuff, obviously)

One of the pre-dental students here implied that the MCAT review material goes into more detail than the DAT review material, so that's why he scored a 20AA.

Any suggestions?

is there a big book of PAT questions/puzzles? like Sadoku? :)

I'd like to do PAT questions while I'm bored, but I don't want to lug around my big blue Kaplan book.

is there a big book of PAT questions/puzzles? like Sadoku? :)

I'd like to do PAT questions while I'm bored, but I don't want to lug around my big blue Kaplan book.


i cant help you w/the PAT stuff,but sudoku is SO frickin addictive. check out www.websudoku.com.

Hi everyone,

I know most people in here have successfull averaged 20+ on the academic and PAT section of the DAT. Could you answer the following.

1. What were your DAT scores?

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?
Just so you know.....this was my second time taking the test. The first time I took the DAT I thought that studying would be a waste of my time because I have always performed unusually well on standardized tests. I was wrong (17AA,16TS, 17PA).

Round two was a lot better.....
1. 21AA, 21TS, 21Gchem, 20Bio, 24Ochem, 21RC, 17QR, 23PA
2. Kaplan online, Topscore, Schuam's books(Organic chemistry, General chemistry, Biology, Anatomy, and Cellular biology), Undergrad text books, and a whole bunch of undergrad college websites.
3. Started 3 months prior to test date.......length of Kaplan course.
4. I studied lightly the first two months(2-4) hours a day. The last month I studied probably 6-7 hours a day.
5. I never did anything that I considered a waste of time........but I do wish that I had practiced QR daily so that I would have been faster on the test.
6. I was very rusty starting out because it had been a year since my organic classes, 2 years since my biology and general chemistry classes, and 3 years since my math classes. Let me add to this......when I was an undergrad I just studied to remember info for the exams. I have grown academically since then and knew that the only way I would perform well on the DAT was to understand the concepts completely. If you truely understand them then you won't easily forget.......I still know this stuff and it has been 4 months since the DAT. You should strive for this kind of knowledge.
7. I firmly believe that if you want something bad enough and you have the discipline then anything is possible. Except for maybe PA.......the first time I took the DAT I got a 17 on PA because I didn't know what they wanted me to do (on the top-front-side part didn't know what the dotted line represented and wasted to much time on the section...so...I had to fill in random answers for the remaining parts). I only lightly prepared for the PA the second time I took the DAT.
After reviewing the kaplan and topscore I didn't practice PA very much......I made and printed out tiny angles in different combos to get in the zone about an hour before the real DAT.

I know what it is like to freak out over this test. Just study as hard as you can and if anyone wants specific advice then feel free to pm me. Good luck!

Hi everyone,

I know most people in here have successfull averaged 20+ on the academic and PAT section of the DAT. Could you answer the following.

1. What were your DAT scores?

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

1. AA 22, PAT 22, TS 24, Bio 23, GChem 23, Orgo 25, QR 22, RC 19
2. College Textbooks, a Cliffs notes prep book for AP Bio (it's a good bio summary book and helped me a ton), Kaplan's DAT book, Topscore. I also borrowed the Barrons DAT book from the library, but it wasn't that good of a book. I used Kaplans book ALOT to study for orgo. I also used the official DAT booklet from ADEA.
3. Early June, one week after summer break started.
4. Looked through the textbooks, review books, pretty much relearning most of the stuff (i have forgotten a ton of stuff already before I started reviewing). Took a ton of practice exams during the final month, and made sure I master the material that I have trouble with. I probably spent 6 hours per day studying and upped it to 9 hours during the final two~three weeks. Three months total, and took the exam around August 16th?
5. Waste of time....just reading the textbook chapters. I would focus on the review books first and then read up on the chapters when you need more clarification. DAT's materials normally aren't that detailed anyway. I did learn alot from going through the textbooks though, but I felt it was a waste of time. I wish I would've practiced more on reading comprehension.
6. I forgot most of the stuff. Some stuff like biochem related stuff I remember because I took biochem just the semester before, and it goes alot more in depth than general bio. I also just took orgo, so I remember a good amount of it.
7. Yes, you can. If you really focus and learn the stuff, i don't see why you can't do well. It's not like math or engineering where you have to actually use your creative thinking to come up with solutions. If you practice enough on the DAT, you'll be pretty good at it. Even the math section, which asks similar types of questions all the time. PAT section also, practice practice practice. If you practice, you will know the strategy to use when you take the actual test.

INFNITE and Geckel...

Good posts... very helpful.

INFNITE and Geckel...

Good posts... very helpful.
You are quite welcome burton117. Hey infnite, your scores kick ass......what did your percentile rank say you were for AA?

thanks, your scores aren't too bad either
I don't remember the specific percentile ranks, but I remember it was above 95%

Anybody reccommend sudying MCAT material as well in addition to DAT material? (except for Physics stuff, obviously)

One of the pre-dental students here implied that the MCAT review material goes into more detail than the DAT review material, so that's why he scored a 20AA.

Any suggestions?

I'm not going to use the format, because I'm too lazy...and I want to answer burton's question since I think if I studied smarter I would have done a bit better (no complaints though :D ).

I got a 21AA/23TS/20PAT (23 Bio, 23 GC, 22 OChem, 20 Verbal, 18 Math)

I used the Kaplan online course materials (from eBay), Barron's (for math and PAT), Schaum's Bio, Columbia's High Yield Bio, two different GRE math review books, Top Score, DAT Achiever, Examkrackers, and KSF.

If you want to get a really good score in bio I feel you need to supplement the Kaplan book. I liked Examkrackers bio the most. But, then I used Schaum's for ecology, plants, etc. which aren't covered in Examkrackers. The week or two before the test I used Columbia High Yield which is in outline form and a great refresher for quick studying. I feel that Examkrackers 1001 questions in bio was mostly a waste of time since it is predominantly passage based.

For general chemistry know everything in Kaplan and you will be fine. Examkrackers Chemistry and 1001 questions in chemistry both go into FAR too much detail. IMO using them will be a waste of time better spent elsewhere.

For Ochem know everything in Kaplan. If you're not real strong on the concepts of Ochem (sub and elimination rxns) then Klein's "Organic Chemistry as a Second Language" is a great book. I thought that Examkrackers Ochem and 1001 questions books were both quite helpful and not a waste of time for that section.

For math: If you're not good at standardized math tests start studying for the math immediately. I hate math on standardized tests and so I put it off. I'm also a former engineer and I've heard of a couple other engineers who didn't study for it and paid. So, don't blow it off, schools might not look at the math specifically, but they do look at the AA and it'll drag down your AA. I didn't think that Kaplan was sufficient for the math, so at the last minute, I used two GRE books.

Verbal: I you're bad at verbal then Examkrackers verbal is very good since the verbal section on the MCAT is a beast. I didn't really study for the verbal and kinda paid for it a bit.

PAT: For PAT I would start with the explanation/tips section of Barron's, then use Kaplan's, then do the test sections of Barron's. DAT Achiever is very good for everything, but especially for PAT. But, don't waste a pat from dat achiever until you're ready for it...

As far as the digital materials go: I bought KSF right after they came out and at that time they were not worth the time or money. Top Score is the most like the real dat and should be saved for diagnostic purposes IMO. Dat Achiever is awesome, just don't let your scores get you down. Make sure you give yourself time to review the digital tests really well. If you want to do your best go over every question, even the ones you got right.

If I could do the whole thing over again (ugghh) I wouldn't use Examkrackers 1001 questions in bio or general chem, I wouldn't use EK general chem, I'd start studying for the math right away, and I'd give myself time to review the practice tests (it took longer than I thought).

I used a lot of materials and spent a lot of time and money preparing. How long you have to study is an individual thing, I wouldn't be paying a lot of attention to that stat in this thread. Take the test when your ready...it'll pay off. :thumbup:

Good luck guys...keep your eyes on the prize :luck:

I'm not going to use the format, because I'm too lazy...and I want to answer burton's question since I think if I studied smarter I would have done a bit better (no complaints though :D ).

I got a 21AA/23TS/20PAT (23 Bio, 23 GC, 22 OChem, 20 Verbal, 18 Math)

I used the Kaplan online course materials (from eBay), Barron's (for math and PAT), Schaum's Bio, Columbia's High Yield Bio, two different GRE math review books, Top Score, DAT Achiever, Examkrackers, and KSF.

If you want to get a really good score in bio I feel you need to supplement the Kaplan book. I liked Examkrackers bio the most. But, then I used Schaum's for ecology, plants, etc. which aren't covered in Examkrackers. The week or two before the test I used Columbia High Yield which is in outline form and a great refresher for quick studying. I feel that Examkrackers 1001 questions in bio was mostly a waste of time since it is predominantly passage based.

For general chemistry know everything in Kaplan and you will be fine. Examkrackers Chemistry and 1001 questions in chemistry both go into FAR too much detail. IMO using them will be a waste of time better spent elsewhere.

For Ochem know everything in Kaplan. If you're not real strong on the concepts of Ochem (sub and elimination rxns) then Klein's "Organic Chemistry as a Second Language" is a great book. I thought that Examkrackers Ochem and 1001 questions books were both quite helpful and not a waste of time for that section.

For math: If you're not good at standardized math tests start studying for the math immediately. I hate math on standardized tests and so I put it off. I'm also a former engineer and I've heard of a couple other engineers who didn't study for it and paid. So, don't blow it off, schools might not look at the math specifically, but they do look at the AA and it'll drag down your AA. I didn't think that Kaplan was sufficient for the math, so at the last minute, I used two GRE books.

Verbal: I you're bad at verbal then Examkrackers verbal is very good since the verbal section on the MCAT is a beast. I didn't really study for the verbal and kinda paid for it a bit.

PAT: For PAT I would start with the explanation/tips section of Barron's, then use Kaplan's, then do the test sections of Barron's. DAT Achiever is very good for everything, but especially for PAT. But, don't waste a pat from dat achiever until you're ready for it...

As far as the digital materials go: I bought KSF right after they came out and at that time they were not worth the time or money. Top Score is the most like the real dat and should be saved for diagnostic purposes IMO. Dat Achiever is awesome, just don't let your scores get you down. Make sure you give yourself time to review the digital tests really well. If you want to do your best go over every question, even the ones you got right.

If I could do the whole thing over again (ugghh) I wouldn't use Examkrackers 1001 questions in bio or general chem, I wouldn't use EK general chem, I'd start studying for the math right away, and I'd give myself time to review the practice tests (it took longer than I thought).

I used a lot of materials and spent a lot of time and money preparing. How long you have to study is an individual thing, I wouldn't be paying a lot of attention to that stat in this thread. Take the test when your ready...it'll pay off. :thumbup:

Good luck guys...keep your eyes on the prize :luck:
Awesome, Dude!

Sweet scores, btw. Thanks for sharing. Any advice we pre-DATers can get is very much appreciated as I am sure you remember being in our shoes.

Congrats again on the scores.

I actually took KAplan online. Saved all the info on PDF files and burned them on a CD but prob will never ever look at it again since I got in.

1. 25AA, 24TS, 22PAT
2. TPR MCAT Biological Sciences for Bio, Found online notes for plant bio, Textbooks for G chem and O chem. (I got a 29 in Ochem, reading the textbook helps a lot. I never got an A in any Ochem class.)
3. Studied for 1.5 months, although practiced PAT for a while before
4. Spent 6 hours daily. Eventually read Gchem/Ochem textbooks 3-4 times over. Read TPR bio book in the bathroom :)
5. Nothing was a waste of time, maybe rereading what an atom was.
6. G chem and O chem were hazy just review and repetition. Bio, I had to teach myself plant bio and ecology. Other than that, I learned new concepts from the TPR MCAT bio book (great detail).
7. Most definitely, its just absorbing material for the sciences. The rest is practice.

Congratulations.. Dude.. Awesome scores!

I took the DAT 1 month ago for the first time, and got a 17. I too waited to long to take the test. I graduated with a B.S in Bio-Chem in may 2005 and started working in Los Alamos National Labs as a Scientist. I found that I had forgotten everything I learned almost 4 years ago. I wanted to do alot better, and wanted some advice from the vets. I bought kaplan's book and studied it cover to cover and still felt like it didn't cover everything that was on the test.
1. I wanted to know what place to buy practice test from that are most similar to the DAT
2.Also what place to buy a book on the PAT, that gives feedback on the questions in 3D.
3. Any other advice that could put me over the 20 mark!!
4. I wanted also to know how far in Biology I need to study. ex: struct. and func, cell pysh, gentics.
Thanks
Email: dmm2654@yahoo.com (please email to this address)

- My scores were 20/20/22 (AA/TS/PAT) -21bio 20chem 20ochem 18rc 19qr

- Kaplan blue book, Barrons book, cambells bio, old class text/notes (histo, biochem, intro bio, and ochem).

I took a course through my school that cost 700$ and included the materials above (minus old texts of course) as well as topscore and a few additional tests that my school has.

-I started some real DAT focus about 3 months prior to the test.

-I had a DAT review class on mondays and fridays for 2 hours. My study time fluctuated with my other school work. I would guess I hit around 20 or so hours weekly during the first 2 months. Over my spring break, I studied about 10-12 hours daily. I actually kinda slowed down 2 weeks prior to the test. The last week was just some light review.

- Extra stuff to buy: DAT ACHIEVER!
RIP OFFS: Ace the dat: Full of mistakes and bugs..do NOT buy this. It made me LESS confident because their scale is off too!

- I was clueless in some areas. Example. My diagnostic chemistry section: I got 6/30 questions right. SIX!!!! I simply didn't remember anything...but it all came back quite quickly with a little practice. I have taken quite a few upper lvl Biology courses..which ultimately helped me out quite a bit. Ochem definitely needed some review as well...but if you've taken these classes before, it should just be a matter of time.

- I do believe this test is very managable. Anyone can score 20+ with proper studying

1) Do not freak out during the test, severe anxiety WILL hurt you
2) Everyone is different..figure out what to study and do it
3) Spread your practice exams out over your study time - don't do them all at once (weekly or bi-weekly)
4) If you are in a review class, ask questions.. you are paying money, get as much out of it as you can.
5) DO NOT use your practice tests to predict your score. USE them for review and absorb every answer/explanation.
6) If you have a high GPA, don't think getting low scores is OK. If anything, that low scores will destroy your schools credibility. If I was an adcom, saw a kid with 4.0 and 17s on the DAT, that would raise red flags.

Good Luck! It feels great when you finish!

how often have you all seen
"repeat question"
if you study enought tests can u memorize answers/.?

when people say "examkrackers biology" they mean the MCAT one, right? because that's the only one i was able to find online... no DAT or anything

also, what's the best way to study/relearn o.chem and g.chem? right now i'm just going to completely go through the kaplan part for both and do as many practice tests as i can get a hold of for those sections

It's finally my turn!!!!

1. What were your DAT scores? Bio - 23, Org - 23, Chem - 22, QA - 19, Reading - 22, PAT - 24

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

Kaplan book (easy, but use it), Topscore (hard, but use it), Barron's (wrong answers, but I think I still benefitted from it), ADA sample test, Schaum's outline for Biology (huge help!). You don't need a prep course. Save time and money.

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

Christmas break 2005, started hitting it hard in February, studied all during Spring Break and took it March 21

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

I studied bio real throroghly, then read through the Kaplan book, started taking tests and worked on the weak areas. I made flash cards with all the sample test questions and went through them over and over again. I'd say I studied 3-4 hours a day on average while working part time and taking 8 hours. Craziness!

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

I didn't use textbooks much. I wish I had gone through the Kaplan book more.

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

I was great with bio and organic but needed to review a lot of gen chem, especially solutions and equilibria. I had to work hard on the math so I wouldn't run out of time. A lot of it was mental, too. I couldn't let a few bad practice test scores deter me. You must press on!

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

Good test-takers will always have an advantage, and the ability to remember random facts from past classes is a key talent that will give you an edge. I can't imagine studying enough to remember every random fact (i.e. - sea urchins' reproductive membrane) Don't let it stop you, if you feel you lack confidence when it comes to test-taking. The more practice tests you take, the better you will learn the game and improve your test-taking abilities!

!

how often have you all seen
"repeat question"
if you study enought tests can u memorize answers/.?

That is definitely a bunch of bull$h!t. I would compare that advice to buying 1000s of lottery tickets to improve your chances. Only way to do well on the DAT is to know the material. It start when you take the course. I tutored G-chem and O-chem and I knew the material very well. My DAT scores for those sections where 25 and 27. I am sure there is no way one can memorize the million of possible questions that are possible. The reactions and the methods to solving questions are few, but the possible insignificant changes an examiner can make to a question may not change the answer but appear the different. I took the DAT 2 years ago and don't want to dredge up my O-chem book to give a more specific example.

So just the kaplan blue book is not enough? Practically everybody that has done well has written that they supplement the bluebook with something else. I'm in the process of going over the bio section and organizating the material so that I can make index cards out of them.

So just the kaplan blue book is not enough? Practically everybody that has done well has written that they supplement the bluebook with something else. I'm in the process of going over the bio section and organizating the material so that I can make index cards out of them.

Thats crap, I studied only the kaplan blue book lightly for g and o chem and got a 23 on both. Everyone is different and some need supplemental resources and some just remember the material from the actual course.

My scores... AA 22 / TS 20 / PAT 18 - Bio 21 / GChem 21 / Ochem 17 / RC 21 / QR 30
I studied a few hours per week for about 5 weeks which got me through the Kaplan Blue Book. At the end of that I took a practice test and made low scores such as 14 on Bio, 16 on GChem, and 16 on Reading. At this point I was 3 weeks out from the real test.

I decided to focus on Biology and Chemistry for those three weeks since they were my weakest subjects and I didn't think I could benefit from "studying" for the RC section. I went over the Kaplan GChem and Bio sections two more times each, then I pulled out my old textbooks and read through them, focusing on the stuff that I didn't know. If I didn't know something, I wrote it down in my spiral notebook to review later. I probably studied 3 hours per day during the week and 12 hours per day on weekends for those three weeks. To bring my RC scores up I just used a tip from this board which was to read the whole passage taking notes on each paragraph to create a "road map" of the passage and use the road map to know where to look for the answer to each question.

The 3 weeks of Bio/GChem studying and road map method took me from an average of 15.3 on those three sections to a 21 on each in the real test.

My QR on my practice test was a 30 so I put no time into it and made a 30 on the real test. The only advice I can give is that if you do a "solve for x" type of problem that you always put your answer back into the original equation and make sure that both sides are equal. Over 1/4th of my problems were solve for x type of problems and you should never get them wrong because you can verify that your answer is correct with that method. It also works for "solve for x in terms of a, b, and c or y" type of problems.

I made an 18 (i think) on my practice Ochem and I never had time to study for it until a few days before the test and I made a 17 on the real thing. I probably should have moved my test back a week to have an Ochem clinic for myself, but I really wanted to just get it over with. Someone that did great on the Ochem mentioned writing down every reaction and memorizing them. I think this idea would have helped me out a lot. I just sucked at knowing the reactions.

I made an 18 on my practice PAT and an 18 on the real PAT. I never put any time into this one either and I think I could have benefited from doing more practice PAT tests. I suggest putting time into this section if you want to score in the 20s like several people on this thread did.

i dunno if it was just me but all i used was kaplan review notes and topscore... i think topscore only helped me with QR because kaplan QR was ridiculous. i also had other supplies from kaplan because i took the course. the tests and workshops on kaplan helped pllllennnty

I think everyone does a good job talking about how to prepare... but here are some tips on how to take the exam...

utilize the NEXT button...
if you dont know something... :idea: skip... skip...skip... why waste time on things that you dont know :confused: when you can come back to it...

generally I start the science by BIO, then O Chem, then I come back to G Chem...

with PAT I skip the keyhole and T F E view... and go straight for the easy points...

recheck the list of review items to make sure that you answered all the questions...

use anything within you grasp to help you... I personally used sheets of paper to make sure I did well in PAT :laugh:

and just be calm... if you get nervous... its over... ;)

^ ^ I agree with homie's response up there, except for one thing. When you do skip questions you dont know, always fill in an answer, label it with a check mark and then go on to the next problem. Some folks have time issues with this test and if this ever happens to you, at least you dont leave any questions blank. Use the "guessing has no penalty rule" to your advantage.

Personally, when I was studying for the test, I used the Kaplan book, Barrons, and TopScore. I studied for 3 months with the last month purely dedicated to actual practice timed tests. I can't emphasize how important it is to use a stopwatch. You're cheating yourself if you dont time yourself. I woulda gotten 30's across the board if I didnt time myself. I'm being facetious but not entirely. Anyways, you get my point.

Always, when I was studying, I took down notes of everything I didnt have engraved in my head. Knowing the Kaplan book backwards and forwards is key, but why waste time going over stuff that you already know. Organization is key when studying with such large amounts of data. When test time came around, I merely reviewed my notes of "difficult stuff to remember" instead of going over the KBB all over again. That saved me so much time. That time saved allowed me to do all my practice tests and chill at the beach the day before my test.

One last thing, bring trail mix and gatorade to the test...coffee will mess you up. Hope that helps.

____________
AA 21
PAT 23
TS 23

bump it up - a great thread

Originally Posted by mcataz
Hi everyone,

I know most people in here have successfull averaged 20+ on the academic and PAT section of the DAT. Could you answer the following.

1. What were your DAT scores?

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

1. 24 TS 23 AA 21PAT 23 Bio 23 Gchem 25 OChem

2. I used only the 2002 version of the KAPLAN book

3. 1 month and 1/2 before

4. I read that book about 8 times, I studied about 5-6 hours a day on average. I also looked at some mcat stuff.

5. Its a waste of time to read what you already know. It may boost your confidence but your not getting anywhere. Its a waste of time to study when u really dont want to. Its a waste of time to use Barron's book for anything other than the PAT section. Its not a waste of time to ask some dental colleges for practice tests. These are awesome! I wish I had known about the web page that had all the practice tests stuff in the world before I took it. Its that enipps page or whatever. Very good stuff

Also, the kaplan does not do the PAT much justice. Image staring at 4 angles that are exactly the same everytime for 15 questions. This is how the real dat is. I suggest having someone draw angles that are very very similar using a protractor. Be able to discriminate by 5 degrees or less!


6. I had a general understanding of alot of stuff. My bio needed to be brushed up but it came back. There is alot of stuff about plants I did not know

7. To get above 20's in each section, I think you need a combination of test taking abilities and general knowledge. If you know specifics along with that, you will get mid 20's. I personally got a 31 ACT in highschool my freshman year. But that was because I knew how to take a standardized test. The ACT you could eliminate all the worng answers even if you knew nothing about the subject matter.

Hey everyone,

Check out the link I have in my signature, if you like, for tips on getting a great score.

aranjuez

1. What were your DAT scores?

22 bio, 20 chem, 25 ochem, 20 QR, 24 RC, 22 PAT - 22/22/22

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

I took the Kaplan online DAT class (http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=NaOkB0CLDB0&offerid=47491.10000020&type=3&subid=0) and bought Schaum's outline of Biology (http://www.amazon.com/dp/0070224056?tag=dentalstudent-20&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0070224056&adid=0DK7YYA1RFZFK64DCRZR&), Chemistry (http://www.amazon.com/dp/0070537097?tag=dentalstudent-20&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0070537097&adid=1DBBEEEFA9DRGTW3H77B&), and Organic Chemistry (http://www.amazon.com/dp/007134165X?tag=dentalstudent-20&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=007134165X&adid=0PGDASCW33FY86V3QWMQ&). I also reviewed my old text books and used the Top Score DAT CD rom (http://www.amazon.com/dp/0967275709?tag=dentalstudent-20&camp=14573&creative=327641&linkCode=as1&creativeASIN=0967275709&adid=1X6X2154P0HFQZTND3WY&) to take some practice exams.

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

I started studying about 3.5 months before the exam.

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

A good 1-2 hours a day 4 to 5 days aweek, and then 2-3 hours a day for the last month.

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

I spent a lot of time at first going through my old text books which had way to much info and took forever. I later bought Schaum's outlines and signed up for the Kaplan online class and this really helped me narrow my focus on what I needed. The kaplan class gave me great structure which I really needed since I had been out of college for a few years before deciding on dentistry. The schaum's books were easier to understand and follow than my textbooks and filled in some gaps from kaplan and the top score tests gave me the best exam simulation.

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

I didn't remember a whole lot before studying since it had been a few years since graduating college so I needed more review time than some students who were probably still taking requirements and had just finished classes like organic chemistry.

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

Yes, if you put in the time to learn the material, you can earn a 20. However, someone who is more intelligent or a better test taker may have an easier time, and you probably need some of these talents to be able to get any higher than a 20.

AA: 21

Bio: 18

Gchem:23

Orgo: 25

RC: 21

QR: 20

PAT: 19

I used Kaplan, but the thing is that you really need to put in at least 3-5 hours of studying/day in order to get the most out of Kaplan. It's expensive: 1300 bucks, but if you have the time and the money I'd say go for it. Oh yeah, I had questions about bone structures and the by-products during cellular respiration, so I'd study those details for Bio. G/Orgo chem on the other hand, you need to read the Kaplan book and do as many practice tests as you can. For the PAT just do a million practice tests, other than that you guys should be fine. Good luck...

I took my DAT and I'm selling my DAT Destroyer. I'm selling it to 130. shipping free. You know that the original price of the book is 160 wt shipping. SO you are saving about 30 bucks. It is in a totaly new condition. SO you are paying 30 bucks less for a New book indeed. If you are interested leave me a message here or drop me line. <farahnaz73@yahoo.com>

If anyone wants a good book for the bio section, get the Cliff's notes for general biology. It's like $12 at the most. It has a lot of the evolution/taxonomy stuff I didn't think the Kaplan book covered very well. I read it a couple time (it's small) and got a 26 on bio. :thumbup:

Studying tips, huh? Well, you should ask yourself, "How bad do I want it?" If you want it bad enough, you will study everything you can get your hands on. I only spent a month studying for the DAT and did pretty well: 21AA/21TS/20PAT. I studied kaplan (book and tests) for the whole month for about 5 hours a day and did topscore at the end. There's no absolute study method that is going to get you the perfect DAT score. It has to do with your preferred learning method and the combination of questions that are presented to you on the DAT. I personally feel like I knew everything and could have scored perfectly on the DAT, but the questions were rather difficultly worded. In my opinion, the margin for error is so small that if you get at least a 19 on the DAT you are ready for the dental curriculum. To sum up, study like your life depended on it -- because it does!

1. What were your DAT scores?
Bio 21 G Chem 20 Orgo 22 PA 20 Peading Comp 25 Math 25

2. What books/prep courses did you use?
Kaplan Book, Campbell's Bio, College Orgo (Wade)

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?
June-August

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?
Started out lightly, read whole Kaplan book from cover to cover. Went back and took notes on the WHOLE thing, in a little notebook, which I basically memorized. Started taking practice tests about 3 weeks before test. Did ALL TopScore, DAT Achiever, Kaplan in back of book, and ADA's on website. KEY: Go over the ones you got wrong thoroughly, like look it up in your college textbook- chances are you won't really learn your weaknesses by just looking at their answer explanation. Also, look over them again a few days later to make sure you really did learn it. Studied to begin a few hours every few days, right before test 3-4 hours a day,then took a weekend to relax.

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?
Mmm wish I had given myself longer to do the tests because they are really your best tool. I didn't have enough time to go over some sections

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?
Had a pretty good grasp, but was rusty on remembering certain mechanisms- it comes back easier than you think

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?
Hmm to be honest yes you can but ONLY if you have an incredible work ethic. I consider myself a pretty good test taker and I studied a good bit- and I just barely slid in with 20's and above. If you have the discipline, you can def do it!

1) (AA 22)

2) Kaplan blue book, practice tests, kaplan organic edge, DAT achiever, Topscore, DESTROYER

3) Started studying beginning of august after summer school, until end of september (little under 2 months)

4) First 3-4 weeks i spent about 4-6 hours a day studying (i was working at this time), then kicked it up to about 8-10 hours the last 3-4 weeks. Went through kaplan once, highlighted important details, went through kaplan again, made flashcards of important topics that were highlighted, took a practice test every week, then one every other day during the last week. Went through the destroyer twice, went through the answer key another 2 times. Studied a bit of schaums.

5) I wish i had spent a bit more time on math and pat...i barely studied math and the PAT i could have taken a few more practice tests. Flash cards are nice, but don't pack too much detail...i ended up not even going over the ones i made for bio, although making them helped me remember a lot of the info.

6) Took a kaplan diag at the beginning of my studying, scored at 18...mainly because of bio and reading. I had taken most of the bio classes the year prior to the exam and over the summer and i retained most of the info, so that helped...gchem and ochem were a nightmare however, and these scores were REALLY low initially (14-15). Reading was never below a 20, math never below an 18, PAT never below a 17 (even on achiever).

7) The test measures what you know, and although there is a lot of information to learn, much of it is rather basic. If you put enough studying into it, you can score atleast a 20. If you want a 22+, you're going to have to really push it, but still its doable.



Best of luck.

If anyone wants a good book for the bio section, get the Cliff's notes for general biology. It's like $12 at the most. It has a lot of the evolution/taxonomy stuff I didn't think the Kaplan book covered very well. I read it a couple time (it's small) and got a 26 on bio. :thumbup:

is it this
http://www.amazon.com/Biology-CliffsStudySolver-Max-Rechtman/dp/0764558420/sr=8-3/qid=1167385842/ref=pd_bbs_3/102-7118765-6939356?ie=UTF8&s=books

or this?
http://www.amazon.com/Biology-Cliffs-Review-Edward-Alcamo/dp/0764563750/sr=8-2/qid=1167385842/ref=pd_bbs_2/102-7118765-6939356?ie=UTF8&s=books

1. What were your DAT scores?

Bio: 21, G. Chem: 21, Organic: 21, RC: 24, QR: 23, PAT: 19, AA: 22

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

Kaplan blue book (mostly) and Barrons...i just read and re-read the Kaplan book until I could picture the pages in my head..the science portion of the test is seriously all memorization

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

I studied hardcore starting May 15 (the day after finals ended)...took the exam May 27

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

Studied alllll day sitting on my bed reading the Kaplan book...with several 30-60 min breaks for food/relaxing...I studied each science for 3 days straight...PAT for one whole day (i skimmed through PAT study material a little bit the summer before)..and QR and RC in one day (math comes to me easy)

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

wish i had more practice PAT problems...but as far as the sciences just memorizing the facts in kaplan worked well for me...barrons taught me to take notes during RC, but on the actual exam i found that not necessary...just pretty much wrote a word for each numbered paragraph regarding its topic..the answers to the questions asked in RC are found word-for-word in the reading, so you dont even really need to read the passage before looking at the questions..dont waste time trying to comprehend the passage b/c no matter what for each question you should refer back to the passage...also several of my questions i knew the answers to w/o reading the passage b/c they were so general (ie. what hormone is secreted by the pineal gland?)

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

i didn't have a FIRM understanding of the material..but a lot of it was already in my head and i needed a refresher..which most of the time required relearning haha

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

for sure

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! :D :thumbup: :luck:

o yea i also spent about 1.5 days taking 3 sample exams...2 paper and 1 computer

Bump for a helpful thread!

bump, any new input?

1. What were your DAT scores?

Bio: 22, G. Chem: 22, Organic: 25, RC: 21, QR: 26, PAT: 22, AA: 23

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

Kaplan blue book and Campell bio book


3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

May-August

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

I read through kaplan ~3 times and the relevent Campbell chapters once with notes. (I hadn't had a physiology or biochemistry course at the time). In all I studied about 5 hours a week for 3 months and 15 hours a week for the last month with a full out study week before the exam.


5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

Practice tests are the best way I spent my time after memorizing. For me, a lot of the campbell i read was a waste of time since it went into too much detail - but the information came in handy for my courses later on.

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

I had forgot orgo at the time but I enjoyed the subject so it came back quicky (fortunately!), genchem was fresh in my mind as I had just taken pchem, but I was lacking in the knowledge base for bio which I had taken 15 months before the DAT and only intro bio at that. At the begining I felt okay when studying, but the morning of the exam it felt like everything had inconveniently left my memory banks :).


7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

Yep, I think that test-taking ability is something that can be worked for in itself! A lot of pre-dents have really good posts about strats in the forums.

I'm bumpin this baby for all the folks currently studying.
And for those of you who've recently taken the test and done well, would you mind adding here instead of making a new thread?

I'm bumpin this is great information.

1. In my predent.com profile below my avatar.

2. DAT Achiever, Topscore, Kaplan Blue Book, Kaplan workshops and subject tests, google and Kaplan Class (not very good, imo).

3. Toward the end of June.

4. 8 hours a day everyday until I take it in August.

5. Reading textbook is a waste of time for me, I just cant learn jack that way.

6. English is my third language and I just came to the states 7 years ago, so my RC sucked quite hard. I also did pretty badly during my first 2 years of undergrad so my Gchem and QR sucked big time too at first. Otherwise, I thought I was OK in other subjects.

7. Yes. I am not the smartest person in the world and with hardwork I was able to pull off a decent score. That along with effective study techniques (different for each person) are more than enough to get above a 20.

Good luck!

Hi everyone,

I know most people in here have successfull averaged 20+ on the academic and PAT section of the DAT. Could you answer the following.

1. What were your DAT scores?

2. What books/prep courses did you use?

3. When did you start studying for the DAT?

4. How did you prepare for the exam? How many hours a day did you study?

5. What study methods were a waste of time? What methods do you wish you spent more time working on?

6. How much material did you remember prior to studying for the DAT? Were you clueless in the beginning or did you feel that you had a firm understanding of the material?

7. Do you believe that you can work your way to a 20 regardless of your intelligence and test-taking ability?

1. In my predent.com profile below my avatar.

2. DAT Achiever, Topscore, Kaplan Blue Book, Kaplan workshops and subject tests, google and Kaplan Class (not very good, imo).

3. Toward the end of June.

4. 8 hours a day everyday until I take it in August.

5. Reading textbook is a waste of time for me, I just cant learn jack that way.

6. English is my third language and I just came to the states 7 years ago, so my RC sucked quite hard. I also did pretty badly during my first 2 years of undergrad so my Gchem and QR sucked big time too at first. Otherwise, I thought I was OK in other subjects.

7. Yes. I am not the smartest person in the world and with hardwork I was able to pull off a decent score. That along with effective study techniques (different for each person) are more than enough to get above a 20.

Good luck!

Jiga - You responded to and wished a four year old post good luck.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/graphics/2007/05/16/wtrump16.jpg

Get some sleep !

Woah, dated 3-6-2003, totally didnt realize that!

I wasnt even in college back then!

:laugh: It's ok Jiga, your post was helpful.

Amazing thread.

Bump. This thread really help!

Bump! :thumbup:

Read the Kaplan BB for a good foundation. Don't spend so much time reading though, read 10%, do practice questions 90%. Even if you know that you will miss lots of questions on practice tests, this will gauge where you are at. Kaplan subject tests, questions from Cliff's AP Bio, Achiever and questions from various websites like sparknotes and cliffnotes.com helped as well.

WTF. Who keeps on bringing up these old azz threads. Where do people even find them.

WTF. Who keeps on bringing up these old azz threads. Where do people even find them.
LMAO, Klutzy, stop posting on the old ass threads, so you won't see them anymore. Dude, you are actually contributing to this:laugh:
This thread is REALLY OLD ASS though. It is a 2003 thread. 5 years ago!

Hey hoang posted on this one a month ago lmao. I am just curious where people find these threads.

any tips for us test takers klutz :D?