Taking DAT with just Organic Chemistry 1?

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Hey I was just wondering if it is possible to do well on the DAT with just taking Organic Chemistry 1?

Not advisable...unless you memorize all rxn from it

Not at all. There are far more concepts from Organic Chemistry 2 than OC 1. All the synthetic reactions and mechanisms you learn in organic chem 2. I would say that about 90% of the Organic Chemistry section comes from concepts taught in Organic 2.

I did it just because I wanted my DAT done before summer so I tried to pull it off in a few weeks over winter break before I took ochm2. It was my worst section. It wasn't enough to hold me back and it doesn't matter now, but I still regret taking the thing knowing I wasn't ready.

I'll never know for sure, but another week of some destroyer and reactions and I think it wouldn't have been so bad. I was looking over roadmaps while driving to the test center. Don't do that.

Not advisable, but go ahead...

I wouldn't do it

I did it and it worked out for me. I guess I cant comment on if I wih I would have had it or not. I was lost at first when trying to learn spec and stuff, but the rxns come pretty easily if you are good with concepts and paterns. Go for it if you dont mind putting some extra effort in!

I did it and got a 22. I used Chad's Videos, Destroyer, and the Kaplan Blue Book.

Originally Posted by Double Bonded

thats like trying to swim when you dont know what you're doing! You're gonna drown!

I did it. Don't let all these people discourage you. Granted, I did very well in O-chem one lecture and put a lot of time into O-Chem 2 topics for the DAT. I scored in the 99th percentile in O-Chem for the DAT.

Here comes a very long post, but should detail what you need to do to take the DAT without O-Chem 2. FYI I did this over a 2 month period.

A basic outline of how I did it:

Made sure to completely master all first semester o-chem 1 topics so I knew I wouldn't get any wrong.

I started by watching all of Chad's OC videos from start to finish. At this point I didn't understand much of what he said and viewed it as something I just needed to memorize. I started to do DAT destroyer and was lost.

I realized I needed a better conceptual understand so I read and completed all problems from Organic Chemistry as a 2nd language: 2nd semester topics. I started to understand the 'why' behind a lot of the reactions.

I then went through O-chem in DAT destroyer completely, doing it in sets of 30 problems and checking my answers. I was getting probably 60% right. When I didn't get one right I looked it up in the back of the book and hoped the explanation made sense. If it didn't, I looked for help in Chads videos, OChem as a 2nd language, or an o-chem professor at school.

At this point I made note cards of every reaction from the 7 road maps in DAT destroyer and reviewed them once every morning and night. I also included all the reactions from Chad's videos in these note cards.

After memorizing the note cards I went through DAT Destroyer again and got 85% right.

I then watched all of Chad's videos again and did his quizes a couple of times.

I continued with the note cards this whole time.

I then went back to DAT destroyer about a week before my test and re-did all the problems in it and got only 3 wrong out of the O-Chem section. I then took the final Topscore test and got a 28 on the O-chem portion. I knew that I knew enough for the DAT, but still didn't know what to expect.

Two days before the DAT I re-did all questions in Destroyer and got them all right for O-Chem. This was enough for the real dat.

That morning I went through my note cards again, went and took the real DAT and scored 27 on O-Chem, which was like I said my best section.


You can do it, but you will have to work for it.

Originally Posted by white fang

I did it. Don't let all these people discourage you. Granted, I did very well in O-chem one lecture and put a lot of time into O-Chem 2 topics for the DAT. I scored in the 99th percentile in O-Chem for the DAT.

Here comes a very long post, but should detail what you need to do to take the DAT without O-Chem 2. FYI I did this over a 2 month period.

A basic outline of how I did it:

Made sure to completely master all first semester o-chem 1 topics so I knew I wouldn't get any wrong.

I started by watching all of Chad's OC videos from start to finish. At this point I didn't understand much of what he said and viewed it as something I just needed to memorize. I started to do DAT destroyer and was lost.

I realized I needed a better conceptual understand so I read and completed all problems from Organic Chemistry as a 2nd language: 2nd semester topics. I started to understand the 'why' behind a lot of the reactions.

I then went through O-chem in DAT destroyer completely, doing it in sets of 30 problems and checking my answers. I was getting probably 60% right. When I didn't get one right I looked it up in the back of the book and hoped the explanation made sense. If it didn't, I looked for help in Chads videos, OChem as a 2nd language, or an o-chem professor at school.

At this point I made note cards of every reaction from the 7 road maps in DAT destroyer and reviewed them once every morning and night. I also included all the reactions from Chad's videos in these note cards.

After memorizing the note cards I went through DAT Destroyer again and got 85% right.

I then watched all of Chad's videos again and did his quizes a couple of times.

I continued with the note cards this whole time.

I then went back to DAT destroyer about a week before my test and re-did all the problems in it and got only 3 wrong out of the O-Chem section. I then took the final Topscore test and got a 28 on the O-chem portion. I knew that I knew enough for the DAT, but still didn't know what to expect.

Two days before the DAT I re-did all questions in Destroyer and got them all right for O-Chem. This was enough for the real dat.

That morning I went through my note cards again, went and took the real DAT and scored 27 on O-Chem, which was like I said my best section.


You can do it, but you will have to work for it.

That's good that you were able to pull that off but that goes to show that your probably a very smart person to begin with. Most people cant score a 27 after taking Orgo 2 and studying their butts off.

So hence most people shouldnt even try to do it w/o taking Orgo 2 because they'll probably fail miserably. My DAT had majority of Orgo 2 concepts on it. Obv each test is different, but I think its best to take your time and make sure you got Orgo 2 down before taking such a big risk. Esp when your future depends on it.

Just saying.

Originally Posted by wired202808

That's good that you were able to pull that off but that goes to show that your probably a very smart person to begin with. Most people cant score a 27 after taking Orgo 2 and studying their butts off.

So hence most people shouldnt even try to do it w/o taking Orgo 2 because they'll probably fail miserably. My DAT had majority of Orgo 2 concepts on it. Obv each test is different, but I think its best to take your time and make sure you got Orgo 2 down before taking such a big risk. Esp when your future depends on it.

Just saying.

My main point is that it is more than possible to do well on the DAT without OC II. I don't think my score would have improved with OC II done, but I could have spent less time on prep.

The OP will have to weigh the benefit of taking the test early (which I really wanted to do, as I have other plans for this summer) against finishing OC 2 first.

As far as the risk, if you take practice tests like Topscore you will know how big of a risk you are taking. If you aren't doing well on Topscore organic chem (or whatever practice test you like) then you should postpone the test.

It's possible. With DAT study materials + an ochem I knowledge/understanding of how rxns work, you could learn new ones.

I personally wouldnt try it, but it is possible I am sure.

Originally Posted by white fang

My main point is that it is more than possible to do well on the DAT without OC II. I don't think my score would have improved with OC II done, but I could have spent less time on prep.

The OP will have to weigh the benefit of taking the test early (which I really wanted to do, as I have other plans for this summer) against finishing OC 2 first.

As far as the risk, if you take practice tests like Topscore you will know how big of a risk you are taking. If you aren't doing well on Topscore organic chem (or whatever practice test you like) then you should postpone the test.

Everything you say is true if the OP can study and actually be able to learn Orgo 2 w/o a prof. Some people can do it, most cant. The risk in this case is greater than any reward. I had a similar issue after finishing Orgo 2, I need to relearn a lot of material and I pushed my test date back. I scored well on the OC section and I did apply a bit late. Luckily I still got into my top choices.

Applying later vs. bombing the OC section is a no brainer IMO. The risk is really not worth it. Again because you as 1 person were apply to pull it off, its obvious that most people wont pull off your score even after they study. a 27 is a 27 is a 27, which is like 97th percentile or smth like that.

All I'm saying is dont give the OP false hope, because he probably wont get a score like that no matter what he does. Mathematically speaking. Also Topscore is a very poor indicator of performance, some people get +2 or +3 on their real DAT and others like myself get the same exact scores as Topscore. So its not a good measuring stick for performance IMO.

If you study the materials, especially looking at Chad's videos, and you have retained the concepts from Organic 1, you will be fine. Organic 2 really is not that much different that Organic 1, just more reactions. It really depends on your Chem background. If you aced Organic 1, you should be okay reviewing the materials and doing fine on the DAT. If Organic was a struggle, definitely don't do it, wait for Organic 2.

Originally Posted by wired202808

Everything you say is true if the OP can study and actually be able to learn Orgo 2 w/o a prof. Some people can do it, most cant. The risk in this case is greater than any reward. I had a similar issue after finishing Orgo 2, I need to relearn a lot of material and I pushed my test date back. I scored well on the OC section and I did apply a bit late. Luckily I still got into my top choices.

I know 3 people in real life that have done what I did. The first got an 18 OC and got into his dental school of choice. The second got a 20 OC and got into dental school and the last one didn't take OC 1 or 2 and got a 19 OC and also got into dental school. So, including myself, I know 4 people total that took the DAT w/out OC2 and all of us met our goals. My group of friends that did this are all non-traditional students FYI and have a bit more motivation than most students. We all made the DAT fit into our schedule instead of the other way around.

Originally Posted by wired202808

Applying later vs. bombing the OC section is a no brainer IMO. The risk is really not worth it. Again because you as 1 person were apply to pull it off, its obvious that most people wont pull off your score even after they study. a 27 is a 27 is a 27, which is like 97th percentile or smth like that.

It is not a given that you will will bomb it by taking it early and do well by waiting. Hard work needs to be done before taking OC 2 or after taking OC 2. Without the hard work you aren't going to do that well no matter the sequence.

Originally Posted by wired202808

All I'm saying is dont give the OP false hope, because he probably wont get a score like that no matter what he does. Mathematically speaking. Also Topscore is a very poor indicator of performance, some people get +2 or +3 on their real DAT and others like myself get the same exact scores as Topscore. So its not a good measuring stick for performance IMO.

My intention is not false hope. I didn't tell him/her that he will score in the 99th percentile if he takes it before OC 2, just that my experience was as I said. However, if anyone follows the recipe I laid out in my first post they should score well in O-chem, regardless of taking OC 2 or not.

As for topscore, you said it yourself. If anything people score higher on the real DAT so it is a good measuring stick on preparedness. If you get a 15 on O chem on it right before your test day you should reschedule but if you are getting a 19 on it for O Chem you should be fine. Especially if your scores are consistent across all 3 (unlike mine that went from 15 OC 1 month out, to 17 OC 2 weeks out to 28 OC right before the test).

Originally Posted by mjg713

Hey I was just wondering if it is possible to do well on the DAT with just taking Organic Chemistry 1?

It just depends what was covered in Ochem 1 and how much additional studying you are willing to do. If you learned a lot, jump into Chad's videos and go through them. If you memorize what's on his videos and questions you will be hard pressed to get below an 18.

Originally Posted by mjg713

Hey I was just wondering if it is possible to do well on the DAT with just taking Organic Chemistry 1?

What's the harm in waiting and finishing ochem II?

Originally Posted by white fang

I know 3 people in real life that have done what I did. The first got an 18 OC and got into his dental school of choice. The second got a 20 OC and got into dental school and the last one didn't take OC 1 or 2 and got a 19 OC and also got into dental school. So, including myself, I know 4 people total that took the DAT w/out OC2 and all of us met our goals. My group of friends that did this are all non-traditional students FYI and have a bit more motivation than most students. We all made the DAT fit into our schedule instead of the other way around.


It is not a given that you will will bomb it by taking it early and do well by waiting. Hard work needs to be done before taking OC 2 or after taking OC 2. Without the hard work you aren't going to do that well no matter the sequence.



My intention is not false hope. I didn't tell him/her that he will score in the 99th percentile if he takes it before OC 2, just that my experience was as I said. However, if anyone follows the recipe I laid out in my first post they should score well in O-chem, regardless of taking OC 2 or not.

As for topscore, you said it yourself. If anything people score higher on the real DAT so it is a good measuring stick on preparedness. If you get a 15 on O chem on it right before your test day you should reschedule but if you are getting a 19 on it for O Chem you should be fine. Especially if your scores are consistent across all 3 (unlike mine that went from 15 OC 1 month out, to 17 OC 2 weeks out to 28 OC right before the test).

I guess we should all base our lives on the events of 4 people and Topscore which practically tells you nothing since its a hit or miss.

OP should be smart and see what works for them. I saw take the Orgo 2 and then study. No need to play guessing games and take unnecessary risks. You'll cry later because you played with fire.

Originally Posted by wired202808

I guess we should all base our lives on the events of 4 people and Topscore which practically tells you nothing since its a hit or miss.

OP should be smart and see what works for them. I saw take the Orgo 2 and then study. No need to play guessing games and take unnecessary risks. You'll cry later because you played with fire.

Originally Posted by white fang

i thought you apologized and decided to control your behavior?

Originally Posted by mjg713

Hey I was just wondering if it is possible to do well on the DAT with just taking Organic Chemistry 1?

It's been done before

Originally Posted by mjg713

Hey I was just wondering if it is possible to do well on the DAT with just taking Organic Chemistry 1?

Back to the OP's question,

Is it possible to do well on the DAT w/out Ochem 2. I did this first hand, and know 3 other people who did. So yes, the answer is Yes, it is possible. I then laid out a plan to achieve this goal.

Originally Posted by white fang

Back to the OP's question,

Is it possible to do well on the DAT w/out Ochem 2. I did this first hand, and know 3 other people who did. So yes, the answer is Yes, it is possible. I then laid out a plan to achieve this goal.

No one is arguing the fact whether it has been done before. Of course it has and will be done in the future. But I wouldn't recommend it for the OP and for most people. Its like living w/o health insurance, of course you can do it... its just not smart or advisable thats all.

I spoke with the OP on various occasions and given his academic history it wouldnt be the smart thing to do.

i would have to agree thats its not recommended. I only took orgo1 before taking the DAT so I had to teach myself a lot of the orgo 2 material before taking the exam. I got a 21 so at the end of the day it wasnt a regrettable choice, but I spent more time on orgo than I might have wanted and it took away time from studying for other subjects. I could have done better on the whole if I waited, just glad im done with that exam tho haha

Originally Posted by crackedbytheDAT

i would have to agree thats its not recommended. I only took orgo1 before taking the DAT so I had to teach myself a lot of the orgo 2 material before taking the exam. I got a 21 so at the end of the day it wasnt a regrettable choice, but I spent more time on orgo than I might have wanted and it took away time from studying for other subjects. I could have done better on the whole if I waited, just glad im done with that exam tho haha

Agree. I also scored 21 but needed to study (/learn) a ton- mainly Destroyer and some other O-chem by same author (odyssey?). If it's possible to take the second term before DAT, I would highly recommend. Looking at most of the posts of those who did well without the second term, you can see that a lot of time and effort is needed.

ya I did it as well, like others said, watch chad, read ochem as 2nd language. Destroyer is a bit overkill and quite expensive but it's good practice.
You don't need to know mechanisms, how hard can it be?

Originally Posted by fujindesu

ya I did it as well, like others said, watch chad, read ochem as 2nd language. Destroyer is a bit overkill and quite expensive but it's good practice.
You don't need to know mechanisms, how hard can it be?

I did it as well. Scored 28 in organic...pretty much the same materials as fuji. I didn't find Destroyer overkill though, it was just what I needed without having the class.

I took organic chemistry during last spring and took the DAT mid june, scored a 23 on orgo and then took orgo 2 this last fall....

So it is definitely doable if you put in the work. There really arent that many hard concepts in orgo 2 and saw mostly orgo 1 material on my exam. If you have any questions for me just shoot me a pm cause ive been through it all :-)

P.s. i studied only kaplans material