DAT Advice on a Retake

[Chemboy23]

Ok, so here's my deal. I took the DAT back on August 3, 2010 and scored really poorly.

BIO-18 sciGPA - 3.32
GC-16 cumGPA - 3.38 (All w/o +/-)
OC-20 totGPA - 3.46
RC-17
QR-16

PAT-17

TS-17
AA-17

So...I have to wait 90 days. I felt really comfortable going into the test, but obviously I wasn't prepared. I studied for like 10-12 hours per day (including most weekends) for 2 full months. My wife and I ended up staying at each others' throats because I was so stressed from studying all the time. We have worked things out now, spent much time together and all, but I really do not want to have to do this again. I have yet to hear ANYTHING back from any of the schools I applied to. I had a great life story, so maybe they are making considerations or something. Either way, I want to prove that I can still make a competitive score on the DAT!

Schools I applied to through AADSAS:

-Midwestern (AZ)
-ASDOH - have over 1,000 hours of dental community service
-Western
-Loma Linda (am SDA)
-Mississippi (home state)
-Tennessee
-UNLV
-Southern Nevada (my favorite)


The earliest possible date I can retake is November 3, 2010 so I would like to give myself at least another month to review all of the material again. Do you think this is too late to send these scores when I get them to the schools? God knows, AADSAS isn't going to get in a big hurry, and neither will ADA...runs me crazy! Everything is on the computer these days, what the heck is the big deal? My AADSAS profile is basically screwed...I still have most of the schools I applied to under the status of "mailed 7/19" and another line says "mailed 8/27" and then now it says "not mailed 10/1"....wtfh??? So confused!!!

So...out of all that LOL, do you all think 11/3 will be way too late? Thanks for any help in advance and apologies for the rant

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[Silas]

Hmm, it may be a bit late to take it again cause it is the end of the application cycle and most dental schools have already decided who they are taking already. I feel like you have a better chance if you prep a bit more and apply in the next year. What helped me was DAT Destroyer and math destroyer for gen chem, organic, and QR. The bio is too complicated. Just keep redoing those problems until you get every one right. The RC killed me (18), so I can't give any advice there. Top Score (+ a few points) is a decent estimate for your real score. For PAT, Crack DAT PAT really helped. Hope this helps!

 

[tudyfrutie]

retake is needed for your score. 16 on you genchem does not make the cut-off for most of the schools. November retake might be a bit late for most school. You should try calling the school and ask. 10-12 hours a day for 2 months should sufficient for a decent score. Maybe you were studying the wrong way. Try reading other DAT studying guides on this forum and get materials that would really help.

 

[molar3]

i have that 10/1 not mailed thing too on my aadsas. wat is that?? i thought it was for my DAT scores to be sent but now im confused..

 

[Chemboy23]

Man I don't know what's going on with stupid AADSAS...so sick of this process. The whole application thing is screwed. It would be a little more work, but I would rather just apply to each school separately, so I can keep up with my apps more effectively. Right now, I don't know wth is going on!

 

[beeho]

dang 10-12 hours is crazy. I couldn't do more than my routine of 6 hrs/day (2 hour periods). my advice is to only retake in november if you are CONFIDENT your scores will be stellar considering that schools will decide on students the last few weeks of november. schools do conduct post-december interviews so not all hope is lost.

you definitely want to get your qr scores up to a 17 as a lot of schools have minimum score cutoffs at 16-17. (refer to the ADEA d-school book)

for unlv: there was a research paper conducted by dr. kingsley basically saying high RC scores were strong indicators that dental students at their dental school perform better.

also: i'm guessing you're attending a Utah school.

 

[Chemboy23]

Yes, studying 10-12 hours per day was silly. I am going to do 6-8 starting tomorrow until I test again in Nov.

Hmmm...never heard that about UNLV, thanks for the advice though.

I am actually living in Arizona right now, from Mississippi though. I've never actually been to Utah in person but it looks beautiful there. I would love to get the opportunity to go there!

 

[beeho]

Yes, studying 10-12 hours per day was silly. I am going to do 6-8 starting tomorrow until I test again in Nov.

Hmmm...never heard that about UNLV, thanks for the advice though.

I am actually living in Arizona right now, from Mississippi though. I've never actually been to Utah in person but it looks beautiful there. I would love to get the opportunity to go there!

Oh I guessed Utah because of your liking to USN's new school. Btw, I'm from Utah and my family lives maybe 10 minutes from the new school.

I should explain a bit more on Dr. Kingsley. He teaches at that dental school and he came up with a formula for scoring an applicant, which I believe they still use.

You can read the paper here:

thttp://www.jdentaled.org/cgi/reprint/71/4/492

good luck on studying.