Needed a few days to relax before I posted this- sorry guys. But I definitely stalked a million breakdowns before my actual test, so I just want to do my part to give back!
Before I start, I just want to say that all it takes is hard work! I locked myself in my room for a month and a half and made myself study. It just takes time and patience. My biggest advice is to make a schedule, print it out, and have it hanging somewhere. Checking things off daily is very satisfying And don't get discouraged! This forum provides a really supportive community, ready to help when needed. Overall, the test wasn't as bad as I thought. The highlight and cross out feature are AWESOME- spend time during the tutorial to become familiar with them.
Scores:
BIO: 22
GC: 26
OC: 24
RC: 27
QR: 30
PAT: 22
TS: 23
AA: 26
BIO:
This was by far my worst subject simply because of the breadth of knowledge you need. First, I read the entire Cliff's notes and took detailed notes. Next, I moved to Feralis' notes and did the same- read the whole thing and took detailed notes. I kept up (for the most part) with Ari's study schedule and took all the DAT BC practice exams according to schedule. Halfway through studying, I decided I needed more practice tests so I purchased Dat QVault. This was a great idea simply because of the amount of practice tests it has. I tried to take each QV test twice so I remembered everything. In addition to my notes, I kept a couple of loose leaf papers as a little "cheat sheet" and wrote down key facts I wanted to remember (i.e.: important characteristics of phylum). I also went through DAT Destroyer Bio twice- super helpful! Although the problems were freaking hard, it had great facts that appeared on the actual test for me. But even with all of this, I had many problems I didn't know on the test- THATS OK! Just use what you learned and make an educated guess.
GC:
The good part about this section is that GC doesn't change- it's all about the basic principles. I started off going through Chad's videos- I had a binder for all of the outlines I printed out, and took notes on each video in addition to doing every quiz. Once all videos were done, I moved on to DAT Destroyer- I went through all GC questions three times. After this, I took all BC practice tests and QVault practice tests. Kept a "cheat sheet" for GC too, for quick facts (i.e.: trends and such).
OC:
Was my strongest section while I took full length practice tests, so I was actually surprised at my score. OC is also all about basic principles- KNOW ALL YOUR REAGENTS! I made flashcards, cheat sheets, everything, just so I would remember. I went through all Chads videos, DAT Destroyer three times also, and BC and QVault practice tests. The key with OC is to just keep doing problems. The more you see reactions, the easier it is to remember.
RC:
Was my worst while I was taking practice tests, so I was actually surprised at this score as well. My technique: I read the first question, and if it was a Search and Destroy question, I read the passage until I found the answer and then moved on to the next question and did the same. I skipped tone and inference questions, and answered them at the end. In my opinion, BC tests were wayyyyy harder than the actual thing- most of my questions on my test were simple search and destroy. I spent no more than 20 minutes on each passage, and had at least 10 minutes left to go back and check. I did all BC and QVault tests however, and they were great practice. IMPORTANT- find a technique that works for you and STICK WITH IT! Keep practicing and perfecting it so that you are not stressed during the actual test.
QR:
Math has always been my strong point, so I loved this section. I went through all Chad's videos and took notes, and did 12 of the Math Destroyer practice tests. THESE WERE HARD- so my advice is if you get stuck on one problem, skip it and come back. Then, at the end, spend time trying to figure out how to do it your own way. Once you have tried your hardest, read the description and keep practicing those kinds of problems. I went through all the tests twice, and took all the QVault tests. I also had a "cheat sheet" for this section for things such as conversions and formulas.
PAT:
Oh, PAT...what a struggle. My technique: I focused first on my three strongest sections- hole punch, cube counting, and pattern folding. As soon as the test started, I went straight to hole punch. I used the grid technique. Hole punch on the actual test were kinda difficult, so definitely use the BC generator to practice. I was a pro at cube counting (with the tally technique), however one on my actual test was wrong or tricky and I kept getting a number that wasn't an answer choice- even though I recounted three times. I just picked the closest answer and moved on- this happens sometimes- its okay! I then moved on to pattern folding- this used to be my WORST section, but with the BC generator, I got pretty good at it! The key is to match shapes first- sometimes that alone eliminated 3 answer choices and gave you your answer. BC practice tests helped a lot, and also gave great explanations on techniques to use. For angle ranking, I honestly just guessed. I never got good at ranking, and didn't want to waste much time. Keyhole and TFE were also challenging for me so I just did my best. Key is PRACTICE- so use the generators at least 15 minutes a day!
** My advice on DAT Destroyer:
Go through all of the problems. If they are too hard, skip it, check the answer, and really understand how it is right. If you don't understand- GOOGLE! The second time I went through the questions, I wrote keywords next to the question in order to remember. That way, when I went through it a third time, I just had to read what was next to the question. It was faster, and helped me remember better.
** My advice on BC:
Read EVERY answer explanation- BC has a lot of valuable information, and is the most similar to the actual test. They also have great study strategies and posts that summarize certain topics well- read everything!
I didn't take a rest day every week, like on Ari's schedule. I took 3 or 4 breaks throughout the entire time I studied, but planned really fun things on that day. That way, I had something to look forward to and push me through. For me, I needed to watch Friends on my breaks (while I ate and such) to relax my mind and distract me for a bit. This brought me out of study zone for just enough time to recharge and hit the books again.
SHOUTOUT to @Ari Rezaei and @orgoman22 for their AWESOME materials. Would not have done well without them. And thank you Ari for answering my emailed questions and checking in on me- I really appreciated it. Last but not least, thanks Ross, Rachel, Monica, Chandler, Phoebe, and Joey for pushing me through this whole thing. Finished all 10 seasons while I studied- so maybe I should have hit the books a little more...
Before I start, I just want to say that all it takes is hard work! I locked myself in my room for a month and a half and made myself study. It just takes time and patience. My biggest advice is to make a schedule, print it out, and have it hanging somewhere. Checking things off daily is very satisfying And don't get discouraged! This forum provides a really supportive community, ready to help when needed. Overall, the test wasn't as bad as I thought. The highlight and cross out feature are AWESOME- spend time during the tutorial to become familiar with them.
Scores:
BIO: 22
GC: 26
OC: 24
RC: 27
QR: 30
PAT: 22
TS: 23
AA: 26
BIO:
This was by far my worst subject simply because of the breadth of knowledge you need. First, I read the entire Cliff's notes and took detailed notes. Next, I moved to Feralis' notes and did the same- read the whole thing and took detailed notes. I kept up (for the most part) with Ari's study schedule and took all the DAT BC practice exams according to schedule. Halfway through studying, I decided I needed more practice tests so I purchased Dat QVault. This was a great idea simply because of the amount of practice tests it has. I tried to take each QV test twice so I remembered everything. In addition to my notes, I kept a couple of loose leaf papers as a little "cheat sheet" and wrote down key facts I wanted to remember (i.e.: important characteristics of phylum). I also went through DAT Destroyer Bio twice- super helpful! Although the problems were freaking hard, it had great facts that appeared on the actual test for me. But even with all of this, I had many problems I didn't know on the test- THATS OK! Just use what you learned and make an educated guess.
GC:
The good part about this section is that GC doesn't change- it's all about the basic principles. I started off going through Chad's videos- I had a binder for all of the outlines I printed out, and took notes on each video in addition to doing every quiz. Once all videos were done, I moved on to DAT Destroyer- I went through all GC questions three times. After this, I took all BC practice tests and QVault practice tests. Kept a "cheat sheet" for GC too, for quick facts (i.e.: trends and such).
OC:
Was my strongest section while I took full length practice tests, so I was actually surprised at my score. OC is also all about basic principles- KNOW ALL YOUR REAGENTS! I made flashcards, cheat sheets, everything, just so I would remember. I went through all Chads videos, DAT Destroyer three times also, and BC and QVault practice tests. The key with OC is to just keep doing problems. The more you see reactions, the easier it is to remember.
RC:
Was my worst while I was taking practice tests, so I was actually surprised at this score as well. My technique: I read the first question, and if it was a Search and Destroy question, I read the passage until I found the answer and then moved on to the next question and did the same. I skipped tone and inference questions, and answered them at the end. In my opinion, BC tests were wayyyyy harder than the actual thing- most of my questions on my test were simple search and destroy. I spent no more than 20 minutes on each passage, and had at least 10 minutes left to go back and check. I did all BC and QVault tests however, and they were great practice. IMPORTANT- find a technique that works for you and STICK WITH IT! Keep practicing and perfecting it so that you are not stressed during the actual test.
QR:
Math has always been my strong point, so I loved this section. I went through all Chad's videos and took notes, and did 12 of the Math Destroyer practice tests. THESE WERE HARD- so my advice is if you get stuck on one problem, skip it and come back. Then, at the end, spend time trying to figure out how to do it your own way. Once you have tried your hardest, read the description and keep practicing those kinds of problems. I went through all the tests twice, and took all the QVault tests. I also had a "cheat sheet" for this section for things such as conversions and formulas.
PAT:
Oh, PAT...what a struggle. My technique: I focused first on my three strongest sections- hole punch, cube counting, and pattern folding. As soon as the test started, I went straight to hole punch. I used the grid technique. Hole punch on the actual test were kinda difficult, so definitely use the BC generator to practice. I was a pro at cube counting (with the tally technique), however one on my actual test was wrong or tricky and I kept getting a number that wasn't an answer choice- even though I recounted three times. I just picked the closest answer and moved on- this happens sometimes- its okay! I then moved on to pattern folding- this used to be my WORST section, but with the BC generator, I got pretty good at it! The key is to match shapes first- sometimes that alone eliminated 3 answer choices and gave you your answer. BC practice tests helped a lot, and also gave great explanations on techniques to use. For angle ranking, I honestly just guessed. I never got good at ranking, and didn't want to waste much time. Keyhole and TFE were also challenging for me so I just did my best. Key is PRACTICE- so use the generators at least 15 minutes a day!
** My advice on DAT Destroyer:
Go through all of the problems. If they are too hard, skip it, check the answer, and really understand how it is right. If you don't understand- GOOGLE! The second time I went through the questions, I wrote keywords next to the question in order to remember. That way, when I went through it a third time, I just had to read what was next to the question. It was faster, and helped me remember better.
** My advice on BC:
Read EVERY answer explanation- BC has a lot of valuable information, and is the most similar to the actual test. They also have great study strategies and posts that summarize certain topics well- read everything!
I didn't take a rest day every week, like on Ari's schedule. I took 3 or 4 breaks throughout the entire time I studied, but planned really fun things on that day. That way, I had something to look forward to and push me through. For me, I needed to watch Friends on my breaks (while I ate and such) to relax my mind and distract me for a bit. This brought me out of study zone for just enough time to recharge and hit the books again.
SHOUTOUT to @Ari Rezaei and @orgoman22 for their AWESOME materials. Would not have done well without them. And thank you Ari for answering my emailed questions and checking in on me- I really appreciated it. Last but not least, thanks Ross, Rachel, Monica, Chandler, Phoebe, and Joey for pushing me through this whole thing. Finished all 10 seasons while I studied- so maybe I should have hit the books a little more...
.
