Just finished my DAT!!! 12/7/05

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IndDent

IndDent

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Hey all, I just finished my DAT exam, and thought I'd post my scores like the rest of you have. I know I found it encouraging to see how well you all have done, so I just wanted to add my own positive experience.

Actual DAT 12/7/2005
PAT 20
QR 23
RC 25
Bio 24
GC 29
OC 21 (was scoring 27s average on practice, dunno what happened)
TS 24
AA 24

If you all think it isn't possible to score so well, then let me tell you that my Science gpa is a 3.2 (pretty low) compared to the accepted stats these days. I finished with a 24/24/20PAT, if I can do it, anyone can do it with hard work, practice practice practice, and confidence.

I still haven't had my application in to AADSAS, but I'm applying to the schools that have a very late deadline...still I know I'm behind in the process.
We'll see how it turns out. But in the meantime, I'm going go chill out and have fun for the first time in 3 months.
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IndDent said:
Hey all, I just finished my DAT exam, and thought I'd post my scores like the rest of you have. I know I found it encouraging to see how well you all have done, so I just wanted to add my own positive experience.

Actual DAT 12/7/2005
PAT 20
QR 23
RC 25
Bio 24
GC 29
OC 21 (was scoring 27s average on practice, dunno what happened)
TS 24
AA 24

If you all think it isn't possible to score so well, then let me tell you that my Science gpa is a 3.2 (pretty low) compared to the accepted stats these days. I finished with a 24/24/20PAT, if I can do it, anyone can do it with hard work, practice practice practice, and confidence.

I still haven't had my application in to AADSAS, but I'm applying to the schools that have a very late deadline...still I know I'm behind in the process.
We'll see how it turns out. But in the meantime, I'm going go chill out and have fun for the first time in 3 months.
Click to expand...
Holy crap..........great job!!!!!!!! You actually have a real decent chance for this cycle even though it is this late in December :thumbup: .
 
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amazing scores!! congrats, but seriously if u want a good chance to get into schools in this application cycle, get on top of finishing ur app and submitting it right away. even if u submit ur app now, it won't reach the schools ur applying to at least until mid-January. then again, with ur scores it will be difficult NOT to get in
 
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IndDent said:
Hey all, I just finished my DAT exam, and thought I'd post my scores like the rest of you have. I know I found it encouraging to see how well you all have done, so I just wanted to add my own positive experience.

Actual DAT 12/7/2005
PAT 20
QR 23
RC 25
Bio 24
GC 29
OC 21 (was scoring 27s average on practice, dunno what happened)
TS 24
AA 24

If you all think it isn't possible to score so well, then let me tell you that my Science gpa is a 3.2 (pretty low) compared to the accepted stats these days. I finished with a 24/24/20PAT, if I can do it, anyone can do it with hard work, practice practice practice, and confidence.

I still haven't had my application in to AADSAS, but I'm applying to the schools that have a very late deadline...still I know I'm behind in the process.
We'll see how it turns out. But in the meantime, I'm going go chill out and have fun for the first time in 3 months.
Click to expand...

Congratz, you are so IN!!! Even if you apply now, schools will love to have you.
 
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Thanks geckel, dubs, and richnator for all the good wishes and comments. Especially thanks to Richnator, I had PMed you a few weeks ago about how my actual scores would turn out compared to Topscore, it was you who advised me to buy DAT Achiever for PAT.

If anyone needs help on how to prepare, don't be afraid to ask, I'll be more than glad to help. My tips to a 20+ score are purchasing Schaum's Outline for Bio, Kaplan Blue Book, Topscore Pro, and DATAchiever. I did each of the three topscore tests, then took the DATachiever tests, and then redid it all over from the start again- usually two practice tests a week. DAT Achiever PAT is way harder than the actual thing, from my experience. Question difficulty for the natural sciences paralleled that of Topscore.

I had about 15minute left over after natural sciences, and then went over bio and chem again...each problem. Regarding my organic chem score, not sure why it went down, I had earned an A-/A in OrgoI and OrgoII respectively. Guess I just got overconfident and didn't end up looking over my ochem section again on the real test.

Study Schaum's Bio till you burn a whole through it with your eyes. Regarding Kaplan Blue Book bio...it's not worth it really, maybe for a few things. I just skimmed over it, finished the bio chapters in two days. But I spent 2 months learning everything in Schaum's- I felt overprepared when it came to the real thing. I guess its better to be overprepared than underprepared.

That's all, sorry for the long post...just want to help future DAT takers.
 
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IndDent said:
Thanks geckel, dubs, and richnator for all the good wishes and comments. Especially thanks to Richnator, I had PMed you a few weeks ago about how my actual scores would turn out compared to Topscore, it was you who advised me to buy DAT Achiever for PAT.

If anyone needs help on how to prepare, don't be afraid to ask, I'll be more than glad to help. My tips to a 20+ score are purchasing Schaum's Outline for Bio, Kaplan Blue Book, Topscore Pro, and DATAchiever. I did each of the three topscore tests, then took the DATachiever tests, and then redid it all over from the start again- usually two practice tests a week. DAT Achiever PAT is way harder than the actual thing, from my experience. Question difficulty for the natural sciences paralleled that of Topscore.

I had about 15minute left over after natural sciences, and then went over bio and chem again...each problem. Regarding my organic chem score, not sure why it went down, I had earned an A-/A in OrgoI and OrgoII respectively. Guess I just got overconfident and didn't end up looking over my ochem section again on the real test.

Study Schaum's Bio till you burn a whole through it with your eyes. Regarding Kaplan Blue Book bio...it's not worth it really, maybe for a few things. I just skimmed over it, finished the bio chapters in two days. But I spent 2 months learning everything in Schaum's- I felt overprepared when it came to the real thing. I guess its better to be overprepared than underprepared.

That's all, sorry for the long post...just want to help future DAT takers.
Click to expand...


First of all great job, I kinda have your situation regarding applying late, instead I havent taken the DAT yet and have submitted the aadsas application. My overall is 3.3, bio major. My only weak area is orgo. I just dont get orgo, same happened in college. ended up with 2 C+, any advice on orgo? and for schaum's outline of biology, I found kaplan book to be more detailed than shaum, I don't understand why you think schaums is better. they were very brief on ecology and evolution. and for DAT achiever, did it help for science section? Thank you, and good luck to you. by the way which schools are you going to apply to. I applied to umdnj, nyu, Boston, Umaryland, tufts, and temple.
 
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IndDent said:
Thanks geckel, dubs, and richnator for all the good wishes and comments. Especially thanks to Richnator, I had PMed you a few weeks ago about how my actual scores would turn out compared to Topscore, it was you who advised me to buy DAT Achiever for PAT.

If anyone needs help on how to prepare, don't be afraid to ask, I'll be more than glad to help. My tips to a 20+ score are purchasing Schaum's Outline for Bio, Kaplan Blue Book, Topscore Pro, and DATAchiever. I did each of the three topscore tests, then took the DATachiever tests, and then redid it all over from the start again- usually two practice tests a week. DAT Achiever PAT is way harder than the actual thing, from my experience. Question difficulty for the natural sciences paralleled that of Topscore.

I had about 15minute left over after natural sciences, and then went over bio and chem again...each problem. Regarding my organic chem score, not sure why it went down, I had earned an A-/A in OrgoI and OrgoII respectively. Guess I just got overconfident and didn't end up looking over my ochem section again on the real test.

Study Schaum's Bio till you burn a whole through it with your eyes. Regarding Kaplan Blue Book bio...it's not worth it really, maybe for a few things. I just skimmed over it, finished the bio chapters in two days. But I spent 2 months learning everything in Schaum's- I felt overprepared when it came to the real thing. I guess its better to be overprepared than underprepared.

That's all, sorry for the long post...just want to help future DAT takers.
Click to expand...


hey IndDent, thanks a lot for sharing your experiences and how you went about studying, ect... btw, congratulations on awesome scores!
 
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IndDent said:
Thanks geckel, dubs, and richnator for all the good wishes and comments. Especially thanks to Richnator, I had PMed you a few weeks ago about how my actual scores would turn out compared to Topscore, it was you who advised me to buy DAT Achiever for PAT.

If anyone needs help on how to prepare, don't be afraid to ask, I'll be more than glad to help. My tips to a 20+ score are purchasing Schaum's Outline for Bio, Kaplan Blue Book, Topscore Pro, and DATAchiever. I did each of the three topscore tests, then took the DATachiever tests, and then redid it all over from the start again- usually two practice tests a week. DAT Achiever PAT is way harder than the actual thing, from my experience. Question difficulty for the natural sciences paralleled that of Topscore.

I had about 15minute left over after natural sciences, and then went over bio and chem again...each problem. Regarding my organic chem score, not sure why it went down, I had earned an A-/A in OrgoI and OrgoII respectively. Guess I just got overconfident and didn't end up looking over my ochem section again on the real test.

Study Schaum's Bio till you burn a whole through it with your eyes. Regarding Kaplan Blue Book bio...it's not worth it really, maybe for a few things. I just skimmed over it, finished the bio chapters in two days. But I spent 2 months learning everything in Schaum's- I felt overprepared when it came to the real thing. I guess its better to be overprepared than underprepared.

That's all, sorry for the long post...just want to help future DAT takers.
Click to expand...

Congrats!!!Your scores are amazing! I am applying next year, and I just finished reviewing my bio text book after 5 weeks, (hard core). I was looking at some questions in Schaum's Bio. I found them pretty difficult. I was kind of frustrated after spending so much time studding bio. I didn’t read Schaum's Bio though; I was just browsing through the questions at the end of the chapters. Anyway, do you think I should also read the book? Did you just read this book for bio, or you used any others books?
Thanks and gluck!
:luck:
 
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Arash- If you don't feel confident in orgo, then I would do the following. Go through the Kaplan Blue book orgo, it is all you really need to master the mechanisms and reactions. If it still seems unfamiliar to you, then it would be best to go for Schaum's Outline of Organic Chemistry, it explains everything from the beginning, why things are the way they are, and even has tons of practice problems at the end of each chapter. It was something I looked at, but didn't end up getting because I felt comfortable with the material. Schaum's Bio will prepare you very well, in fact it will overprepare you for the DAT bio. I agree Kaplan Blue Book bio had some good parts...such as mintue details, but overrall Schaum's bio does a damn good job on ecology/biomes and classification. Kaplan classification isn't as detailed. Just make an outline of schaum's classification, and you'll be fine.

Gasedo- I really do believe that your college text book is going to be way more verbose then necessary, resulting in you reading a whole bunch, but not remembering alot. If you check out Schaum's bio, it is condensed, yet not brief like kaplan. Meaning, it is a great outline of everything, giving you the details you need, and cutting out the filler stuff. It was the sole book I used for bio, honestly.

Airadface- the DAT is offered every day, except Sunday I think. I would advise you to check out www.2test.com and schedule your appointment right away, even if it is a few months down the road...you can always postpone at no extra charge once you get to that time.

To all- what worked for me, might not necessarily work for everyone. I prepared for 3 solid months, day in and day out, 5-6 hours a day max, and then brought it down to 2-3 hours a day about 2 weeks before the exam...didn't want to burn out, plus got tired of going over everything again and again. Make sure you understand why you got answers wrong on practice tests and why the incorrect answers are wrong. The actual exam is pretty straightforward. The key to doing well is discipline and confidence.
 
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Arash- If you don't feel confident in orgo, then I would do the following. Go through the Kaplan Blue book orgo, it is all you really need to master the mechanisms and reactions. If it still seems unfamiliar to you, then it would be best to go for Schaum's Outline of Organic Chemistry, it explains everything from the beginning, why things are the way they are, and even has tons of practice problems at the end of each chapter. It was something I looked at, but didn't end up getting because I felt comfortable with the material. Schaum's Bio will prepare you very well, in fact it will overprepare you for the DAT bio. I agree Kaplan Blue Book bio had some good parts...such as mintue details, but overrall Schaum's bio does a damn good job on ecology/biomes and classification. Kaplan classification isn't as detailed. Just make an outline of schaum's classification, and you'll be fine.

Gasedo- I really do believe that your college text book is going to be way more verbose then necessary, resulting in you reading a whole bunch, but not remembering alot. If you check out Schaum's bio, it is condensed, yet not brief like kaplan. Meaning, it is a great outline of everything, giving you the details you need, and cutting out the filler stuff. It was the sole book I used for bio, honestly.

Airadface- the DAT is offered every day, except Sunday I think. I would advise you to check out www.2test.com and schedule your appointment right away, even if it is a few months down the road...you can always postpone at no extra charge once you get to that time.
 
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Thank you for the advice. Just one question, what do you think about the science section on "DATAchiever"? If it is only good for PAT, i'd rather not buy it since I feel comfortable with the PAT section. If you think it may help me with the science section as well please let me know. Thank you again. Good luck with applying.
 
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IndDent said:
Arash- If you don't feel confident in orgo, then I would do the following. Go through the Kaplan Blue book orgo, it is all you really need to master the mechanisms and reactions. If it still seems unfamiliar to you, then it would be best to go for Schaum's Outline of Organic Chemistry, it explains everything from the beginning, why things are the way they are, and even has tons of practice problems at the end of each chapter. It was something I looked at, but didn't end up getting because I felt comfortable with the material. Schaum's Bio will prepare you very well, in fact it will overprepare you for the DAT bio. I agree Kaplan Blue Book bio had some good parts...such as mintue details, but overrall Schaum's bio does a damn good job on ecology/biomes and classification. Kaplan classification isn't as detailed. Just make an outline of schaum's classification, and you'll be fine.

Gasedo- I really do believe that your college text book is going to be way more verbose then necessary, resulting in you reading a whole bunch, but not remembering alot. If you check out Schaum's bio, it is condensed, yet not brief like kaplan. Meaning, it is a great outline of everything, giving you the details you need, and cutting out the filler stuff. It was the sole book I used for bio, honestly.

Airadface- the DAT is offered every day, except Sunday I think. I would advise you to check out www.2test.com and schedule your appointment right away, even if it is a few months down the road...you can always postpone at no extra charge once you get to that time.

To all- what worked for me, might not necessarily work for everyone. I prepared for 3 solid months, day in and day out, 5-6 hours a day max, and then brought it down to 2-3 hours a day about 2 weeks before the exam...didn't want to burn out, plus got tired of going over everything again and again. Make sure you understand why you got answers wrong on practice tests and why the incorrect answers are wrong. The actual exam is pretty straightforward. The key to doing well is discipline and confidence.
Click to expand...

Thanks IndDent for the advice. What book did you study for inorganic chem? Did you use Schaum's Outline of College Chemistry? I have heard that Shaum's bio is very good from alot of students, but I didn't hear anything regarding inorganic chem. What would you suggest?
Thanks and best of luck in the process. Hope you get in this year!
:luck:
 
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wow! your scores are amazing!! congrats and i'm sure any school would love to have u. so how long did it take you to prepare for the exam?
 
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CONGRATS!! U R SO N!! I'm going to take the DAT in March so I will begin studying in a couple of weeks. Did you study one subject at a time or a little of everything each day.
 
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Tissy- thanks for the the well wishes. I studied one subject at a time, focused on bio first for 3 weeks or so, then started with gen chem in Kaplan Blue dat book 2 weeks, with a little bio review every day. Then did Orgo from Kaplan blue dat. After that, I just kept re-reviewing and memorizing.

Gasedo- I bought ExamKrackers 1001 Questions in General Chemistry, did them all, some of them were way too hard and not what DAT would specifically test for, but I am sure you can figure out which ones those are. Keep in mind I had taken the MCAT last year and did very well, but decided to pursue dentistry. Therefore, I had the whole mindset of the DAT not being as hard as MCAT...if one can master the MCAT, there's little that can stand in the way of achieving a good score on the DAT. my two cents.

Emthichrangdep- I studied for 3 months solid

Arash- It is in your best interest to spring for the $50 for each of those programs I recommended - Topscore and DAT Achiever. Simulating the test is the best way to get a feel, familiarize, and prepare yourself for doing well on the actual exam. The science questions will get you thinking in the proper way. DAT Achiever is hard overrall in comparison to the real thing. So expect your scores to go up. Topscore is more accurate in terms of difficulty. Both are extremely well made programs and geared to the right content.
 
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IndDent said:
Thanks geckel, dubs, and richnator for all the good wishes and comments. Especially thanks to Richnator, I had PMed you a few weeks ago about how my actual scores would turn out compared to Topscore, it was you who advised me to buy DAT Achiever for PAT.

If anyone needs help on how to prepare, don't be afraid to ask, I'll be more than glad to help. My tips to a 20+ score are purchasing Schaum's Outline for Bio, Kaplan Blue Book, Topscore Pro, and DATAchiever. I did each of the three topscore tests, then took the DATachiever tests, and then redid it all over from the start again- usually two practice tests a week. DAT Achiever PAT is way harder than the actual thing, from my experience. Question difficulty for the natural sciences paralleled that of Topscore.

I had about 15minute left over after natural sciences, and then went over bio and chem again...each problem. Regarding my organic chem score, not sure why it went down, I had earned an A-/A in OrgoI and OrgoII respectively. Guess I just got overconfident and didn't end up looking over my ochem section again on the real test.

Study Schaum's Bio till you burn a whole through it with your eyes. Regarding Kaplan Blue Book bio...it's not worth it really, maybe for a few things. I just skimmed over it, finished the bio chapters in two days. But I spent 2 months learning everything in Schaum's- I felt overprepared when it came to the real thing. I guess its better to be overprepared than underprepared.

That's all, sorry for the long post...just want to help future DAT takers.
Click to expand...

Hey man,
Glad to hear it helped you. I love it when people I help do well. It gives me such pride that you were able to get such an awesome DAT score. So, once again, congratz man. You deserve it and I hope you get into your first choice.

Take care,
Rich
 
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