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Hey everyone!
I just finished my DAT today and I'm so glad it's over!!!!! Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to post a breakdown, honest opinions of review material, encouraging words every bit helps. Im here to give back by providing all the information I can about my experience.
PAT: 21 (87.9)
QR: 21 (96.4)
RC: 24 (94.0)
BIO: 20 (88.0)
GC: 26 (98.8)
OC: 27 (98.7)
TS: 23 (97.8)
AA: 24 (99.6)
Practice test scores:
BIO/GC/OC/PAT/RC/QR/TS/AA
Kaplan diagnostic: 16/15/18/16/19/14/16/16
Kaplan midterm: 18/16/18/21/20/16/17/18
Kaplan final: 19/17/19/19/19/22/18/19
Kaplan practice test 1: 18/21/19/23/19/22/19/20
Kaplan practice test 2: 24/19/16/21/22/23/20/21
Kaplan practice test 3: 26/16/16/21/20/17/20/19
2007 ADA sample test: 21/23/25/22/17/22/23/22
I started studying in the beginning of June. I was working full time until mid-July and was only studying about 5-7 hours per week. After July 15th, I was probably studying 10-12 hours per day 6 days/week until last Sunday. As you can see my practice test scores were all over the place. This made me realize that a large part of my performance was mental. I took the two days before my test to relax and mentally prepare rather than study.
PAT: Kaplan
I didn't really study too much for this section. I was debating whether to get CDP but after spending the money on kaplan, I was pretty tapped. My scores weren't too bad to begin with so I didn't worry about it.
Keyholes and TFE were easier on the DAT than kaplan. Hole punching was my specialty on Kaplan. For all of the tests combined, I got 73/80. This section was much harder than Kaplan (lots of funny folds and half punches). Same thing with angles, what the heck? I swear some of them could only have differed by a degree or two. These two sections took a huge chuck out of my time. Cube counting was pretty clear, no surprises. Pattern folding was easier than Kaplan. I actually ran out of time on this section and had to guess the last 3.
BIO: DAT destroyer, Anki, Kaplan
I probably spent the most time studying this section and it was my lowest score. It wasnt that the material was hard, theres just so much of it. I had ~960 flashcards and did about 100 problems in destroyer before I started hitting mid-to-high 20s on my practice tests. This is when I backed off bio and focused on other sections. I made sure that I made cards for everything I didnt know that I came across in destroyer, my practice tests, and the review notes provided with the Kaplan course.
This was the hardest section for me. Again, not that it was hard, just that no matter how much I studied for it, I never knew it all. Im happy with what I got.
GC and OC: CHADS <-- A MUST!, Dat destroyer, Kaplan, Anki
I got a 16 for both of these sections on my last Kaplan practice test 4 days before my DAT. I freaked out at this point and watched every Chad chem video over 2 days, taking notes, making flashcards, doing destroyer problems (only about the first 70-ran out of time)
The questions in these sections cover very basic concepts. Chad provides you with everything you need for this section. I actually finished SNS with 15 minutes to spare (usually ran out of time on practice tests).
RC: Kaplan
Again, a section I didnt really prepare for. I dont consider myself a strong reader. Im very slow and have to subvocalize everything and my retention isnt too great. I was using SND for a while but didnt see any improvement so I knew I had to make a change.
Kaplans mapping technique turned me off it took way too long. I modified it a bit to suit my needs. I read the whole passage, making sure I understood everything and wrote down 2-5 words per paragraph. This worked really well for me as I didnt have to go back to the passage very often and if I did, I knew where to look.
All three of my passages were 14 paragraphs. They werent too terrible but like I said, Im not the strongest reader.
QR: Math destroyer, Kaplan, Chads
I consider myself to be pretty good at math. My diagnostic did not agree with me. I could do the math, just not in 60 seconds. The more I practiced though the better I got. Know your trig values, identities, etc.
I was expecting a higher score in this section but I ran out of time and guessed on the last 5. The math wasnt hard at all, very doable. I did come across a few problems that I didnt have any shortcuts for this is probably why I ran out of time.
I found kaplans practice tests very useful. It was hard for me to tackle the whole DAT at first but by the time I had taken 5 full-length tests, it became manageable. Overall the testing experience was pretty relaxed. The receptionists were very nice. The check out section during the break took a few minutes. By the time I checked out, got new dry erase boards, ate my snack, used the bathroom, and drank some water, I had 4 minutes left. The testing room was a little noisy. Luckily I brought some earplugs, as Im easily distracted. I was also running short of room on my white boards by the QR section big mistake, dont do that.
I have a 3.33 overall, 3.55 sci, 3.52 BCP. Applying to 14 schools 🙂
Thats it! If anyone has any questions, let me know!
I just finished my DAT today and I'm so glad it's over!!!!! Thank you so much to everyone who took the time to post a breakdown, honest opinions of review material, encouraging words every bit helps. Im here to give back by providing all the information I can about my experience.
PAT: 21 (87.9)
QR: 21 (96.4)
RC: 24 (94.0)
BIO: 20 (88.0)
GC: 26 (98.8)
OC: 27 (98.7)
TS: 23 (97.8)
AA: 24 (99.6)
Practice test scores:
BIO/GC/OC/PAT/RC/QR/TS/AA
Kaplan diagnostic: 16/15/18/16/19/14/16/16
Kaplan midterm: 18/16/18/21/20/16/17/18
Kaplan final: 19/17/19/19/19/22/18/19
Kaplan practice test 1: 18/21/19/23/19/22/19/20
Kaplan practice test 2: 24/19/16/21/22/23/20/21
Kaplan practice test 3: 26/16/16/21/20/17/20/19
2007 ADA sample test: 21/23/25/22/17/22/23/22
I started studying in the beginning of June. I was working full time until mid-July and was only studying about 5-7 hours per week. After July 15th, I was probably studying 10-12 hours per day 6 days/week until last Sunday. As you can see my practice test scores were all over the place. This made me realize that a large part of my performance was mental. I took the two days before my test to relax and mentally prepare rather than study.
PAT: Kaplan
I didn't really study too much for this section. I was debating whether to get CDP but after spending the money on kaplan, I was pretty tapped. My scores weren't too bad to begin with so I didn't worry about it.
Keyholes and TFE were easier on the DAT than kaplan. Hole punching was my specialty on Kaplan. For all of the tests combined, I got 73/80. This section was much harder than Kaplan (lots of funny folds and half punches). Same thing with angles, what the heck? I swear some of them could only have differed by a degree or two. These two sections took a huge chuck out of my time. Cube counting was pretty clear, no surprises. Pattern folding was easier than Kaplan. I actually ran out of time on this section and had to guess the last 3.
BIO: DAT destroyer, Anki, Kaplan
I probably spent the most time studying this section and it was my lowest score. It wasnt that the material was hard, theres just so much of it. I had ~960 flashcards and did about 100 problems in destroyer before I started hitting mid-to-high 20s on my practice tests. This is when I backed off bio and focused on other sections. I made sure that I made cards for everything I didnt know that I came across in destroyer, my practice tests, and the review notes provided with the Kaplan course.
This was the hardest section for me. Again, not that it was hard, just that no matter how much I studied for it, I never knew it all. Im happy with what I got.
GC and OC: CHADS <-- A MUST!, Dat destroyer, Kaplan, Anki
I got a 16 for both of these sections on my last Kaplan practice test 4 days before my DAT. I freaked out at this point and watched every Chad chem video over 2 days, taking notes, making flashcards, doing destroyer problems (only about the first 70-ran out of time)
The questions in these sections cover very basic concepts. Chad provides you with everything you need for this section. I actually finished SNS with 15 minutes to spare (usually ran out of time on practice tests).
RC: Kaplan
Again, a section I didnt really prepare for. I dont consider myself a strong reader. Im very slow and have to subvocalize everything and my retention isnt too great. I was using SND for a while but didnt see any improvement so I knew I had to make a change.
Kaplans mapping technique turned me off it took way too long. I modified it a bit to suit my needs. I read the whole passage, making sure I understood everything and wrote down 2-5 words per paragraph. This worked really well for me as I didnt have to go back to the passage very often and if I did, I knew where to look.
All three of my passages were 14 paragraphs. They werent too terrible but like I said, Im not the strongest reader.
QR: Math destroyer, Kaplan, Chads
I consider myself to be pretty good at math. My diagnostic did not agree with me. I could do the math, just not in 60 seconds. The more I practiced though the better I got. Know your trig values, identities, etc.
I was expecting a higher score in this section but I ran out of time and guessed on the last 5. The math wasnt hard at all, very doable. I did come across a few problems that I didnt have any shortcuts for this is probably why I ran out of time.
I found kaplans practice tests very useful. It was hard for me to tackle the whole DAT at first but by the time I had taken 5 full-length tests, it became manageable. Overall the testing experience was pretty relaxed. The receptionists were very nice. The check out section during the break took a few minutes. By the time I checked out, got new dry erase boards, ate my snack, used the bathroom, and drank some water, I had 4 minutes left. The testing room was a little noisy. Luckily I brought some earplugs, as Im easily distracted. I was also running short of room on my white boards by the QR section big mistake, dont do that.
I have a 3.33 overall, 3.55 sci, 3.52 BCP. Applying to 14 schools 🙂
Thats it! If anyone has any questions, let me know!
