1 year out from DAT... Advice?

[PeterScroggins]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hello!

Sorry if its a silly question, but curious so I thought I'd put it out there.

Just finishing my G. Chem series and starting O-Chem and Bio in the fall, will have finished both of these series by next summer and would like to take the DAT hopefully around next September, before fall quarter begins.

I'm not taking classes next summer in order to provide myself with enough time to study for the test.

Considering the fact that I have not taken my Bio or O-chem series, I was wondering what kind of beneficial things I could do over the next year to get myself prepared for this test?

Any responses are much appreciated! Cheers! 🙂

 

[yappy]

Others may disagree... but if you really wanted to help yourself out I would working on the PAT, reading, and math section.

Get DAT destroyer MATH, and crack dat pat and just start doing tests every week on your off time. It would be a great benefit if by the time the dat rolled around you had these three sections down.

Also, go above and beyond in your bio class. Go to the ADA and download the outline for the bio section. As you go through your class really get familier with the subjects on the outline and maybe even create your own short hand notes you can review throughout the year.

GL.

 

[zatoichi]

Just my opinion, but you are going to be at a disadvantage if you take the DAT with only general biology under your belt. It seems (could be wrong) that a significant proportion of people who score high on the section (22+) have taken upper division bio courses such as genetics, biochemistry, physio, etc.

Some of the questions seems to require a great deal of extrapolation, and some questions were flat out not covered in intro biology.

 

[slm266]

I'd read through the DAT forum. After reading DAT breakdowns of those who score high, you will pick up on the methods/materials that produce results.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/forumdisplay.php?f=70

I'm sure there isn't a single question about the DAT that hasn't been answered a couple times there. It helped me do well on the DAT. Good luck!

Ps start reading cliffs AP bio and Kaplan blue book now. Buy them on amazon for cheap.

 

[PeterScroggins]

Just my opinion, but you are going to be at a disadvantage if you take the DAT with only general biology under your belt. It seems (could be wrong) that a significant proportion of people who score high on the section (22+) have taken upper division bio courses such as genetics, biochemistry, physio, etc.

Some of the questions seems to require a great deal of extrapolation, and some questions were flat out not covered in intro biology.

Yes I have thought about this.... I am Hoping to matriculate to a program in fall of 2014, so that would put me submitting applications in June of 2013.

Hypothetically I could put the DAT off untill summer 2013, but I wanted to apply with DAT complete and not have to deal with taking it after applications.

Also I thought it could be beneficial to take DAT immediately after completing my O-Chem, G-Chem and Bio classes. Take the test while it is still all fresh was my plan.

I'm taking bio-chem and micro-bio in fall 2012/winter of 2013 (basically right after my currently planned DAT time) and could hypothetically push the DAT back until after completing those classes (so April to July of 2013).

But my concern is that it would put me
1) almost a year after my completion of g-chem, bio and o-chem
2) studying for DAT while trying to work on applications
3) without a few month block to devote to studying before test (which was my plan, as I need to destroy this thing because of mediocre GPA)

 

[Bereno]

Just my opinion, but you are going to be at a disadvantage if you take the DAT with only general biology under your belt. It seems (could be wrong) that a significant proportion of people who score high on the section (22+) have taken upper division bio courses such as genetics, biochemistry, physio, etc.

Some of the questions seems to require a great deal of extrapolation, and some questions were flat out not covered in intro biology.

I was able to pull off a 21 on BIO with just the entry bio series... It was not easy, and I had to learn a lot on my own, but it is still doable. That said, I would not recommend it either lol.

However, I would recommend taking the DAT a little while after you take your O-chem series so that it is still fresh in your mind... This said, you can either take it after O-Chem and before any auxiliary bio classes, or you can take it a year later after all your classes, but a long time after your chemistry classes. I guess you can weight the pros and cons of each side and decide which is better for you. 🙂

 

[zatoichi]

I was able to pull off a 21 on BIO with just the entry bio series... It was not easy, and I had to learn a lot on my own, but it is still doable. That said, I would not recommend it either lol.

However, I would recommend taking the DAT a little while after you take your O-chem series so that it is still fresh in your mind... This said, you can either take it after O-Chem and before any auxiliary bio classes, or you can take it a year later after all your classes, but a long time after your chemistry classes. I guess you can weight the pros and cons of each side and decide which is better for you. 🙂

I should clarify something. If you've only taken general biology, the "hard" questions may require a great deal of extrapolation, but they will be seemingly intuitive for someone who has taken biochemistry, cell bio, etc.

To the OP:
Something else to think about...
you will have 20 questions regarding cell bio/molecular bio and 10 questions with respect to physiology...so, perhaps it's worth it to take advanced bio courses.

Don't be so caught up with your schedule or the idea of doing things in a timely manner. Just focus on doing well and if that means taking an extra year, so be it.

I took the DAT after being out of school for 7 years and got a 28/29/23 for gchem, ochem, and bio. I was however, a biochemistry major...

Don't worry so much about "having the information fresh" because if you've put in the time when you took the course, the second time around is much easier and you usually end up with a deeper understanding.

 

[sacapuntas]

I should clarify something. If you've only taken general biology, the "hard" questions may require a great deal of extrapolation, but they will be seemingly intuitive for someone who has taken biochemistry, cell bio, etc.

To the OP:
Something else to think about...
you will have 20 questions regarding cell bio/molecular bio and 10 questions with respect to physiology...so, perhaps it's worth it to take advanced bio courses.

Don't be so caught up with your schedule or the idea of doing things in a timely manner. Just focus on doing well and if that means taking an extra year, so be it.

I took the DAT after being out of school for 7 years and got a 28/29/23 for gchem, ochem, and bio. I was however, a biochemistry major...

Don't worry so much about "having the information fresh" because if you've put in the time when you took the course, the second time around is much easier and you usually end up with a deeper understanding.

This can't be true, can it? I thought there was only 30 total bio questions on the test...and you're saying they are all from upper level bios?

 

[zatoichi]

This can't be true, can it? I thought there was only 30 total bio questions on the test...and you're saying they are all from upper level bios?

Nope, 40 bio questions total. Therefore, 23+ yields bigger pay off for TS score (TS is based on how many you get correct out of 100 for SNS). Bio is weighted a bit more than the chem sections.

Not all are from upper level bio....I'm just saying that SOME of the questions are more easily answered if you have taken upper level bio because the answer will be obvious or rather...more intuitive. For someone with only general bio, it will require quite a bit more extrapolation. FWIW, molecular bio and basic biochemistry are part of the general biology syllabi but the extent to which it is covered varies greatly from school to school.

If you take into account that you can only miss 3 questions to get a 22 or 23 on the bio section....upper division bio is worth it in my opinion.

 

[bing12]

others may disagree... But if you really wanted to help yourself out i would working on the pat, reading, and math section.

get dat destroyer math, and crack dat pat and just start doing tests every week on your off time. It would be a great benefit if by the time the dat rolled around you had these three sections down.

Also, go above and beyond in your bio class. Go to the ada and download the outline for the bio section. As you go through your class really get familier with the subjects on the outline and maybe even create your own short hand notes you can review throughout the year.

Gl.

+1