- Joined
- Apr 9, 2015
- Messages
- 18
- Reaction score
- 10
Took my DAT today (for the 3rd time) & just wanted to say a few things about what I found most helpful.
(Previous scores are listed first/today's scores third.)
Biology 18//18/19
General Chemistry 18/18/20
Organic Chemistry 17/18/19
PAT 19/20/18
Reading Comprehension 22/20/22
Quantitative Reasoning 15/16/18
AA 18/18/20
TS 18/18/19
First, I didn't study for the PAT at all because I made a 20 previously but since the school I am applying to doesn't seem to weigh it heavily, I chose to spend that time elsewhere--BUT judging from my previous exams the only practice resource you should use is DAT Bootcamp.
Biology--DAT Bootcamp's practice tests now come with more in depth explanation & all of it is fantastic--you can throw you're DAT Destroyer away & use these instead. Unfortunately, I didn't realize this until two days before, and only had time to read through once. IF I would have focused on this from the beginning, I could have easily made 20-21 or more in Biology. Everything I saw on my test was mentioned in Bootcamp. Biology is just so much, but if you understand everything in Bootcamp, you will dominate this section. Also, don't use Bootcamp scores to estimate your real one. If you want a better idea of what you'll get, after using Bootcamp, take a few DAT Q-Vault exams and get your avg.--this will be a better representation of your real score.
General AND Organic Chemistry:
First: watch Chad's videos from CourseSaver and take notes... Take quizzes another day... You'll forget a lot of it as the weeks pass by. Don't get overwhelmed because for me, Chad's Videos is like Pringles... once you watch, you can't stop. Watch his videos in fast play over and over again. EsPeCIaLY organic chemistry... The night before the test I watched all of the reaction videos in 2x and believe me, it helped tremendously during my exam.
Second: take all of the Bootcamp exams, and watch all the explanation videos--they make studying less boring. Destroyer was too overwhelming in my opinion, but I guess if you are reaching for a score above a 23, or have extra time, you should use it.
QR--Math Destroyer is really time consuming & frustrating, but I would advise pushing yourself to get through at least half the tests... Then jump straight into Bootcamp practice tests... Especially #6-10. Most important thing is to master timing. I went from a very lucky 15 to a pretty confident 18 (I had a lot of questions that I had to go from decimals to fractions & I'm not good at that, so probably made a few careless mistakes) also, don't ignore formulas... I had a question on compound interest, which I know how to solve, but the answer choices were set up in the format of the formula and you had to pick the right one( which if I had extra time I could eliminate answers, but if I just knew the formula, bam, another easy one correct)
RC--skip over any question you can't answer within a few seconds, skip over any question that asks if statements are true or false and answer these on the second round. Most importantly, convince yourself you are enjoying yourself when reading the passage... Bootcamp is way harder but you need to practice your strategy so take a few of these. Unfortunately, I found my first DAT and my third DAT's reading comp section was WAY easier than my second--so it may be safe to say that you could get easy or hard passages. Just don't give up & be mindful of the time. And don't forget "You LOVE to read & comprehend!"
Now, keep in mind, I am a registered dental hygienist working part time, a part time student, a mother of 3 year old twins, and am currently coming up on my 10 year high school reunion. Needless to say, I worked very very hard and am very proud of my 20 AA. Thank you Chad & DAT Bootcamp!
(Previous scores are listed first/today's scores third.)
Biology 18//18/19
General Chemistry 18/18/20
Organic Chemistry 17/18/19
PAT 19/20/18
Reading Comprehension 22/20/22
Quantitative Reasoning 15/16/18
AA 18/18/20
TS 18/18/19
First, I didn't study for the PAT at all because I made a 20 previously but since the school I am applying to doesn't seem to weigh it heavily, I chose to spend that time elsewhere--BUT judging from my previous exams the only practice resource you should use is DAT Bootcamp.
Biology--DAT Bootcamp's practice tests now come with more in depth explanation & all of it is fantastic--you can throw you're DAT Destroyer away & use these instead. Unfortunately, I didn't realize this until two days before, and only had time to read through once. IF I would have focused on this from the beginning, I could have easily made 20-21 or more in Biology. Everything I saw on my test was mentioned in Bootcamp. Biology is just so much, but if you understand everything in Bootcamp, you will dominate this section. Also, don't use Bootcamp scores to estimate your real one. If you want a better idea of what you'll get, after using Bootcamp, take a few DAT Q-Vault exams and get your avg.--this will be a better representation of your real score.
General AND Organic Chemistry:
First: watch Chad's videos from CourseSaver and take notes... Take quizzes another day... You'll forget a lot of it as the weeks pass by. Don't get overwhelmed because for me, Chad's Videos is like Pringles... once you watch, you can't stop. Watch his videos in fast play over and over again. EsPeCIaLY organic chemistry... The night before the test I watched all of the reaction videos in 2x and believe me, it helped tremendously during my exam.
Second: take all of the Bootcamp exams, and watch all the explanation videos--they make studying less boring. Destroyer was too overwhelming in my opinion, but I guess if you are reaching for a score above a 23, or have extra time, you should use it.
QR--Math Destroyer is really time consuming & frustrating, but I would advise pushing yourself to get through at least half the tests... Then jump straight into Bootcamp practice tests... Especially #6-10. Most important thing is to master timing. I went from a very lucky 15 to a pretty confident 18 (I had a lot of questions that I had to go from decimals to fractions & I'm not good at that, so probably made a few careless mistakes) also, don't ignore formulas... I had a question on compound interest, which I know how to solve, but the answer choices were set up in the format of the formula and you had to pick the right one( which if I had extra time I could eliminate answers, but if I just knew the formula, bam, another easy one correct)
RC--skip over any question you can't answer within a few seconds, skip over any question that asks if statements are true or false and answer these on the second round. Most importantly, convince yourself you are enjoying yourself when reading the passage... Bootcamp is way harder but you need to practice your strategy so take a few of these. Unfortunately, I found my first DAT and my third DAT's reading comp section was WAY easier than my second--so it may be safe to say that you could get easy or hard passages. Just don't give up & be mindful of the time. And don't forget "You LOVE to read & comprehend!"
Now, keep in mind, I am a registered dental hygienist working part time, a part time student, a mother of 3 year old twins, and am currently coming up on my 10 year high school reunion. Needless to say, I worked very very hard and am very proud of my 20 AA. Thank you Chad & DAT Bootcamp!
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