Well where to begin?? I finally get to post my own breakdown!!
My scores are as follows:
PAT:21
QR:17
RC:19
BIO:20
GC:26
OC:20
Materials used:
DAT Bootcamp (20/10): AMAZING SOURCE. Hands down the best preparation for the PAT section. The generators were an amazing source of practice, and anytime i felt ready i always had the option to take a PAT exam. The GenChem and OChem questions were spot on with my actual exam. I would normally score 19/20 on BC for these sections so if anything BC is actually more difficult. And with the recent addition of mike's videos, i was able to revisit the material that i didn't fully grasp when i went through Chads. Not to mention, the explanation given after each question in the Bio sections were of tremendous help when i went through practice exams. It felt like i was learning something new just by going over my answers.
DAT Destroyer (20/10): An absolute beast of a resource. Don't bother taking the DAT if you have not gone through the destroyer at least once. I found the questions very difficult, which is exactly what one would need. The explanations at the back of each section made the learning process that much easier as well. From cover to cover that resource is a gold mine especially for the sciences. Orgoman really came in clutch for us with this book. Remember, if you feel like you're getting a bunch wrong sometimes don't feel too worried. Just make sure you know why the correct one is correct, and why the wrongs are wrong. The book isn't meant to test you, it's meant to teach you.
Math Destroyer (10/10): My QR score was a 17 so why am i giving the math destroyer a perfect score? Because the questions were perfectly in line, if not more difficult, than the actual DAT. However, when i would take the practice exams in this book, i wouldn't time myself, nor would i fully engage myself when doing the problems. This is where the distinction between passive and active studying seriously comes into play. Don't do what I did. Treat this section with the same amount of importance as every other section. Even on my actual exam, the questions were not that difficult, i just found myself taking too long to figure them out which hurt my score tremendously. Also, be prepared for quantitative comparison. Some of the questions aren't hard. And some are relatively difficult. I knew it would show up on my exam however I didn't pay as much attention to it as i should have. Live and let live i guess.
Chad Videos (10/10): Before doing anything. Before destroyer or BC, go through these videos and get a refresher on your chemistry/ochem. He even has math videos to teach you how to approach each problem the fastest way. Also, there's an associated quiz after each video and those are a great way to get your feet wet for some of the material you'll be taking on later!
Cliffs AP Bio (8/10): When it comes to the bio section, you can only do so much to prepare. Cliff's Bio was a great resource. I went through each chapter (with the exception of the Plant's chapter) and took notes as went through. I made sure to at least do some of the questions at the end of the chapter. There were a few things that i remember learning in some of my physiology classes that didn't show up in the book, however, still go through because it covers the bulk of what you'd find on the DAT.
Feralis notes (8/10): Again, you can only do so much to prepare for bio lol. Feralis is by far the best compilation of bio notes i have ever seen. However, I've always had a tough time absorbing material from someone else's notes. But get your hands on BOTH if possible. But only spend the bulk of your time studying one unless you really feel absolutely hopeless about bio.
Kaplans Blue book (0/10): useless don't waste your time or money
I prepared for each section as follows:
Weeks 1-3: doing nothing but Chads videos and the quizzes that follow, along with PAT generator every day. Do this to make sure that you're semi-ready to take on the tougher material. Remember, baby steps! I did gen chem /ochem one day and bio/QR the next.
Week 4-6: Worked through the DAT destroyer and started getting into some PAT exams on BC. Took notes in a notebook on some of the explanations in the destroyer, especially on my weakest topics. I also started taking some subject specific practice tests to test if I've been properly retaining information of if i should I revisit anymore weaknesses
Week 7-8: Full length practice tests! I would take an exam every other day and do the corrections between exam days. After going through the corrections I'd go to my lowest score and spend the day working on it. oh and FLASHCARDS. Make them and memorize them
Hope this helps in any kind of way and wish all future DAT takers luck! It's highly doable and and high score is possible for anyone.
My scores are as follows:
PAT:21
QR:17
RC:19
BIO:20
GC:26
OC:20
Materials used:
DAT Bootcamp (20/10): AMAZING SOURCE. Hands down the best preparation for the PAT section. The generators were an amazing source of practice, and anytime i felt ready i always had the option to take a PAT exam. The GenChem and OChem questions were spot on with my actual exam. I would normally score 19/20 on BC for these sections so if anything BC is actually more difficult. And with the recent addition of mike's videos, i was able to revisit the material that i didn't fully grasp when i went through Chads. Not to mention, the explanation given after each question in the Bio sections were of tremendous help when i went through practice exams. It felt like i was learning something new just by going over my answers.
DAT Destroyer (20/10): An absolute beast of a resource. Don't bother taking the DAT if you have not gone through the destroyer at least once. I found the questions very difficult, which is exactly what one would need. The explanations at the back of each section made the learning process that much easier as well. From cover to cover that resource is a gold mine especially for the sciences. Orgoman really came in clutch for us with this book. Remember, if you feel like you're getting a bunch wrong sometimes don't feel too worried. Just make sure you know why the correct one is correct, and why the wrongs are wrong. The book isn't meant to test you, it's meant to teach you.
Math Destroyer (10/10): My QR score was a 17 so why am i giving the math destroyer a perfect score? Because the questions were perfectly in line, if not more difficult, than the actual DAT. However, when i would take the practice exams in this book, i wouldn't time myself, nor would i fully engage myself when doing the problems. This is where the distinction between passive and active studying seriously comes into play. Don't do what I did. Treat this section with the same amount of importance as every other section. Even on my actual exam, the questions were not that difficult, i just found myself taking too long to figure them out which hurt my score tremendously. Also, be prepared for quantitative comparison. Some of the questions aren't hard. And some are relatively difficult. I knew it would show up on my exam however I didn't pay as much attention to it as i should have. Live and let live i guess.
Chad Videos (10/10): Before doing anything. Before destroyer or BC, go through these videos and get a refresher on your chemistry/ochem. He even has math videos to teach you how to approach each problem the fastest way. Also, there's an associated quiz after each video and those are a great way to get your feet wet for some of the material you'll be taking on later!
Cliffs AP Bio (8/10): When it comes to the bio section, you can only do so much to prepare. Cliff's Bio was a great resource. I went through each chapter (with the exception of the Plant's chapter) and took notes as went through. I made sure to at least do some of the questions at the end of the chapter. There were a few things that i remember learning in some of my physiology classes that didn't show up in the book, however, still go through because it covers the bulk of what you'd find on the DAT.
Feralis notes (8/10): Again, you can only do so much to prepare for bio lol. Feralis is by far the best compilation of bio notes i have ever seen. However, I've always had a tough time absorbing material from someone else's notes. But get your hands on BOTH if possible. But only spend the bulk of your time studying one unless you really feel absolutely hopeless about bio.
Kaplans Blue book (0/10): useless don't waste your time or money
I prepared for each section as follows:
Weeks 1-3: doing nothing but Chads videos and the quizzes that follow, along with PAT generator every day. Do this to make sure that you're semi-ready to take on the tougher material. Remember, baby steps! I did gen chem /ochem one day and bio/QR the next.
Week 4-6: Worked through the DAT destroyer and started getting into some PAT exams on BC. Took notes in a notebook on some of the explanations in the destroyer, especially on my weakest topics. I also started taking some subject specific practice tests to test if I've been properly retaining information of if i should I revisit anymore weaknesses
Week 7-8: Full length practice tests! I would take an exam every other day and do the corrections between exam days. After going through the corrections I'd go to my lowest score and spend the day working on it. oh and FLASHCARDS. Make them and memorize them
Hope this helps in any kind of way and wish all future DAT takers luck! It's highly doable and and high score is possible for anyone.
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