6-Week DAT Study Schedule Thoughts?

[Thanhn]

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Currently a sophomore and plan on taking the DAT this summer. I currently have a 4.0 and have completed Gen Chem I&II, Bio I&II, Anatomy, and O.Chem I. Also expecting A's in O.Chem II and Physiology which is why I think it'd be in my best interest to just get the DAT out of the way while O.Chem is still fresh in my head.

I intend on using the following for each sections.

Review - (4 weeks)
I love Chemistry and have always had a knack for math so I don't intend on using many resources
GC - Chad's & Destroyer (Twice)
OC - Chad's, Destroyer (Twice), and Orgo as a Second Language (if needed)
QR - Math Destroyer (Twice)

However, I'm pretty weak on BIO so I'm not really sure how I should handle this section.
Bio - Cliff's 3rd, Ferrali's, Destroyer (Twice) -- I also have Barron's that I can supplement each section of Cliff's/Ferrali's with.


PAT - CDP & Youtube
RC - haven't really figured out how I plan on studying this.

Practice - (2 weeks)
DAT Bootcamp
QVault
07/09 Official Exams

This is the schedule I've come up with.

Questions for y'all.
1. I'm weak in BIO so do you think Cliff's/Ferrali's will be enough or should I supplement with Barron's?
2. Am I packing my days way too much? I intend on studying 6-8 hours a day.
3. Should I reschedule a week later so I will have 7 weeks to study?

Thank you SDN!!

 

[FeralisExtremum]

If you took bio/chem/orgo that recently, I would do a 3 week review/3 week practice split. Most of that material is probably (hopefully?) still fresh in your head.

1. Cliff's and Barron's have a lot of overlap. I'd probably read one and scan the other for any extra material.
2. It's not too much if you're capable of handling that pace
3. Evaluate where you are and if you need to reschedule after review/first week of practice.

 

[SmileDesignersDDS]

Barron's is garbage lol. I found so many mistakes that I wouldn't even use it as a door stopper. Forget Barron's. Cambells and cliffs for bio. Cambells is the book the DAT test makers actually use to make the bio section of the exam! Also the destroyer for bio is great. Also read through all of the explanations in the back of the book (extremely helpful). It's also good to point out that a lot of my friends who have recently taken the DAT said that there were questions that came right from the destroyer!

 

[ICUrunning]

Barron's is garbage lol. I found so many mistakes that I wouldn't even use it as a door stopper. Forget Barron's. Cambells and cliffs for bio. Cambells is the book the DAT test makers actually use to make the bio section of the exam! Also the destroyer for bio is great. Also read through all of the explanations in the back of the book (extremely helpful). It's also good to point out that a lot of my friends who have recently taken the DAT said that there were questions that came right from the destroyer!

How do you know the Dat makers use Campbells?

 

[1Overdrive]

I think you've got it all figured out. If you can stick to that schedule, that's great. If not, just make sure you are reviewing at least 6 hours a day, so you're at least doing something.

Also, I suggest starting bootcamp a bit earlier than when you planned. Give yourself at least 2 weeks with it so you can do a retest of the material.

 

[Thanhn]

Thanks for all of the advice! I think I might do a 3/3 week split for review/practice and assess where I'm at the first week of practice exams. In the meantime, do you guys have any advice on what I can do in the months leading up to me studying? I've heard doing 30 minutes of PAT and reading a science article every night wouldn't hurt. Any thoughts?

 

[CoFe2]

We're taking our exam on the same day! How funny. This looks great, though. How do you plan on reviewing for QR? From what I can tell many people end up needing more time with it than they plan for

 

[biomolecmed]

Good idea. Make sure you go over your practise materials very well. Look at the wrong answers and their explanations.

 

[SmileDesignersDDS]

How do you know the Dat makers use Campbells?

I have heard that from other students, that questions are most closely resemble Campbell's style. I have seen for example in kaplans workbook talking about the grey crescent in a frog, however that topic was totally skipped in their textbook. This is obviously one example. I actually never used Cambells in my undergraduate studies but I am using it now to study for the DAT. It seems long, however I feel like I understand everything a lot more. Combine Cambells with Cliffs and you can't be beat.