8 month study plan, how does it look??

[cdmOMR]

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Well I just typed this up to give myself a general guideline on what I am going to be doing the next 8 months to prepare for the DAT. I wanted to see what you guys think...is it too easy? too rigorous? too long? Any opinions appreciated. Also dont forget this isnt an exact guideline just a general structure just to get me on the right pace. Thanks

Chris

DAT Study Guide

October:
Monday – 1 hour of Biology from Schaums
Tuesday – 1 hour of Gen. Chem. from Shaums
Thursday – 1 hour of PAT pratice from Barrons
Saturday – 1 hour of math from Barrons


November:
Monday – 1-2 hours of Biology from Schaums or Kaplan Blue Book
Tuesday – 1-2 hours of Gen Chem from Schaums or Kaplan
Wednesday – 1-2 hours of Math from Shaums or Kaplan
Thursday – 1-2 hours of PAT from Barrons and/ or Kaplan
Saturday (every 3rd) – Practice test from achiever/topscore/etc


December:
Monday – 2 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 2 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday – 2 hours of math
Thursday – 2 hours of PAT
Saturday (every 3rd) – Practice test


January:
Monday – 2-3 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 2-3 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday – 2-3 hours of Math
Thursday – 2-3 hours of PAT
Saturday (every other) – Practice test


February: (start using Destroyer)
Monday – 3 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 3 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday – 3 hours of Math
Thursday – 3 hours of PAT
Saturday – practice test


March:
Monday – 3-4 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 3-4 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday - 3-4 hours of Math
Thursday – 3-4 hours of PAT
Saturday – practice test


April:
Monday - 4 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 4 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday – 4 hours of Math
Thursday – 4 hours of PAT
Saturday – practice test


May: (until test is taken mid late may)
Monday – 4+ hours of Biology (as needed)
Tuesday – 4+ hours of Gen. Chem (as needed)
Wednesday – 4+ hours of Math (as needed)
Thursday – 4+ hours of PAT (as needed)
Saturday – Practice test

 

[GoDucks69]

Its all personal preference. Some people want to cram it all in with many hours in a few months and some take the longer approach. You just have to try it out and see what works best for you. It is better to start sooner rather than later. 3 months with many hours a day will be adequate time to do well. Good luck

 

[cdmOMR]

Its all personal preference. Some people want to cram it all in with many hours in a few months and some take the longer approach. You just have to try it out and see what works best for you. It is better to start sooner rather than later. 3 months with many hours a day will be adequate time to do well. Good luck

Im kinda going with the longer approach because if you look at my GPA i also need to do phenomenal in my classes also. Also I didnt put Orgo in because Im taking it now. But I agree is generally personal opinon, I was more worried if this schedual was enough. Thanks!

 

[blue_moon01]

Well I just typed this up to give myself a general guideline on what I am going to be doing the next 8 months to prepare for the DAT. I wanted to see what you guys think...is it too easy? too rigorous? too long? Any opinions appreciated. Also dont forget this isnt an exact guideline just a general structure just to get me on the right pace. Thanks

Chris

DAT Study Guide

October:
Monday – 1 hour of Biology from Schaums
Tuesday – 1 hour of Gen. Chem. from Shaums
Thursday – 1 hour of PAT pratice from Barrons
Saturday – 1 hour of math from Barrons


November:
Monday – 1-2 hours of Biology from Schaums or Kaplan Blue Book
Tuesday – 1-2 hours of Gen Chem from Schaums or Kaplan
Wednesday – 1-2 hours of Math from Shaums or Kaplan
Thursday – 1-2 hours of PAT from Barrons and/ or Kaplan
Saturday (every 3rd) – Practice test from achiever/topscore/etc


December:
Monday – 2 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 2 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday – 2 hours of math
Thursday – 2 hours of PAT
Saturday (every 3rd) – Practice test


January:
Monday – 2-3 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 2-3 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday – 2-3 hours of Math
Thursday – 2-3 hours of PAT
Saturday (every other) – Practice test


February: (start using Destroyer)
Monday – 3 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 3 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday – 3 hours of Math
Thursday – 3 hours of PAT
Saturday – practice test


March:
Monday – 3-4 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 3-4 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday - 3-4 hours of Math
Thursday – 3-4 hours of PAT
Saturday – practice test


April:
Monday - 4 hours of Biology
Tuesday – 4 hours of Gen. Chem
Wednesday – 4 hours of Math
Thursday – 4 hours of PAT
Saturday – practice test


May: (until test is taken mid late may)
Monday – 4+ hours of Biology (as needed)
Tuesday – 4+ hours of Gen. Chem (as needed)
Wednesday – 4+ hours of Math (as needed)
Thursday – 4+ hours of PAT (as needed)
Saturday – Practice test

I think 8 months is too long. You might get burned out. 6 months is plenty

 

[cdmOMR]

I think 8 months is too long. You might get burned out. 6 months is plenty

Well the first couple months I plan to be pretty light and superficial, I might even do less than I posted. Im really weak in gen. bio since i took it so long ago so I think I need to get a good background. I might postpone some things like PAT and math for a couple months. Thanks for the imput.

 

[naivegrl124]

I think thats a bit too much unless you really have time to do all that. If you have that much time, then it would be to your advantage because it has been proven that if you study a little bit each day, your chances of retaining the material are alot higher given that you review the things you learn the day before and then going to the new info. It's different for everybody and it also depends on your foundation of the materials tested. I would say give it 3 months, hardcore 4-6 hours a day and by test day it should be a breeze 🙂 Oh yeah make sure you do alot of physical activities to balance out the academic stress!!! definitely helps!

 

[cdmOMR]

I think thats a bit too much unless you really have time to do all that. If you have that much time, then it would be to your advantage because it has been proven that if you study a little bit each day, your chances of retaining the material are alot higher given that you review the things you learn the day before and then going to the new info. It's different for everybody and it also depends on your foundation of the materials tested. I would say give it 3 months, hardcore 4-6 hours a day and by test day it should be a breeze 🙂 Oh yeah make sure you do alot of physical activities to balance out the academic stress!!! definitely helps!

Well my thought was that if I did more hardcore 4-6 hours in a short time it would be really hard to do well in my classes at that time. I need to do really well the next two semesters. If I get straight A's next two semesters my GPA would be around a 3.3 and SGPA around 3.4, barely in the competetive area. Personally I think its easier to do a couple hours a day over a long period of time, allows for less chance of getting really far behind.

**dont forget I just kinda typed this up real quick as a guide, I would adjust depending on how well I was doing with the material

 

[dentaldentist]

The more time you put in the better, just don't burn yourself out. 🙂 If you feel ready sooner, go ahead and take the test. Good luck.

 

[jackbauer!]

8 months is far to long. 2-3 months is IDEAL. i'm not really one to talk b/c i only studied for 2 weeks...and my scores reflect that 😛 i may retake in november and study for 1-2 months this time.

good luck
jb!

 

[bruinpredent]

honestly, i have to agree with the whole 8 months is too long thing. I put in about a good 7 weeks and i wanted to jump off a cliff by the end of it. Burning out is an understatement...i even made a post about it like a week before the exam.

But as long as your just brushing up on the material, then you should be fine. If i were you i would stick to the light schedule for the first couple of months (maybe 4 or 5) and then hammer it home (4+ hours a day) for the last month or two. just my $0.02

 

[cdmOMR]

honestly, i have to agree with the whole 8 months is too long thing. I put in about a good 7 weeks and i wanted to jump off a cliff by the end of it. Burning out is an understatement...i even made a post about it like a week before the exam.

But as long as your just brushing up on the material, then you should be fine. If i were you i would stick to the light schedule for the first couple of months (maybe 4 or 5) and then hammer it home (4+ hours a day) for the last month or two. just my $0.02

that sounds reasonable...just keeping it to a couple hours a week for the first few months then really picking it up in the next few months to get the stuff down cold.

I made it so long because I need a lot of brushing up. I dont expect to remember things studied now I just need a better background in certain areas so when i really get into all the details Im not lost.

 

[joonkimdds]

that sounds reasonable...just keeping it to a couple hours a week for the first few months then really picking it up in the next few months to get the stuff down cold.

I made it so long because I need a lot of brushing up. I dont expect to remember things studied now I just need a better background in certain areas so when i really get into all the details Im not lost.

Here is a link u can go and see how you should study 🙂
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=306865&page=1&pp=25

 

[denteng]

I wanted to see what you guys think...is it too easy? too rigorous? too long?

You're putting way too much thought into it.

2.5 months of study will net you a teenager-free DAT score.

 

[cdmOMR]

Here is a link u can go and see how you should study 🙂
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=306865&page=1&pp=25

Well 10 hours a day is a little excessive for me...and I dont have two years, so I guess im screwed

You're putting way too much thought into it.

2.5 months of study will net you a teenager-free DAT score.

I honestly dont think I can successfully review a full year of bio, of which I remember about 8% of, along with tryin to get all the other stuff down, plus my classes in 2.5 months. Maybe less that 8 months, but more than 2.5. And all of my scores need to be able to drink at minimum.