AA/TS:18- advice on retake

[imKarim]

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I took the DAT last September and got the following scores:
PAT 19
QR 16
RC 21
BIO 18
GC 18
OC 18
TS: 18
AA: 18
For reference:
GPA
Overall: 3.25
Science: 3.10
Last 70 credits: 3.50

I mainly used bootcamp and some of chad's math videos and studied for 3 months. After this, I have taken Anatomy & Physiology and Biochem so I feel like i am more confident in the sciences now but I am very nervous to retake and not significantly improve. Please share any tips and feedback or experience that may be useful for improving my score. I plan to retake in June.

 

[OhioGuy42]

my stats were exactly the same lol...... like literally the exact same! I didnt get in my first cycle, retook my DAT got an 18 again lol and had 4 pre december interviews! Dont be super nervous and just apply early!!

 

[imKarim]

my stats were exactly the same lol...... like literally the exact same! I didnt get in my first cycle, retook my DAT got an 18 again lol and had 4 pre december interviews! Dont be super nervous and just apply early!!

Wow haha, did you end up getting in your second time? Also, did you not apply early the first time? I applied right after I took the DAT early September so i'm thinking that may also be a factor in me not getting any interviews. Definitely planning on applying early next cycle.

 

[imKarim]

my stats were exactly the same lol...... like literally the exact same! I didnt get in my first cycle, retook my DAT got an 18 again lol and had 4 pre december interviews! Dont be super nervous and just apply early!!

Im also from Ohio btw, were you able to get an interview at OSU with your stats?

 

[ChemistryDentist]

I took the DAT last September and got the following scores:
PAT 19
QR 16
RC 21
BIO 18
GC 18
OC 18
TS: 18
AA: 18
For reference:
GPA
Overall: 3.25
Science: 3.10
Last 70 credits: 3.50

I mainly used bootcamp and some of chad's math videos and studied for 3 months. After this, I have taken Anatomy & Physiology and Biochem so I feel like i am more confident in the sciences now but I am very nervous to retake and not significantly improve. Please share any tips and feedback or experience that may be useful for improving my score. I plan to retake in June.

I think you're making the right decision to retake in June, especially because your sGPA especially is on the lower end. While upward trends are good, I don't think dental schools really care what your "last 70 credits" GPA is. They care what your overall is. Taking the DAT in June gives you some time to continue preparing and mastering material you might not have the first time around, while having time to focus on bringing up your GPA a bit more.

I see you didn't mention it, so I have to ask: did you use the Destroyers (math and general)? I believe those would really bring up your scores a few points. Your QR score is on the edge of the cutoffs for some schools, so the Math Destroyer (and accompanying videos on YouTube) would definitely help out a ton there. The DAT Destroyer will definitely bring up your sciences as well, so long as you use them properly.

As for PAT, a 19 is a solid score, but if you want 20+ I'd recommend PATBooster and going through as many questions as possible. That should help bring up that score as well.

These resources worked well for me and for plenty of other people. Now that you have a solid foundation, use these books to help bring up your score. It's worth the retake to be more competitive, especially for OSU if you're thinking of applying there.

Best of luck!

 

[imKarim]

I think you're making the right decision to retake in June, especially because your sGPA especially is on the lower end. While upward trends are good, I don't think dental schools really care what your "last 70 credits" GPA is. They care what your overall is. Taking the DAT in June gives you some time to continue preparing and mastering material you might not have the first time around, while having time to focus on bringing up your GPA a bit more.

I see you didn't mention it, so I have to ask: did you use the Destroyers (math and general)? I believe those would really bring up your scores a few points. Your QR score is on the edge of the cutoffs for some schools, so the Math Destroyer (and accompanying videos on YouTube) would definitely help out a ton there. The DAT Destroyer will definitely bring up your sciences as well, so long as you use them properly.

As for PAT, a 19 is a solid score, but if you want 20+ I'd recommend PATBooster and going through as many questions as possible. That should help bring up that score as well.

These resources worked well for me and for plenty of other people. Now that you have a solid foundation, use these books to help bring up your score. It's worth the retake to be more competitive, especially for OSU if you're thinking of applying there.

Best of luck!

Thank you! this was very helpful.

 

[4thgen]

I highly recommend using DAT destroyer. I took the DAT twice, first time only focusing on chads videos and taking good notes and got an 18ts and 18AA just like you. The second time I took it I studied for about a month with about a week of reviewing stuff and then the remainder of the time going through the Destroyer and went through 40 problems per day per section really learning why I got things wrong. I also used the Kaplan book for the bio section just to make sure I had a good foundation because that section is tricky. retake I got a 22TS and 21AA. The Destroyer is basically a question bank for the DAT, you get to the exam and its basically switching around numbers.

 

[DDSMomma]

my stats were exactly the same lol...... like literally the exact same! I didnt get in my first cycle, retook my DAT got an 18 again lol and had 4 pre december interviews! Dont be super nervous and just apply early!!

What did you change the second time around? I'm on my 3rd cycle with nothing buy crickets.

 

[Faris_]

I hope you took advantage of the Chad's 3 cumulative tests at the end of each Organic chemistry and General chemistry. They are harder than the regular quizzes after each chapter and I found them very comparable to the destroyer honestly. Not to mention the quizzes after each subject and quizzes after each chapter. Also, the 5 DAT exams available free from Chad. I'd advice not wasting your money on something you can get for free. Just my ¢2.
Chad's is't well known for math prep so my personal advice is pickup a GRE math book for $5 which helped my go through the destroyer very easily. I'd recommend Math Destroyer to test your knowledge. hth