Advice on my DAT scores and how to move forward

[JustAWanderingStudent]

Hello all,

I recently took my DAT this month and was heavily wondering what I should do with my scores.

On my DAT I got
PAT 19
RC 18
QR 18
Bio 18
Chem 24
Orgo 29
TS 21
AA 21

Those 18’s scare me a little and I’m wondering if it may do me a lot of harm when applying to schools.

My GPA on the other hand is 3.85 with a couple semesters left. I did almost a year of research and have over 500+ hours community service, 200+ hours shadowing, alongside with TA two science classes. I am not applying this cycle and during my gap year I’m going to continue what I’ve been doing.

Thank you so much.

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[939959]

Hello all,

I recently took my DAT this month and was heavily wondering what I should do with my scores.

On my DAT I got
PAT 19
RC 18
QR 18
Bio 18
Chem 24
Orgo 29
TS 21
AA 21

Those 18’s scare me a little and I’m wondering if it may do me a lot of harm when applying to schools.

My GPA on the other hand is 3.85 with a couple semesters left. I did almost a year of research and have over 500+ hours community service, 200+ hours shadowing, alongside with TA two science classes. I am not applying this cycle and during my gap year I’m going to continue what I’ve been doing.

Thank you so much.

Those are still solid scores, and your GPA is stellar as is your involvement! Dental schools don’t just care about the numbers, but they look at you holistically. Sure having a few 18s isn’t necessarily in your favor, but none the less 18 is above average. In the context of your GPA and experience, with good personal statements, I definitely think you’ll get plenty of interviews! Good luck and don’t sweat it!

 

[iliketeeth13]

I don't think your DAT scores would prevent you from getting in to a school, but they wouldn't necessarily help either. Since you're not applying this cycle, I would consider retaking it. The 18 in bio is the one that I would be more concerned about--RC and QR are a little less important overall!

 

[JustAWanderingStudent]

I don't think your DAT scores would prevent you from getting in to a school, but they wouldn't necessarily help either. Since you're not applying this cycle, I would consider retaking it. The 18 in bio is the one that I would be more concerned about--RC and QR are a little less important overall!

Thank you for your input. I'm a little worried about having to retake it mostly because of my economic troubles. I definitely did as much as I could within the bounds of what I can afford and this is what I could pull off. Biology was the one subject I spent the most time with but the one that seemed to not have given me the best result. It looks like no amount of studying helped me against the surprisingly general yet specific question they asked me. Was genuinely surprise that my TS came out to be 21 after the biology experience.

Thank you again.

 

[JustAWanderingStudent]

Those are still solid scores, and your GPA is stellar as is your involvement! Dental schools don’t just care about the numbers, but they look at you holistically. Sure having a few 18s isn’t necessarily in your favor, but none the less 18 is above average. In the context of your GPA and experience, with good personal statements, I definitely think you’ll get plenty of interviews! Good luck and don’t sweat it!

Thank you, I called the school I am heavily interested (in Northeast) and they assured me that the scores is just one part of the application process. They asked about my GPA and it was more than enough of what they were looking for. Of course, they told me that if I don't feel comfortable about it to just retake it and see if I can improve it but they mentioned it was just for my own sake. They then assured me that they do a holistic review. A reason why I did not apply this cycle was because I needed a committee letter for this school.

 

[iliketeeth13]

Thank you for your input. I'm a little worried about having to retake it mostly because of my economic troubles. I definitely did as much as I could within the bounds of what I can afford and this is what I could pull off. Biology was the one subject I spent the most time with but the one that seemed to not have given me the best result. It looks like no amount of studying helped me against the surprisingly general yet specific question they asked me. Was genuinely surprise that my TS came out to be 21 after the biology experience.

Thank you again.

The DAT is definitely quite expensive, and I totally get that. Beyond the cost of the test itself, what were you using? The DAT Destroyer is incredibly high yield and besides reading Cliff's AP Bio (not very expensive) and using the Destroyer, I didn't really need to use much else for bio studying. Those plus DAT bootcamp probably cost me around $200, which isn't a a small amount of money but is also pretty low to pay for study aids for a big exam like this.

 

[JustAWanderingStudent]

The DAT is definitely quite expensive, and I totally get that. Beyond the cost of the test itself, what were you using? The DAT Destroyer is incredibly high yield and besides reading Cliff's AP Bio (not very expensive) and using the Destroyer, I didn't really need to use much else for bio studying. Those plus DAT bootcamp probably cost me around $200, which isn't a a small amount of money but is also pretty low to pay for study aids for a big exam like this.

I actually mostly used the DAT destroyer and that definitely helped me a lot. Especially for the organic and general chemistry section. I went over biology about 3 to 4 times and I even read Romano's notes about 2-3 times, writing absolutely everything I can. But in the end the questions still came out of the left field. I spent the most time studying biology, but still nothing.
QR was a little hard because the applied mathematics has a certain english to it that is a little hard to follow (English is not my first language)
RC is the same as the QR but in this case the answers were a bit hard to follow.

 

[DAT Destroyer]

JustAWanderingStudent IMO you should not worry. English is your 2nd language and I have found over the years working with thousands of students that they often have a harder time with the Bio section because the length and difficulty of some questions asked. Indeed some versions of the DAT Bio can be quite challenging, and not all DAT exams are the same.

I congratulate you on excellent scores and wish you the best through the application and interview process.

Nancy

 

[JustAWanderingStudent]

JustAWanderingStudent IMO you should not worry. English is your 2nd language and I have found over the years working with thousands of students that they often have a harder time with the Bio section because the length and difficulty of some questions asked. Indeed some versions of the DAT Bio can be quite challenging, and not all DAT exams are the same.

I congratulate you on excellent scores and wish you the best through the application and interview process.

Nancy

Thank you so much, Nancy! The work you guys have put out is tremendously helpful for the science section! It was exactly all I needed for organic chemistry and general chemistry! My English just held me back. The notes Dr. Romano put up is also extremely helpful for the bio section, but I just failed the English language of the questions.