Advice!!!!!

[kidfresh2429]

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Hi all! I took the DAT last week, and this is my score breakdown:

Bio: 20
Orgo: 18
Chem: 22
RC: 19
QR: 14 (I just blanked out and ran out of time, def wasn’t well prepped for this section)
PAT: 17
Academic Average: 19
Total Science: 20

GPA: 3.7
Over 100 hours of shadowing
80+ Hours worth extra curricular activities
Starting a dental assistant job soon too.

I need advice big time! Should I retake
the dat in December? I’m applying to UConn, Tufts, BU, NYU, Touro. I don’t know how to gage the score. Whether I should retake the exam or not. I’ve been seeing a wide range of answers online but I wanted to make thread for advice!

Thanks!!

 

[deleted945327]

You’re GOOD! Trust me. I have a 3.55 cGPA, 3.45 sGPA. Got 2 interviews so far and applied in August.

DAT score:
19 AA
20 TS
20 BIO
19 GC
21 OC
19 PAT
18 RC
15 QR

I wouldn’t be worried and definitely don’t need to retake it. Best and wisest advice I can give, you gotta make sure you apply to schools with no cutoffs like I did and make sure you apply to at least 10 schools.

 

[knewstance]

You’re GOOD! Trust me.

I wouldn’t be worried and definitely don’t need to retake it.

That is an incredible amount of confidence for someone who is not on the adcom lol. Getting interviews is not the same as acceptances. Also, your other application metrics are not the same as the OP.

Let's be real here:
Your GPA is great. Hopefully, you have some volunteer hours to boost your application as well. You are pretty well set there.

If you have money and time to blow, go ahead and apply and see what happens.

If I were in your shoes I would be studying for a retake before applying. The PAT section can be weighted pretty heavily depending on the school and 17 definitely has a bit of room for improvement. And then the QR score is obviously a point of concern even though it is not looked at as much as the other parts. A great goal would be scoring over 20 in all sections.

Success on the DAT is really all in the preparation. Spend some time reading on the DAT section here and work to put together a good study schedule and materials list so that you can succeed both passing your goal and feeling confident when you apply.

 

[ChemistryDentist]

That is an incredible amount of confidence for someone who is not on the adcom lol. Getting interviews is not the same as acceptances. Also, your other application metrics are not the same as the OP.

Let's be real here:
Your GPA is great. Hopefully, you have some volunteer hours to boost your application as well. You are pretty well set there.

If you have money and time to blow, go ahead and apply and see what happens.

If I were in your shoes I would be studying for a retake before applying. The PAT section can be weighted pretty heavily depending on the school and 17 definitely has a bit of room for improvement. And then the QR score is obviously a point of concern even though it is not looked at as much as the other parts. A great goal would be scoring over 20 in all sections.

Success on the DAT is really all in the preparation. Spend some time reading on the DAT section here and work to put together a good study schedule and materials list so that you can succeed both passing your goal and feeling confident when you apply.

Yeah I definitely agree here... just a word of caution for anyone applying: if someone hasn't gotten in yet, never assume "you're good" if your stats compare to them.

The number one issue I see is that your GPA is great but your scores do not match. A 3.7 GPA should be matched with above a 20 in each section, if not higher. And QR can be lower, but no lower than a 17 I would say (at bare minimum). PAT you also want around a 20, 19 minimum I would guess.

If I was in your shoes, I would apply now just to get your application out there. But definitely retake, and let all the schools you apply to know you are retaking. Best of luck!

 

[deleted945327]

That is an incredible amount of confidence for someone who is not on the adcom lol. Getting interviews is not the same as acceptances. Also, your other application metrics are not the same as the OP.

Let's be real here:
Your GPA is great. Hopefully, you have some volunteer hours to boost your application as well. You are pretty well set there.

If you have money and time to blow, go ahead and apply and see what happens.

If I were in your shoes I would be studying for a retake before applying. The PAT section can be weighted pretty heavily depending on the school and 17 definitely has a bit of room for improvement. And then the QR score is obviously a point of concern even though it is not looked at as much as the other parts. A great goal would be scoring over 20 in all sections.

Success on the DAT is really all in the preparation. Spend some time reading on the DAT section here and work to put together a good study schedule and materials list so that you can succeed both passing your goal and feeling confident when you apply.

Actually, it doesn’t apply to me only. I know others in the same situation and turned out good. But ya I guess you’re right, other parts of my application aren’t the same as OP.

 

[kidfresh2429]

Thank you guys! I’m gonna start prepping for the exam in December! Appreciate everyone’s advice!

 

[ChemistryDentist]

Thank you guys! I’m gonna start prepping for the exam in December! Appreciate everyone’s advice!

Out of curiosity for those who see this thread a few years down the line, what resources did you / are you planning on using?

 

[knewstance]

Out of curiosity for those who see this thread a few years down the line, what resources did you / are you planning on using?

That would definitely be helpful to others to provide a before and after snapshot of not only results but materials and preparation.

 

[kidfresh2429]

Out of curiosity for those who see this thread a few years down the line, what resources did you / are you planning on using?

Hey man I Used DAT Bootcamp. Not the best person to ask, but tbh it was pretty good at solidifying the info. Def get the DAT destroyer. I realized it’s value after the exam!

 

[ChemistryDentist]

Hey man I Used DAT Bootcamp. Not the best person to ask, but tbh it was pretty good at solidifying the info. Def get the DAT destroyer. I realized it’s value after the exam!

Ah, I definitely recommend using the Destroyers (both general and math). They're pretty much all I used (in addition to the rest of the stuff from Orgoman, like the bio notes and videos) and I think I did pretty well.