***cofo...DAT DONE 8/19***

[Cofo]

I took my OP off since this thread has been hijacked

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[hplfe]

hmm don't want to burst your bubble or anything, but your PAT score doesn't meet the threshold score for most scores, and most of your sciences except gc could use improvement. I think you should study more and retake it

 

[LetsGo2DSchool]

Decent scores bro. You would've had a 19 AA if not for the QR. 19 is the average for most dental schools so you are definitely in range and have a decent shot. I wouldn't worry about QR unless you got D's in your math classes at school. Good job.

 

[Cofo]

Decent scores bro. You would've had a 19 AA if not for the QR. 19 is the average for most dental schools so you are definitely in range and have a decent shot. I wouldn't worry about QR unless you got D's in your math classes at school. Good job.

I made an A in college algebra and a C in trigonometry. I haven't taken a math course in over 4 years...it showed LMAO. Thank you LG2DS, for the encouragement over this summer, you really helped me considering you advised me to reschedule. I am so glad I took your advice. I will thank you more and a few others later tonight.

 

[LetsGo2DSchool]

I made an A in college algebra and a C in trigonometry. I haven't taken a math course in over 4 years...it showed LMAO. Thank you LG2DS, for the encouragement over this summer, you really helped me considering you advised me to reschedule. I am so glad I took your advice. I will thank you more and a few others later tonight.

No problem bro, just say a few prayers for me for my upcoming exam lol.

 

[youknowthedrill]

Depends on your GPA. The PAT is borderline but the QR may require a retake. You did fine in the sciences. I was told by someone in admissions at one school that they narrow the pool by removing all applicants with a score of less than a certain number in any category. Then then see how many are left and increase their minimum score until they have a manageable number of applications to weed through. Unfortunately she didn't reveal the magic number for that school. But, each school is different. A student at my school applied last year with a 19 AA and a 14 QR, 3.7 GPA and didn't get in the last cycle. I'm not trying to deflate you because you may be fine. I would strongly suggest a retake just in case.

 

[FROGGBUSTER]

I agree with others and definitely think you should retake.

 

[FutureDental88]

people keep saying " QR doesnt matter".... but there gotta be a limit to what you are allowed to score... and 13 is the lowest ive ever seen.

And PAT is unfortunately below acceptance for most schools.


I recommend Retake.. good luck.

 

[tayloreve]

What happened to you on QR and PAT?

 

[Cofo]

What happened to you on QR and PAT?

Jesus Christ, is a 16 PAT really that big of a deal?
I've seen plenty of people on predentsdotcom getting interviews with my stats.
Oh yeah, I never could finish a PAT or QR section on time...I quickly had to guess on the last 15 in PAT, and I had to guess on the last 15 or so in QR.

 

[FROGGBUSTER]

Jesus Christ, is a 16 PAT really that big of a deal?
I've seen plenty of people on predentsdotcom getting interviews with my stats.
Oh yeah, I never could finish a PAT or QR section on time...I quickly had to guess on the last 15 in PAT, and I had to guess on the last 15 or so in QR.

I think students with lower stats who are granted interviews really need to knock the interview out of the park to gain an acceptance. Some people say that everyone who gets an interview is on equal footing, but this is not true for most schools. If you look at Predents, the average GPA of accepted students is always significantly higher than the average GPA of students who get interviews. One of the only exceptions I've seen is UoP.

I think it would be a mistake to not re-take in your case.

 

[Cofo]

bumping for more feedback...

 

[indigenoustw]

Um...if you have already applied, there's nothing that you can do. You should just sit and wait to see if there's any chance in this cycle. IMO, QR is really the red flag....because like others have said, I've never seen a score this low before nor an accepted applicant with a 13 QR. But again, I'm just giving opinions, not facts. However, the fact that you needed to guess on 15 questions or so for both QR and PAT really could be the only problem that hindered you from getting a higher score. Just work on your speed. You can't retake for another 3 months anyways, just start studying again and it will only increase your chance of getting in a school eventually. Obviously, there are rooms for improvement and you can definitely fill that gap. Good luck!

 

[NewBee12]

I don't mean to ruin your weekend but a 16 in PAT and 13 in math doesn't regally look good. You may wanna think about retaking.

 

[wired202808]

PAT: 16 (31.2%) ...
QR: 13 (21.3%) ...
RC: 19 (67.6%)
BIO: 19 (83.5%)
GC: 21 (91.6%)
OC: 18 (64.2%)
TS: 19 (82.8%)
AA: 18 (72.5%)

Obviously my PAT score is nothing to brag about, and THANK GOD dental schools don't care about QR...I did terrible at keeping a fast pace.
I will post a full breakdown later this evening. Leave me with some feedback, and let me know what my chances are at getting accepted with these scores!!!

dude congrats on knocking out everything except QR and PAT. Look honestly, a 13 in QR is a major red flag. I hate to be a downer but you need to retake because of that. Also the 16 in PAT, might be a red flag for some schools. Your best bet now is to find schools that might accept you past those 2 problem areas, if not you might need to retake. The good part is that you seem to understand the sciences, which are much tougher than PAT or QR. If you must retake, then you must learn Math Destroyer otherwise you are gonna repeat your mistakes. PAT must be done with CDP, start it now and continue to use it and you should see an improvement. Good luck!

 

[rccostner]

Jesus Christ, is a 16 PAT really that big of a deal?
I've seen plenty of people on predentsdotcom getting interviews with my stats.
Oh yeah, I never could finish a PAT or QR section on time...I quickly had to guess on the last 15 in PAT, and I had to guess on the last 15 or so in QR.

i didn't realize jesus was reading this forum, so i can't speak for him....

you should retake. there's no getting around it. most schools have a low cut off point for every section on the DAT, regardless of how unimportant people may think that section is. some schools go as low as 16 in every section, but others won't go that low. your sciences aren't bad, but if you retake you should definitely work to make sure there is improvement across the board. timing for each section can be the hardest part of preparing, so you should do all of your practice with a timer.

take it for what it's worth, but this is my third year applying and both previous years that i applied my TS and AA were about what you scored and i never received more than 1 interview each year.

good luck.

 

[Cofo]

Thank you guys, I sincerely appreciate the feedback. I am curious though as to why this person http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=850277 is mostly being told they have a shot...but I don't.
I'm just getting depressed now lol. Can you guys think of any schools that I might still have a shot at getting into?

 

[wired202808]

Thank you guys, I sincerely appreciate the feedback. I am curious though as to why this person http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=850277 is mostly being told they have a shot...but I don't.
I'm just getting depressed now lol. Can you guys think of any schools that I might still have a shot at getting into?

i did not respond to that thread, but I dont believe a 15 in bio will land him anything. IMO. Bio and RC are the most important sections, QR is not looked upon as anything important. Most schools have cutoffs, thats the same thing that stops you i.e your PAT and QR scores.

 

[UCSD1984]

i did not respond to that thread, but I dont believe a 15 in bio will land him anything. IMO. Bio and RC are the most important sections, QR is not looked upon as anything important. Most schools have cutoffs, thats the same thing that stops you i.e your PAT and QR scores.

That's the first time I've heard anyone say that RC is one of the most important sections. Is this accurate?

 

[wired202808]

That's the first time I've heard anyone say that RC is one of the most important sections. Is this accurate?

look at the ada self-reported data, most schools state that AA and TS are Very important and after that the other criteria includes the actual interview, Bio and RC. Meanwhile GC, OC and QR are least likely to be considered very important. Therefore, it is essential to nail the AA and TS, and do very good in Bio and RC. versus worrying bout GC, OC and QR (yes i know that GC and OC contribute to TS; but that means its better to get a higher score in Bio and worry less about the other 2 science sections.)

 

[FROGGBUSTER]

That's the first time I've heard anyone say that RC is one of the most important sections. Is this accurate?

No. QR is least important, all u can say.

 

[wired202808]

No. QR is least important, all u can say.

look at the self reported ada data, bio and rc is the most important (after AA, TS and the actual interview.)

 

[UCSD1984]

No. QR is least important, all u can say.

Sounds about the norm. I'd hate to think that I should be focusing more on RC than GC and Orgo.

 

[wired202808]

Sounds about the norm. I'd hate to think that I should be focusing more on RC than GC and Orgo.

lol ill say it once more, incase you think im lying. go find the ada pdf and read it yourself. AA and TS matter more than anything, but amongst individual sections RC matters more than GC and orgo. Do i really have to find you the link or do you think i am just making stuff up lol

 

[UCSD1984]

look at the self reported ada data, bio and rc is the most important (after AA, TS and the actual interview.)

That doesn't make any sense. After AA and TS, which include GC and Orgo. So, having said that, that technically puts RC at the bottom of the list above QR.

 

[wired202808]

That doesn't make any sense. After AA and TS, which include GC and Orgo. So, having said that, that technically puts RC at the bottom of the list above QR.

TS is not GC and OC, its total score of the 100 questions from bio, gc and oc. Therefore your TS can be inflated by your bio score. So not comparing your TS, but individual sections only RC is considered more important than the individual scores of Bio, GC, OC, QR and PAT. Like I said AA and TS are more important, but the third most important factor is RC. so if your RC score is 23 that looks better than a 21 in any other INDIVIDUAL section.

here is the proof, again I DID NOT MAKE THIS UP! I am not saying its RIGHT OR WRONG! but I am stating OBVIOUS facts!

the original PDF can be viewed at: http://www.ada.org/sections/professionalResources/pdfs/survey_ed_vol2.pdf

 

[UCSD1984]

TS is not GC and OC, its total score of the 100 questions from bio, gc and oc. Therefore your TS can be inflated by your bio score. So not comparing your TS, but individual sections only RC is considered more important than the individual scores of Bio, GC, OC, QR and PAT. Like I said AA and TS are more important, but the third most important factor is RC. so if your RC score is 23 that looks better than a 21 in any other INDIVIDUAL section.

here is the proof, again I DID NOT MAKE THIS UP! I am not saying its RIGHT OR WRONG! but I am stating OBVIOUS facts!

the original PDF can be viewed at: http://www.ada.org/sections/professionalResources/pdfs/survey_ed_vol2.pdf

I definitely wasn't calling you a liar, I'm sorry if I came off that way. I just didn't understand what you meant. I see now. Very interesting, as a matter of fact. Maybe I should actually put some effort into RC...

 

[wired202808]

I definitely wasn't calling you a liar, I'm sorry if I came off that way. I just didn't understand what you meant. I see now. Very interesting, as a matter of fact. Maybe I should actually put some effort into RC...

and im sorry if i came off as an a-hole i just wanted to let you know that I did not make up this stuff and actually to further say I am in a worse position because my TS is lower (18) meanwhile my RC is a 25, so trust me this concerns me like crazy. I am reassured by the fact that my AA is 20. In terms of RC, the only thing you can really do, in my opinion thats good, is CDR. I found achiever,topscore and 2009 test to be unrepresentative. CDR had a good mix of tone and inference problems. sorry if i came off rude before, if you need help, let me know.

 

[UCSD1984]

and im sorry if i came off as an a-hole i just wanted to let you know that I did not make up this stuff and actually to further say I am in a worse position because my TS is lower (18) meanwhile my RC is a 25, so trust me this concerns me like crazy. I am reassured by the fact that my AA is 20. In terms of RC, the only thing you can really do, in my opinion thats good, is CDR. I found achiever,topscore and 2009 test to be unrepresentative. CDR had a good mix of tone and inference problems. sorry if i came off rude before, if you need help, let me know.

No apology necessary man, I've seen you around these forums since I joined and you've always been helpful to people. I've heard the same thing about CDR, and I'm thinking about investing in it. Although my DAT is in 4 weeks, I may have time to squeeze it in.

I've yet to touch anything RC related, so I need to figure something out ASAP. Congrats on the great scores by the way...hopefully the 18 TS doesn't hinder your application, and from what I've seen, I highly doubt it will. Best of luck to you man.

Also, to the OP, good luck with whatever you decide to do man. I've yet to take my DAT, but I'd probably deeply consider a retake if I obtained those scores. Definitely not a bad thing though, as I've learned in the past 3 days, after going through a ridiculous panic attack, that retaking really isn't a bad thing. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[LetsGo2DSchool]

Too much man love going on between Wired and UCSD

 

[UCSD1984]

Too much man love going on between Wired and UCSD

Wanna join in?

 

[FROGGBUSTER]

@wired: the graph actually just proves my point about how all you can say is QR is the least important. when i look at the graph, i interpret it as all 5 sections are equally important in the eyes of adcoms. 54 schools finding RC very or somewhat important means the same thing to me as 55 schools finding GC very or somewhat important. compare that to QR: only 40 schools find it very or somewhat important while 17 find it unimportant.

i just have an in issue with this part of your original post because i think it's misleading; you're basically telling people who are studying to not focus as much on GC and OC when it's important to make sure all 5 of those scores are as high as possible:

Therefore, it is essential to nail the AA and TS, and do very good in Bio and RC. versus worrying bout GC, OC and QR

 

[SEAirLand]

I have to agree with the RC importance. From what I have heard, and yes, its up for interpretation, but RC is one of the only true forms of letting a school know how well you can synthesize information. Yes, the other sections are important, but you can memorize and learn them over a long period of time, and rock them out. The RC section you just don't know what you are going to get and lets them see how well you can read, interpret, and regurgitate information.

Make sense?

 

[LetsGo2DSchool]

I have to agree with the RC importance. From what I have heard, and yes, its up for interpretation, but RC is one of the only true forms of letting a school know how well you can synthesize information. Yes, the other sections are important, but you can memorize and learn them over a long period of time, and rock them out. The RC section you just don't know what you are going to get and lets them see how well you can read, interpret, and regurgitate information.

Make sense?

Theoretically this would make sense but this is a complete farce. The way the RC passage and questions are set up, one can do well by S&D. And even the people who read the whole thing still have to go back and scan for their answers. Thus it truly has nothing to do with one's ability to comprehend and retain information. The only true way it can accomplish that is if the passage completely disappeared off the screen as soon as you got to the first question in which case it becomes a true test of one's comprehension and retention. Apparently the schools don't realize this.

 

[FROGGBUSTER]

I have to agree with the RC importance. From what I have heard, and yes, its up for interpretation, but RC is one of the only true forms of letting a school know how well you can synthesize information. Yes, the other sections are important, but you can memorize and learn them over a long period of time, and rock them out. The RC section you just don't know what you are going to get and lets them see how well you can read, interpret, and regurgitate information.

Make sense?

All 5 sections are equally important. I stand by this.

 

[wired202808]

Theoretically this would make sense but this is a complete farce. The way the RC passage and questions are set up, one can do well by S&D. And even the people who read the whole thing still have to go back and scan for their answers. Thus it truly has nothing to do with one's ability to comprehend and retain information. The only true way it can accomplish that is if the passage completely disappeared off the screen as soon as you got to the first question in which case it becomes a true test of one's comprehension and retention. Apparently the schools don't realize this.

hey man, just to further illustrate my point for the MCAT my friend who just wrapped up med school told me, Reading was the most important because you can learn GC, OC and Bio. You cant just "learn to read and synthesize information in your mind"

 

[wired202808]

All 5 sections are equally important. I stand by this.

All I'm saying is the obvious, after AA and TS, RC and Bio are most important of the "Very Important" category. I am not telling anyone not to study for GC, OC, PAT or QR. But I do highly believe it is worth more effort to do well in Bio vs. GC and OC. If you look at the graph, all in all, bio is still more important than the other sciences meaning that a 20 in Bio is better than a 20 in OC or GC.

In addition, I only compare against VI categories, Somewhat Important means the school is declaring that section negligible so it doesn't matter, if the # of SI is the same for Bio, GC, OC; if its SI, it means the school wont look at it as much and it might not be a deciding factor for an applicant.

The point is to do as well as you can by adequate preparing for EACH and EVERY SECTION, but factually an applicant is better off with a high AA, high TS, and high Bio and RC.

 

[SN1]

No body knows which section is more important than the other. Every school weigh them differently. This argument is endless since people who have high scores on a particular section of the DAT will say that that section is more important than others.

 

[wired202808]

No body knows which section is more important than the other. Every school weigh them differently. This argument is endless since people who have high scores on a particular section of the DAT will say that that section is more important than others.

the chart shows pretty clearly whats important and not, interpret it how you like but after AA and TS everything else stands out in the VI category.

 

[indigenoustw]

the chart shows pretty clearly whats important and not, interpret it how you like but after AA and TS everything else stands out in the VI category.

I can understand your point. But just based on the graph, although we see the importance of section by the number of schools, we don't know which schools make up those numbers. I mean, we don't apply to all the schools anyways, so that hierarchy isn't always true for the schools people chose to apply.

I think I saw this one post by Doc Toothache or somebody on sdn who posted this post about specific schools and their emphasis on different sections of DAT. Maybe THAT is more reliable than the chart.

 

[wired202808]

I can understand your point. But just based on the graph, although we see the importance of section by the number of schools, we don't know which schools make up those numbers. I mean, we don't apply to all the schools anyways, so that hierarchy isn't always true for the schools people chose to apply.

I think I saw this one post by Doc Toothache or somebody on sdn who posted this post about specific schools and their emphasis on different sections of DAT. Maybe THAT is more reliable than the chart.

you're absolutely right 100%