So I decided to do a new thread and with more detail about the DAT.
DAT scores from 5/8
PAT 17 47.4%
QR 16 53.2 😱
RC 16 18.5
BIO 23 98.0 😀
GCHEM 22 90.1 😀
OCHEM 24 95.2 😀
TS 23 98.2 🙂
AA 20 87.1
BIO- This section was not too bad. But then again, I read through 2 MCAT (princeton and Examkrackers) books, destroyer, kaplan BB, Cliffs AP Bio. I would recommend Cliff's and Kaplan BB (Examkrackers if you can get your hands on it). Section had VERY easy questions and I was flying through them. Think I finished the section in like 30 mins. Did have minimal plants content in it. No ecology. Again, getting through main concepts of Cliff should be good and the section is not random as people make it out to be.
GCHEM- For Gchem I recommend Kaplan with Destroyer. These two are great in giving you the proper content and type of questions in the exam. Mostly conceptual, though I did have several calculations. Also, the calcs questions mostly were concerning with the setup rather than solving the whole thing. I found the calcs to be very similar to destroyer. I flew through this section as well. Found it to be very easy. Not too difficult or tricky. Just straightforward.
OCHEM- Nothing really to say. Recommend Kaplan to get a good overall review and Destroyer for practice. Questions were mostly concerning reactions or solubilities. Make sure you know the reactions and you should be fine.
RC- I had the piano passage. It really is bad as people say it is. I was so happy not to see a FRAP question in the BIO section, but then when I got to piano, I freaked. I was averaging 20s on topscore and achiever. Dont know what happened. The piano passage really limits your time and is difficult to comprehend. I used the search and destroy method. Dont know how effective it would be for others.
QR- Dont know what happened here. I am a great math person. I only missed ONE question on the SAT math. When I was taking topscore and CDM, I was scoring around 22. CDM is helpful, but really it is all about TIMING. The section is filled with word problems, more the CDM tests. You have to move fast in this section. Most questions were doable, except I did approach a couple I felt impossible. Some questions were worded weirdly that didnt make sense to me. I had to read them like 3 times. Overall, I recommand using CDM and try to improve your timing. But realize that the questions may be a bit harder than CDM.
PAT- Really dissapointed here. Again, I took the CDP tests and I was scoring at least in the 20s. When doing the section, I felt it was easy. I didnt feel the time pressure and was comfortable with the questions. But I think that the angles sections was RIDICULOUS. The angles are seriously like 1 degree apart. I dont know how they expect you to do well on that. I am pretty sure that is what messed me up. I never really got a hang of the angles on my CDM practice tests because that was the section I would do the worst in. But I always suspected that the real exam would not be that difficult. I was WRONG. The angles are the same or worst than CDM. CDM was pretty reflective of the other sections.
Well there you have it. I studied extensively since Febuary. My advice, study hard and stay focused. Develop a schedule and use the proper resources such as Cliff, Destroyer, Kaplan, CDM and CDP. I used several other materials, but I think these are good. In addition, MAKE SURE TO TIME YOURSELF AND TAKE PRACTICE TESTS. I would also add Topscore for practice to the list. Topscore is important for stamina, which is necessary for a 4 hr test. Dont be too worry too much on average scores on Topscore. Though it is reflective of the dat, I feel that it has too random on some of the bio questions. You should at least be getting around an 18 or so on Topscore BIO. Also, I dont know how reflective the Topscore RC is of the real DAT RC. You might get ethics or piano.
Now, I need advice. I am a NC resident and want to go to UNC. My GPA is about 3.57. I have alot of volunteering and shadowing hours. What are my chances at UNC. Should I retake because of my RC and QR? Is there a minimum requirement for each section at UNC, if so what is it? I looked for it but couldnt find it. I dont know if most of the other schools allow 16s and if that is their cut off. Any advice is appreciated and questions welcomed.
DAT scores from 5/8
PAT 17 47.4%
QR 16 53.2 😱
RC 16 18.5
BIO 23 98.0 😀
GCHEM 22 90.1 😀
OCHEM 24 95.2 😀
TS 23 98.2 🙂
AA 20 87.1
BIO- This section was not too bad. But then again, I read through 2 MCAT (princeton and Examkrackers) books, destroyer, kaplan BB, Cliffs AP Bio. I would recommend Cliff's and Kaplan BB (Examkrackers if you can get your hands on it). Section had VERY easy questions and I was flying through them. Think I finished the section in like 30 mins. Did have minimal plants content in it. No ecology. Again, getting through main concepts of Cliff should be good and the section is not random as people make it out to be.
GCHEM- For Gchem I recommend Kaplan with Destroyer. These two are great in giving you the proper content and type of questions in the exam. Mostly conceptual, though I did have several calculations. Also, the calcs questions mostly were concerning with the setup rather than solving the whole thing. I found the calcs to be very similar to destroyer. I flew through this section as well. Found it to be very easy. Not too difficult or tricky. Just straightforward.
OCHEM- Nothing really to say. Recommend Kaplan to get a good overall review and Destroyer for practice. Questions were mostly concerning reactions or solubilities. Make sure you know the reactions and you should be fine.
RC- I had the piano passage. It really is bad as people say it is. I was so happy not to see a FRAP question in the BIO section, but then when I got to piano, I freaked. I was averaging 20s on topscore and achiever. Dont know what happened. The piano passage really limits your time and is difficult to comprehend. I used the search and destroy method. Dont know how effective it would be for others.
QR- Dont know what happened here. I am a great math person. I only missed ONE question on the SAT math. When I was taking topscore and CDM, I was scoring around 22. CDM is helpful, but really it is all about TIMING. The section is filled with word problems, more the CDM tests. You have to move fast in this section. Most questions were doable, except I did approach a couple I felt impossible. Some questions were worded weirdly that didnt make sense to me. I had to read them like 3 times. Overall, I recommand using CDM and try to improve your timing. But realize that the questions may be a bit harder than CDM.
PAT- Really dissapointed here. Again, I took the CDP tests and I was scoring at least in the 20s. When doing the section, I felt it was easy. I didnt feel the time pressure and was comfortable with the questions. But I think that the angles sections was RIDICULOUS. The angles are seriously like 1 degree apart. I dont know how they expect you to do well on that. I am pretty sure that is what messed me up. I never really got a hang of the angles on my CDM practice tests because that was the section I would do the worst in. But I always suspected that the real exam would not be that difficult. I was WRONG. The angles are the same or worst than CDM. CDM was pretty reflective of the other sections.
Well there you have it. I studied extensively since Febuary. My advice, study hard and stay focused. Develop a schedule and use the proper resources such as Cliff, Destroyer, Kaplan, CDM and CDP. I used several other materials, but I think these are good. In addition, MAKE SURE TO TIME YOURSELF AND TAKE PRACTICE TESTS. I would also add Topscore for practice to the list. Topscore is important for stamina, which is necessary for a 4 hr test. Dont be too worry too much on average scores on Topscore. Though it is reflective of the dat, I feel that it has too random on some of the bio questions. You should at least be getting around an 18 or so on Topscore BIO. Also, I dont know how reflective the Topscore RC is of the real DAT RC. You might get ethics or piano.
Now, I need advice. I am a NC resident and want to go to UNC. My GPA is about 3.57. I have alot of volunteering and shadowing hours. What are my chances at UNC. Should I retake because of my RC and QR? Is there a minimum requirement for each section at UNC, if so what is it? I looked for it but couldnt find it. I dont know if most of the other schools allow 16s and if that is their cut off. Any advice is appreciated and questions welcomed.
