DAT 2 weeks away! scores aren't looking good

[takeitlikeaman]

My DAT is scheduled for august 26th and my scores don't show I am ready. I signed up for the live kaplan classes and those were a complete waste, but the resources that came along with it haven't been too bad. Basically the first 6 weeks I only studied out of the kaplan blue book and I just took a full length exam they offer and scored horribly. These are the scores I received: Bio-14 GC-14 OC-18 TS-15 PA-16 RC-16 QR-13 AA-15. Yes i know these scores are crap and I blame myself for not using more resources. I started using Chad's videos a couple of days ago and I just bought DAT bootcamp so that I have more test to take. The problem is with a little over 2 weeks left, i am not sure how I can take all of these test, finish chad's videos and study the notes I have taken. I can't postpone the exam either because I am leaving on a trip a couple of days after and by the time I get back it will almost be time to go back to school. I have been studying 12 hours a day the past week because I am starting to stress over my scores not improving. I have read Kaplan makes their exams harder but that hasn't made me feel any better about my scores. I want to know what you guys would do in this position? how would you balance studying, taking practice exams and watching videos for the last couple of weeks. I want to take all the practice exams so I am ready as possible but I also want to take them knowing I am prepared and not just taking them to see how the are.

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[DocVaquero]

I would focus on practice exams and studying your weakest sections.

Also, this will get more responses if you post it in the DAT forum.

 

[Bear_Down]

My DAT is scheduled for august 26th and my scores don't show I am ready. I signed up for the live kaplan classes and those were a complete waste, but the resources that came along with it haven't been too bad. Basically the first 6 weeks I only studied out of the kaplan blue book and I just took a full length exam they offer and scored horribly. These are the scores I received: Bio-14 GC-14 OC-18 TS-15 PA-16 RC-16 QR-13 AA-15. Yes i know these scores are crap and I blame myself for not using more resources. I started using Chad's videos a couple of days ago and I just bought DAT bootcamp so that I have more test to take. The problem is with a little over 2 weeks left, i am not sure how I can take all of these test, finish chad's videos and study the notes I have taken. I can't postpone the exam either because I am leaving on a trip a couple of days after and by the time I get back it will almost be time to go back to school. I have been studying 12 hours a day the past week because I am starting to stress over my scores not improving. I have read Kaplan makes their exams harder but that hasn't made me feel any better about my scores. I want to know what you guys would do in this position? how would you balance studying, taking practice exams and watching videos for the last couple of weeks. I want to take all the practice exams so I am ready as possible but I also want to take them knowing I am prepared and not just taking them to see how the are.

The only resources you need are Chads video for GC and OC, Barrons AP biology for bio, DAT bootcamp for the PAT, and DAT Destroyer for everything!!!!

DAT destroyer
Probably the best resource for the DAT. It may be discouraging at first but thats normal.
Start doing 40 questions per day for each section and you should be prepared in 2 weeks.
Just print out bubble answer sheets, do the 40 questions and circle any you dont understand.


Bio
Just go through Barrons AP Bio book and write down anything you'd have trouble memorizing.
You could literally learn all of bio in a week. Go through atleast 40 DAT Destroyer bio questions a day.

GC
Go through chads videos, print out his study guide. Destroyer is REALLY important for GC!

OC
Looks like you know your OC so just print out chads vids study guide for OC and go through it. If you dont understand something then watch the video, but dont invest too much time in watching all the OC videos bc it looks like you're getting ok scores. But make sure you still do 40 questions a-day from Destroyer for this too and read the explanations for anything you get wrong.

PAT
DAT bootcamp &/or Crack the PAT. Just practice you're weaker sections and take a full test every other day or so.

Math
Get Math Destroyer. On the real DAT, Its all about time management and doing all the easy ones first!! Practice under timed conditions! Go through chads videos for sections you dont understand.

RC
Just use DAT bootcamp for practice.

Last note:
Take the 2007 and 2009 ADA practice exam(timed) and that will be the best indicator of the score you'll get on the exam. 1 or 2 questions might also appear on the real DAT too.
If you are studying 12 hours a day, you should have no problem doing all of this.

 

[predent816]

^ I agree - Chad's GC and OC videos are super helpful. They even come with outlines so that you can take notes as you follow along.

I used DAT Bootcamp for everything else -- I found their 10 week study guide to be especially helpful. I used the Cliffnotes AP Bio (3rd edition) like they recommended, but couldn't really afford to shell out $200 on DAT Destroyer. I was in a bit of a time crunch, so I ended up doing it in about 3 weeks, while shadowing a couple hours a day, and I did fine. Just really buckle down and study, and you'll be okay!

 

[ajj70]

I'd study hard for another week, see where your scores are with your new study material and if your scores are not significantly better, reschedule your test. It's pretty common knowledge here that the Kaplan book is not enough.

 

[Dr.Payne]

Don't let your scores freak you out. One week before my exam I got an 11 on Gen Chem on a practice test. yes an 11, this was mainly because I was focusing on bio and o chem for the previous 2 weeks and I forgot a lot of g chem stuff. But anyway I ended up getting a 20 in g Chem for that section on the real thing. So practice tests are just that practice.

 

[jb305305]

My DAT is scheduled for august 26th and my scores don't show I am ready. I signed up for the live kaplan classes and those were a complete waste, but the resources that came along with it haven't been too bad. Basically the first 6 weeks I only studied out of the kaplan blue book and I just took a full length exam they offer and scored horribly. These are the scores I received: Bio-14 GC-14 OC-18 TS-15 PA-16 RC-16 QR-13 AA-15. Yes i know these scores are crap and I blame myself for not using more resources. I started using Chad's videos a couple of days ago and I just bought DAT bootcamp so that I have more test to take. The problem is with a little over 2 weeks left, i am not sure how I can take all of these test, finish chad's videos and study the notes I have taken. I can't postpone the exam either because I am leaving on a trip a couple of days after and by the time I get back it will almost be time to go back to school. I have been studying 12 hours a day the past week because I am starting to stress over my scores not improving. I have read Kaplan makes their exams harder but that hasn't made me feel any better about my scores. I want to know what you guys would do in this position? how would you balance studying, taking practice exams and watching videos for the last couple of weeks. I want to take all the practice exams so I am ready as possible but I also want to take them knowing I am prepared and not just taking them to see how the are.

I completely understand you. I am one week away, & I'm nervous about not doing well on test day. For orgo, Biology, and chem, use destroyer and DAT booster. For PAT, reading, and math, use crack the DAT. Also, do bootcamp for all. I hope everything goes well.

 

[takeitlikeaman]

Don't let your scores freak you out. One week before my exam I got an 11 on Gen Chem on a practice test. yes an 11, this was mainly because I was focusing on bio and o chem for the previous 2 weeks and I forgot a lot of g chem stuff. But anyway I ended up getting a 20 in g Chem for that section on the real thing. So practice tests are just that practice.

How wold you recommend studying? with 15 days left would you say I should take at least one full length a day and do chads for the rest of the day? I have 3 FL test from kaplan left to do and all the bootcamp test still untouched including individual test for certain subjects on kalan. How would you spread the test for the two weeks with studying at the same time?

 

[pathwizard]

So looks like you're on a time crunch. Here's what you need to do.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS all the way man.

Forget about math, your time is precious and it's just not worth it. Most schools could care less if that is your low score.

Next, limit your resources, do not spread yourself out too thin.
SO, with that said, here are your resources to use: 1. DAT destroyer; 2. CRACK DAT PAT; 3. practice Kaplan tests; DAT qVault; *AP bio book if you have time

Do all of DAT destroyer as many times as possible for OC, GC and Bio. Focus on knowing this cold. Anyone can blow the Chemistries out of the park there's only so many questions they can ask
Take as many Crack dat PAT tests as possible and brush up on your weaknesses
Take a bunch of practice RC tests from either Kaplan or Crack DAT Reading. Use the search and destroy method and get good at it.
Take a bunch of DAT qVault tests
At this point you need to just get good at taking questions. You've been through Chad's (which is a must) so hopefully you have the general concepts down. Now you need to learn how to apply them through practice questions.

I'm going to be honest with you. You do not have much time so use it wisely and use ALL OF IT. This will be tough to pull off but very possible so keep your head up. No partying or going out. You will have to be a hermit for the next couple of weeks. 12 hour study days are a must. So as your name suggests- takeitlikeaman. Get off SDN as well.

- Dental student in the South

 

[takeitlikeaman]

So looks like you're on a time crunch. Here's what you need to do.

PRACTICE QUESTIONS all the way man.

Forget about math, your time is precious and it's just not worth it. Most schools could care less if that is your low score.

Next, limit your resources, do not spread yourself out too thin.
SO, with that said, here are your resources to use: 1. DAT destroyer; 2. CRACK DAT PAT; 3. practice Kaplan tests; DAT qVault; *AP bio book if you have time

Do all of DAT destroyer as many times as possible for OC, GC and Bio. Focus on knowing this cold. Anyone can blow the Chemistries out of the park there's only so many questions they can ask
Take as many Crack dat PAT tests as possible and brush up on your weaknesses
Take a bunch of practice RC tests from either Kaplan or Crack DAT Reading. Use the search and destroy method and get good at it.
Take a bunch of DAT qVault tests
At this point you need to just get good at taking questions. You've been through Chad's (which is a must) so hopefully you have the general concepts down. Now you need to learn how to apply them through practice questions.

I'm going to be honest with you. You do not have much time so use it wisely and use ALL OF IT. This will be tough to pull off but very possible so keep your head up. No partying or going out. You will have to be a hermit for the next couple of weeks. 12 hour study days are a must. So as your name suggests- takeitlikeaman. Get off SDN as well.

- Dental student in the South

Thank you! I really appreciate it. But before i become a hermit, would you not suggest using bootcamp? because I bought it the other day and I was thinking of doing that, kaplans practice exams daily and then watching chads videos over and over until its burned into my brain. What are your thoughts on that?

 

[pathwizard]

I don't know what bootcamp is. But I do know what I told you works because I was in a similar situation and ended up with a 22. Up to you what you want to do.

 

[Mushibachan]

I love chads videos so much, I literally pulled an all nighter and finished his OC vids in one day ! haha

 

[Dr.Payne]

How wold you recommend studying? with 15 days left would you say I should take at least one full length a day and do chads for the rest of the day? I have 3 FL test from kaplan left to do and all the bootcamp test still untouched including individual test for certain subjects on kalan. How would you spread the test for the two weeks with studying at the same time?

For me I spend the majority of my time making study guides in order to organize the information in a way that makes it easy to learn. So the majority of my prep was spent on that (5 weeks). The bulk of the actual learning occurred in the final 2 weeks before my test. I would say at a certain point like a week before your test you stop taking any new notes and simply study the ones you have. Also i wouldn't take any more practice tests within at least 6 days of the real thing b/c they do take up a large chunk of time and it's better you are learning the material vs applying it at that point. B/c you are going to apply it on the official exam

 

[pulltheleverkronk]

Bootcamp is a MUST. Really valuable- especially for GC and OC. The questions are super similar to the test. Even the biology questions are pretty on point. So make sure that you know how to do all of them inside and out.