I thought I would put out a review/any info to help because I used these threads a lot while studying for the DAT. This summer was pretty much hell, but so worth it. In the end I ended up with the following:
PAT: 18
BIO:23
GC: 22
OC:22
RC:26
QR:20
AA: 23
Here is what I did to study:
BOOTCAMP, BOOTCAMP, BOOTCAMP. USE IT TIL YOU HATE IT.
I followed the 10 week study guide religiously, except I would recommend that you allow yourself 12-13 weeks instead. It was a lot to make time for. I purchased the DAT destroyer and Math destroyer as well. These books were so worth the money. All of the problems in the books were way more challenging than the actual DAT, but reenforced major concepts that appeared. Highly recommend purchasing both of these books. I also read AP Biology Cliff notes. These helped to reteach/refresh myself about major concepts that showed up on biology. I read through Ferali's notes 3 full times which was a lot, but if you spread it out over the course of your studying, it helps to remember small details that show up on DAT. I used the DAT destroyer for Gen Chem and O Chem as well.
For Reading, I think I got lucky with the passages on the day of the test, but I had never scored this high. I normally averaged a 20-21 on my practice tests. I did not study for reading except for the passages on the practice tests. The strategy that worked for me was to spend 10 min reading the passage, then 10 min answering the questions (20 min per passage).
PAT was obviously my weakness. I never got very good at the keyhole questions or pattern folding. On the actual test, I ran way out of time and ended up having to put "B" for the last 15 questions I never got to! YIKES! But, for this, I would say Bootcamp was about the same difficulty as the questions I had for the DAT. I definitely put the PAT off because I hated it (and knew it wouldn't really count towards my average), but I recommend practicing each day, even if it is 20 minutes. It will help you and pay off. This is something I wish I did.
I did do all the full length practice tests and 2007/2009 DAT tests. I never scored as high as I did on any of the practice tests, but they weren't too far off. I would say the 2009 is most representative. 2007 o chem was very easy compared to the 2017. 2009 math was way harder than what I had on the 2017.
Lastly, BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. I spent 8 hours a day studying for the test and still didn't really feel like I was ready, but you have to be confident in yourself going into it! Know that it's worth it in the end to have the dream job that you've always wanted. I had to remind myself this constantly throughout because it sucks the living day light out of you. I strongly recommend using DAT bootcamp and all the materials that Ari recommends. I couldn't have gotten the results I did without it all!!
PAT: 18
BIO:23
GC: 22
OC:22
RC:26
QR:20
AA: 23
Here is what I did to study:
BOOTCAMP, BOOTCAMP, BOOTCAMP. USE IT TIL YOU HATE IT.
I followed the 10 week study guide religiously, except I would recommend that you allow yourself 12-13 weeks instead. It was a lot to make time for. I purchased the DAT destroyer and Math destroyer as well. These books were so worth the money. All of the problems in the books were way more challenging than the actual DAT, but reenforced major concepts that appeared. Highly recommend purchasing both of these books. I also read AP Biology Cliff notes. These helped to reteach/refresh myself about major concepts that showed up on biology. I read through Ferali's notes 3 full times which was a lot, but if you spread it out over the course of your studying, it helps to remember small details that show up on DAT. I used the DAT destroyer for Gen Chem and O Chem as well.
For Reading, I think I got lucky with the passages on the day of the test, but I had never scored this high. I normally averaged a 20-21 on my practice tests. I did not study for reading except for the passages on the practice tests. The strategy that worked for me was to spend 10 min reading the passage, then 10 min answering the questions (20 min per passage).
PAT was obviously my weakness. I never got very good at the keyhole questions or pattern folding. On the actual test, I ran way out of time and ended up having to put "B" for the last 15 questions I never got to! YIKES! But, for this, I would say Bootcamp was about the same difficulty as the questions I had for the DAT. I definitely put the PAT off because I hated it (and knew it wouldn't really count towards my average), but I recommend practicing each day, even if it is 20 minutes. It will help you and pay off. This is something I wish I did.
I did do all the full length practice tests and 2007/2009 DAT tests. I never scored as high as I did on any of the practice tests, but they weren't too far off. I would say the 2009 is most representative. 2007 o chem was very easy compared to the 2017. 2009 math was way harder than what I had on the 2017.
Lastly, BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. I spent 8 hours a day studying for the test and still didn't really feel like I was ready, but you have to be confident in yourself going into it! Know that it's worth it in the end to have the dream job that you've always wanted. I had to remind myself this constantly throughout because it sucks the living day light out of you. I strongly recommend using DAT bootcamp and all the materials that Ari recommends. I couldn't have gotten the results I did without it all!!
I take mine in 3 weeks and can't wait to be done.
