DAT ADVICE help :(

[victoriabct]

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I’m scheduled to take my DAT in about a week and I don’t know what to do. I am so overwhelmed and do not feel prepared at all. I’ve been studying between 7-10 hours a day for about 8 weeks and feel like I know absolutely nothing still. I have a lot of good study material (Destroyer, Bootcamp, Chad’s, Feralis, Cliffs etc.) but I’m not scoring well on practice tests and it’s so discouraging. I'm a really hard worker and have a good GPA but now I feel like i'm about to throw it away. I don’t know what do anymore, and I know there are posts like this on this website but I’m just feeling so sad and wnt advice towards me on what I should do. I know calming down should be first on my list

 

[tccheng91]

You won't know the result until after you take the test. What you are going through is just the process. Not doing well on your practice tests does not mean you won't do well on the actual test. The most important thing is to learn from the mistakes that you did on your practice tests and do not repeat the same mistakes . Figure out a strategy for each section that will help you on the test. For instance, for PAT, depending on your preference, you should start doing the ones that you feel the most confident first.

 

[cjh27]

First, calm down. You have put the time. Boot Camp gives you a larger sample of harder question IMO. Don't push it back, no reason to. Going into the test with some adrenaline is okay but don't let it consume you. Read the question, look at the answers, if at first it doesn't pop out, eliminate the answers you know are wrong. On the real DAT there is a strikethrough you can use to visually eliminate choices. Just right click the choice and it strikes through. If at 10 - 12 seconds of thinking, you don't know, select best guess, mark it, move on to the next. Be methodical about the test. The beauty of multiple choice, you don't have to know the correct answer to get the question right, you can know 3 wrong answers. I have a feeling you will know a lot of the answers but remember that 100 questions to test your knowledge on 3 subjects that are so broad is a small sample of what you know. Use logic, use concepts, use what you do know.

Worst thing you can do is get hung up. Give yourself the chance to see all the questions and get your easy correct answers. Then, review the ones you marked. You can't control the questions they give you. You put a lot of time in, you have probably at least glanced over 85-90% of the material that will be on your DAT. The other 10-15% will come from your understanding of concepts.

My suggestion, take practice tests, look over your notes for areas you need work on. Take some more tests, review your notes. You got this.

 

[LuckBloodandSweat]

I'm kind of panicking and this is my 2nd time. Some people told me not to retake it but I'm just too disgusted with my bio score and thought I just kind of choked overall. You can't be panicked that will definitely be a bigger downfall than your lack of knowledge if you put in the time to know the material as best as you could. I'm here if you need me. I'm not going to wind down completely but I need to find a way to walk in with sky high confidence and do better on this go!

 

[fayevalentine]

I’m scheduled to take my DAT in about a week and I don’t know what to do. I am so overwhelmed and do not feel prepared at all. I’ve been studying between 7-10 hours a day for about 8 weeks and feel like I know absolutely nothing still. I have a lot of good study material (Destroyer, Bootcamp, Chad’s, Feralis, Cliffs etc.) but I’m not scoring well on practice tests and it’s so discouraging. I'm a really hard worker and have a good GPA but now I feel like i'm about to throw it away. I don’t know what do anymore, and I know there are posts like this on this website but I’m just feeling so sad and wnt advice towards me on what I should do. I know calming down should be first on my list

Do you exercise at all? I used to have panic attacks until I started exercise. Go for a swim/run/dance around your house for at least a half hour. I kid you not... you will not only feel less anxious, but your memory and confidence will improve as well 🙂. I know it may feel like you have no time, but what's a better use of time: (a) trying to study while panicking and therefore not really retaining any information, or (b) just taking a half hour for yourself to clear your mind? That's an easy one for ya 😉 good luck OP. I'll bet you know more than you feel like you do.