Scores from the DAT that I took today (06/11/12)
PA: 21
QR: 20
RC: 21
BIO: 20
GC: 21
OC: 21
TS: 21
AA: 21
I guess this is one of those generic DAT Breakdowns on how I got the score that I received. First, I'd like to say that I studied from roughly the 3rd week of April up until last night. While studying I pretty much didn't have a life but it was all worth it. Every source I used was beneficial in one way or another so if you're thinking about getting it, than I suggest doing so.
BIO (20): Everybody on this website is 100% correct when they say that this section is EXTREMELY random. I focused most of my studies on this section and thought that I had just about everything that I needed to know down but I guess I was wrong. Don't get me wrong I'd take that 20 any day, I just would have liked to score higher with the amount of time and effort that I put in. I used tons of sources and made roughly 1000 notecards of everything that I thought was needed. I used the following sources: Cliffs AP 2nd Edition, DAT Achiever, Destroyer, Alan's Notes, all of the other Biology notes on predds, DAT Q-Vault, & Kaplan's Diagnostic test.
How I felt about each source
Cliffs AP: I thought this was an awesome source and should be a definite buy for somebody wanting to score well in this section. It goes over the basics of everything that you need to know. However, this SHOULD NOT be the only source that you use because of how random the biology section is. You should try and master this book before you move onto the more difficult study programs like Achiever & Destroyer so that you don't get frustrated.
DAT Achiever: YES, this program is VERY DIFFICULT at first, that is a known fact. However, it is important that you figure out why you are getting questions wrong because a number of the biology questions that I had on my exam actually showed up in Achiever. I went through Achiever's SNS section probably 5 times or so just so that I could drill the information into my head. I should warn you though, try and be honest with yourself when doing a practice test more than once and actually know why you are selecting the right answer instead of simply remembering it since you took the test before. It will help you in the long run. As with Cliffs, I think this is a must buy.
Alan's Notes: This is a good way to get some general information on things that you may be lacking on. However, you should make your own version of Alan's notes instead of just using them verbatim. You should also try and add more information to some of the terms that you may feel that you don't have a tight grasp on.
Other notes off of predds (website): These are pretty good but I must warn you, DOUBLE CHECK ALL OF THE INFORMATION THAT YOU ARE GRABBING. I found some errors in these but a lot of the body system notes were really, really helpful.
Q-Vault: Spend the money and get this program. I think this is the best bang for your buck. You get 10 full length tests with VERY, VERY realistic DAT type questions. The explanations are also really helpful and do a good job at showing you what you need to work on.
Destroyer: Good at exposing you to the randomness that you will encounter on the test. I found it really helpful to not only know why each answer to the questions was right, but also what made each choice wrong. The explanations in the back of the book are really helpful too.
[BGen. Chem (21)][/B]
I actually felt pretty good about this section while taking the test and the questions were not that difficult. I thought I got more right, but I must have made some careless errors. Regardless, I'm happy with how I did on this section.
Chad's Videos: Almost REQUIRED to do well on this section. Chad explains everything in the simplest terms. If you can understand his video's and do well on his quiz's after you watch the video's as well as towards the end of your studies, then I think you are good to go. A lot of times people will post saying that they did all of Chad's quiz's and understood them but still didn't do well on the test. Only possible explanation for that is you A) Got really unlucky or B) Didn't understand the concepts and cheated yourself.
Destroyer: This book is great at seeing if you really know your stuff. It is much more difficult than the real exam so if you are getting a lot of the questions wrong don't get discouraged. The first time I went through I got maybe 60% right but after I reviewed the concepts and went through a second time, I got 10-15 wrong.
Achiever: This is WAY harder than the real test. Just like destroyer, it tests if you can apply the general concepts to problems that you might not have seen before. Don't get freaked out if you're scoring in the 15's and 16's because that is normal.
O.Chem (21)
I was satisfied with my score here being that I didn't spend very much time in this section. I just finished my second semester of O. Chem which is why I didn't spend too much time here. I'm not sure about other schools, but here at WVU it seems that they prepare you to take the DAT or MCAT or whatever exam you're taking. I didn't have ANY questions about IR, NMR, or any of that carbohydrate stuff which was awesome since it's hard to keep that stuff straight.
Chad's Videos: These were really good at reminding me of the concepts that I had forgotten from O. Chem I. As with Gen. Chem, if you want a good score you need to buy these. I didn't watch the last few videos since it was all of the things that I had in my O. Chem II which was pretty easy for me. Do the quiz's because they are pretty similar to the real DAT.
Destroyer: The questions in this book were on par with the real DAT in terms of difficulty. If you watch Chad's videos first and then do this, you will be better off. I say this because a lot of people claim this book is impossible, but I watched Chad's videos first and didn't find the questions to be too difficult. Anyways, go through the questions and know the concepts of why each question is right and you will have no problem doing well on the DAT.
Achiever: The questions here were pretty tough but if you go through the tests a second, or third time, they become easier and it helps you understand the concepts better. Also, the explanations are pretty good, in my opinion. However, don't take your score here too seriously because you will most likely score higher on the real thing unless you get unlucky.
PAT (21)
I got a little nervous in this section because the keyhole's were WAY harder than CDP. However, I felt that everything else was on par except the cube counting was a lot easier on the real DAT. I also used Achiever but ended up getting pissed off because I kept scoring 16 & 17 when I was scoring 21-23 on CDP. I kept reading that the angle ranking on the real DAT was really hard, but I thought it was the easiest section on the PAT. I must have gotten lucky and had an easy set. I was thinking about buying Ross' PAT videos but I just didn't think it was worth it to spend 30 dollars to learn tricks that I already knew. I will say that there are a number of trick that are posted on SDN but you need to try all of them out and see which one works best for you.
CDP: If you want to do well, BUY this. I got the 10 test version but only did the first 7 tests or so. As I said before all of the sections were on par with the real DAT's difficulty except for keyhole and cube counting. The keyhole problems that I got on the real test were pretty ridiculous and I thought it was going to kill my score. The cube counting on CDP is tough at first because of illusions but on the real DAT there aren't any. On the real thing the most cubes I had in any figure was around 20.
Achiever: As I said before, this isn't really that representative of the real DAT. Every section is much harder and if you are scoring 17 or 18 on here, you are in great shape.
Reading (21)
This was the section of the test that I thought was going to absolutely screw me prior to me taking the DAT. I was really worried because on the Free Kaplan Test, Achiever, and the sample CrackDAT test, I didn't score above an 18. I had a really rough time finishing any of the tests on time while practicing and I thought I was doomed. However, I must have seriously lucked out because my longest passage only had 12 paragraphs and all of the questions we pretty straight forward instead of those typical, "What is the author thinking at the end of paragraph 1?" Like hell if I know what the author thinks hah. Anyways, I didn't buy any sources for this section other than Achiever which I felt was too difficult. Seriously, if you're scoring 17 or 18 you're in GREAT shape for this section. But don't get it in your head that if you score a 17 on Achiever that you are guaranteed to do well. The technique that I thought was best was skimming the paragraphs and looking for key words or numbers and then writing that down along with which paragraph it came from. I know for a fact that I didn't get any questions wrong on the first 2 passages because all of the answers were clearly stated in the passage. However, on the 3rd passage I kind of zoned out and didn't try as hard as I should have. My passages were about DNA, Hurricanes, and Bose-Wave and Magnetic/Laser testing.
QR (20)
This section was kind of difficult and I used Achiever and Destroyer to prepare. I had a couple of Trig identity questions that I know I didn't get right because they never stuck with me. Other than the trig, and a few geometry problems, the QR was definitely doable. This was probably the section I spent the least amount of time on since I got an A in every math class I took so far in college (Algebra, Trig, Calculus I). The test was somewhat on par with Achiever's difficulty maybe a tad bit easier or harder depending on which version of the DAT you get. I thought that the regular Destroyer was too easy and I sort of wish that I would have bought the Math Destroyer combo. Don't get me wrong, you should definitely do the destroyer QR section and learn what you can from it, but the real QR is harder and can get ugly if you only rely on it (unless math is natural to you). I bought Chad's math video's towards the end of studying but I thought they were a waste because he doesn't really go into the difficult examples that will show up on the QR. But don't let that prevent you from buying them because they might help you, they just didn't do much for me.
CONCLUSION
I am ecstatic with the scores that I got today. 😀 I busted my butt and ate, slept (literally had dreams about DAT problems), and lived the DAT for the 8 or so weeks I spent studying. If I could give any helpful advice, I would HIGHLY recommend that you mix up what you study instead of doing all of one subject before moving onto the next. I did this and forgot some important biology information and who know what would have happened if I broke up the subjects a little bit.
Here are the links to the flashcards that I made. Use them and I hope you learn from them, but don't rely upon them. They should be a guide and serve as some extra practice (and you need all the practice you can get). I also posted Gen Chem notecards but they are based off of Chad's Videos so they should only serve as a reference for some extra practice.
Bio 1: http://www.flashcardmachine.com/machine/?read_only=2050792&p=n3e5
Bio 2: http://www.flashcardmachine.com/machine/?read_only=1980440&p=n5u9
Gen Chem: http://www.flashcardmachine.com/machine/?read_only=2016020&p=4sw9
For those who want to do well, dedicate yourself to the DAT for at least 8 weeks and if you work hard and cover the basics you will do great. Remember this test isn't that in-depth (especially biology) so covering the basic mechanisms/concepts before you move into intermediate details.
Hope I helped out, and sorry for writing so much.
PA: 21
QR: 20
RC: 21
BIO: 20
GC: 21
OC: 21
TS: 21
AA: 21
I guess this is one of those generic DAT Breakdowns on how I got the score that I received. First, I'd like to say that I studied from roughly the 3rd week of April up until last night. While studying I pretty much didn't have a life but it was all worth it. Every source I used was beneficial in one way or another so if you're thinking about getting it, than I suggest doing so.
BIO (20): Everybody on this website is 100% correct when they say that this section is EXTREMELY random. I focused most of my studies on this section and thought that I had just about everything that I needed to know down but I guess I was wrong. Don't get me wrong I'd take that 20 any day, I just would have liked to score higher with the amount of time and effort that I put in. I used tons of sources and made roughly 1000 notecards of everything that I thought was needed. I used the following sources: Cliffs AP 2nd Edition, DAT Achiever, Destroyer, Alan's Notes, all of the other Biology notes on predds, DAT Q-Vault, & Kaplan's Diagnostic test.
How I felt about each source
Cliffs AP: I thought this was an awesome source and should be a definite buy for somebody wanting to score well in this section. It goes over the basics of everything that you need to know. However, this SHOULD NOT be the only source that you use because of how random the biology section is. You should try and master this book before you move onto the more difficult study programs like Achiever & Destroyer so that you don't get frustrated.
DAT Achiever: YES, this program is VERY DIFFICULT at first, that is a known fact. However, it is important that you figure out why you are getting questions wrong because a number of the biology questions that I had on my exam actually showed up in Achiever. I went through Achiever's SNS section probably 5 times or so just so that I could drill the information into my head. I should warn you though, try and be honest with yourself when doing a practice test more than once and actually know why you are selecting the right answer instead of simply remembering it since you took the test before. It will help you in the long run. As with Cliffs, I think this is a must buy.
Alan's Notes: This is a good way to get some general information on things that you may be lacking on. However, you should make your own version of Alan's notes instead of just using them verbatim. You should also try and add more information to some of the terms that you may feel that you don't have a tight grasp on.
Other notes off of predds (website): These are pretty good but I must warn you, DOUBLE CHECK ALL OF THE INFORMATION THAT YOU ARE GRABBING. I found some errors in these but a lot of the body system notes were really, really helpful.
Q-Vault: Spend the money and get this program. I think this is the best bang for your buck. You get 10 full length tests with VERY, VERY realistic DAT type questions. The explanations are also really helpful and do a good job at showing you what you need to work on.
Destroyer: Good at exposing you to the randomness that you will encounter on the test. I found it really helpful to not only know why each answer to the questions was right, but also what made each choice wrong. The explanations in the back of the book are really helpful too.
[BGen. Chem (21)][/B]
I actually felt pretty good about this section while taking the test and the questions were not that difficult. I thought I got more right, but I must have made some careless errors. Regardless, I'm happy with how I did on this section.
Chad's Videos: Almost REQUIRED to do well on this section. Chad explains everything in the simplest terms. If you can understand his video's and do well on his quiz's after you watch the video's as well as towards the end of your studies, then I think you are good to go. A lot of times people will post saying that they did all of Chad's quiz's and understood them but still didn't do well on the test. Only possible explanation for that is you A) Got really unlucky or B) Didn't understand the concepts and cheated yourself.
Destroyer: This book is great at seeing if you really know your stuff. It is much more difficult than the real exam so if you are getting a lot of the questions wrong don't get discouraged. The first time I went through I got maybe 60% right but after I reviewed the concepts and went through a second time, I got 10-15 wrong.
Achiever: This is WAY harder than the real test. Just like destroyer, it tests if you can apply the general concepts to problems that you might not have seen before. Don't get freaked out if you're scoring in the 15's and 16's because that is normal.
O.Chem (21)
I was satisfied with my score here being that I didn't spend very much time in this section. I just finished my second semester of O. Chem which is why I didn't spend too much time here. I'm not sure about other schools, but here at WVU it seems that they prepare you to take the DAT or MCAT or whatever exam you're taking. I didn't have ANY questions about IR, NMR, or any of that carbohydrate stuff which was awesome since it's hard to keep that stuff straight.
Chad's Videos: These were really good at reminding me of the concepts that I had forgotten from O. Chem I. As with Gen. Chem, if you want a good score you need to buy these. I didn't watch the last few videos since it was all of the things that I had in my O. Chem II which was pretty easy for me. Do the quiz's because they are pretty similar to the real DAT.
Destroyer: The questions in this book were on par with the real DAT in terms of difficulty. If you watch Chad's videos first and then do this, you will be better off. I say this because a lot of people claim this book is impossible, but I watched Chad's videos first and didn't find the questions to be too difficult. Anyways, go through the questions and know the concepts of why each question is right and you will have no problem doing well on the DAT.
Achiever: The questions here were pretty tough but if you go through the tests a second, or third time, they become easier and it helps you understand the concepts better. Also, the explanations are pretty good, in my opinion. However, don't take your score here too seriously because you will most likely score higher on the real thing unless you get unlucky.
PAT (21)
I got a little nervous in this section because the keyhole's were WAY harder than CDP. However, I felt that everything else was on par except the cube counting was a lot easier on the real DAT. I also used Achiever but ended up getting pissed off because I kept scoring 16 & 17 when I was scoring 21-23 on CDP. I kept reading that the angle ranking on the real DAT was really hard, but I thought it was the easiest section on the PAT. I must have gotten lucky and had an easy set. I was thinking about buying Ross' PAT videos but I just didn't think it was worth it to spend 30 dollars to learn tricks that I already knew. I will say that there are a number of trick that are posted on SDN but you need to try all of them out and see which one works best for you.
CDP: If you want to do well, BUY this. I got the 10 test version but only did the first 7 tests or so. As I said before all of the sections were on par with the real DAT's difficulty except for keyhole and cube counting. The keyhole problems that I got on the real test were pretty ridiculous and I thought it was going to kill my score. The cube counting on CDP is tough at first because of illusions but on the real DAT there aren't any. On the real thing the most cubes I had in any figure was around 20.
Achiever: As I said before, this isn't really that representative of the real DAT. Every section is much harder and if you are scoring 17 or 18 on here, you are in great shape.
Reading (21)
This was the section of the test that I thought was going to absolutely screw me prior to me taking the DAT. I was really worried because on the Free Kaplan Test, Achiever, and the sample CrackDAT test, I didn't score above an 18. I had a really rough time finishing any of the tests on time while practicing and I thought I was doomed. However, I must have seriously lucked out because my longest passage only had 12 paragraphs and all of the questions we pretty straight forward instead of those typical, "What is the author thinking at the end of paragraph 1?" Like hell if I know what the author thinks hah. Anyways, I didn't buy any sources for this section other than Achiever which I felt was too difficult. Seriously, if you're scoring 17 or 18 you're in GREAT shape for this section. But don't get it in your head that if you score a 17 on Achiever that you are guaranteed to do well. The technique that I thought was best was skimming the paragraphs and looking for key words or numbers and then writing that down along with which paragraph it came from. I know for a fact that I didn't get any questions wrong on the first 2 passages because all of the answers were clearly stated in the passage. However, on the 3rd passage I kind of zoned out and didn't try as hard as I should have. My passages were about DNA, Hurricanes, and Bose-Wave and Magnetic/Laser testing.
QR (20)
This section was kind of difficult and I used Achiever and Destroyer to prepare. I had a couple of Trig identity questions that I know I didn't get right because they never stuck with me. Other than the trig, and a few geometry problems, the QR was definitely doable. This was probably the section I spent the least amount of time on since I got an A in every math class I took so far in college (Algebra, Trig, Calculus I). The test was somewhat on par with Achiever's difficulty maybe a tad bit easier or harder depending on which version of the DAT you get. I thought that the regular Destroyer was too easy and I sort of wish that I would have bought the Math Destroyer combo. Don't get me wrong, you should definitely do the destroyer QR section and learn what you can from it, but the real QR is harder and can get ugly if you only rely on it (unless math is natural to you). I bought Chad's math video's towards the end of studying but I thought they were a waste because he doesn't really go into the difficult examples that will show up on the QR. But don't let that prevent you from buying them because they might help you, they just didn't do much for me.
CONCLUSION
I am ecstatic with the scores that I got today. 😀 I busted my butt and ate, slept (literally had dreams about DAT problems), and lived the DAT for the 8 or so weeks I spent studying. If I could give any helpful advice, I would HIGHLY recommend that you mix up what you study instead of doing all of one subject before moving onto the next. I did this and forgot some important biology information and who know what would have happened if I broke up the subjects a little bit.
Here are the links to the flashcards that I made. Use them and I hope you learn from them, but don't rely upon them. They should be a guide and serve as some extra practice (and you need all the practice you can get). I also posted Gen Chem notecards but they are based off of Chad's Videos so they should only serve as a reference for some extra practice.
Bio 1: http://www.flashcardmachine.com/machine/?read_only=2050792&p=n3e5
Bio 2: http://www.flashcardmachine.com/machine/?read_only=1980440&p=n5u9
Gen Chem: http://www.flashcardmachine.com/machine/?read_only=2016020&p=4sw9
For those who want to do well, dedicate yourself to the DAT for at least 8 weeks and if you work hard and cover the basics you will do great. Remember this test isn't that in-depth (especially biology) so covering the basic mechanisms/concepts before you move into intermediate details.
Hope I helped out, and sorry for writing so much.
