spencbrady
New Member
- Joined
- May 19, 2023
- Messages
- 1
- Reaction score
- 0
Hello! It has officially been a week today since I took my DAT. Last Friday, I went in to take my DAT for a second time after studying even more this time. DAT Booster and Bootcamp were two key elements of my studying and helped boost my score. Here is the score I got on my first and second try.
Scores for my first attempt:
PAT: 22
QR: 20
RC: 22
Bio: 19
GC: 19
OC: 16
TS: 18
AA: 19
Scores for my second attempt:
PAT: 22
QR: 21
RC: 20
Bio: 20
GC: 21
OC: 20
TS: 21
AA: 20
Background:
As of now, I am working on completing my bachelors in biology at ASU and applying to dental school on the first of June. I plan on working through Dental school and then doing my residency as an anesthesiologist. My ultimate goal is to become a dentist anesthesiologist.
Materials Used:
DAT Booster: I found this platform incredibly useful in understanding and preparing for the exam. It also had more than enough content to keep me busy and learning. Their study materials, including notes and videos, helped me succeed in my studying and allowed me to know better studying techniques to implement in my studies. The biology course of this was unbelievably helpful. Organic Chemistry was another big thing I struggled with before turning to this course. I wanted to improve my organic chemistry score and found this to be an excellent resource for that. The main thing that helped me improve my score was taking many practice tests and understanding what I did wrong with every question I got wrong. The DAT Booster PAT generators and additional practice questions were essential in preparing me for my upcoming test. Overall, I was genuinely impressed by Booster's resources as well as their commitment to their student's success. I felt valued by the company.
DATBootcamp: I found DATBootcamp to be extremely helpful when it came to studying Chemistry and Organic Chemistry. Dr. Mike was extremely helpful when it came to teaching general chemistry and organic chemistry. While learning organic chemistry, I used a YouTuber named "Leah4Sci," but not too often. She was also helpful when it came to different "tricks" to help memorize different reactions. DAT Bootcamp biology was not that efficient, but DATBoosters and DATBoosters Crash Courses helped with that.
DAT Booster Crash Course Biology 1, 2, and 3: The crash courses are a great investment. I decided to take them as a refresher and to understand biology better. My previous knowledge in anatomy, physiology, and biology came from school or youtube. I took notes throughout the course and reviewed them as needed. While the cost may persuade some to avoid this course, I advise against this. It is incredibly beneficial if you are willing to put in the work to study and understand.
Study Timeline:
As mentioned above, I studied twice for this exam. Both times my studying techniques and timeline were similar. However, the second time, I prioritized quality over quantity. I wanted to avoid sitting there well into the night trying to get through the material and not remembering the next day. So I began to spend more time mindfully studying.
I decided to put all my energy into this. I did not work, so the only thing that kept me from studying was family obligations and school. This allowed me to give all my attention and keep myself on track. When I found myself straying, I would give myself the rest of the day to relax and then get back to it. Once I consistently scored how I wanted to on the practice tests, I felt confident enough to schedule the exam. This was about a month out once I put it on the calendar. That month consisted of refreshers and going over. Also, something that I did differently than the first time was that I took a lot more practice tests. Make sure before you take the exam, you take all of the practice tests that you can do and learn from them. They are incredibly helpful.
Day of Exam:
Before the exam, make sure that you have plenty to eat beforehand and a small snack for the 30-minute break. If you have accommodations, MAKE SURE that you get them. I was allowed extra time because of my dyslexia. I was able to get the test done in time with it.
Bio (20): The crash courses offered by DATBooster helped me for this section. I ran through almost every DAT Bootcamp and DATBooster for this test, which really helped for this portion. DATBooster biology videos are phenomenal. Often their videos teach the concept better than my professors from college. They are very well done and some of the best educational videos I have seen. Also, remembering some mnemonics for this part of the test can be helpful.
GC (21): This section was one of the easier sections for me. Dr. Mike from DAT Bootcamp taught general chemistry very well. One of the most important things to remember for this part of the test is to remember the formulas. If you know all the formulas for the general chemistry section, it will be easier than the other sections (at least for me).
OC (20): I was not too fond of this section. Make sure you take organic chemistry 1 and 2 before taking the DAT. I haven't taken organic chemistry 2 yet, and because of that, it made this section more difficult. When I first took the test, I got a 16, but I was able to get it up to a 20 the second time around. One of the things that I did differently was that I took all of the practice exams that I had available for this section and tried to understand why I messed up where I messed up. If it were a specific reaction, I would look up that reaction on Leah4Sci, watch the whole mechanism, learn from it, and watch the video explanation they would have. I believe that for this section, you have to do the problems over and over again until it eventually becomes second nature. This was easily the most challenging part of the test for me.
PAT (22): For this part of the test, you have to do the PAT problems a ton to improve. You have to practice it as much as you can. When studying for the DAT the second time around, I did 15 problems every day to make sure that I won't forget how to do them, but this section was pretty easy for me, in my opinion.
RC (20): I've always struggled with reading due to dyslexia. The only way that I got better at this and got a grade that I was happy with was by doing reading comprehension quizzes whenever I could. Unfortunately, I did worse on this section the second time around. If I tried to prioritize this and do at least one RC quiz a week, I would've gotten better at it and not worse.
QR (22): This section should be easy if you take all the practice quizzes and learn how you got those answers wrong. I didn't study for this section; I just took the quizzes and learned from them. DATBooster quizzes were helpful for this.
Ending Advice:
Take as many practice tests as you can. When you are about to study for the test, know that this will be one of the most challenging things you will do in your life, and treat it like a full-time job. It will suck for a while, but it will be worth it in the end. Many dental students have told me that getting into dental school is harder than dental school itself. Just do your best to keep your head up and grind through it. Keep reminding yourself that, in the end, it will all be worth it.
Scores for my first attempt:
PAT: 22
QR: 20
RC: 22
Bio: 19
GC: 19
OC: 16
TS: 18
AA: 19
Scores for my second attempt:
PAT: 22
QR: 21
RC: 20
Bio: 20
GC: 21
OC: 20
TS: 21
AA: 20
Background:
As of now, I am working on completing my bachelors in biology at ASU and applying to dental school on the first of June. I plan on working through Dental school and then doing my residency as an anesthesiologist. My ultimate goal is to become a dentist anesthesiologist.
Materials Used:
DAT Booster: I found this platform incredibly useful in understanding and preparing for the exam. It also had more than enough content to keep me busy and learning. Their study materials, including notes and videos, helped me succeed in my studying and allowed me to know better studying techniques to implement in my studies. The biology course of this was unbelievably helpful. Organic Chemistry was another big thing I struggled with before turning to this course. I wanted to improve my organic chemistry score and found this to be an excellent resource for that. The main thing that helped me improve my score was taking many practice tests and understanding what I did wrong with every question I got wrong. The DAT Booster PAT generators and additional practice questions were essential in preparing me for my upcoming test. Overall, I was genuinely impressed by Booster's resources as well as their commitment to their student's success. I felt valued by the company.
DATBootcamp: I found DATBootcamp to be extremely helpful when it came to studying Chemistry and Organic Chemistry. Dr. Mike was extremely helpful when it came to teaching general chemistry and organic chemistry. While learning organic chemistry, I used a YouTuber named "Leah4Sci," but not too often. She was also helpful when it came to different "tricks" to help memorize different reactions. DAT Bootcamp biology was not that efficient, but DATBoosters and DATBoosters Crash Courses helped with that.
DAT Booster Crash Course Biology 1, 2, and 3: The crash courses are a great investment. I decided to take them as a refresher and to understand biology better. My previous knowledge in anatomy, physiology, and biology came from school or youtube. I took notes throughout the course and reviewed them as needed. While the cost may persuade some to avoid this course, I advise against this. It is incredibly beneficial if you are willing to put in the work to study and understand.
Study Timeline:
As mentioned above, I studied twice for this exam. Both times my studying techniques and timeline were similar. However, the second time, I prioritized quality over quantity. I wanted to avoid sitting there well into the night trying to get through the material and not remembering the next day. So I began to spend more time mindfully studying.
I decided to put all my energy into this. I did not work, so the only thing that kept me from studying was family obligations and school. This allowed me to give all my attention and keep myself on track. When I found myself straying, I would give myself the rest of the day to relax and then get back to it. Once I consistently scored how I wanted to on the practice tests, I felt confident enough to schedule the exam. This was about a month out once I put it on the calendar. That month consisted of refreshers and going over. Also, something that I did differently than the first time was that I took a lot more practice tests. Make sure before you take the exam, you take all of the practice tests that you can do and learn from them. They are incredibly helpful.
Day of Exam:
Before the exam, make sure that you have plenty to eat beforehand and a small snack for the 30-minute break. If you have accommodations, MAKE SURE that you get them. I was allowed extra time because of my dyslexia. I was able to get the test done in time with it.
Bio (20): The crash courses offered by DATBooster helped me for this section. I ran through almost every DAT Bootcamp and DATBooster for this test, which really helped for this portion. DATBooster biology videos are phenomenal. Often their videos teach the concept better than my professors from college. They are very well done and some of the best educational videos I have seen. Also, remembering some mnemonics for this part of the test can be helpful.
GC (21): This section was one of the easier sections for me. Dr. Mike from DAT Bootcamp taught general chemistry very well. One of the most important things to remember for this part of the test is to remember the formulas. If you know all the formulas for the general chemistry section, it will be easier than the other sections (at least for me).
OC (20): I was not too fond of this section. Make sure you take organic chemistry 1 and 2 before taking the DAT. I haven't taken organic chemistry 2 yet, and because of that, it made this section more difficult. When I first took the test, I got a 16, but I was able to get it up to a 20 the second time around. One of the things that I did differently was that I took all of the practice exams that I had available for this section and tried to understand why I messed up where I messed up. If it were a specific reaction, I would look up that reaction on Leah4Sci, watch the whole mechanism, learn from it, and watch the video explanation they would have. I believe that for this section, you have to do the problems over and over again until it eventually becomes second nature. This was easily the most challenging part of the test for me.
PAT (22): For this part of the test, you have to do the PAT problems a ton to improve. You have to practice it as much as you can. When studying for the DAT the second time around, I did 15 problems every day to make sure that I won't forget how to do them, but this section was pretty easy for me, in my opinion.
RC (20): I've always struggled with reading due to dyslexia. The only way that I got better at this and got a grade that I was happy with was by doing reading comprehension quizzes whenever I could. Unfortunately, I did worse on this section the second time around. If I tried to prioritize this and do at least one RC quiz a week, I would've gotten better at it and not worse.
QR (22): This section should be easy if you take all the practice quizzes and learn how you got those answers wrong. I didn't study for this section; I just took the quizzes and learned from them. DATBooster quizzes were helpful for this.
Ending Advice:
Take as many practice tests as you can. When you are about to study for the test, know that this will be one of the most challenging things you will do in your life, and treat it like a full-time job. It will suck for a while, but it will be worth it in the end. Many dental students have told me that getting into dental school is harder than dental school itself. Just do your best to keep your head up and grind through it. Keep reminding yourself that, in the end, it will all be worth it.
