Just took the DAT today! It was hard.
I want to thank God, my friends, and of course the SDN community for all the tips I picked up looking through the forums. Also, thank you @orgoman22, @AintNobodyGotTimeForDAT , @fit2 , @LuckBloodandSweat and @WheatLom for offering me much needed advice before test day. Also thank you soooooooo much @Ari Rezaei for your awesome study schedule and Bootcamp!
Here are my scores. Not the best that you'll see, but I don't think I'll retake it!
PAT: 23
QR: 20
RC: 22
BIO: 21
GC: 20
OC: 23
TS: 21
AA: 21
2009 DAT scores: PAT 24 QR 20 GC 26 OC 22 BIO 23 RC 21 (Scores are high because I coincidentally studied the relevant material right before it)
BIO (21): People were right when they said it's a mixed bag. Breadth over depth. I marked at least 10 questions. I was pretty shocked to see the score on the report... It was a lot better than I expected! I'm not sure how I could've prepared better for this section
GC (20): I'm not the best at Chem. I had a few random questions here and there, but I feel like after practicing so much in the past two months, I was able to figure out a few questions through instinct. Easier than BC.
OC (23): Pretty straightforward minus a few random ones. I saw similar Bootcamp questions and even a repeat question from the '09 DAT! I thought it was easier than BC. Chad's Reactions handout is really useful--I printed it out and wrote all over it to study.
PAT (23): Man, I was really hoping not to see any rock/gem keyholes, but I had at least 5 of them. And I also had to rush through cube counting and pattern folding. Very grateful for this score! Bootcamp is all that you need for this.
RC (22): This was hard as well! The passages were easier to read than BC, but one of them had difficult interpretation/tone questions. BC does a great job at exposing you to the timing!
QR (20): Most surprised about this section. I'm actually pretty bad at math and was hoping for a 19. To be frank, the test couldn't have gone worse--I was so slow. I kept messing up with the calculator and I ran out of time to check the ones I marked. But I guess I did most of it correctly, or guessed correctly. Thank goodness! I think it was definitely harder than Bootcamp, easier than Math Destroyer.
Materials (little less than 2 months of study)
Everything on Ari's Study Schedule. I can't emphasize enough how important it is to have a schedule!
-- I went through the destroyers 2x, and made flashcards of the ones that stood out on my second time through. I went over the flashcards every once in a while, but tried to go through them every day on the last week. Like everyone says, don't be discouraged by the Destroyers. Keep on pushing through, it'll help you pinpoint your weaknesses!
-- I really wasn't a fan of Cliff's for some reason... After skimming through it quickly once, I went straight to Bio destroyer and made Quizlet flashcards, using Feralis Notes as an encyclopedia to learn unfamiliar topics. I reviewed the flashcards regularly.
-- PAT seems impossible at first, but practice makes perfect.
Some background info:
I'm a rising fourth year undergraduate student at a challenging school. I slacked off during my first year and ended up with a 3.0, but after I decided on dentistry I worked a lot harder and brought up my GPA to a 3.55 oGPA, ~3.42 sGPA.
To be honest, I'm not the smartest student but I like to think that I'm a pretty hard worker. I studied for this test since early June, and some days I would be at the library for 10-12 hours. It was pretty terrible. But a friend told me that I needed to treat this like a 4 credit class.
These DAT scores are proof that you don't need to be a genius to get a decent score on this test! Try your best, and your efforts will somehow pay off.
Words of advice:
Try to stay clear of these forums unless you need help with something. It can stress you out a lot.
Do not rely on someone else's DAT experience on SDN too much!! Focus on what you need to do, and study as hard as you can. This test can throw anything at you. A lot of times I felt like I was answering questions based off of instinct, which I gained through studying and practicing a lot. Also don't rely too heavily on your practice scores! It can give you a false sense of security.
When you get burnt out, take a break, do something non-DAT related, and also try to think about why you're doing this in the first place. This test is a big, necessary obstacle for you in order to become a dentist. A lot of times I found myself forgetting why I was pursuing dentistry, and needed breaks to re-motivate myself.
If I can be of any help, please feel free to ask. These aren't the best scores, but I'm more than willing to answer any questions!
I want to thank God, my friends, and of course the SDN community for all the tips I picked up looking through the forums. Also, thank you @orgoman22, @AintNobodyGotTimeForDAT , @fit2 , @LuckBloodandSweat and @WheatLom for offering me much needed advice before test day. Also thank you soooooooo much @Ari Rezaei for your awesome study schedule and Bootcamp!
Here are my scores. Not the best that you'll see, but I don't think I'll retake it!
PAT: 23
QR: 20
RC: 22
BIO: 21
GC: 20
OC: 23
TS: 21
AA: 21
2009 DAT scores: PAT 24 QR 20 GC 26 OC 22 BIO 23 RC 21 (Scores are high because I coincidentally studied the relevant material right before it)
BIO (21): People were right when they said it's a mixed bag. Breadth over depth. I marked at least 10 questions. I was pretty shocked to see the score on the report... It was a lot better than I expected! I'm not sure how I could've prepared better for this section
GC (20): I'm not the best at Chem. I had a few random questions here and there, but I feel like after practicing so much in the past two months, I was able to figure out a few questions through instinct. Easier than BC.
OC (23): Pretty straightforward minus a few random ones. I saw similar Bootcamp questions and even a repeat question from the '09 DAT! I thought it was easier than BC. Chad's Reactions handout is really useful--I printed it out and wrote all over it to study.
PAT (23): Man, I was really hoping not to see any rock/gem keyholes, but I had at least 5 of them.
And I also had to rush through cube counting and pattern folding. Very grateful for this score! Bootcamp is all that you need for this.RC (22): This was hard as well! The passages were easier to read than BC, but one of them had difficult interpretation/tone questions. BC does a great job at exposing you to the timing!
QR (20): Most surprised about this section. I'm actually pretty bad at math and was hoping for a 19. To be frank, the test couldn't have gone worse--I was so slow. I kept messing up with the calculator and I ran out of time to check the ones I marked. But I guess I did most of it correctly, or guessed correctly. Thank goodness! I think it was definitely harder than Bootcamp, easier than Math Destroyer.
Materials (little less than 2 months of study)
Everything on Ari's Study Schedule. I can't emphasize enough how important it is to have a schedule!
-- I went through the destroyers 2x, and made flashcards of the ones that stood out on my second time through. I went over the flashcards every once in a while, but tried to go through them every day on the last week. Like everyone says, don't be discouraged by the Destroyers. Keep on pushing through, it'll help you pinpoint your weaknesses!
-- I really wasn't a fan of Cliff's for some reason... After skimming through it quickly once, I went straight to Bio destroyer and made Quizlet flashcards, using Feralis Notes as an encyclopedia to learn unfamiliar topics. I reviewed the flashcards regularly.
-- PAT seems impossible at first, but practice makes perfect.
Some background info:
I'm a rising fourth year undergraduate student at a challenging school. I slacked off during my first year and ended up with a 3.0, but after I decided on dentistry I worked a lot harder and brought up my GPA to a 3.55 oGPA, ~3.42 sGPA.
To be honest, I'm not the smartest student but I like to think that I'm a pretty hard worker. I studied for this test since early June, and some days I would be at the library for 10-12 hours. It was pretty terrible. But a friend told me that I needed to treat this like a 4 credit class.
These DAT scores are proof that you don't need to be a genius to get a decent score on this test! Try your best, and your efforts will somehow pay off.
Words of advice:
Try to stay clear of these forums unless you need help with something. It can stress you out a lot.
Do not rely on someone else's DAT experience on SDN too much!! Focus on what you need to do, and study as hard as you can. This test can throw anything at you. A lot of times I felt like I was answering questions based off of instinct, which I gained through studying and practicing a lot. Also don't rely too heavily on your practice scores! It can give you a false sense of security.
When you get burnt out, take a break, do something non-DAT related, and also try to think about why you're doing this in the first place. This test is a big, necessary obstacle for you in order to become a dentist. A lot of times I found myself forgetting why I was pursuing dentistry, and needed breaks to re-motivate myself.
If I can be of any help, please feel free to ask. These aren't the best scores, but I'm more than willing to answer any questions!
Attachments
Last edited:
