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I have been waiting to post one of these ever since I started studying! The SDN community helped me through this experience, so it's only fair that I write one about my experience! A big THANK YOU to all you wonderful people!
DAT SCORES (8/14/17)
Perceptual Ability................19
Quantitative Reasoning........18
Reading Comprehension......18
Biology..............................22
General Chemistry..............22
Organic Chemistry............. 25
Total Science.....................23
Academic Average............. 21
DAT Bootcamp Full Length Scores:
(Test#/Bio/GChem/Ochem/PAT/RC/QR/AA)
BC#1/23/18/20/18/17/17/19
BC#2/22/17/21/18/16/17/19
BC#3/26/26/20/18/19/18/22
BC#4/25/21/21/19/19/17/21
BC#5/22/19/20/19/19/17/20
AVG/24/20/20/18/18/17/20
ADA 2007 DAT
(Bio/GChem/Ochem/PAT/RC/QR/AA)
20/20/30/19/18/20/22
STEP 1: Research how others destroyed the DAT.
I knew that I wanted to take that DAT over the summer because I didn't want to have any other academic obligations while I was studying for the DAT (If your summers are free, I recommend taking the DAT over the summer!). So throughout my second semester, I researched and discovered @Glimmer1991 's Ultimate DAT Breakdown! I went through almost all of the breakdowns and created a table with common materials and strategies other DATers used for each section and for the DAT as a whole!
I quickly recognized that most people were loving DAT Bootcamp (I owe my life to Ari and his team @Ari Rezaei , DAT Destroyer, and CourseSaver (Chad's Videos)! Making a list of common materials assured me that I was investing in effective and quality study materials!
So here is what I used for each section and how I would rank them out of 10 ...
Biology
Cliff's AP Biology 3rd Edition (9/10) (the free online version, just look it up on Google!)
Feralis Notes (10/10)
Google Docs (10/10) ( I will explain more about how I used this in my studying below)
DAT BOOTCAMP (100000000/10)
General Chemistry
CourseSaver (Chad's Videos) (10/10)
DAT Bootcamp (100000000/10)
Organic Chemistry
Dr. Mike's Videos (from DAT Bootcamp) (100000000/10)
DAT Bootcamp (100000000/10)
PAT, Reading Comprehension, Quantitative Reasoning
DAT Bootcamp (100000000/10)
Scientific American (10/10)
***I did purchase the DAT Destroyer and Math Destroyer, but I didn't get a chance to utilize them because I didn't have enough time to do and go over both DAT Bootcamp Practice Tests and DAT Destroyer Tests (I was already strong in the sciences so I thought I would be okay). I wanted to focus on quality over quantity, so I stuck with DAT Bootcamp!!!
****** I am sure the DAT Destroyer is awesome, but I can't say much about it as I did not use it. One thing I can say is that, I know a lot of people who have used DAT Destroyer and who swear by it!
STEP 2: Make a study plan and stick to it.
Some advice to take under consideration: MAKE A REALISTIC STUDY PLAN IN ADVANCE!
When you have a study plan in place, it is easier to get started and stay on track!
-Lucky for all of you future DATers, there are many study plans out there!
-During my research, I came across Ari's Study Guide for DAT Domination and Ari's Study Schedule. For me, discovering this was comparable to discovering long lost treasure.
STEP 3: The actual studying.
It took me around 10 weeks to study for the DAT which is how long Ari's Schedule is.
Ari's Schedule is split into two parts: The first part consists of learning the content and the second part consists of practicing what you learned. The two parts are approximately equal amounts of days.
I followed the first part of the Ari's schedule religiously! For future DATers who are interested in following Ari's schedule, I would try to finish learning the content within that first month (don't push it back!!!) because you want to make sure you have enough time to practice the content that you learned!!! The first week it will feel like a lot, but by the second week you will be used to it!
***During the first month it is important to learn the information and to REVIEW the information that you learned!
So this is where I fell behind. So Sunday's were supposed to be my designated break days where I would review the content that I learned and relax. I couldn't use these days to review because I ws filling out my early admissions application to my local dental school which was due at the end of part one of the schedule.
Because I wasn't able to review during the first month, I had to spend the second month reviewing the content and taking practice exams. This was why I had to compromise and choose either DAT Bootcamp or DAT Destroyer (I hope none of you have to go through this! It was hard for me to let go of DAT Destroyer because I really really really wanted to use it!). I know I could have used DAT Bootcamp and use DAT Destroyer as a supplement, but using two resources was stressing me out!
So during the second month, for five weeks, I focused on one subject every week and took the corresponding DAT Bootcamp practice tests. I would review the content Monday-Thursday and I would use Friday-Sunday to take and review the practice tests. I BELIEVE THIS IS THE KEY IN DESTROYING THE DAT AND GETTING THE MOST OUT OF ANY PRACTICE TEST. You aren't using practice tests effectively if you are not going over the questions that you missed and the questions that you got CORRECT! It is important to understand why you answered a question wrong, BUT it is just as important to understand why you answered a question CORRECT!
Month 2: Week 1: QR
Month 2: Week 2: GC
Month 2: Week 3: OC
Month 2: Week 4: Bio
Month 2: Week 5: RC
*** I started PAT during month 1 and did a little every week.
So this is what you guys probably wanted. So here is how I studied for each section ...
***Keep in mind that this worked for me, and it may or may not work for you!
Biology
For this first month, instead of reading one chapter from Cliff's AP Biology and reading the corresponding chapter in the Feralis Notes, I read half a chapter from Cliff's AP Bio and the corresponding half chapter in the Feralis Notes. Since you are taking in so much information from other subjects, I felt like it was more effective to read a half chapter in depth. With this, I was still able to stay on schedule. While reading the Feralis Notes, I used Brainscape.com to make flashcards. I wanted to make sure I was actively reading.
During the second month, Bio was the last subject that I focused on because I wanted to make sure that I would be able to retain as much as information as possible (I swear I have STM). I went HARDCORE on Bio this week!! I am talking 12-14 hours a day for 7 days. It was tough, but by the end of the week, your brain will have grown twice its size. So what I did was I printed out the Feralis Notes and I would study 3 to 4 chapters a day while annotating the notes. I would also draw my own diagrams, flow charts, and tables in a separate notebook if I needed to! For example for cellular respiration, I drew out a large mitochondrion and drew the processes in their appropriate areas (glycolysis in the cytoplasm and the Citric Acid Cycle in the Matrix). Drawing a picture allowed me to retain the information accurately and for a longer period of time. For instance, if you were given a photograph and a piece of text to observe for 1 minute and you had to describe what you saw from memory, you would be able to recall more features from the photograph compared to the piece of text!
Earlier, I promised I would talk about how I used Google Docs. So in the Feralis Notes, the development and reproduction, biological diversity, and anatomy and physiology chapters have a TON OF INFORMATION!! In order to condense the information and present it in an organized manner, my friend and I dedicated a whole day to do this. I will attach our documents to this post so that you guys can use them!
*** I encourage all of you to do this on your own or with a friend, if you have time, because it was an effective method for retaining the information!
General Chemistry
For the first month, I watched and took detailed notes on all of Chad’s Videos (CourseSaver.com) according to Ari’s Schedule. I completed all the corresponding quizzes immediately after watching the videos. Again, it is crucial to go over the questions that you answered incorrectly and correctly! You want to make sure that you are understanding the information at this point and not later down the road.
Since I didn’t have time to review the material during the first month. I designated the second week of month two to gen chem. To actively review my notes, I made notecards from my notes for each section while reviewing my notes and quizzes. Toward the end of the week, I took the DAT Bootcamp General Chemistry practices tests and reviewed ALL the solutions. While reviewing the solutions, I made sure to refer to my notecards.
Organic Chemistry
For this section, rather than watching Chad’s Videos, I watched Mike’s videos from DAT Bootcamp (these come with your subscription)! Just like gen chem, I watched and took detailed notes on all of Mike’s videos according to Ari’s Schedule.
I designated the third week of month two to ochem. As I did for gen chem, I made notecards from my notes for each section while reviewing my notes and quizzes. Toward the end of the week, I took the DAT Bootcamp Organic Chemistry practice tests and reviewed ALL the solutions. While reviewing the solutions, I made sure to refer to my notecards.
PAT
I used DAT Bootcamp’s PAT Academy, generators, and practice tests! This is all you need!
Strategy: I focused on 4 categories that I was good at and tried to strengthen these! (TFE, cube counting, hole punching, and keyholes)
Advice: Don’t put this section off! START EARLY!
RC
Reading has never been my strongest section. I am a decent reader, not the best. I didn’t have time to start practicing the reading section until the fifth week of week two.
During the first month, I read a Scientific American article every day before starting off my study day. During the fifth week of month two, I did some of DAT Bootcamp’s RC practice tests.
Strategy: I tried the search and destroy method, but it was giving me anxiety. It wasn’t for me. So, I decided to read the article in its entirety and answer the questions. Specifically, I read the questions first and highlighted the key words using the highlight feature. Reading the questions allowed to figure out what I should be focusing on while reading the passage. Then, I would read a few paragraphs and try to answer as many questions as I could. I repeated this until I finished the article and the questions. This ensured that I wasn’t forgetting information that I read previously!! This strategy helped me save time because I didn’t have to reread the passage.
QR
I dedicated the first week of month two on QR. I made notecards for all of the equations that I found on DAT Bootcamp and reviewed my notecards every week up until my exam. For the rest of the week, I took practice exams and reviewed ALL of the solutions!
Math has always been my strongest subject, but I struggled on QR the most! The questions are not hard after you start recognizing the questions the DAT asks. For this section, it is all about speed! Start practicing this section early so that you are able to pick up your speed.
STEP 4: Taking full length practice tests
Taking full length DATs helped me gauge if I was prepared to take the DAT. I started taking full lengths 12 days before my exam. I took a full length every other day and used the next day to go over the ALL of the solutions.
For every question that I missed, I went over that specific topic using my notecards! This really helped me get the information down!
I had 3 notebooks full of questions that I missed that I would go over every day up until my exam!
STEP 5: The day before the exam
Most people say that you should relax the day before the exam, but not going over the content was stressing me out. So, the day before the exam, I went over all of my gen chem notecards, ochem notecards, QR formulas, and common topics tested on Biology section (mitosis, meiosis, hormones, cellular respiration, etc.)
You should do whatever makes you feel the most relaxed on test day!
STEP 6: THE ACTUAL DAT
*** Before my actual DAT, I did a something called the TEST DRIVE through prometric a week before my exam. During the test drive, they have you check in, do a tutorial on the computer in the testing center, and check out. This was super helpful for me because it allowed me to be more comfortable with the testing environment during test day. It was $30 and totally worth it!
I decided to take the test at 8am. I woke up at 5:30am, did my normal morning routine, and watched my favorite show while eating breakfast. The testing center was 15 minutes away from my home and I decided to leave an hour before my exam. I got in my car, rolled down my windows, and blasted my music. They recommend that you arrive at the testing center 30 minutes before your exam starts.
I arrived at the Prometric testing 30 minutes before my exam and checked in. They were having technical difficulties, so I wasn’t able to start my exam until 9am.
Similarity wise, the Biology section was random like everybody says. I would definitely go by “breadth over depth” for this section. I had a few application questions and terms that I never came across in my study resources. Other than that, Cliffs, Feralis notes, and DAT BC will really prepare you for this section!
I would say that G.chem was on par with the 2007 DAT. Bootcamp was slightly harder, but it did a great job preparing you for any question they may throw at you.
The ochem was on par with DAT BC’s ochem questions. I would say that the 2007 ochem section was easier than the actual DAT.
As a whole, the PAT section was easier on the real DAT compared to DAT BC. I would say every section was easier on the real DAT except for the TFEs and Angle ranking!
RC was easier on the real DAT compared to DAT BC. I didn’t have any of the “statement 1, statement 2” questions. I think I just got lucky.
For some reason, my QR section was soooo hard. I had around 10-12 quantitative comparison questions. Some of them were easy, but most of them required a lot more critical thinking. I tried to do all the easy questions first and then I went back to the harder questions. DAT BC was good practice, but my QR was harder than DAT BC. I wish I had done the Math Destroyer for this section, but I couldn’t find the time!
***If any of you future DATers have questions, please feel free to contact me! I will try to help you as much as I can! GOOD LUCK! You guys will do great!
The guides that my friend and I made are attached to this thread! I hope they are helpful!
DAT SCORES (8/14/17)
Perceptual Ability................19
Quantitative Reasoning........18
Reading Comprehension......18
Biology..............................22
General Chemistry..............22
Organic Chemistry............. 25
Total Science.....................23
Academic Average............. 21
DAT Bootcamp Full Length Scores:
(Test#/Bio/GChem/Ochem/PAT/RC/QR/AA)
BC#1/23/18/20/18/17/17/19
BC#2/22/17/21/18/16/17/19
BC#3/26/26/20/18/19/18/22
BC#4/25/21/21/19/19/17/21
BC#5/22/19/20/19/19/17/20
AVG/24/20/20/18/18/17/20
ADA 2007 DAT
(Bio/GChem/Ochem/PAT/RC/QR/AA)
20/20/30/19/18/20/22
STEP 1: Research how others destroyed the DAT.
I knew that I wanted to take that DAT over the summer because I didn't want to have any other academic obligations while I was studying for the DAT (If your summers are free, I recommend taking the DAT over the summer!). So throughout my second semester, I researched and discovered @Glimmer1991 's Ultimate DAT Breakdown! I went through almost all of the breakdowns and created a table with common materials and strategies other DATers used for each section and for the DAT as a whole!
I quickly recognized that most people were loving DAT Bootcamp (I owe my life to Ari and his team @Ari Rezaei , DAT Destroyer, and CourseSaver (Chad's Videos)! Making a list of common materials assured me that I was investing in effective and quality study materials!
So here is what I used for each section and how I would rank them out of 10 ...
Biology
Cliff's AP Biology 3rd Edition (9/10) (the free online version, just look it up on Google!)
Feralis Notes (10/10)
Google Docs (10/10) ( I will explain more about how I used this in my studying below)
DAT BOOTCAMP (100000000/10)
General Chemistry
CourseSaver (Chad's Videos) (10/10)
DAT Bootcamp (100000000/10)
Organic Chemistry
Dr. Mike's Videos (from DAT Bootcamp) (100000000/10)
DAT Bootcamp (100000000/10)
PAT, Reading Comprehension, Quantitative Reasoning
DAT Bootcamp (100000000/10)
Scientific American (10/10)
***I did purchase the DAT Destroyer and Math Destroyer, but I didn't get a chance to utilize them because I didn't have enough time to do and go over both DAT Bootcamp Practice Tests and DAT Destroyer Tests (I was already strong in the sciences so I thought I would be okay). I wanted to focus on quality over quantity, so I stuck with DAT Bootcamp!!!
****** I am sure the DAT Destroyer is awesome, but I can't say much about it as I did not use it. One thing I can say is that, I know a lot of people who have used DAT Destroyer and who swear by it!
STEP 2: Make a study plan and stick to it.
Some advice to take under consideration: MAKE A REALISTIC STUDY PLAN IN ADVANCE!
When you have a study plan in place, it is easier to get started and stay on track!
-Lucky for all of you future DATers, there are many study plans out there!
-During my research, I came across Ari's Study Guide for DAT Domination and Ari's Study Schedule. For me, discovering this was comparable to discovering long lost treasure.
STEP 3: The actual studying.
It took me around 10 weeks to study for the DAT which is how long Ari's Schedule is.
Ari's Schedule is split into two parts: The first part consists of learning the content and the second part consists of practicing what you learned. The two parts are approximately equal amounts of days.
I followed the first part of the Ari's schedule religiously! For future DATers who are interested in following Ari's schedule, I would try to finish learning the content within that first month (don't push it back!!!) because you want to make sure you have enough time to practice the content that you learned!!! The first week it will feel like a lot, but by the second week you will be used to it!
***During the first month it is important to learn the information and to REVIEW the information that you learned!
So this is where I fell behind. So Sunday's were supposed to be my designated break days where I would review the content that I learned and relax. I couldn't use these days to review because I ws filling out my early admissions application to my local dental school which was due at the end of part one of the schedule.
Because I wasn't able to review during the first month, I had to spend the second month reviewing the content and taking practice exams. This was why I had to compromise and choose either DAT Bootcamp or DAT Destroyer (I hope none of you have to go through this! It was hard for me to let go of DAT Destroyer because I really really really wanted to use it!). I know I could have used DAT Bootcamp and use DAT Destroyer as a supplement, but using two resources was stressing me out!
So during the second month, for five weeks, I focused on one subject every week and took the corresponding DAT Bootcamp practice tests. I would review the content Monday-Thursday and I would use Friday-Sunday to take and review the practice tests. I BELIEVE THIS IS THE KEY IN DESTROYING THE DAT AND GETTING THE MOST OUT OF ANY PRACTICE TEST. You aren't using practice tests effectively if you are not going over the questions that you missed and the questions that you got CORRECT! It is important to understand why you answered a question wrong, BUT it is just as important to understand why you answered a question CORRECT!
Month 2: Week 1: QR
Month 2: Week 2: GC
Month 2: Week 3: OC
Month 2: Week 4: Bio
Month 2: Week 5: RC
*** I started PAT during month 1 and did a little every week.
So this is what you guys probably wanted. So here is how I studied for each section ...
***Keep in mind that this worked for me, and it may or may not work for you!
Biology
For this first month, instead of reading one chapter from Cliff's AP Biology and reading the corresponding chapter in the Feralis Notes, I read half a chapter from Cliff's AP Bio and the corresponding half chapter in the Feralis Notes. Since you are taking in so much information from other subjects, I felt like it was more effective to read a half chapter in depth. With this, I was still able to stay on schedule. While reading the Feralis Notes, I used Brainscape.com to make flashcards. I wanted to make sure I was actively reading.
During the second month, Bio was the last subject that I focused on because I wanted to make sure that I would be able to retain as much as information as possible (I swear I have STM). I went HARDCORE on Bio this week!! I am talking 12-14 hours a day for 7 days. It was tough, but by the end of the week, your brain will have grown twice its size. So what I did was I printed out the Feralis Notes and I would study 3 to 4 chapters a day while annotating the notes. I would also draw my own diagrams, flow charts, and tables in a separate notebook if I needed to! For example for cellular respiration, I drew out a large mitochondrion and drew the processes in their appropriate areas (glycolysis in the cytoplasm and the Citric Acid Cycle in the Matrix). Drawing a picture allowed me to retain the information accurately and for a longer period of time. For instance, if you were given a photograph and a piece of text to observe for 1 minute and you had to describe what you saw from memory, you would be able to recall more features from the photograph compared to the piece of text!
Earlier, I promised I would talk about how I used Google Docs. So in the Feralis Notes, the development and reproduction, biological diversity, and anatomy and physiology chapters have a TON OF INFORMATION!! In order to condense the information and present it in an organized manner, my friend and I dedicated a whole day to do this. I will attach our documents to this post so that you guys can use them!
*** I encourage all of you to do this on your own or with a friend, if you have time, because it was an effective method for retaining the information!
General Chemistry
For the first month, I watched and took detailed notes on all of Chad’s Videos (CourseSaver.com) according to Ari’s Schedule. I completed all the corresponding quizzes immediately after watching the videos. Again, it is crucial to go over the questions that you answered incorrectly and correctly! You want to make sure that you are understanding the information at this point and not later down the road.
Since I didn’t have time to review the material during the first month. I designated the second week of month two to gen chem. To actively review my notes, I made notecards from my notes for each section while reviewing my notes and quizzes. Toward the end of the week, I took the DAT Bootcamp General Chemistry practices tests and reviewed ALL the solutions. While reviewing the solutions, I made sure to refer to my notecards.
Organic Chemistry
For this section, rather than watching Chad’s Videos, I watched Mike’s videos from DAT Bootcamp (these come with your subscription)! Just like gen chem, I watched and took detailed notes on all of Mike’s videos according to Ari’s Schedule.
I designated the third week of month two to ochem. As I did for gen chem, I made notecards from my notes for each section while reviewing my notes and quizzes. Toward the end of the week, I took the DAT Bootcamp Organic Chemistry practice tests and reviewed ALL the solutions. While reviewing the solutions, I made sure to refer to my notecards.
PAT
I used DAT Bootcamp’s PAT Academy, generators, and practice tests! This is all you need!
Strategy: I focused on 4 categories that I was good at and tried to strengthen these! (TFE, cube counting, hole punching, and keyholes)
Advice: Don’t put this section off! START EARLY!
RC
Reading has never been my strongest section. I am a decent reader, not the best. I didn’t have time to start practicing the reading section until the fifth week of week two.
During the first month, I read a Scientific American article every day before starting off my study day. During the fifth week of month two, I did some of DAT Bootcamp’s RC practice tests.
Strategy: I tried the search and destroy method, but it was giving me anxiety. It wasn’t for me. So, I decided to read the article in its entirety and answer the questions. Specifically, I read the questions first and highlighted the key words using the highlight feature. Reading the questions allowed to figure out what I should be focusing on while reading the passage. Then, I would read a few paragraphs and try to answer as many questions as I could. I repeated this until I finished the article and the questions. This ensured that I wasn’t forgetting information that I read previously!! This strategy helped me save time because I didn’t have to reread the passage.
QR
I dedicated the first week of month two on QR. I made notecards for all of the equations that I found on DAT Bootcamp and reviewed my notecards every week up until my exam. For the rest of the week, I took practice exams and reviewed ALL of the solutions!
Math has always been my strongest subject, but I struggled on QR the most! The questions are not hard after you start recognizing the questions the DAT asks. For this section, it is all about speed! Start practicing this section early so that you are able to pick up your speed.
STEP 4: Taking full length practice tests
Taking full length DATs helped me gauge if I was prepared to take the DAT. I started taking full lengths 12 days before my exam. I took a full length every other day and used the next day to go over the ALL of the solutions.
For every question that I missed, I went over that specific topic using my notecards! This really helped me get the information down!
I had 3 notebooks full of questions that I missed that I would go over every day up until my exam!
STEP 5: The day before the exam
Most people say that you should relax the day before the exam, but not going over the content was stressing me out. So, the day before the exam, I went over all of my gen chem notecards, ochem notecards, QR formulas, and common topics tested on Biology section (mitosis, meiosis, hormones, cellular respiration, etc.)
You should do whatever makes you feel the most relaxed on test day!
STEP 6: THE ACTUAL DAT
*** Before my actual DAT, I did a something called the TEST DRIVE through prometric a week before my exam. During the test drive, they have you check in, do a tutorial on the computer in the testing center, and check out. This was super helpful for me because it allowed me to be more comfortable with the testing environment during test day. It was $30 and totally worth it!
I decided to take the test at 8am. I woke up at 5:30am, did my normal morning routine, and watched my favorite show while eating breakfast. The testing center was 15 minutes away from my home and I decided to leave an hour before my exam. I got in my car, rolled down my windows, and blasted my music. They recommend that you arrive at the testing center 30 minutes before your exam starts.
I arrived at the Prometric testing 30 minutes before my exam and checked in. They were having technical difficulties, so I wasn’t able to start my exam until 9am.
Similarity wise, the Biology section was random like everybody says. I would definitely go by “breadth over depth” for this section. I had a few application questions and terms that I never came across in my study resources. Other than that, Cliffs, Feralis notes, and DAT BC will really prepare you for this section!
I would say that G.chem was on par with the 2007 DAT. Bootcamp was slightly harder, but it did a great job preparing you for any question they may throw at you.
The ochem was on par with DAT BC’s ochem questions. I would say that the 2007 ochem section was easier than the actual DAT.
As a whole, the PAT section was easier on the real DAT compared to DAT BC. I would say every section was easier on the real DAT except for the TFEs and Angle ranking!
RC was easier on the real DAT compared to DAT BC. I didn’t have any of the “statement 1, statement 2” questions. I think I just got lucky.
For some reason, my QR section was soooo hard. I had around 10-12 quantitative comparison questions. Some of them were easy, but most of them required a lot more critical thinking. I tried to do all the easy questions first and then I went back to the harder questions. DAT BC was good practice, but my QR was harder than DAT BC. I wish I had done the Math Destroyer for this section, but I couldn’t find the time!
***If any of you future DATers have questions, please feel free to contact me! I will try to help you as much as I can! GOOD LUCK! You guys will do great!
The guides that my friend and I made are attached to this thread! I hope they are helpful!
