DAT BREAKDOWN 8/29/13
QR-22
Reading-23
PAT-24
Bio-26
Chem-29
OChem-28
TS-29
AA-26
First off I would like to thank my friends and family for all the support I received from them during the grueling months of DAT preparation. The encouragement and confidence I was given from them was an invaluable tool and I couldn't have done it without them. That being said, I believe hard work and dedication are the most reliable ways to earning a good score on this test. I studied off and on since the start of June. Cracked down and studied hard during August.
SECTIONS
QR (22)- I was a little surprised that this was my lowest score. I'm an engineer so that's kind of supposed to be my strength but oh well I'm not complaining. Math Destroyer has some good problems. Any good practice test can help you prepare for this.
READING (23)- Crack DAT and QVAULT and Bootcamp are useful. Ari's idea of reading scientific American articles is a pretty good one. I would say QVAULT is close to real thing. If you think you're decent reader I would recommend search and destroy.
BIO (26)- So much material but a very doable section. Just cover all major concepts. Cliffs is a good starting point. QVAULT is great for seeing how you're doing along with Boot camp. Ferralis is a great tool.
CHEM (29)- Chads videos is great but anyone who checks out these forums knows that. Great investment. Destroyer tests if you've mastered the material.
OCHEM (28)- Same ^^
PAT (24)- CDP is very similar to real test. Bootcamp is extremely underrated here. Topscore tests are similar as well. Just keep practicing and I promise your scores will improve. I used to run out of time by cube counting when I first started. But eventually things got better.
Test Materials Used
• DAT DESTROYER- MUST BUY!!!
o Destroyer will expose you to the very broad amount of information that is necessary to acquire in order to score well on the DAT. I distinctly remember several questions on my actual test that eerily resembled Destroyer problems. Point is, get destroyer before anything else.
• DAT Boot camp- AWESOME RESOURCE!!
o Awesome affordable practice tests with hands down the best customer service in the business (ARI IS THE MAN!!). You can either use these exams as a final gauge of where you're at or as a starting point to see what areas you need to focus on. The solutions to the exam are extremely useful and really studying them can be the difference in an outstanding score. Also if you have any questions feel free to email Ari at boot camp as I'm sure he will give you a quick accurate response as he did for me.
• DAT QVAULT- LOTS OF QUESTIONS!
o If you are looking for more questions that will give a good representation of the actual test then DAT QVAULT may be of service to you. I ended up getting the full subscription and went through every exam. There are so many questions on this site and lots of exposure can only help your chances of achieving your goal.
• KAPLAN BLUE BOOK- Ehhh
o I started with this book and it was solid for review but I wouldn't spend a majority of my time with this one. Just a good way to brush up on stuff.
• Topscore- Scores very indicative of real exam
o Don't let the ancient interface fool you. Topscore is a collection of very useful and accurate practice exams. I took these exams the week before my test and my scores were very similar to my actual ones. I will stress again that getting as much exposure you can (through practice exams and questions) will only HELP YOU! I don't think any question I answered in my preparations was a waste of time.
• CRACK DAT- FULL ADDITION- Kind of worth it.
o This program is very pricy and has gotten some shady reviews around these forums but I do however believe that it's useful for the PAT as others say. Reading and QR are pretty good too.
• Achiever- Kicks your butt.
o Like everyone says on these forums, achiever is difficult. It in no way reflects what you actually will see on the exam (except for maybe QR). I do however still believe that it is a helpful tool to see if you really know your stuff. If you end up investing in this program I would strongly recommend that you wait until the back leg of your studying to dive into these exams
• Gold Standard- DAT PAT and DAT BIO- Purely review books.
o If you want a good review book that is a little more fun to read I would maybe go in this direction. I wouldn't say its very necessary though
• Cliffs AP BIO- 3rd Edition- Must Buy
o Cheap, Comprehensive, you should probably order this book right now if you haven't done so already.
• Ferralis Bio Notes- Find on Bootcamp
o Great high yield notes. Go over this packet as many times as you can before this test. 90% of what you need in bio will be found here.
OVERALL IMPRESSIONS
• The DAT stresses simple concepts rather than random facts. If you take the time to really understand major concepts you should do really well. During my test preparation I tried to switch things up a bit every day and try to focus on the material that I felt weakest at. I STRONGLY recommend NOT isolating yourself during the test preparation time. Make sure to leave some time each day to enjoy yourself with friends or family. Use the time you spend with them to motivate yourself to study even harder. I very much believe that anyone with right amount of hard work can attain his or her desired score. Good luck to everyone studying.
QR-22
Reading-23
PAT-24
Bio-26
Chem-29
OChem-28
TS-29
AA-26
First off I would like to thank my friends and family for all the support I received from them during the grueling months of DAT preparation. The encouragement and confidence I was given from them was an invaluable tool and I couldn't have done it without them. That being said, I believe hard work and dedication are the most reliable ways to earning a good score on this test. I studied off and on since the start of June. Cracked down and studied hard during August.
SECTIONS
QR (22)- I was a little surprised that this was my lowest score. I'm an engineer so that's kind of supposed to be my strength but oh well I'm not complaining. Math Destroyer has some good problems. Any good practice test can help you prepare for this.
READING (23)- Crack DAT and QVAULT and Bootcamp are useful. Ari's idea of reading scientific American articles is a pretty good one. I would say QVAULT is close to real thing. If you think you're decent reader I would recommend search and destroy.
BIO (26)- So much material but a very doable section. Just cover all major concepts. Cliffs is a good starting point. QVAULT is great for seeing how you're doing along with Boot camp. Ferralis is a great tool.
CHEM (29)- Chads videos is great but anyone who checks out these forums knows that. Great investment. Destroyer tests if you've mastered the material.
OCHEM (28)- Same ^^
PAT (24)- CDP is very similar to real test. Bootcamp is extremely underrated here. Topscore tests are similar as well. Just keep practicing and I promise your scores will improve. I used to run out of time by cube counting when I first started. But eventually things got better.
Test Materials Used
• DAT DESTROYER- MUST BUY!!!
o Destroyer will expose you to the very broad amount of information that is necessary to acquire in order to score well on the DAT. I distinctly remember several questions on my actual test that eerily resembled Destroyer problems. Point is, get destroyer before anything else.
• DAT Boot camp- AWESOME RESOURCE!!
o Awesome affordable practice tests with hands down the best customer service in the business (ARI IS THE MAN!!). You can either use these exams as a final gauge of where you're at or as a starting point to see what areas you need to focus on. The solutions to the exam are extremely useful and really studying them can be the difference in an outstanding score. Also if you have any questions feel free to email Ari at boot camp as I'm sure he will give you a quick accurate response as he did for me.
• DAT QVAULT- LOTS OF QUESTIONS!
o If you are looking for more questions that will give a good representation of the actual test then DAT QVAULT may be of service to you. I ended up getting the full subscription and went through every exam. There are so many questions on this site and lots of exposure can only help your chances of achieving your goal.
• KAPLAN BLUE BOOK- Ehhh
o I started with this book and it was solid for review but I wouldn't spend a majority of my time with this one. Just a good way to brush up on stuff.
• Topscore- Scores very indicative of real exam
o Don't let the ancient interface fool you. Topscore is a collection of very useful and accurate practice exams. I took these exams the week before my test and my scores were very similar to my actual ones. I will stress again that getting as much exposure you can (through practice exams and questions) will only HELP YOU! I don't think any question I answered in my preparations was a waste of time.
• CRACK DAT- FULL ADDITION- Kind of worth it.
o This program is very pricy and has gotten some shady reviews around these forums but I do however believe that it's useful for the PAT as others say. Reading and QR are pretty good too.
• Achiever- Kicks your butt.
o Like everyone says on these forums, achiever is difficult. It in no way reflects what you actually will see on the exam (except for maybe QR). I do however still believe that it is a helpful tool to see if you really know your stuff. If you end up investing in this program I would strongly recommend that you wait until the back leg of your studying to dive into these exams
• Gold Standard- DAT PAT and DAT BIO- Purely review books.
o If you want a good review book that is a little more fun to read I would maybe go in this direction. I wouldn't say its very necessary though
• Cliffs AP BIO- 3rd Edition- Must Buy
o Cheap, Comprehensive, you should probably order this book right now if you haven't done so already.
• Ferralis Bio Notes- Find on Bootcamp
o Great high yield notes. Go over this packet as many times as you can before this test. 90% of what you need in bio will be found here.
OVERALL IMPRESSIONS
• The DAT stresses simple concepts rather than random facts. If you take the time to really understand major concepts you should do really well. During my test preparation I tried to switch things up a bit every day and try to focus on the material that I felt weakest at. I STRONGLY recommend NOT isolating yourself during the test preparation time. Make sure to leave some time each day to enjoy yourself with friends or family. Use the time you spend with them to motivate yourself to study even harder. I very much believe that anyone with right amount of hard work can attain his or her desired score. Good luck to everyone studying.
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) would look up pre-dent resource, most are bound to get on SDN. And then the high scorers are bound to post their scores compared to lower scorers so there's that, too.
