- Joined
- Aug 24, 2014
- Messages
- 4
- Reaction score
- 2
Hi Everyone!
Just finished taking the DAT about an hour ago and I promised myself that I would post a DAT breakdown when I was done if I was happy with my score, so here goes...
PAT: 20
QR: 24
Reading Comp: 27
Bio: 25
Gen Chem: 30
Org Chem: 22
TS: 25
AA: 26
I am super surprised by my scores. I ended up doing wayyy better than I ever had on any practice test so I'm really excited.
What my study schedule was like:
I studied for about three months. The first six weeks were about 8 hours a day and the last six weeks were about 12 hours a day. The last six weeks, I started taking two practice tests a week.
Bio: I honestly feel like I spent the most time studying bio. I studied it almost every single day just because there is so much information. I used Cliff's 3rd Edition as well as the Kaplan Book. If I was particularly confused about a certain biology subject I would watch a Khan Academy video. I did DAT Destroyer problems, but only had time to get through them once. When I was taking the DAT I was sure I didn't do well on this section because I got some really strange questions that it felt like I had never seen before. But it ended up turning out okay.
Gen Chem: Chad's videos! I love Chad. He explains things so well and his voice isn't annoying (really important when you are watching his videos for so many hours). I also read the Kaplan Book for a more in depth explanation of concepts. I also went through DAT Destroyer problems three times. This was the score that surprised me most.. honestly I thought this was my weakest section.
Org Chem: Again, Chad's videos! These weren't as helpful as Gen Chem in my opinion, but still pretty good. I supplemented this with the Kaplan Book and went through DAT Destroyer problems three times. I also memorized the roadmaps in Destroyer.
QR: Holyyy crap, I was so bad at this section when I first started. Math is not my strength, especially this type of math. I read the Kaplan Book and watched Chad's videos for this and also did the Math Destroyer twice. I literally had to force myself to study math because I dislike the subject so much. I was super nervous for this section come test day, but it was much more simple than any of the practice tests I had taken.
RC: I just practiced a lot using practice tests! Didn't really do much else. I kind of developed my own technique for answering questions by combining other techniques I researched. You just have to figure out what works for you :]
PAT: Two words: DAT Bootcamp. My score in this section started at a 12, which tells you how incredible DAT Bootcamp PAT is. The explanations are really great. I also did a little bit of Crack DAT PAT, but didn't really use it much. Bootcamp was harder and had better explanations. I also watched youtube videos for help on PAT strategies.
Practice Tests:
I took the Kaplan class so I did three Kaplan practice tests. I also did one test from DAT Achiever, two tests from Topscore, one test from Qvault, and five tests from DAT Bootcamp. I also did the 2007 ADA and 2009 ADA exams the week before my test. My favorite was DAT Bootcamp! They really spend a lot of time making the tests and preparing explanations and it shows. Kaplan was meh, Topscore was meh. Qvault was pretty good and I really liked Achiever (I definitely would have taken more of their tests if I had time). I think you just have to go into their tests with the mindset that it's going to be really difficult and that your score is going to be better on the real thing.
That's it folks! Feel free to ask any questions 🙂 I'm very relieved to be done.
Just finished taking the DAT about an hour ago and I promised myself that I would post a DAT breakdown when I was done if I was happy with my score, so here goes...
PAT: 20
QR: 24
Reading Comp: 27
Bio: 25
Gen Chem: 30
Org Chem: 22
TS: 25
AA: 26
I am super surprised by my scores. I ended up doing wayyy better than I ever had on any practice test so I'm really excited.
What my study schedule was like:
I studied for about three months. The first six weeks were about 8 hours a day and the last six weeks were about 12 hours a day. The last six weeks, I started taking two practice tests a week.
Bio: I honestly feel like I spent the most time studying bio. I studied it almost every single day just because there is so much information. I used Cliff's 3rd Edition as well as the Kaplan Book. If I was particularly confused about a certain biology subject I would watch a Khan Academy video. I did DAT Destroyer problems, but only had time to get through them once. When I was taking the DAT I was sure I didn't do well on this section because I got some really strange questions that it felt like I had never seen before. But it ended up turning out okay.
Gen Chem: Chad's videos! I love Chad. He explains things so well and his voice isn't annoying (really important when you are watching his videos for so many hours). I also read the Kaplan Book for a more in depth explanation of concepts. I also went through DAT Destroyer problems three times. This was the score that surprised me most.. honestly I thought this was my weakest section.
Org Chem: Again, Chad's videos! These weren't as helpful as Gen Chem in my opinion, but still pretty good. I supplemented this with the Kaplan Book and went through DAT Destroyer problems three times. I also memorized the roadmaps in Destroyer.
QR: Holyyy crap, I was so bad at this section when I first started. Math is not my strength, especially this type of math. I read the Kaplan Book and watched Chad's videos for this and also did the Math Destroyer twice. I literally had to force myself to study math because I dislike the subject so much. I was super nervous for this section come test day, but it was much more simple than any of the practice tests I had taken.
RC: I just practiced a lot using practice tests! Didn't really do much else. I kind of developed my own technique for answering questions by combining other techniques I researched. You just have to figure out what works for you :]
PAT: Two words: DAT Bootcamp. My score in this section started at a 12, which tells you how incredible DAT Bootcamp PAT is. The explanations are really great. I also did a little bit of Crack DAT PAT, but didn't really use it much. Bootcamp was harder and had better explanations. I also watched youtube videos for help on PAT strategies.
Practice Tests:
I took the Kaplan class so I did three Kaplan practice tests. I also did one test from DAT Achiever, two tests from Topscore, one test from Qvault, and five tests from DAT Bootcamp. I also did the 2007 ADA and 2009 ADA exams the week before my test. My favorite was DAT Bootcamp! They really spend a lot of time making the tests and preparing explanations and it shows. Kaplan was meh, Topscore was meh. Qvault was pretty good and I really liked Achiever (I definitely would have taken more of their tests if I had time). I think you just have to go into their tests with the mindset that it's going to be really difficult and that your score is going to be better on the real thing.
That's it folks! Feel free to ask any questions 🙂 I'm very relieved to be done.
