Hi, future dentists,
I am an international student from South Korea, preparing for dental school admission this year. I would like to share my experiences with you guys about how I prepared for the test and how the real DAT looked like.
Study materials: DAT Bootcamp, Cliffs notes AP Biology, Kaplan (thick blue book), The Gold Standard (QR + RC), Chemistry (McMurry + Fay), Organic Chemistry (Smith), Sterling Test Prep DAT GC, OC, Bio practice questions.
DAT score breakdown
PA 22 BIO 28 TS 27
QR 23 GC 24 AA 25
RC 22 OC 30
PA 22
For PA, I utilized all the sources from Bootcamp, such as generators and practice questions, and I highly recommend the course. I tried to practice each section for 10 mins to finish 15 Qs, which is the amount of time you should assign for each section, but since key hole and TFE Qs are more difficult than others, it's okay to put little more time (~12-13 mins) in these sections. Except for cube counting and pattern folding (easier), the real PA section was about the same difficulty as Bootcamp. Honestly, I never finished BC practice test in time, and I barely finish the real one in time. It's important to practice with time-pressured feeling.
QR 23
Cautions, the QR section was much harder than the BC practice questions with lots of Quantitative comparison questions. There Qs require you to compare two values or to figure out whether you can solve a given problem with two sufficient conditions or not. I had about 8-10 QC questions, and some of them was hard to figure out. I had no problem with QR section when I take practice tests regarding time, but on the real one, I ran out of time and had to guess the marked problem.
RC 22
RC's my weakest section as an international student. RC practice tests from BC are way way harder than real RC, and again, I never finished them in time. Don't be frustrated or disappointed with the test scores. On real one, there were lots of detail questions rather than tone, inference, and statement/reason Qs. My RC strategy was, read the first 2-3 Qs to figure out what key wards would be and highlight some key words and statements as I read whole passage, then solve problems. I tried to comprehend the passage as much as I can before attacking problems. This might be time-consuming, but good strategy for Qs that require understanding rather than detail Qs. It's important to develop the best way working for you and read some scientific articles on a regular basis to increase reading speed.
BIO 28
I used AP biology book as a primary studying material and I made concept notes from BC practice Qs if I didn't know concepts thoroughly as well as ones that I got wrong. I think it's important to touch as many materials as you can since the DAT bio Qs are based very broad topics. The real one was not asking hard questions, most of them were straightforward knowledge-based questions. For me, this section was easier than BC practice tests.
GC 24 & OC 30
For these sections, I used the textbooks from college and made concept notes as I studied each topic. I reviewed those notes several times and added new materials that I encountered from practice questions (DAT BC and Sterling practice questions). Again, the real ones didn't ask complicate questions like ones in Destroyers, most of them were knowledge-based and required a little bit of calculations. Difficulty was about the same as BC practice tests or maybe a little easier.
I think I got lucky on PA and RC sections since I ran out of time and had to guess some problems. I did not expect to get this high scores.
I would like to thank Ari, DAT Bootcamp developer, for the valuable resources. I highly recommend this course if you are taking DAT. Sterling DAT practice question books (GC, OC, Bio) are good resources as well to strengthen your comprehension on natural science sections.
The day before taking DAT, I couldn't sleep at all and had to take energy drink during the optional break. Try to set your bio rhythm matching with the test day before ~ 2 weeks, and relax. I know you guys are awesome & brilliant, have been studying hard, and will conquer this test. If I did it, then you can do it as well. Believe in yourself with confidence!
I am an international student from South Korea, preparing for dental school admission this year. I would like to share my experiences with you guys about how I prepared for the test and how the real DAT looked like.
Study materials: DAT Bootcamp, Cliffs notes AP Biology, Kaplan (thick blue book), The Gold Standard (QR + RC), Chemistry (McMurry + Fay), Organic Chemistry (Smith), Sterling Test Prep DAT GC, OC, Bio practice questions.
DAT score breakdown
PA 22 BIO 28 TS 27
QR 23 GC 24 AA 25
RC 22 OC 30
PA 22
For PA, I utilized all the sources from Bootcamp, such as generators and practice questions, and I highly recommend the course. I tried to practice each section for 10 mins to finish 15 Qs, which is the amount of time you should assign for each section, but since key hole and TFE Qs are more difficult than others, it's okay to put little more time (~12-13 mins) in these sections. Except for cube counting and pattern folding (easier), the real PA section was about the same difficulty as Bootcamp. Honestly, I never finished BC practice test in time, and I barely finish the real one in time. It's important to practice with time-pressured feeling.
QR 23
Cautions, the QR section was much harder than the BC practice questions with lots of Quantitative comparison questions. There Qs require you to compare two values or to figure out whether you can solve a given problem with two sufficient conditions or not. I had about 8-10 QC questions, and some of them was hard to figure out. I had no problem with QR section when I take practice tests regarding time, but on the real one, I ran out of time and had to guess the marked problem.
RC 22
RC's my weakest section as an international student. RC practice tests from BC are way way harder than real RC, and again, I never finished them in time. Don't be frustrated or disappointed with the test scores. On real one, there were lots of detail questions rather than tone, inference, and statement/reason Qs. My RC strategy was, read the first 2-3 Qs to figure out what key wards would be and highlight some key words and statements as I read whole passage, then solve problems. I tried to comprehend the passage as much as I can before attacking problems. This might be time-consuming, but good strategy for Qs that require understanding rather than detail Qs. It's important to develop the best way working for you and read some scientific articles on a regular basis to increase reading speed.
BIO 28
I used AP biology book as a primary studying material and I made concept notes from BC practice Qs if I didn't know concepts thoroughly as well as ones that I got wrong. I think it's important to touch as many materials as you can since the DAT bio Qs are based very broad topics. The real one was not asking hard questions, most of them were straightforward knowledge-based questions. For me, this section was easier than BC practice tests.
GC 24 & OC 30
For these sections, I used the textbooks from college and made concept notes as I studied each topic. I reviewed those notes several times and added new materials that I encountered from practice questions (DAT BC and Sterling practice questions). Again, the real ones didn't ask complicate questions like ones in Destroyers, most of them were knowledge-based and required a little bit of calculations. Difficulty was about the same as BC practice tests or maybe a little easier.
I think I got lucky on PA and RC sections since I ran out of time and had to guess some problems. I did not expect to get this high scores.
I would like to thank Ari, DAT Bootcamp developer, for the valuable resources. I highly recommend this course if you are taking DAT. Sterling DAT practice question books (GC, OC, Bio) are good resources as well to strengthen your comprehension on natural science sections.
The day before taking DAT, I couldn't sleep at all and had to take energy drink during the optional break. Try to set your bio rhythm matching with the test day before ~ 2 weeks, and relax. I know you guys are awesome & brilliant, have been studying hard, and will conquer this test. If I did it, then you can do it as well. Believe in yourself with confidence!
