I felt the need to post my breakdown considering how so many people lurking on this side of the forum have a misrepresented idea of what the DAT frequency is on SDN. Almost everyone who scores well does a breakdown but everyone else (average and below average) don't. That makes sense since who wants a breakdown from someone else who scored a below average DAT.
I didn't dedicate any time solely for just studying. I had obligations to a full time research fellowship. Biggest mistake ever but also the best decision I ever made because I found out that I don't want to make research a career but rather make it an interest that I would like to develop only in dental school and possibly a few years after dental school. I studied in the late afternoon, weekends, and between breaks during lab. So if you just want 20's and have a busy summer, maybe my breakdown is worth a read.
Biology: 20
General Chemistry: 21
Organic Chemistry: 20
Reading: 20
Quantitative: 18
PAT: 22
Chemistry
I watched Chad's videos and took notes. I barely did any of his practice problems. I condensed my notes from Chad's into about 4 pages and memorized the 4 pages. I did this for General and Organic Chemistry. Then I moved onto Destroyer. I went through all of the General Chemistry problems once. For the questions that I got wrong, I wrote the question on one side of an index card and the answer on the other side. I drilled myself with those index cards when I was on the bus, working in the lab, and volunteering. I did the same thing with Organic except I didn't get through all of the questions on Destroyer.
Biology
I watched Chad's Biology videos (I don't recommend it at all). I looked at ADEA's website to see what was going to be tested on the Biology section and just reviewed the sections with Cliff's and Campbell & Reece. Mostly reviewed plants, hormones, and biochemistry.
Quantitative
I first watched Chad's videos on math. It was helpful for learning a few shortcuts and how to solve some problems. I think his videos lacked on the kind of probability problems that were on the DAT. I went through a little over 1/3 of Destroyer's math and memorized all the equations. I tried to memorize how to solve certain problems and use some short cuts.
Reading
Nothing really to prepare. I just did a few practice passages.
PAT
Crack the PAT. Tic-tac-toe method.
Practice Tests
I used the 2007 test (too easy), TopScore (I didn't do full-length for the first two tests but I did the third one for full-length where the QR was much harder than the previous ones, and the 2009 test (Very good correlation to how I scored on the actual test).
I took several practice tests the week before the actual test to build endurance. On the practice tests, I consistently scored 19-21. I should have taken the tests at intervals instead of taking them back to back over a week so I could figure out what my weaknesses were and address them.
WHAT I WISH I DID:
I should have dedicated a full month to this and did all of Chad's quizzes and Destroyer problems. I also should have read through Cliff's. I definitely regret not taking the practice tests at weekly intervals so I could actually have time to figure out my weaknesses and address them. Don't take all of the tests in one week.
I didn't dedicate any time solely for just studying. I had obligations to a full time research fellowship. Biggest mistake ever but also the best decision I ever made because I found out that I don't want to make research a career but rather make it an interest that I would like to develop only in dental school and possibly a few years after dental school. I studied in the late afternoon, weekends, and between breaks during lab. So if you just want 20's and have a busy summer, maybe my breakdown is worth a read.
Biology: 20
General Chemistry: 21
Organic Chemistry: 20
Reading: 20
Quantitative: 18
PAT: 22
Chemistry
I watched Chad's videos and took notes. I barely did any of his practice problems. I condensed my notes from Chad's into about 4 pages and memorized the 4 pages. I did this for General and Organic Chemistry. Then I moved onto Destroyer. I went through all of the General Chemistry problems once. For the questions that I got wrong, I wrote the question on one side of an index card and the answer on the other side. I drilled myself with those index cards when I was on the bus, working in the lab, and volunteering. I did the same thing with Organic except I didn't get through all of the questions on Destroyer.
Biology
I watched Chad's Biology videos (I don't recommend it at all). I looked at ADEA's website to see what was going to be tested on the Biology section and just reviewed the sections with Cliff's and Campbell & Reece. Mostly reviewed plants, hormones, and biochemistry.
Quantitative
I first watched Chad's videos on math. It was helpful for learning a few shortcuts and how to solve some problems. I think his videos lacked on the kind of probability problems that were on the DAT. I went through a little over 1/3 of Destroyer's math and memorized all the equations. I tried to memorize how to solve certain problems and use some short cuts.
Reading
Nothing really to prepare. I just did a few practice passages.
PAT
Crack the PAT. Tic-tac-toe method.
Practice Tests
I used the 2007 test (too easy), TopScore (I didn't do full-length for the first two tests but I did the third one for full-length where the QR was much harder than the previous ones, and the 2009 test (Very good correlation to how I scored on the actual test).
I took several practice tests the week before the actual test to build endurance. On the practice tests, I consistently scored 19-21. I should have taken the tests at intervals instead of taking them back to back over a week so I could figure out what my weaknesses were and address them.
WHAT I WISH I DID:
I should have dedicated a full month to this and did all of Chad's quizzes and Destroyer problems. I also should have read through Cliff's. I definitely regret not taking the practice tests at weekly intervals so I could actually have time to figure out my weaknesses and address them. Don't take all of the tests in one week.
