Dat done 03/27/10

[2ne1]

Finally done with DAT. It still feels unrealistic, I feel like I have to wake up tomorrow morning and study for DAT. BUT IT'S DONE AND FEELS GOOD!

My result

PAT 23 (96.4%)
BIO 24
GC 26
OC 22
RC 21 (76%)
QR 21 (91%)

TS 24 (99.1%)
AA 23 (98.7%)

I am VERY satisfied with my result. I am too lazy to grab my report so I am not too sure of percentages on the science section.

I posted a thread a few days ago about how I was so discouraged after taking achiever (getting 17's)... well, as many other sdners said, the scores you get from achiever is NOT AN INDICATIVE OF WHAT YOU WILL GET ON THE REAL DAT. I took 2 achiever tests and had to stop studying with it since I was getting TOO stressed from it. I was studying about 2 months, first few week 1-2 hrs then did 5-6 hrs a day at the end. No weekends for me, and it really killed me during the last week. I was getting sick of studying and DAT and just wanted to cry and give up everything. It was bad.... This happend a few days before I took DAT. So TAKE BREAKS when you are studying!! I felt rushed towards the end so I didn't take brakes and I was at the point where I wasn't improving/ absorbing any materials. So the day before the test, I just went to the beach and tried to clear my mind and took the test.

BIO(24) KBB, Cliff, DAT destroyer. KBB twice briefly, Cliff once for sections I already read (I am an AP bio tutor) and 2-3 times on the sections I am not too sure about. Compared to other people, I didn't really have ecology or embryology probs. Mostly mol/cell bio. Some random stuff I had to guess on.

Chem(26) KBB, CHAD's, Destroyer. Went over destroyer 1.5 times. It's a must and KBB is good. CHAD's video is good if you don't have fundamental knowledge in GC like me.. Not much crazy caculations on the test. Easier than destroyer.

OChem (22) Same as GC. OC was HARD...
Build a good understainding of OCHEM. I cant say much as it was my weakest section

RC(21) Topscore, Achiever. RC was alright. I only did 1 achiever test. I am an ESLstudent but still didn't study for it since I know it wasn't something I can imporve in 2 months. I feel like you just need to be naturally good at it... I don't know.. I didnt use search and destroy. I just read the passage then moved onto q's and then S&D. Find your way to do this section. Pure S&D didnt work for me.I had interesting subjects so it was actually fun to read though I only got 21.. I am happy with the score

QR(21)score, Achiever, Destroyer (Not math destroyer, the one included in DAT destroyer) just typical word probs. some algebra. some trig. some real hard ones. Didn't really study as I got 27, 29 on TS and Achiever. It was my strongest section but it's one of the lowest scores on real thing.

PAT 23CDP Topscore, Achiever CDP is good. practice little everyday. I never did the full length with CDP. Though I didn't really practice timing with CDP I still had some time left on the real thing. Kaplan is way too easy. Difficulty is in between TS and Achiever. Calculator helped my alot.

I only took full length test once with Topscore. I just couldn't concentrate when I was doing mocking exam. On the real thing though, I think getting little nervous was good. I was pretty focused all through the section and didn't really get tired. I had a bad dream last night and didn't sleep well. My heart was pumping like crazy since yesterday but everything worked out fine. I didnt feel like I was ready at all..That's how most ppl feel before the test so if you have a test coming up soon, and feel that way, don't worry! You will do fine..

Thank you for all the SDNers answering my q's and giving me encouragment. Good luck to everyone and let me know if you have any q's!!

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[dentalWorks]

I posted a thread a few days ago about how I was so discouraged after taking achiever (getting 17's)... well, as many other sdners said, the scores you get from achiever is NOT AN INDICATIVE OF WHAT YOU WILL GET ON THE REAL DAT.

that was me that was me

You rocked the test, congrats

 

[UnimaasMED]

Good job man. You totally destroyed the DAT. Congatulations!

What is the KBB and S&D? Can you clarify that?

Would like to sell your material? If so please pm me. I am interested

 

[gorrillaunit18]

Can I ask you if you liked the calculator function on the QA section? I really want to know if I should use it or not.

 

[oae]

AMAZING SCORES


Can you please explain what you mean by " we need to know mechanism, and not just end products" for organic chemistry?

Im really worried know and trying to understand how to they would test for mechanisms?

 

[2ne1]

About the calculator, I liked it a lot!! Practice using it while you are working on QR practice probs. You will get used to it and it saves time when you are doing calculations. I felt lucky to take the new test.

KBB is Kaplan Blue Book and I think you can get it from any book store. I am not planning to sell my materials since they are dirty( I wrote and highlighted a lot) and some pages are falling off..hahah BUT all the materials I used are things you can easily get. Also, my materials are OUTDATED. My Dat Destroyer was 2007 Oct edition, and KBB 2008. I was going to take the DAT last summer and got already-old destroyer.. So it was about 2.5 yrs old but I just used it and had no problem. Cliff AP BIO, you can get it from any book store too..

As you can see, I did self-study, no special materials..I didn't even get to do all the practice tests, on KBB I didn't do RC and PAT.. Getting lots of practice materials are good but I think it's better to understand fully about one material than to skim through multiple books. Hope my DAT breakdown helped!!

 

[Avery07]

Congratulations on those solid scores! --Especially that kick in the stomach from Achiever just days before. No doubt in my mind you will have a seat on December 1st!

 

[PP2010]

Congratulations!!!
what is your advice on taking Kaplan class

 

[2ne1]

I personally did not take the Kaplan class, so I don't know how good it is or which one(compared to self-study) is better. I couldn't really afford the class and had some friends who did self-study and had good result, so I didnt take the class. Some of my friends took the class and they liked it. I guess it's just up to your choice.. If you feel like you need to take the class and have money to afford it, go ahead. If you cant afford it or dont have time for it, it's not the end of the world. You can still do well on DAT on your own.

 

[biorenaissance]

Hey oae,
At least for my test, I think you need to know mechanisms/basis of rxns. I had a couple q's asking about it and not sure if I got them right. I don't know how to explain it..just know your ochem well. PM me if you need more help.

About the calculator, I liked it a lot!! Practice using it while you are working on QR practice probs. You will get used to it and it saves time when you are doing calculations. I felt lucky to take the new test.

KBB is Kaplan Blue Book and I think you can get it from any book store. I am not planning to sell my materials since they are dirty( I wrote and highlighted a lot) and some pages are falling off..hahah BUT all the materials I used are things you can easily get. Also, my materials are OUTDATED. My Dat Destroyer was 2007 Oct edition, and KBB 2008. I was going to take the DAT last summer and got already-old destroyer.. So it was about 2.5 yrs old but I just used it and had no problem. Cliff AP BIO, you can get it from any book store too..

As you can see, I did self-study, no special materials..I didn't even get to do all the practice tests, on KBB I didn't do RC and PAT.. Getting lots of practice materials are good but I think it's better to understand fully about one material than to skim through multiple books. Hope my DAT breakdown helped!!

What calculator can you use a TI-84 TI-89....?

 

[Avery07]

What calculator can you use a TI-84 TI-89....?

Bahahahahaha don't we all wish. It looks just like the standard windows calculator.

 

[Maygyver]

What calculator can you use a TI-84 TI-89....?

That would be amazing hah. Maybe one day

 

[herkulease]

Good job man. You totally destroyed the DAT. Congatulations!

What is the KBB and S&D? Can you clarify that?

Would like to sell your material? If so please pm me. I am interested

KBB = Kaplan Blue Book

S&D = Search and Destroy. Essentially you're skimming for the answers.

 

[UnimaasMED]

Great. Thanks for pointing that out.

 

[grx20718]

DAT done for me today. Congrats on your score! I actually got a very similar score. I was gonna post my own breakdown but you beat me into it by two days. study materials were very similar except that i actually used MCAT Examkracker for OC which was a good supplement to learn about basic concepts. It might be an overkill but I do recommend it if you forgot much about OC and want to go over little details. 1001 more Qs won't hurt you. I didn't have time to do the GC one though.

Somehow I got 99.3 for 24 TS and 98.3 for 23 AA.

About calculator, I hated it. It was too slow for me. It literally took about 5 seconds to type in 3.5.

 

[SaSSyBruin]

Wow grx0718 and nz.. good job you guys killed this thing... congrats

 

[klzblz]

I am just starting a study program for the dat and was wondering if anyone has any suggestions as to how to organize study time. Should I study section by section, or skip back and forth? Thanks!
Also, does anyone have a used dat destroyer for sale? Old versions are fine.

 

[grx20718]

I am just starting a study program for the dat and was wondering if anyone has any suggestions as to how to organize study time. Should I study section by section, or skip back and forth? Thanks!
Also, does anyone have a used dat destroyer for sale? Old versions are fine.

I have 2010 version but I actually marked the answers so I don't think you would want it. It is in a great shape though. Bought it just less than a month ago.

About study sections, I suggest that when you are reviewing, study one full section at a time. Then when you start with Qs, do a few in each section. I believe it depends on what you know already. If you need a full review take your time to make sure you know every basic concept. KBB are enough for GC and OC review . But no review books are enough for Bio. (I used AP cliff, KBB) Then, start learning details while solving problems. But, if you are lazy and just want to get 19, simply know how to get the right answers on Destroyer and take practice exams with Topscore pro. Full review on DAT destoyoer will get you over 22s on OC and GC for sure though. Also, try earning 20 over in DAT achiever. Maybe you will get 30s in real DAT.