Ok so here is my breakdown. Before I start, just to let you know, I did not study the way I wanted to. There are many things I would have changed if I could go back in time and do it all over agsin. So in my breakdown I am going to tell you where you should put your time into.
1) Bio - Used Cliffs,Barron's,Destroyer,Ferralis notes, Bootcamp,Qvault, Topscore
Super Random as always. The thing I realized about Bio is that you actually should use more sources that what I used. It is always the small details that tend to show up on the test. Look through SDN, Khan Academy, and Craig Savage etc. DO THE DESTROYER. I got through the Destroyer 1.5 times only. A good 2-3 times is definitely worth. I know I had 1-2 questions that I recognized from it. Use it like a Textbook rather than a question, make notes on answers you missed and keep revising them.
Sometimes on SDN, another person might mention something that you had no idea about and voila! You learnt something new.
Read over cliffs and understand it rather than cram it. Cliffs covers majority of the info. Look into other material for the Physiology part. My test had around 2 questions from ecology and around 3 from Taxonomy. STUDY THEM. I made the mistake of not studying those two topics as much as I did everything else. Ferralis notes is a beautiful source. It's become part and parcel of the DAT studying material. Use it and study it in and out. Alot of what was covered in the notes comes on the test in some form or the other.
Basically this section is more about if you understand what you are studying rather than word-for-word sentences from whichever text you are using. I highly recommend maximizing your sources for Bio rather than sticking to one source. Again, DO THE DESTROYER. I can't stress this enough: P
Bootcamp and Qvault are good practice, but do not rely on them only.
2) GChem - Chad!!!, Destroyer,Bootcamp, Topscore
Didn't really use much besides the above. Chad is literally all you need for this Test. I'm pretty sure some of the questions I missed was because of my own careless mistakes. I had one question from HNMR and CNMR, did not get any from IR.
If you can do the destroyer questions after working through Chads, you're good to go. When watching his videos, make sure you treat it like a classroom and take notes and try to answer the questions he asks, during his class session, yourself. Pause the video and think about it and answer. It's the best way to understand the concepts
By the last 2 weeks , I would always get 20+ in all bootcamp Tests of Gchem. If you understand the concepts in Chem, it helps alot.
3) Ochem - Chads, Destroyer, Bootcamp,Topscore
If you’re just starting out ( or even if you have already started) your DAT study schedule, Start doing the Destroyer Road Maps. Keep writing them out. It helps you get use to recognizing the reactions until you encounter them during Chads.
Destroyer is a MUST do for this section as well ( All topics actually lol). Sometimes destroyer is overkill, but better to be over-prepared than under prepared.
Keep going through Chads HO of the reactions and understand which KMnO4 does oxidation and which does reaction?. Is it syn or anti? You'd be surprised as to how easy it is to mess that up.
4) PAT – Bootcamp ,CDP, Topscore and 1 test from Qvault
I'm going to go out on a limb here and say to use both CDP and Bootcamp. Bootcamp should be enough for people who are on a budget, but be prepared to have your confidence level go down a notch. Bootcamp keyholes were way harder than the actual test. CDP was more comparable.
Keyholes - Harder in Bootcamp. CDP was comparable to the real test
TFE - Harder on bootcamp. CDP comparable to the real test
Angles - Boot camp and the real test were Similar. ( Probably messed this up the most lol)
Holepunch - The Real test had a lot less half holes and a lot more straightforward ones compared to boot-camp. If you can do Bootcamp Hole-punching, you're golden for the real one.
Cube counting - This is probably the easiest, Bootcamp vs CDP vs Real DAT were all similar. the Real DAT had a alot less cubes to count so that cut down my 'tally marking time'
Pattern folding - This was my most feared section, but after I looked at Ari's tutorial, it made things a looooot easier. The Real DAT had a lot of non-colored folding which is wayy easier that the dice or shaded folds. BootCamp is great for this section.
Overall Bootcamp is a great source and I would suggest getting this over CDP. If you can afford CDP, get it because the keyholes are more similar to what you will see on the real test.
My suggestion is when you get an answer wrong, look at the solution, stare at it until it clicks with you. Remember, you need to understand WHY the answer is like that rather than just accepting it is the answer.
5) RC – Bootcamp(2 tests) and Topscore.
Honestly I don’t know how I pulled off a 21. I worked on this section the least during my prep. The MAJORTY of the questions can be answered through search and destroy.
Just make sure you don’t start staring into space and read the same line 5 times. If you don’t understand one line, skip it and to the next one.
Also what helps is if you look through the 1st 2-3 questions and look for key words from those questions in the passage whilst you are reading it.
Practice with bootcamp and you should be fine.
6) QR – MATH Destroyer, Bootcamp
Honestly I don’t know how I messed this section, Math was always my strong suite. I’m 90% sure it was carless mistakes rather than me not understanding the question. A lot of my test was straight Algebra and Absolute value questions.
Bootcamp is way Overkill for this. Do the MATH destroyer and you will set. Highly recommended you understand each destroyer question you got wrong.
So Overall, This Test is doable. I wanted at least a 22 but I’m happy with what I got. Don’t stress during Test day. Just Relax and treat it like any other test in school. This helps take the nerve off. I would suggest not studying anything new 2- days before the test. Just light studying and quick review of what you already know.
And Of course, don’t forget to Thank Him for listening to your prayers. He always helps those in need.
