DAT Done! 6/9/09

[dentist95757]

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Hey guys,

So I took my DAT today, and I am unsure about how competitive my scores are:

PAT: 21 (89%)
Bio: 20 (91.8)
GChem: 21 (91.6)
Ochem :22 (94)
QR: 22 (98.7) 😕
Reading: 21 (88.9)
TS: 21
AA: 21

I have a 2.9 overall GPA 🙁 Science is the same. (switched majors too late) and I was wondering what you guys think. I have about 50 hours of assisting (and counting), very good letters, been doing research for 3 years (I am a 3rd year), I am second author on 2 papers, captain of a sports club, and a couple of other EC's. I am a california resident and I am hoping to get into somewhere in California, but I am applying to a ton of schools (17).

Appreciate the feedback!

Breakdown:

PAT: I thought I did ok, CDP was definately super helpful and Achiever helped a lot too. Angle ranking was always my weakest, it was a lot easier on the real DAT than on CDP. I got the royal flush edition with crack the science and math, and it was more than enough practice.

Bio: I just studied Kaplan the blue book and cliffs AP bio, kinda gave up at the end of studying since there's so much material. Crack the Science isn't very good. Very random questions, no good explanations.

Gchem:
DAT destroyer is a godsend. I took the time to go over destroyer gchem once, redid all the mistakes i made every other day for about a week until i knew it cold. It helped me a lot.

Ochem: Again, destroyer is amazing here. took an achiever test with kaplan knowledge, no destroyer, got a 15, did destroyer ochem in 1 day, took the time to understand and digest the material, then took another achiever test, got an 18 lol.

Reading: A lot harder on the real DAT than I thought it would be. I thought my test was similar in difficulty (for me) to DAT achiever test 2 as far as reading comp was.

QR: I thought my QR on the real DAT was really hard, kaplan has some very good tricks for this section, but I work very fast and don't have a problem with this section usually. Crack DAT math was pretty similar in difficulty (I got pretty much 21's to 25's on all the practice maths i took (7 tests))

Dat Achiever:
extremely useful tool, helped me settle down when I was taking my exam, very good explanations, and very good for preparing for the DAT. I did not use topscore.

I took the Kaplan course. It wasn't very comprehensive, however, the online tools they give you are quite good, and I learned of tricks of QR and RC from there. All it is is a structured review to make the DAT seem less overwhelming,which helped me, and they have like 7 full length practice tests that you can take.

I was super nervous waiting for my name to be called, but surprisingly, when I got to the computer, it was so familiar I calmed down extremely quickly haha.

I studied about 2.5 weeks after school ended hardcore 6-8 hours a day, but I started like 3 months in advance for like 2 hours a day, especially with the PAT. I started off at a 15 on the PAT and only finishing about 3/4 of the questions at first, so don't fret about the PAT!


Edit: Practice test scores added
Practice tests:

Achiever:

Test 1:

AA:20
PAT:17
QR: 22
RC: 25
Bio:18
GChem:18
Ochem:16
TS:18

Test 2:

AA:19
PAT:18
QR: 21
RC: 21
Bio:17
GChem:15
Ochem:16
TS:17

Test 3:

PAT:18
QR: 23
Didnt Take RC
Bio:16
GChem:16
Ochem:17
TS:17

Kaplan:

Bio: 20
GChem: 18
Ochem: 19
QR: 24
TS: 19
Didnt take RC (Lazy 😛)
Took a CDP PAT section instead (Kaplan PAT is next to useless)
Thanks!

 

[pbure9]

Dude, awesome scores. I think you'll be fine plus you're applying to a ****load of schools lol. Only concern is your GPA but again I dont think it'll be a problem with those scores and letters and statement. What's your science gpa?

And thanks for the tips. I'll make sure to pay attention to that 2nd acheiver RC.

And if you wouldn't mind posting or pming a breakdown of your practice tests.

Good job man and good luck

 

[nze82]

You got solid DAT scores. So, no worries there. Since you've participated in a paper that may give you an advantage at the two UC schools (LA and SF). However, the question is that whether or not such schools would consider you with your low GPA?
I know Cali schools are your ideal choice, but it's hard to say whether or not you'll have a chance due to your GPA.
Nevertheless, I think you'd still get interviews and you'd still have a good chance of getting into dental school.
Don't try to get a straight answer for this question. No one can really tell you whether or not you're gonna get in, until schools receive all the applications and evaluate their applicant pool. What's important is that you have good DAT scores, and you should feel good about that. Submit everything and wait to see how it goes.

Best of Luck to you👍

 

[UCfan]

Your DAT scores are fantastic ( all scores >= 20)! With your research and ECA, you are very strong canditate. If you are CA resident you have huge shot for UCSF, because their GPA cutoff is 2.7 for CA residents. I am unsure about UCLA (Maybe you can call them and learn your situation). Your GPA can be problematic for UCLA. Anyway congrats on your excellent DAT scores

.

 

[Ashcash]

you did very good at the DAT. Congrats 🙂 ...just make sure to apply for alot of schools, since your gpa below 3.00+ ..dont worry about it too much. Im sure one or more school will offer you an interview. Good Luck!

 

[DoctaWalnuts]

Awesome job! I think that you will definitely get in somewhere b/c you are applying to so many schools and you have really solid scores. You GPA is low, but your ECs look really above average.

You must have felt like crap after taking Achiever?! I mean, those scores are not really too close to your REAL DAT score!! Yay that gives me hope. I've been getting 19's on Ochem and Gchem in Achiever. But my Bio has been 15/16...I really just need a 19 minimum in Bio..so hopefully I can pull that off. Thank you for your scores, it helped me out a lot!! Best of luck!!!

 

[R9973]

very similar scores, nice job! Apply selectively and you should be OK...

 

[dentist95757]

Awesome job! I think that you will definitely get in somewhere b/c you are applying to so many schools and you have really solid scores. You GPA is low, but your ECs look really above average.

You must have felt like crap after taking Achiever?! I mean, those scores are not really too close to your REAL DAT score!! Yay that gives me hope. I've been getting 19's on Ochem and Gchem in Achiever. But my Bio has been 15/16...I really just need a 19 minimum in Bio..so hopefully I can pull that off. Thank you for your scores, it helped me out a lot!! Best of luck!!!

HAHA yea I was so worried after I took the achiever tests...because I was literally studying all day, and my scores weren't improving, but it was significantly more difficult than the real thing, so in that sense, when I got to the test I wasn't shell shocked, which was good 🙂. And plus, it motivated me to study even harder the last couple of days lol