Well, after several months of studying, I finally took the DAT and have somewhat mixed feelings about it. I was hoping to do a little better than I did but overall they are "good" consistent scores, just not "awesome" scores that I have seen on this forum.
Here are my scores:
Bio........19
Chem.....19
O Chem. 21
R.C........23
Q.R........17
PAT.......18
A.A........20
T.S........19
Science GPA 3.3
Was a student athlete during my undergrad, worked at a dental research lab and have published some studies. Lots of volunteer work, charity trip to Guatemala etc, so I consider myself a fairly well rounded applicant, (if that really matters.)
Breakdown
Biology: Used Kaplan BB, Destroyer and Achiever. Very random in my opinion. I was scoring so much better on my practice tests than the real thing. I guess thats what I get for relying mostly on Kaplan. I should have gotten Cliffs. Spent a lot of time on Taxonomy which was hardly tested. Achiever was harder but a better representation than Kaplan for this section. I never worried about Bio in my studies and was pretty disappointed when I saw the 19. I was consistently scoring 22-25 on Kaplan's practice tests. Wish I would have diversified my studies a little more with this section.
Chem: Again used Kaplan, destroyer and achiever. I feel Kaplan prepares you well and destroyer is a little over the top with the calculations, but the conceptual questions are good. I felt this section was easier than most practice tests and much easier than Achiever! Minimal calculations. I felt good on this section so the 19 was somewhat disappointing.
OChem: I think Kaplan does a good job preparing you for this section and destroyer I thought was awesome. Learn the "road maps" they really simplify everything. This was always my best subject. I scored a 25 on this section the first time I took the DAT (4 years ago!). I thought the actual was very straightforward so I must have made some stupid mistakes with the 21 because I thought I really nailed it. Don't skimp on the NMR, IR stuff. The majority of it was 1st semester Ochem stuff.
PAT: I cannot tell you how frustrated I was to see the 18 next to PAT when I got my scores! This single score alone is the reason I still cannot sleep at night after taking the test on Friday! Kaplan is easy compared to the real thing and I knew that. So I focused on Achiever, which I felt was harder than the real thing. Kaplan I consistently scored in the 22-24 range and achiever I scored 17,18,18 on each test. I really dont know where I went wrong on the actual because it felt easier than achiever. Looking back I wish I would have done CDP.
R.C.: Never really had a problem with this section. The test was very straightforward. My passages were about 12 to 13 paragraphs and I finished with about 3 min to spare. I did get the "Piano of death" but really did think it was that bad. Thanks to the horror stories I think it made me focus even more on that part. There were some "different/trickier" questions associated with that passage that definitely makes you have to think. Overall I was happy with the outcome in this section.
Q.R. I hate this section! What can I say other than I survived. I knew it would be my worst, I was just happy I didn't totally bomb it. I thought Kaplan was easier, Destroyer was ok and Achiever, I thought was about the same if not a little easier (if you could believe that) I was scoring in the 20's for Kaplan, and 18's and 19's in Achiever. I had a lot of weird coordinate geometry, and a couple standard deviation questions that I was banking on not having to answer for time sake. Was very rushed at the end and guessed on the last 3.
So, I feel OK about my scores with the exception of the PAT. Seriously, what do you guys think? I am considering re-taking just because of the stupid PAT score.
My applications went out early, Submitted June 3rd. I have no "state school" and I have 1 interview lined up at Indiana. I am currently working on supp. apps etc so hopefully more interviews will follow. I know my GPA is not awesome and I was hoping for slightly better scores on the DAT to compensate (especially PAT)
Your honest opinions would be greatly appreciated. I applied 3 years ago and was wait-listed at 2 schools, (interviewed at 3) and did not get in. After a couple years of figuring out my life etc, I have found my way back to dentistry and I am 100% determined to make it happen this time! Thanks for your response.
Here are my scores:
Bio........19
Chem.....19
O Chem. 21
R.C........23
Q.R........17
PAT.......18
A.A........20
T.S........19
Science GPA 3.3
Was a student athlete during my undergrad, worked at a dental research lab and have published some studies. Lots of volunteer work, charity trip to Guatemala etc, so I consider myself a fairly well rounded applicant, (if that really matters.)
Breakdown
Biology: Used Kaplan BB, Destroyer and Achiever. Very random in my opinion. I was scoring so much better on my practice tests than the real thing. I guess thats what I get for relying mostly on Kaplan. I should have gotten Cliffs. Spent a lot of time on Taxonomy which was hardly tested. Achiever was harder but a better representation than Kaplan for this section. I never worried about Bio in my studies and was pretty disappointed when I saw the 19. I was consistently scoring 22-25 on Kaplan's practice tests. Wish I would have diversified my studies a little more with this section.
Chem: Again used Kaplan, destroyer and achiever. I feel Kaplan prepares you well and destroyer is a little over the top with the calculations, but the conceptual questions are good. I felt this section was easier than most practice tests and much easier than Achiever! Minimal calculations. I felt good on this section so the 19 was somewhat disappointing.
OChem: I think Kaplan does a good job preparing you for this section and destroyer I thought was awesome. Learn the "road maps" they really simplify everything. This was always my best subject. I scored a 25 on this section the first time I took the DAT (4 years ago!). I thought the actual was very straightforward so I must have made some stupid mistakes with the 21 because I thought I really nailed it. Don't skimp on the NMR, IR stuff. The majority of it was 1st semester Ochem stuff.
PAT: I cannot tell you how frustrated I was to see the 18 next to PAT when I got my scores! This single score alone is the reason I still cannot sleep at night after taking the test on Friday! Kaplan is easy compared to the real thing and I knew that. So I focused on Achiever, which I felt was harder than the real thing. Kaplan I consistently scored in the 22-24 range and achiever I scored 17,18,18 on each test. I really dont know where I went wrong on the actual because it felt easier than achiever. Looking back I wish I would have done CDP.
R.C.: Never really had a problem with this section. The test was very straightforward. My passages were about 12 to 13 paragraphs and I finished with about 3 min to spare. I did get the "Piano of death" but really did think it was that bad. Thanks to the horror stories I think it made me focus even more on that part. There were some "different/trickier" questions associated with that passage that definitely makes you have to think. Overall I was happy with the outcome in this section.
Q.R. I hate this section! What can I say other than I survived. I knew it would be my worst, I was just happy I didn't totally bomb it. I thought Kaplan was easier, Destroyer was ok and Achiever, I thought was about the same if not a little easier (if you could believe that) I was scoring in the 20's for Kaplan, and 18's and 19's in Achiever. I had a lot of weird coordinate geometry, and a couple standard deviation questions that I was banking on not having to answer for time sake. Was very rushed at the end and guessed on the last 3.
So, I feel OK about my scores with the exception of the PAT. Seriously, what do you guys think? I am considering re-taking just because of the stupid PAT score.
My applications went out early, Submitted June 3rd. I have no "state school" and I have 1 interview lined up at Indiana. I am currently working on supp. apps etc so hopefully more interviews will follow. I know my GPA is not awesome and I was hoping for slightly better scores on the DAT to compensate (especially PAT)
Your honest opinions would be greatly appreciated. I applied 3 years ago and was wait-listed at 2 schools, (interviewed at 3) and did not get in. After a couple years of figuring out my life etc, I have found my way back to dentistry and I am 100% determined to make it happen this time! Thanks for your response.
