DAT Donezo

[GT Dental]

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Hey everyone, just finished my DAT today. Probably going to retake, any advice (basically, if you think I have a chance w/o retaking, let me know)

I'm not a science major which probably hurt me,

QR-21 = not too bad. very similar to kaplan's tests, about what i normally scored
RC-20 = first two passages were money. last one was Piano...it was pretty hard, oh yea, my computer froze? during the last passage...the time stopped so i freaked out. Looking back I should've kept reading (at no time expense!!), Usually scored a 22-23 on this section..

BIO-17 = not that bad, a lot of weird questions. I spent a long time studying the endocrine system and all the hormones and what not, and didnt get one direct question about it..

GC-17 = a lot of theory, some math questions. Not really sure what i missed.

OC-16 = 4 freaking spectroscopy questions!!! not what i wanted..

PAT-18 = about what i got on the PAT tests...was getting 20's on Kaplan though. Angles were hard, similar to Crack..cubes easy, keyholes surprisingly easy. hardest was angles, TFE, and patterns probably in that order..(wish i knew percentages for the sections!)

TS-17
AA -18 -overall about what i was getting on practice ones...was hoping for a 19 or 20 but realistically didn't put in the time to deserve that.

cGPA: 3.5, sGPA: 3.4


****Can anyone please let me know how to update your DAT scores if I go ahead and click 'submit' on my app?? This is the main thing I'm worried about now. If you have specific questions about my experience, let me know.


I'm already planning on retaking, want to get my science scores up. I used kaplan/crackPAT/Barrons Bio, other AP bio/chem stuff....just found Chad's videos..going to use those in my future study prep.

Good luck everyone.

 

[Mycuspidissharp]

Chad is money, I am sure you will do better the next time around. Are you still going to apply this cycle? What did you think about Barrons? Good or No?

 

[bing12]

i think you should retake it. i mean you could possibly get in if your app is amazing in every other aspect, like almost a 4.0 g.p.a and many ECs. but, to be competitive, you should aim for a min of a 19 AA, and a 19 TS, and 19 PA. if you read through the book ADEA GUIDE TO DENTAL SCHOOL, it shows you those 3 values and the means of every school. Depends what schools you are applying to, but i feel you should retake it since all 3 of those scores are below most school's means.

 

[GT Dental]

Thanks for the encouragement. Barron's was alright - im going to try to find books with more pictures and such. I think the main problem with my overall preparation was lack of organization. I didn't have set-out "biology" study day or time, just kind of flew around from bio to chem to orgo to pat whenever I felt like it.

It is a good feeling having one take under my belt, and knowing which sections (esp for PAT) to study more for. In my head I knew I wasn't completely prepared but was hoping to pull at least a 19 off so I could send my app. Now I'm going to have to retake in September....late in the process.

Which leads me to my question......*Anyone know if it is difficult to update DAT scores after a retake and already submitted application. I don't want to wait to submit my app in September, but know it will be a pain to email all the schools I'm applying to.....anyone way for automatic notification?

As for my application, yes I'm applying this cycle no matter what and will go to whatever school I get accepted to - applying in state(GA), nova, uab, all NY schools, basically anywhere private ~15 schools.

I have really good EC's, research, and letters of rec but I realize that the first filter is gpa/dat and mine are merely avg. If anyone knows or wants to comment on my competitiveness, I'd love to hear it, just don't be a jerk, we dont need that here.

Again, best of luck to everyone studying! It's over before you know it, and feels soooo good walking out, *almost* regardless of your score!

 

[gorrillaunit18]

I think your GPA might be able to "save" you...you never know.

 

[Ibracadabra]

Good luck to your applications and your DAT if you're gonna retake. I'm taking mine in 10 days. Whew... I'm freaking out about the piano passage...Was it that hard?;_;... and what do you mean by "first two passages were money"?; does it mean that it was easy or were the topics about money? (I'd assume the former but just to make sure..) :'(

 

[FutureDent020]

When I studied for my DAT I focused 80% of my studies on physiology, endocrinology, histology, neurology i.e. the important aspects of biology, at least in healthcare. And you're right, I saw very few direct questions involving these subjects. Biology is a sucky section and involves a little luck with the questions you see. You're scores really aren't that bad, but it's that 16 in OC that may hurt you pretty badly. You said you are probably going to retake, which is a good idea. A score under 17 in a science section merits a retake.

 

[GT Dental]

Thanks for the advice/confirmation. What is the best way to get practice for the orgo section? I am heavily considering getting the destroyer series...worth it??

As for piano...not too bad, just weird questions. lots of tone/inference, etc.

the other ones were easy science topics i knew something about from cell biology..word of advice: dont 'mark' reading questions, finish an entire essay at a time.....it sucks going back and having to re-familiarize yourself with the entire passage with like a minute left!

 

[FutureDent020]

Thanks for the advice/confirmation. What is the best way to get practice for the orgo section? I am heavily considering getting the destroyer series...worth it??

As for piano...not too bad, just weird questions. lots of tone/inference, etc.

the other ones were easy science topics i knew something about from cell biology..word of advice: dont 'mark' reading questions, finish an entire essay at a time.....it sucks going back and having to re-familiarize yourself with the entire passage with like a minute left!

DAT destroyer for OC. Make copies of the road maps for quick access and practice. If you know the DAT Destroyer OC, you really shouldn't get under a 20. And marking reading questions is ok, but like you said, make sure you answer them before switching to the next essay.