Dat exam coming up. Need advice!

[Ravi@hunter]

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I am taking the DAT this Friday 06/27th. I took the kaplan course and took two practice tests and am worried about my scores.
Test 1: AA 18, BIO 16, CHEM 21, ORGO 18, TS 18, PAT 19, RC 18, QR 18
Test 2: AA 18, BIO 15, CHEM 16, ORGO 21, TS 17, PAT 19, RC 18, QR 19

I studied for about 4 weeks and thought I was ready but after these scores, my confidence is shot. Should I cancel my DAT or take it? I can't postpone since it's already been 6 months since I scheduled it.
Is kaplan easier or harder in comparison with the real DAT?
My bio is terrible even though I have been studying the most for it. FREAKING OUT!!!

 

[neboma]

I don't know if you should cancel or not, but if you decide on taking it, here is what I would do. If you know what areas you are struggling with for bio, I would got to the sections in whatever book you are using to study and take notes/ outline as that generally helps me remember material. For the gen chem, I hear Chad's videos is good for understanding that section, but I haven't used it so I don't know. I know the PAT section by Kaplan is easier than the real DAT, especially the angle ranking section. DAT bootcamp gives a free test for the PAT that is representative of the real test. Good luck.

 

[derbear]

My advice is to take a free Bootcamp test and do the free QVault Biology test and post your scores here ASAP. Then we can give you better advice since we are more familiar with these scores.

 

[Ravi@hunter]

I am using Cliffs AP bio, chads videos and kaplan. Also using crack dat pat and getting 18-19 consistently. And I will take the free Test tomorrow and post it. Thanks for the input

 

[Ravi@hunter]

So I took the dat bootcamp free practice test:
bio 20 (29/40)
Gen chem 18 (19/30)
Orgo 20 (26/30)
QR 18
Pat 18

What do u think now? I made silly mistakes on the gen chem section, I could've gotten at least 5-6 questions right that I got wrong. For pat, I suck at top front end.

 

[derbear]

Those scores are pretty damn good. If you have the money, I would suggest investing in Bootcamp or QVault (personally Bootcamp > QVault). Did you end up doing the free QVault biology test?

 

[dauntless123]

You should not cancel it. Kaplan, from what I've heard is easier compared to the read DAT. But if you are using cliffs and chads video's, you are likely to do well on the exam. Also, those scores are not that bad. The real dat might surprise you.

 

[Ravi@hunter]

Another question
So, I haven't applied to dental school yet but planning to after I take the Dat. I have a overall gpa of 3.39 and sci gpa of 3.29( low because i got a F in bio freshmen year). I have 100 hours of shadowing, 100+ and counting for volunteering. What do u guys think? Will it be enough to get in? Assuming >20 on dat.

 

[derbear]

Another question
So, I haven't applied to dental school yet but planning to after I take the Dat. I have a overall gpa of 3.39 and sci gpa of 3.29( low because i got a F in bio freshmen year). I have 100 hours of shadowing, 100+ and counting for volunteering. What do u guys think? Will it be enough to get in? Assuming >20 on dat.

I am in similar position as you. I feel as long as you apply broadly and early, you should have a decent shot.

 

[dauntless123]

Another question
So, I haven't applied to dental school yet but planning to after I take the Dat. I have a overall gpa of 3.39 and sci gpa of 3.29( low because i got a F in bio freshmen year). I have 100 hours of shadowing, 100+ and counting for volunteering. What do u guys think? Will it be enough to get in? Assuming >20 on dat.

F in bio is very bad. Dental admissions will question this F in bio and will most definitely ask you why you got an F during interviews. Science GPA is also on the low end. You should try to raise it to 3.4 to have a decent chance of getting in. To be honest, your DAT score is what could get you into dental school. However, it might still not be enough because the dental admissions will want to know that you can handle dental school since it's twice the credit hours in undergrad. If you can't handle even general bio, they might be hesitant to accept you because it's risky and they don't want you to drop out. My advice would be to retake biology or do REALLY well (like get all A's) on upper level science courses like biochem, microbio, anatomy, physiology to boost your GPA. However, I don't know if your school is just really hard or average so dental schools might consider this as they are making their decisions.

Overall just try and raise that GPA and kill the DAT. If all goes well, I believe you still have a shot at getting in. Just apply to lots of schools (10-15) and pick safe schools too as well as a couple of competitive ones. Good luck!

 

[Ravi@hunter]

I'm applying to like 12 schools. There are only 4 in NY. Would love to get into stony brook or buffalo because it's cheap. Do u mind sharing which schools u are applying to? I just randomly picked schools when I was registering for the dat.

 

[Ravi@hunter]

F in bio is very bad. Dental admissions will question this F in bio and will most definitely ask you why you got an F during interviews. Science GPA is also on the low end. You should try to raise it to 3.4 to have a decent chance of getting in. To be honest, your DAT score is what could get you into dental school. However, it might still not be enough because the dental admissions will want to know that you can handle dental school since it's twice the credit hours in undergrad. If you can't handle even general bio, they might be hesitant to accept you because it's risky and they don't want you to drop out. My advice would be to retake biology or do REALLY well (like get all A's) on upper level science courses like biochem, microbio, anatomy, physiology to boost your GPA. However, I don't know if your school is just really hard or average so dental schools might consider this as they are making their decisions.

Overall just try and raise that GPA and kill the DAT. If all goes well, I believe you still have a shot at getting in. Just apply to lots of schools (10-15) and pick safe schools too as well as a couple of competitive ones. Good luck!

Yea I know it's bad but I took biochem and got an A. I did bad my first year. But after that I have an upward trend with A+ in both orgo and physics.

 

[dauntless123]

Yea I know it's bad but I took biochem and got an A. I did bad my first year. But after that I have an upward trend with A+ in both orgo and physics.

The upward trend is good. If you keep constantly doing well in upper level courses, then you should be fine. Just make sure you have a legit answer when they ask you during interviews why you got an F in bio.