DAT finished 7/31...but DEFINITE retake :(

[NuckingFutz]

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So, I guess luck wasn't on my side today when I took my test. I managed to stay calm throughout the whole test but I knew that after the sciences, it was probably gonna turn out bad... I just didn't know it was gonna be THAT bad.

My scores suck a lot, so I won't even bother with a breakdown:

PAT:19
QR:16 (Figures...)
RC:21
Bio:20
GC:15 😡 NO idea what happened (wish this was at least an 18)
OC: 19

TS: 18
AA: 18

I really appreciate SDN, its extremely helpful and I probably would've done a lot worse without it. I'm just really bummed about that GC... I probably got HALF of them wrong and I can't really think of any reason for it. If I had gotten at least a 17, my AA would've been at least a 19 🙁

Since my GPA sucks so much I know that my chances are practically nil...BUT if I even bother with a retake, I don't know whether or not it'll be worthwhile (since it'll be NOVEMBER!)

The only thing I have going for me are my LORs and Extracurriculars (which I think are excellent). Unfortunately I doubt that my app will make it past the first round with my crap GPA and DAT for me to capitalize on it.

I know I need to retake, but will it be in time for this cycle? Because if not, I don't know if I should just wait until next year... I should probably also take additional classes, but would it be sufficient to take upper level post bacc courses or do I absolutely need to get a masters? (I loathe the thought of taking the GRE...)

Sorry for the uninformative post guys, just had to rant a bit.

Thanks for your support everyone!

 

[DCRedskinsRule]

Sorry man! Best of luck on your retake! And your scores really arent that bad at all! they're right around average so if you have a super GPA and EC's you might be able to squeak by, but a retake with a 15 on GC is probably the best idea. Hope it all works out! 👍

 

[osimsDDS]

nice job for first time, i suggest a retake just because of the 15 in GC. How long did you study for??? When i took the DAT the first time i got about the same scores (studied for 3 weeks). Then took it again studying 2 months with a lot of other materials and jumped my score up by a whole lot. So there is HOPE!!!! Just study hard and re-take in 3 months....your RC is very nice

 

[NuckingFutz]

My studying lasted probably a little over a month (last several weeks was more focused). The thing bugging me is the gchem score... I was really rocking the destroyer gchem section so I was completely shocked when I found out I got a 15 in it 🙁

My biggest problem right now is whether or not to retake it for THIS cycle. The earliest time I can retake is probably Nov 1st, which is super late. I'm contemplating just waiting it out and hoping that some schools will show some mercy and overlook my terrible stats and look at the rest of my app (crazy I know). The rest of my app has been complete for a while now and to suddenly be thrown to the bottom of the pile while waiting for my updated DAT score doesn't seem very favorable.

Any comments would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Danny289]

My studying lasted probably a little over a month (last several weeks was more focused). The thing bugging me is the gchem score... I was really rocking the destroyer gchem section so I was completely shocked when I found out I got a 15 in it 🙁

My biggest problem right now is whether or not to retake it for THIS cycle. The earliest time I can retake is probably Nov 1st, which is super late. I'm contemplating just waiting it out and hoping that some schools will show some mercy and overlook my terrible stats and look at the rest of my app (crazy I know). The rest of my app has been complete for a while now and to suddenly be thrown to the bottom of the pile while waiting for my updated DAT score doesn't seem very favorable.

Any comments would be greatly appreciated!

I emailed to one of Dental schools about my low reading score( my TS=20 and AA=19). they told me it is very possible we ask you retake DAT for increasing that low score. IMO, maybe it is better for us be ready for retaking when they ask us.

 

[alanan84]

So do you have any idea what you messed up on in Gen chem? That section scares me more then any other. (since I know my QR score is going to suck!) So yeah, what will you do differently for gen chem?

 

[NuckingFutz]

Well, I would make sure to cover MORE material (more resources). Some of the stuff I saw wasn't in destroyer or kaplan (can't recall what). It depends on the test they throw at you. If I got stuff I recognized, I wouldn't be in this predictament -_-