SloppyJoe said:
The question of ethics has been raised, and in my huimble opinion, I don't think there is a problem at all. Bascicall, I am comfortable w/ my score everywhere, except maybe UOP and some Cali schools. With that said, I am planning to apply w/ my orginal DAT, and I think its my perogative to send the second DAT if I choose to. My situation is different since most people taking the DAT over again have to raise it or else they won't get into dental school.
I am pretty confident I can rasie my PAT score, since that was my only weak point. It just takes the pressure off if in the case i don't do as well, I don't jeopardize my application for all the other schools that would be fine w/ my current DAT. I don't think AADSA requires you to report the most current score, while I am pretty sure they ask for the most recent transcripts from all the schools you have attended.
Sxr: Thanks for your trouble, I have all the intention to do well on this test. I just wanted to minimize the risk of taking the test over again.
I have your answer for you: AADSAS did not have any of my DAT scores on the official copy of the application they sent me. This means that they do not directly communicate scores to AADSAS. From what you learned by calling the ADA, I think then disclosing your scores is purely voluntary.
Whether not showing schools your scores is right or wrong or acceptable or unacceptable would just depend on the policy of the school in question. I suppose that if a school had a policy that you must disclose all attempts on the DAT, then it would be wise to do so. If the school does not have such a policy, then perhaps you can save your $10 and allow them to evaluate you based on the performance you have already exhibited. Personally I prefer to play things safe, because of those little horror stories (true or not - I don't know) where things on some obscure application surface years later and diciplinary action gets taken.
Well, really the point of my post is that unlike the SAT where there are statistics regarding whether a person with a certain score will do better or worse in a future administration, and where a high score creates a high probability of getting a lower score, the DAT does not work that way.
Let me set up a scenario for you. You register for the test on a date say 4 weeks from now. You have the ability to reschedule upto a few days before the test, and you can cancel the test at any time. Now with your scores on the DAT, lets say you were getting 19s on Top Score (which can reflect 21s on the real test depending on the section). If during that month you start testing at 22 on your Top Score or Kaplan, you can take the test with full confidence that you will get a higher score. This is because it is not aptitude test like the SAT, but it is a set of subject tests. Dramatic improvements can be made in relatively short periods of time. If you find yourself testing at the same levels as you did before or without the improvement you want, just cancel and call it a day. I believe that you have nothing to lose.
I will not downplay the fact that retaking the test after getting a high score is not a very pleasant thing to contemplate. There's always this fear of doing worse, and this fear is greater the higher your original score is. I do think that you can give it a shot without any risk, whether or not you have to send the updated scores to schools. I say no risk, because of your option to cancel if you don't see the improvement you want. I know you lose $175, but in the larger scheme of things it isn't much.
If you hadn't mentioned UOP, I would probably tell you to just call it a day right now. I think you stand a good chance at UOP as it stands, but if you have your heart set on the school, then you should do whatever it takes to go there. Be confident and good luck.
