DAT PAT sections VS Bootcamp

[amaghsou]

Hey guys,

I have my DAT in about 4 weeks and I have a question from people who have recently completed the DAT.

For the PAT section, I have been primarily using Bootcamp, as I have heard it is the most "representative" software. In your opinion, how do individual sections on Bootcamp compare to the real DAT as far as difficulty?

I have been averaging 18-19 on my exams but my weakest sections on Bootcamp have been Angle and Pattern Folding. I average 4/15 on angles (6/15 on a good day) and average 3/15 on patterns because I usually run out of time so I guess all of the patterns.

For you who have taken the DAT recently, do you feel like angles is as "difficult" as Bootcamp? I seriously feel like I'm guessing on them. I've used Kaplan and 2007 DAT and averaged 11/15. What sections do you feel like I should be conserving more time to have more time on the pattern folding?

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[rolltide15]

I haven't taken the exam yet but my advice would be to do your best sections of PAT first and then save those two for last so you are spending the majority of your time on good areas and if you have to guess on your bad areas then guess. It has worked for me (Angles kill me) So I usually save them for last and get all my points before I even look at them! I would try if you can too to get Crack DAT PAT. I think those exams are harder than bootcamp it might just be me but I'd rather see harder material now then get blindsided on the real exam!

 

[redhotchiligochu]

Hey guys,

I have my DAT in about 4 weeks and I have a question from people who have recently completed the DAT.

For the PAT section, I have been primarily using Bootcamp, as I have heard it is the most "representative" software. In your opinion, how do individual sections on Bootcamp compare to the real DAT as far as difficulty?

I have been averaging 18-19 on my exams but my weakest sections on Bootcamp have been Angle and Pattern Folding. I average 4/15 on angles (6/15 on a good day) and average 3/15 on patterns because I usually run out of time so I guess all of the patterns.

For you who have taken the DAT recently, do you feel like angles is as "difficult" as Bootcamp? I seriously feel like I'm guessing on them. I've used Kaplan and 2007 DAT and averaged 11/15. What sections do you feel like I should be conserving more time to have more time on the pattern folding?

There was a similar thread on this yesterday, but anyway I'll repeat.

Bootcamp PAT is fairly similar to the actual PAT except for a few things. There are a couple "rock" keyhole questions where it is very difficult to visualize the edges. Angles are fairly easier on the actual DAT in that it is easier to see gaps/spaces in angles. Spend the most time on pattern folding. You will be so exhausted near the end that you want to be able to do those practically in your sleep. Pretend that you need to go through the first 75 questions in around 35-ish minutes just to put extra time pressure on yourself.

Lastly, some of the questions are very blurry. Idk if it's b/c the DAT test makers got lazy but I think the conspiracy theory part of my personality says that they intentionally make it blurry to simulate the difficulty of actually visualizing teeth on a patient. BTW if you're wondering about my credentials, I got a 24 on my PAT last year, so I think I know what I'm talking about.

 

[Denizen]

When I first started practicing for PAT, I was the same as you, getting in to pattern folding with probably five minutes or less left and guessing. The way I fixed this was to practice going as fast as possible on keyholes and TFE. These first two sections are way too easy to spend a lot of time on and you set yourself up for disaster. Try to learn to do each TFE and keyholes in under 45 seconds; if you are taking too long on one, guess.

As far as angles, for me it was the one section that was not improving with practice. I basically accepted that I was going to miss a bunch of angles and just focused on what I could improve.

I found that cube counting was easy for me even the first time I tried it, and hole punching was also easy after watching Ari's link to the "Line of Symmetry" YouTube video. PM me if you need any more tips!

 

[DentalNucleicAcid]

This is what you need for hole punching:

I was getting super frustrated with hole punching at first but this strategy is gold. Rather than trying to guess where the holes will land just by thinking about it conceptually, throw out your conceptual thinking for this part and take it step by step by thinking in terms of lines of symmetry. See the video and you'll know what I mean. Once you nail down the technique, you just need to get your timing down. Do not conceptualize, it's all about lines of symmetry.

I've came up with my own way (at least I think it's my own lol) of trying to visualize angles, it's not super accurate but it helps me get about 9-10 out of 15 angle questions correct on average on bootcamp. I like to think of the angles as sort of like sharp objects. I do this by looking at the angle mostly from the outside rather than the interior, sort of like looking at the angle as a whole object (think of how your teachers taught you in elementary school to think of the "less than" sign as a shark with its mouth closed, this is kind of how I see it). Imagine that you're trying to pick the sharpest object (angle) of the two you're comparing. You ask yourself which one you would prefer, which one looks more appealing to you. The sharper angle is the smaller angle. Nothing special but it helps me a little

 

[amaghsou]

This is what you need for hole punching:

I was getting super frustrated with hole punching at first but this strategy is gold. Rather than trying to guess where the holes will land just by thinking about it conceptually, throw out your conceptual thinking for this part and take it step by step by thinking in terms of lines of symmetry. See the video and you'll know what I mean. Once you nail down the technique, you just need to get your timing down. Do not conceptualize, it's all about lines of symmetry.

I've came up with my own way (at least I think it's my own lol) of trying to visualize angles, it's not super accurate but it helps me get about 9-10 out of 15 angle questions correct on average on bootcamp. I like to think of the angles as sort of like sharp objects. I do this by looking at the angle mostly from the outside rather than the interior, sort of like looking at the angle as a whole object (think of how your teachers taught you in elementary school to think of the "less than" sign as a shark with its mouth closed, this is kind of how I see it). Imagine that you're trying to pick the sharpest object (angle) of the two you're comparing. You ask yourself which one you would prefer, which one looks more appealing to you. The sharper angle is the smaller angle. Nothing special but it helps me a little

Thanks for the help! Yeah, I watched that video a few times before. I am ok with the hole punch, my concern was just between Angles and Pattern folding. I'll try your method for the angle to see if it help! Thank you!

 

[amaghsou]

When I first started practicing for PAT, I was the same as you, getting in to pattern folding with probably five minutes or less left and guessing. The way I fixed this was to practice going as fast as possible on keyholes and TFE. These first two sections are way too easy to spend a lot of time on and you set yourself up for disaster. Try to learn to do each TFE and keyholes in under 45 seconds; if you are taking too long on one, guess.

As far as angles, for me it was the one section that was not improving with practice. I basically accepted that I was going to miss a bunch of angles and just focused on what I could improve.

I found that cube counting was easy for me even the first time I tried it, and hole punching was also easy after watching Ari's link to the "Line of Symmetry" YouTube video. PM me if you need any more tips!

Yeah man, I saw that line of symmetry video before and I think it definitely was great! I get that section done in like 7-8 minutes but like you, I feel like I am totally guessing on the angles. And the problem has been I get some of the Keyholes in about 30 seconds but on the other hand, spend like 2 minutes on one, which kill me at the end. How was your overall average compared to DAT?

 

[amaghsou]

There was a similar thread on this yesterday, but anyway I'll repeat.

Bootcamp PAT is fairly similar to the actual PAT except for a few things. There are a couple "rock" keyhole questions where it is very difficult to visualize the edges. Angles are fairly easier on the actual DAT in that it is easier to see gaps/spaces in angles. Spend the most time on pattern folding. You will be so exhausted near the end that you want to be able to do those practically in your sleep. Pretend that you need to go through the first 75 questions in around 35-ish minutes just to put extra time pressure on yourself.

Lastly, some of the questions are very blurry. Idk if it's b/c the DAT test makers got lazy but I think the conspiracy theory part of my personality says that they intentionally make it blurry to simulate the difficulty of actually visualizing teeth on a patient. BTW if you're wondering about my credentials, I got a 24 on my PAT last year, so I think I know what I'm talking about.

Thank you for the response I appreciate the help! I know that Ari's Bootcamp software is pretty intuitive as far as marking goes. Did you feel like it was the same on the real DAT? Can you skip and entire section and comeback to it at the end?

 

[Flossistan]

For my exam, only keyhole section was harder than bootcamp, but they do throw in simple shapes here and there as well as some rocks. But do not be discouraged. Other sections tend to be easier than bootcamp. My TFE was similar to bootcamp.

I guessed on several keyholes and still ended up with 20.

 

[redhotchiligochu]

Yes marking questions is very similar in the actual DAT compared to BC.

Thank you for the response I appreciate the help! I know that Ari's Bootcamp software is pretty intuitive as far as marking goes. Did you feel like it was the same on the real DAT? Can you skip and entire section and comeback to it at the end?

 

[kaulitza]

Hey guys,

I have my DAT in about 4 weeks and I have a question from people who have recently completed the DAT.

For the PAT section, I have been primarily using Bootcamp, as I have heard it is the most "representative" software. In your opinion, how do individual sections on Bootcamp compare to the real DAT as far as difficulty?

I have been averaging 18-19 on my exams but my weakest sections on Bootcamp have been Angle and Pattern Folding. I average 4/15 on angles (6/15 on a good day) and average 3/15 on patterns because I usually run out of time so I guess all of the patterns.

For you who have taken the DAT recently, do you feel like angles is as "difficult" as Bootcamp? I seriously feel like I'm guessing on them. I've used Kaplan and 2007 DAT and averaged 11/15. What sections do you feel like I should be conserving more time to have more time on the pattern folding?

bootcamp is pretty close. real DAT is probably harder by a little. i had trouble too because i ran out of time, but i just worked faster on the first few sections. they're more obvious on the actual DAT but bootcamp difficulty is good to practice with so on the real one you can work faster.
the pattern section pretty is easy so the score can be easily raised if you work faster on TFE and mostly keyhole.
angles was difficult at first but i figured i could hold my pen/marker close to the screen (don't touch it) and it let me answer most of them accurately.
cube counting is fast as long as you work carefully the first time around. and hole punch is fast too. so no need to worry about those just be careful.

 

[Denizen]

Yeah man, I saw that line of symmetry video before and I think it definitely was great! I get that section done in like 7-8 minutes but like you, I feel like I am totally guessing on the angles. And the problem has been I get some of the Keyholes in about 30 seconds but on the other hand, spend like 2 minutes on one, which kill me at the end. How was your overall average compared to DAT?

I averaged 20-21 on the five DBC tests and got a 21 on the real thing.

As far as skipping, I don't think the review button is available until the last question is complete, so you could probably just skip quickly through all the questions if you wanted the button to come up. You can also right click to strikeout answers on the entire test.

 

[amaghsou]

bootcamp is pretty close. real DAT is probably harder by a little. i had trouble too because i ran out of time, but i just worked faster on the first few sections. they're more obvious on the actual DAT but bootcamp difficulty is good to practice with so on the real one you can work faster.
the pattern section pretty is easy so the score can be easily raised if you work faster on TFE and mostly keyhole.
angles was difficult at first but i figured i could hold my pen/marker close to the screen (don't touch it) and it let me answer most of them accurately.
cube counting is fast as long as you work carefully the first time around. and hole punch is fast too. so no need to worry about those just be careful.

Thank you for the reply! I heard myths that you cannot even "raise" your hand or get close to the screen during the test, so was incorrect? You can use objects to figure out the differences?

 

[amaghsou]

I averaged 20-21 on the five DBC tests and got a 21 on the real thing.

As far as skipping, I don't think the review button is available until the last question is complete, so you could probably just skip quickly through all the questions if you wanted the button to come up. You can also right click to strikeout answers on the entire test.

Thank you! What do you mean by strikeout?

 

[kaulitza]

Thank you for the reply! I heard myths that you cannot even "raise" your hand or get close to the screen during the test, so was incorrect? You can use objects to figure out the differences?

I think it depends on your testing center. for mine, i think i could have even held my whiteboard up to the screen and they wouldn't have minded. but i just held the marker in the air close to the screen to help me.

 

[Denizen]

Thank you! What do you mean by strikeout?

If you right click your mouse, you can "cross out" answer choices that are incorrect, helping you narrow it down.