Hey, so I took the DAT yesterday, thought I'd relay the experience for you guys.
00 Score %
PA 23 94.7
QR 27 99.6
RC 28 99.7
BG 24 99.1
GC 28 99.0
OC 29 99.3
TS 26 99.6
AA 27 100.0
Idk, what do you think guys, retake?
Ehhh, just kidding haha. There was a lot of luck here I wouldn't bet on replicating.
Test Experience: I didn't expect a score back immediately after I finished the last problem. So that was a shock. It was certainly a nice pick me up after a long day. Those headphones suck, a lot. It was better not to wear them because my head started hurting. It was pretty quiet anyway.
During the tutorial, you are NOT allowed to write down anything (including hole-punch/cube-count grids), but I had an incredible amount of time left after going through the science section once (like 45 min) so no worries there. I was under time pressure for PA, and 5 more minutes would have helped a ton. Prepare for it before hand definitely.
I felt the best immediately after doing Orgo (waaay overstudied), Math, and Reading sections. Bio I had minor regrets. I felt terrible after PA, but figured I would do about average there.
The test itself was a collection of questions (I had expected more structure, but I suppose since people take it every week that's not possible). Many of the questions are redundant (You know how in math destroyer the last test has 5 hypotheses questions? like that). Maybe that was just a coincidence for me.
Study Plan: I began during my three week winter break, but I didn't end up doing much studying at all until the later half of January. I read Cliffs sections, practiced a bit of PA, watched Chad's, focused more on 18 hours of school though. Two weeks before test was crunch time. Maybe 5-7 hours each day?
I used: Cliff's Bio, Chad's Videos, Crack DAT PAT, DATqvault, DAT destroyer, Math destroyer, Achiever (3 test). I got random outlines/reaction summary pages from the internet/orgo text book (solomons), and read up on basic math stuff online too.
Bio: Read a lot and go through a ton of questions. The questions I missed were over topics I figured wouldn't really be covered, and there really weren't any thought-intensive questions here. Don't read over your hormone's list or glycolysis pathway for the fifth time. Look at something new. Just skimming through your bio text's glossary hoping things stick isn't a bad idea, maybe. Go through questions in destroyer/datqvault/whatever. You will get moments of de ja vu on test day.
Chem: Pretty forgettable section. I didn't contribute much time here beyond Chad's on quick speed. Best thing is to have equations memorized as well as basic concepts. Take your time with the calculations/do unit analysis/consider the wrong answers. I don't think anyone should feel pressed during the science section.
Orgo: Very basic stuff. I feel like I could have just stopped at first semester orgo and have been okay. Chad's is nice, but destroyer is the best way to prepare for this, as well as datqvault I suppose. Memorize the road maps.
PA: One regret. CDP doesn't fully prepare you, I must say. There were hole punch folds I didn't know could happen and shapes oriented in ways I couldn't comprehend. I never took the achiever PATs so maybe that helps. I found cubes/angles/foldings to be easy. I suppose this section allows for many mistakes though.
Math: Understand a wide breadth of concepts and memorize all the basic equations, obviously. Only conversions I needed to know where culturally obvious. Math was slightly time intensive, couldn't review every answer, but got the job done.
Reading: I don't think anyone should struggle much with time here. I read each passage half-heartedly (except one I found interesting). There weren't any "general idea" questions so search-and-destroy works just fine. Some questions could be answer by solely prior knowledge.
I could go a bit more in detail if anyone cares, but I'm not sure how far it's acceptable to divulge. I hope I'm not saying too much as is?
Anyways, yeah! I'm very happy to have this past me.
00 Score %
PA 23 94.7
QR 27 99.6
RC 28 99.7
BG 24 99.1
GC 28 99.0
OC 29 99.3
TS 26 99.6
AA 27 100.0
Idk, what do you think guys, retake?
Ehhh, just kidding haha. There was a lot of luck here I wouldn't bet on replicating.
Test Experience: I didn't expect a score back immediately after I finished the last problem. So that was a shock. It was certainly a nice pick me up after a long day. Those headphones suck, a lot. It was better not to wear them because my head started hurting. It was pretty quiet anyway.
During the tutorial, you are NOT allowed to write down anything (including hole-punch/cube-count grids), but I had an incredible amount of time left after going through the science section once (like 45 min) so no worries there. I was under time pressure for PA, and 5 more minutes would have helped a ton. Prepare for it before hand definitely.
I felt the best immediately after doing Orgo (waaay overstudied), Math, and Reading sections. Bio I had minor regrets. I felt terrible after PA, but figured I would do about average there.
The test itself was a collection of questions (I had expected more structure, but I suppose since people take it every week that's not possible). Many of the questions are redundant (You know how in math destroyer the last test has 5 hypotheses questions? like that). Maybe that was just a coincidence for me.
Study Plan: I began during my three week winter break, but I didn't end up doing much studying at all until the later half of January. I read Cliffs sections, practiced a bit of PA, watched Chad's, focused more on 18 hours of school though. Two weeks before test was crunch time. Maybe 5-7 hours each day?
I used: Cliff's Bio, Chad's Videos, Crack DAT PAT, DATqvault, DAT destroyer, Math destroyer, Achiever (3 test). I got random outlines/reaction summary pages from the internet/orgo text book (solomons), and read up on basic math stuff online too.
Bio: Read a lot and go through a ton of questions. The questions I missed were over topics I figured wouldn't really be covered, and there really weren't any thought-intensive questions here. Don't read over your hormone's list or glycolysis pathway for the fifth time. Look at something new. Just skimming through your bio text's glossary hoping things stick isn't a bad idea, maybe. Go through questions in destroyer/datqvault/whatever. You will get moments of de ja vu on test day.
Chem: Pretty forgettable section. I didn't contribute much time here beyond Chad's on quick speed. Best thing is to have equations memorized as well as basic concepts. Take your time with the calculations/do unit analysis/consider the wrong answers. I don't think anyone should feel pressed during the science section.
Orgo: Very basic stuff. I feel like I could have just stopped at first semester orgo and have been okay. Chad's is nice, but destroyer is the best way to prepare for this, as well as datqvault I suppose. Memorize the road maps.
PA: One regret. CDP doesn't fully prepare you, I must say. There were hole punch folds I didn't know could happen and shapes oriented in ways I couldn't comprehend. I never took the achiever PATs so maybe that helps. I found cubes/angles/foldings to be easy. I suppose this section allows for many mistakes though.
Math: Understand a wide breadth of concepts and memorize all the basic equations, obviously. Only conversions I needed to know where culturally obvious. Math was slightly time intensive, couldn't review every answer, but got the job done.
Reading: I don't think anyone should struggle much with time here. I read each passage half-heartedly (except one I found interesting). There weren't any "general idea" questions so search-and-destroy works just fine. Some questions could be answer by solely prior knowledge.
I could go a bit more in detail if anyone cares, but I'm not sure how far it's acceptable to divulge. I hope I'm not saying too much as is?
Anyways, yeah! I'm very happy to have this past me.
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Hehe, good luck!
