DAT Questions!! Please reply!

[tstarz]

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Hey!
I'm taking my DATs in a few days and I was just wondering to those who have recently taken it....
Is chemistry more conceptual or quantitative? (are the calculations very serious?)
how is orgo?
is bio really detailed?
do you have enough time to finish PAT?
are the passages okay?

basically i'm just getting nervous and wanted some last minutes tips and clarifications..thanks

 

[wizardsradio]

I actually just took the DAT this morning! So our tests will probably be similar

Is chemistry more conceptual or quantitative? (are the calculations very serious?)
- I thought this section was about even. The math was easier, the conceptual questions were actually harder for me since I just had time to study equations. The Kaplan chemistry is pretty accurate- I scored +1 on the real thing for this section.
how is orgo?
- I actually only had 1st semester orgo, and only had 3 weeks to study overall but this is definitely the most straight forward section. Again, Kaplan was accurate- I scored +1
is bio really detailed?
-If you have had higher level bio (especially physio recently) I think it would make a HUGE difference in the amount you need to study. I did kaplan practice tests and Topscore and the real bio section seemed slightly harder (Not as many straight forward q's.)
do you have enough time to finish PAT?
-If you have practiced with CDP you will be fine. All sections were similar to CDP... the hole punches were actually a little easier on real PAT.
are the passages okay
-I'm assuming you're talking about RC. From what ive seen you will get two science related passages and one random one. If you are lucky you will get a science one you know a little about and can answer a few without reading. My passages did not seem hard at all. The only practice I got for this was practice tests. I just skimmed the passages and got a 20 without much work.

Overall if you are doing practice tests and scoring where you want you will be fine. It really depends on what kind of score you want. I think in general my topscore and Kaplan gen chem/ orgo sections improved about 2 points. My bio was consistent with both kaplan and topscore. CDP is best for PAT. I think my best advice is not to get freaked out if your first couple of bio questions is totally random as mine were (dont let it affect the rest of your science sections)

 

[nze82]

Hey!
I'm taking my DATs in a few days and I was just wondering to those who have recently taken it....
Is chemistry more conceptual or quantitative? (are the calculations very serious?)
In my case a good 80% was calculation-based.
how is orgo?
Mostly reaction-oriented rather than conceptual.
is bio really detailed?
It's more random than detail. I read both KAPLAN and Cliff's and there were still questions I was clueless about.
do you have enough time to finish PAT?
If you have enough practice, you'll end up with at least 10 mins of extra time on your hands.
are the passages okay?
Define "OK." Do you mean easy? Then the answer is NO! Do you mean doable? Then the answer is Yes! Very much so...
basically i'm just getting nervous and wanted some last minutes tips and clarifications..thanks

It's more than normal to freak out before the test. However, try to find a way to relax ASAP. You don't wanna start that test while you're freaked out!

 

[maggot13]

Hey!
I'm taking my DATs in a few days and I was just wondering to those who have recently taken it....
Is chemistry more conceptual or quantitative? (are the calculations very serious?)
how is orgo?
is bio really detailed?
do you have enough time to finish PAT?
are the passages okay?

basically i'm just getting nervous and wanted some last minutes tips and clarifications..thanks

I took the DAT on this Monday so my brain is still quite fresh with the DAT experience (I better type it down before I relax too much and forget all about it lol) Anyhoo...

In my case, chemistry was about half conceptual and half quantitative. The calculations were not that serious, but definitely need to know the major formulas and know how to apply them to each other.

Organic chemistry was straight forward. Definitely know the basics concepts. I was surprised that I did better in org chem (22; my major weakness) than in bio (20; my major strength). Practice a lot on reactions and all the questions you can get will help.

Biology was.. , well, I guess for most of students would think it was detailed, but I have graduate level of science education, especially in cell molecular biology, it wasn't too bad for me, but I thought I would have gotten a better score.

PAT - like others here already mentioned, CDP and sufficient practices will help the time management. and yes, the hole punches section was easier on the real DAT. But the angles were just as difficult as the ones from CDP. I always have enough time to finish PAT because I am good at it, especially with lots of practices on CDP, sometimes you may even develop your own tricks to cut time shorter to solve a question.

RC - the passages were okay... at the time my brain was impatient (this usually happen to me when it comes to RC section) so I couldn't focus well even though the topics of all three passages are what I am familiar of. Mine were all biology-related: anatomy, cell molecular, and science research. I didn't have enough time to read the last passage (took too much time from the first two passages due to lack of focus on reading) but my research experience helped me answered the rest of questions for the last passage without reading beyond 2-3 paragraphs. Lucky, I must say. Got a 19.

Relax on the day before of the test. Go over formulas if you would want. About one hour before my test, I did meditation to calm down and focus because my heart was racing too much. I really didn't want to go to the testing center nervous and screw up and then have to retake again. So be sure to feel fully awake and focus when you take the test. Good luck to you on the DAT!