DAT Retake advice HELP

[nayelisalvares]

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Hi,

I just took my DAT and a made a 14 AA. (I'm very embarrassed of even posting this, but I feel like I need some desperate help).
I know it is super low.... I don't know what happen.. I studied for about 2-3 months with some breaks in between due to family issues. I used Chad's videos and took all the quizzes, DAT destroyer (did about a 100 questions for each section), Bootcamp (did 4 individual test for each section), I read cliff Bio book (3rd edition) twice.
My scores on Bootcamp were about the same as my real DAT score, except for Bio... but since I postpone the date of the exam so many times, I though that I was never going to take it... so yeah I took it and scrub up!
I feel really bad right know and discourage, I don't know if I'm dumb, stupid or just didn't know how to study the right way. As you all know, I have to wait 3 months to re-take my DAT, so I was wondering if you can give me any advice. I was trying to look for someone who has retake the DAT (kind to be in the same situation as me) and had improve, but I couldn't find any post. Just to mention, English is my second language.

Here are the breakdown of my scores:
Perceptual ability - 17
Quantitative reasoning - 13
Reading Comprehension - 15
Biology - 15
General Chemistry - 16
Organic Chemistry - 12
Total Science - 14
Academics Average - 14

Any advice would help & thanks in advance :'(

 

[939959]

Hi,

I just took my DAT and a made a 14 AA. (I'm very embarrassed of even posting this, but I feel like I need some desperate help).
I know it is super low.... I don't know what happen.. I studied for about 2-3 months with some breaks in between due to family issues. I used Chad's videos and took all the quizzes, DAT destroyer (did about a 100 questions for each section), Bootcamp (did 4 individual test for each section), I read cliff Bio book (3rd edition) twice.
My scores on Bootcamp were about the same as my real DAT score, except for Bio... but since I postpone the date of the exam so many times, I though that I was never going to take it... so yeah I took it and scrub up!
I feel really bad right know and discourage, I don't know if I'm dumb, stupid or just didn't know how to study the right way. As you all know, I have to wait 3 months to re-take my DAT, so I was wondering if you can give me any advice. I was trying to look for someone who has retake the DAT (kind to be in the same situation as me) and had improve, but I couldn't find any post. Just to mention, English is my second language.

Here are the breakdown of my scores:
Perceptual ability - 17
Quantitative reasoning - 13
Reading Comprehension - 15
Biology - 15
General Chemistry - 16
Organic Chemistry - 12
Total Science - 14
Academics Average - 14

Any advice would help & thanks in advance :'(

Never give up on your dreams, and you are not stupid because you didn’t do well on one test! Just shrug it off and try again! I recommend going back to DAT Destroyer for the sciences and math and using DAT Bootcamp’s PAT generator. For Destroyer, use this EVERYDAY, KNOW IT LIKE THE BACK OF YOUR HAND. Just study hard everyday, cumulatively, and you will definitely improve! For RC, I recommend reading Scientific American articles as often as possible, or just anything that appeals to you (definitely a good way to practice your English!). Last, don’t be nervous during the test, be confident!!! I think you might have just had a bad test day, and it is no reason to lose hope. Like I stated earlier, just push through all the material again, don’t memorize but UNDERSTAND IT.

I only took the DAT once and scored well, but throughout my life, I have always been a bad test taker (I took the SAT 3 times and never improved and never broke 1700). Granted, I never really studied that hard until the DAT. Use this experience as motivation to do better next time! Please let me know if you have specific questions, and I will do my best to answer them!

 

[AppalachianDentalBoy]

You are not stupid please don't beat up on yourself. You just studied ineffectively. You need to take a hard look at why you got your scores and try to iron out a new plan. There are some good retake study plans on here and I'd recommend browsing them to see how the poster improved.

 

[nayelisalvares]

Never give up on your dreams, and you are not stupid because you didn’t do well on one test! Just shrug it off and try again! I recommend going back to DAT Destroyer for the sciences and math and using DAT Bootcamp’s PAT generator. For Destroyer, use this EVERYDAY, KNOW IT LIKE THE BACK OF YOUR HAND. Just study hard everyday, cumulatively, and you will definitely improve! For RC, I recommend reading Scientific American articles as often as possible, or just anything that appeals to you (definitely a good way to practice your English!). Last, don’t be nervous during the test, be confident!!! I think you might have just had a bad test day, and it is no reason to lose hope. Like I stated earlier, just push through all the material again, don’t memorize but UNDERSTAND IT.

I only took the DAT once and scored well, but throughout my life, I have always been a bad test taker (I took the SAT 3 times and never improved and never broke 1700). Granted, I never really studied that hard until the DAT. Use this experience as motivation to do better next time! Please let me know if you have specific questions, and I will do my best to answer them!

Thank you so much for taking the time to give me some advices.. It definitively made feel better 🙂

 

[nayelisalvares]

You are not stupid please don't beat up on yourself. You just studied ineffectively. You need to take a hard look at why you got your scores and try to iron out a new plan. There are some good retake study plans on here and I'd recommend browsing them to see how the poster improved.

Thank you. I will try to find a more efficient way to study and try to improve my scores next time 🙂

 

[lwergod]

hmm. not to be a downer, but you're going to have to make drastic improvements in your study methods if you want a decent score.

 

[shinebright88]

Hi,

I just took my DAT and a made a 14 AA. (I'm very embarrassed of even posting this, but I feel like I need some desperate help).
I know it is super low.... I don't know what happen.. I studied for about 2-3 months with some breaks in between due to family issues. I used Chad's videos and took all the quizzes, DAT destroyer (did about a 100 questions for each section), Bootcamp (did 4 individual test for each section), I read cliff Bio book (3rd edition) twice.
My scores on Bootcamp were about the same as my real DAT score, except for Bio... but since I postpone the date of the exam so many times, I though that I was never going to take it... so yeah I took it and scrub up!
I feel really bad right know and discourage, I don't know if I'm dumb, stupid or just didn't know how to study the right way. As you all know, I have to wait 3 months to re-take my DAT, so I was wondering if you can give me any advice. I was trying to look for someone who has retake the DAT (kind to be in the same situation as me) and had improve, but I couldn't find any post. Just to mention, English is my second language.

Here are the breakdown of my scores:
Perceptual ability - 17
Quantitative reasoning - 13
Reading Comprehension - 15
Biology - 15
General Chemistry - 16
Organic Chemistry - 12
Total Science - 14
Academics Average - 14

Any advice would help & thanks in advance :'(

Hey, I also retook my DAT so I feel your pain. Because your scores have to be improved drastically I would give yourself more than 3 months before you attempt to retake it. I think it would be best to start with content and a good foundation building. I would suggest reading bootcamp's biology notes and taking active notes about them, flashcards worked best for me because of the constant review. If that is not your cup of tea, Dr. Romano also has notes in his study group on facebook for biology. After that, bootcamp has chemistry videos from Dr. Mike (since you used Chad's last time). For Organic chemistry, I would get Organic Chemistry as a second language (read it twice to build a good foundation, watch Dr. Mike's+Chad's videos and take those quizzes). For QR, I would use Khan Academy videos or other youtube videos. Lastly for RC, read a science article everyday so you get used to reading them. Take the bootcamp tests for RC and you'll soon see the type of questions that are asked so you can read to look for them. Good luck and you've got this! It's all about finding the method that works best for you!

 

[Elusive011]

English is my first language, but its been a while since ive taken chem and orgo (i had to relearn everything). Im writing in a month. You're not dumb or stupid, this test is hard. BTW, i also used cliffs ap bio instead of bootcamps bio notes. I regret it, romano (orgoman) released his notes when i was half way through cliffs. I went with cliffs at first because bootcamp to me anyway, seemed like it had too many pages. It was way harder to read while actually retaining large amounts of information. I regret not switching to romanos notes earlier. Hes been teaching for over 20 years, he knows whats required for the DAT and breaks it down. Its also easier to read because many of his students are international. Give it a look for your next go at it. Ive been studying for over 5 months now, give yourself the time to absorb the info, also join their study group on facebook, the group is very helpful and romano himself puts out daily questions. NEVER GIVE UP

Quitters never win and winners never quit. Keep pushing yourself. You'll come back with a vengeance, I'm sure of it.

 

[nayelisalvares]

Hey, I also retook my DAT so I feel your pain. Because your scores have to be improved drastically I would give yourself more than 3 months before you attempt to retake it. I think it would be best to start with content and a good foundation building. I would suggest reading bootcamp's biology notes and taking active notes about them, flashcards worked best for me because of the constant review. If that is not your cup of tea, Dr. Romano also has notes in his study group on facebook for biology. After that, bootcamp has chemistry videos from Dr. Mike (since you used Chad's last time). For Organic chemistry, I would get Organic Chemistry as a second language (read it twice to build a good foundation, watch Dr. Mike's+Chad's videos and take those quizzes). For QR, I would use Khan Academy videos or other youtube videos. Lastly for RC, read a science article everyday so you get used to reading them. Take the bootcamp tests for RC and you'll soon see the type of questions that are asked so you can read to look for them. Good luck and you've got this! It's all about finding the method that works best for you!

Thanks for the advice 🙂

 

[nayelisalvares]

English is my first language, but its been a while since ive taken chem and orgo (i had to relearn everything). Im writing in a month. You're not dumb or stupid, this is test is hard. BTW, i also used cliffs ap bio instead of bootcamps bio notes. I regret it, romano (orgoman) released his notes when i was half way through cliffs. I went with cliffs at first because bootcamp to me anyway, seemed like it had too many pages. It was way harder to read while actually retaining large amounts of information. I regret not switching to romanos notes earlier. Hes been teaching for over 20 years, he knows whats required for the DAT and breaks it down. Its also easier to read because many of his students are international. Give it a look for your next go at it. Ive been studying for over 5 months now, give yourself the time to absorb the info, also join their study group on facebook, the group is very helpful and romano himself puts out daily questions. NEVER GIVE UP

Quitters never win and winners never quit. Keep pushing yourself. You'll come back with a vengeance, I'm sure of it.

Honestly, the cliffs Bio book didn't help at all on the exam... the questions I got on my DAT had nothing to do with the information that was presented in that book. I'm definitively thinking using Dr. Romanos or Bootcamp notes this time instead, or maybe both. I just joined Dr. Romano's study group on Facebook. Thanks for your kind words 🙂

 

[Dandoonboy]

First off, this may be hard to do but do NOT let one exam define who you are.

Bentley13 made a really good breakdown of what to use to study for the DAT. Everyone studies at a different pace but I believe 3 months is a good amount of time to go over all the science material once, finish all the material in the DAT destroyer/ Math Destroyer, complete all the bootcamp tests, and still be able to review the material you need to.

DAT Done: 25AA, 24 TS, 25 PAT; 3 week study Schedule

After studying all the material, you really need to get a feel for how questions are asked and expected to be answered. I believe bootcamp really masters this through the practice tests.