December OAT Experience

[tastyshuffles]

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Wrote my OAT on 12/20/2018
Score: 360TS/340AA
Individual Score Sections:

QR: 340
RC: 280
BIO: 360
GC: 350
OC: 400
PHYS: 310​

Study Timeline: Late August - Mid December
Materials Used: 2017-2018 Kaplan Book, 2-free Kaplan tests, Chad's Videos (Physics, Gen chem. & Organic Chem), defeatthedat.com (helpful for math), DAT bootcamp (free version only), and youtube.
Practice exams: Kaplan-1, Kaplan-2, ADA (non-timed)

Brief section breakdown:

Biology: Basically need to know as much as you can for this section in order to logically pick the correct answer. Questions are random and topics are scattered.
General chem: Straight forward. Just understand the concepts and the math and memorize some key equations. Nothing there to trick you.
Organic chem: Do focus on reactions. Memorize the reactions, but also you must UNDERSTAND them. If you understand the reactions then this section will be straight forward. But also be diligent with understanding naming, stereo-chemistry, and techniques (HNMR, CNMR, etc.).
Reading comprehension: I'm generally a slow reader because it takes time for me to process the information and I have to constantly re-read sections (how I actually study new concepts) and that showed in my score. Either way, search and destroy can work most of the time. Passages weren't bad. I'm just slow.
Physics: Not bad. ~50/50 conceptual and equations. Compared to Kaplan physics, it is much more doable in terms of the math. Try to understand every concept for this section to reach over the 300 mark. I actually memorized all the equations which isn't necessary but helped me in recalling them quickly for the big main equations.
Quantitative Reasoning: This section was pretty doable. A lot of it was straight forward. I marked all the questions with long sentences and did the ones I knew I could do. Went back to the ones I marked and had just about enough time to complete each question.​

Now, each exam is different and your experience can deviate from mine. If anyone has questions about studying or the exam then ask away! However, questions about what was specifically asked on each section I will not give away due to copyrights and to be fair for other test takers. But I can tell you what concepts to focus on more for each section.

 

[optometry12345]

Hi,

I am struggling with the physics and have started going through Chad's lessons for physics. What were the large sections/topics examined? I feel as though Chad's videos are too in depth and cover too many concepts then what I will be tested on. I'd appreciate your feedback very much! Thank you and congrats!!

 

[tastyshuffles]

Chad's videos can be in depth in some aspects. However, because it was in depth I felt like I was over prepared for the physics section which I see as a plus because it made the physics section much more doable than I thought prior. Being over prepared can be the best thing you do for this exam just because it can make the exam seem less intimidating. Yes, there will be concepts that you will not be tested on, but I believe having a good round exposure to many of those concepts that Chad teaches will make you have a better understanding in terms of a birds eye view for this physics section. Also, not every test is the same so I would advise learning as much as you can, but don't overkill it. Chad's videos I thought were sufficient enough for me. Take his videos one at a time. For me, I tried learning 2-3 physics topics a day. Finished learning it in two weeks.

For the large sections/topics examined, a lot of questions asked were related to kinematics. I would advise to remember the kinematics equations and UNDERSTAND them and where to apply it. Optics was one of the big ones too. I also remember D.C circuits being on there. Energy and momentum are some big ones also along with electrostatics. I don't recall magnetism being on there for my version. Fluid statics is there also. And yes, 50/50 conceptual and equations. Mostly using 1-2 steps for equation solving which was so much easier than Kaplan. These are what I remember as the BIG sections tested. However, I would still try to know all sections along with all the equations just to be safe because you don't know what you'll be getting on your version compared to mine. Hopes this helps! If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask them! And good luck 🙂

 

[optometry12345]

Hello! I'm also wondering about best practices for studying BIO for the OAT. I am using the Kaplan book. Did many of you also use flashcards?

 

[tastyshuffles]

Hello! I'm also wondering about best practices for studying BIO for the OAT. I am using the Kaplan book. Did many of you also use flashcards?

For me, because I was a Biochem major I already had all the concepts for the Bio section learned during my undergrad year, so I didn't use a lot of resources when it came to studying the OAT BIO section. However, learning those concepts in undergrad I did use a lot of flash cards for myself (the online quizlet flash cards) and used a lot of crash course and youtube videos for many of the concepts covered in the Bio section of the OAT. The best practice for the bio section is to learn as much as you can and learn beyond what is said in kaplan since it's just an overview. I heard DAT bootcamp, Bio destroyer notes, or Feralis bio notes are good resources.

 

[OptometryInterested]

Do you get a calculator to use for the physics or QR section?

If not how did you get through these sections without one?

 

[tastyshuffles]

Do you get a calculator to use for the physics or QR section?

If not how did you get through these sections without one?

There is a simple digital calculator that you can access once you get to those sections. Honestly was useful for some of the questions I had.