Did you ever master the destroyer?

[NguyenDDS]

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Hello! 🙂

I'm wondering if anyone ever took the DAT without mastering all of the GC destroyer problems. OR if anyone ever took the DAT with the GC destroyer mastered. And how well did you do on practice tests or the real DAT with that in mind?

I watched Chad's videos (really great btw!), but I'm burnt from DAT destroyer and I am discouraged by how many I still get incorrect.

 

[Teeth12345]

Right there with you. I get the calculation questions in destroyer but when it comes to the conceptual questions, I'm getting a lot wrong. My test is coming up and I'm freaking out. I kinda hope the test is mostly set up calculations

 

[ALffreyDO]

In my opinion, destroyer is waaaayy harder than the actual exam esp with regards to GC and OC. Don't be discouraged b/c you're getting a lot wrong, however, make sure to UNDERSTAND why you got the questions wrong and make sure you grasp those concepts.

I actually did worst in GC of all the subjects on the actual DAT (got a 19) despite feeling prepared for it, and of the sciences I did best on OC (got a 24) despite feeling much more unprepared. I used destroyer for both, but retrospectively my scores were reflective of the amt of problems I did. I did less GC (only about 80 questions) b/c I was getting a lot of em right and didn't think I needed to focus on it as much. I did more OC (almost finished but not quite) b/c I got a lot wrong.

So, I just say do as many problems as you can (aka do all of destroyer) and make sure to understand the problems regardless of what you get right or wrong and you'll be fine! good luck and try not to stress too much!!

 

[NguyenDDS]

In my opinion, destroyer is waaaayy harder than the actual exam esp with regards to GC and OC. Don't be discouraged b/c you're getting a lot wrong, however, make sure to UNDERSTAND why you got the questions wrong and make sure you grasp those concepts.

I actually did worst in GC of all the subjects on the actual DAT (got a 19) despite feeling prepared for it, and of the sciences I did best on OC (got a 24) despite feeling much more unprepared. I used destroyer for both, but retrospectively my scores were reflective of the amt of problems I did. I did less GC (only about 80 questions) b/c I was getting a lot of em right and didn't think I needed to focus on it as much. I did more OC (almost finished but not quite) b/c I got a lot wrong.

So, I just say do as many problems as you can (aka do all of destroyer) and make sure to understand the problems regardless of what you get right or wrong and you'll be fine! good luck and try not to stress too much!!

Aww thanks ALffreyDO, that makes me and probably others feel much better! What did you use to study GC and OC? I'm using only Chad's videos after not much luck with the Kaplan Blue Book (it seemed too watered down).

 

[ALffreyDO]

For GC, I used destroyer and Kaplan (I took a class). I made sure to know all the basic equations (ideal gases, pH, dilutions, etc), I did all the subject tests from Kaplan and took all 6 full length practice tests. I did about 80 questions on Destroyer. But then again I think I should have studied a lot more for GC...

For OC though, I did destroyer, Kaplan, and referred to my textbook (Vollhardt) and used wikipedia like crazy. Again I felt destroyer was much harder than the actual exam, but I felt like I learned a lot from it. Kaplan I felt was much more representative of the actual exam (their practice tests anyway) because it was very conceptual. I never used the Kaplan blue book, but the Ochem on the DAT for the most part was not very complicated, I think as long as you understand the basic concepts/mechanisms you'll do okay. Destroyer, however, is good for nailing those few questions that are a little trickier.

 

[dentalWorks]

Hello! 🙂

I'm wondering if anyone ever took the DAT without mastering all of the GC destroyer problems. OR if anyone ever took the DAT with the GC destroyer mastered. And how well did you do on practice tests or the real DAT with that in mind?

I watched Chad's videos (really great btw!), but I'm burnt from DAT destroyer and I am discouraged by how many I still get incorrect.

The first time through destroyer GC, there is a strong chance you won't even get 50% correct.... I know I got like a 45%.

But when you go through it 2nd, and 3rd (if you have time), your scores will improve. The more times you go through GC, the more likely you'll do better. My 2nd and 3rd time, if I remember correctly, I was getting 80% correct.

Ended up with 24 score on real deal

 

[NguyenDDS]

The first time through destroyer GC, there is a strong chance you won't even get 50% correct.... I know I got like a 45%.

But when you go through it 2nd, and 3rd (if you have time), your scores will improve. The more times you go through GC, the more likely you'll do better. My 2nd and 3rd time, if I remember correctly, I was getting 80% correct.

Ended up with 24 score on real deal

Awesome score! I hope I will be following your footstep! 😀 ..now time to go study and do destroyer multiple times 🙂

 

[Teeth12345]

I never used the Kaplan blue book, but the Ochem on the DAT for the most part was not very complicated, I think as long as you understand the basic concepts/mechanisms you'll do okay. Destroyer, however, is good for nailing those few questions that are a little trickier.

So would you say the Ochem on the DAT has more concepts than actual mechs? I know the products and reactants for most reactions ( I memorized the Destroyer maps) but I really don't like those tricky conceptual questions about acidity/basicity, etc. I understand them for the most part but for some reason, it takes me sooo long to figure it out and I end up losing time on the exam.

 

[invictusx]

Hello! 🙂

I'm wondering if anyone ever took the DAT without mastering all of the GC destroyer problems. OR if anyone ever took the DAT with the GC destroyer mastered. And how well did you do on practice tests or the real DAT with that in mind?

I watched Chad's videos (really great btw!), but I'm burnt from DAT destroyer and I am discouraged by how many I still get incorrect.

How many do you get incorrect? When I first started, I got around... 15/30 wrong (because I haven't done GC in two years...). Did it the second time around, got 7/30. Third and fourth time around, 1/30 or 2/30 wrong. I made sure I mastered GC. Destroyer calculations are much harder but it prepares you really well for the test. I took topscore tests and got 19 on GC but guess what I got on GC on the DAT? 29. I never used Chad. I did destroyer in blocs of 30 questions.

Do not be discouraged with the destroyer. It's absolutely necessary to do it a couple of times even if you remember the question. After you do it, make sure you understand why the other answer choices are wrong. My DAT heavily weighed concepts more than calculations and I had a lot of questions that were conceptual that required math to prove the concept.

I wouldn't do destroyer more than four times.

 

[invictusx]

So would you say the Ochem on the DAT has more concepts than actual mechs? I know the products and reactants for most reactions ( I memorized the Destroyer maps) but I really don't like those tricky conceptual questions about acidity/basicity, etc. I understand them for the most part but for some reason, it takes me sooo long to figure it out and I end up losing time on the exam.

It would be wrong to NOT know the mechanisms of the reactions. It was straightforward. I didn't actually find destroyer maps helpful because for me, memorizing ochem is a mistake a lot of people make. PRACTICE MECHANISMS. When I did destroyer, I drew the mechanism out for EVERY reaction. Destroyer was exponentially harder than the actual DAT. Prepares you REALLY well, though. I got a 28 on the real deal. I'm pretty sure I got the naming question wrong 🙁

Whenever you have an EWG on a molecule, the molecule is more acidic!

 

[Jackson-Ave-Dental]

I went through GC and OC destroyer 3-4x...

You should NOT be focusing on whether or not you got it right or wrong but rather, to understand the concept that particular question is trying to TEACH you.

 

[ALffreyDO]

So would you say the Ochem on the DAT has more concepts than actual mechs? I know the products and reactants for most reactions ( I memorized the Destroyer maps) but I really don't like those tricky conceptual questions about acidity/basicity, etc. I understand them for the most part but for some reason, it takes me sooo long to figure it out and I end up losing time on the exam.

yeah you should def understand it. for me, knowing the acidity/basicity questions and understanding why reactions occur was essential to doing well. I too started out memorizing destroyer maps, but was doing poor on practice tests so i really tried to nail those conceptual questions.

there are definitely reaction problems (i even had a synthesis problem) but honestly you should understand the reactions rather than memorize them so that when diff questions show up you know how to tackle them.

 

[ALffreyDO]

The first time through destroyer GC, there is a strong chance you won't even get 50% correct.... I know I got like a 45%.

But when you go through it 2nd, and 3rd (if you have time), your scores will improve. The more times you go through GC, the more likely you'll do better. My 2nd and 3rd time, if I remember correctly, I was getting 80% correct.

Ended up with 24 score on real deal

👍 damn nice score! yeah if i could do one thing differently it'd be doing destroyer multiple times haha

 

[chromosome21]

I personally do NOT think destroyer GC is important for the DAT. DAT GC is conceptual and absolutely not on par with destroyer. Even the calculation type of questions weren't similar! GC Exam Krackers has some really nice conceptual in-chapter quizzes. For a good practice you could practice with Top Score and Chad's quizzes, but imo destroyer GC is a total time waste.

 

[dentalWorks]

I personally do NOT think destroyer GC is important for the DAT. DAT GC is conceptual and absolutely not on par with destroyer. Even the calculation type of questions weren't similar! GC Exam Krackers has some really nice conceptual in-chapter quizzes. For a good practice you could practice with Top Score and Chad's quizzes, but imo destroyer GC is a total time waste.

been around these forms for a very long time... this is the first time I've heard this... Ofc, Im not saying your wrong (everyones entitled to thier own opinion)

 

[chromosome21]

been around these forms for a very long time... this is the first time I've heard this... Ofc, Im not saying your wrong (everyones entitled to thier own opinion)

Are you kidding me? I respect you a lot dentalworks, and I know you've been on this forum for a VERY LONG time, but I'm pretty sure there are tons of ppl who would agree with me. I don't think DAT destroyer is a good representative of the real DAT except OC part.

 

[dentalWorks]

Are you kidding me? I respect you a lot dentalworks, and I know you've been on this forum for a VERY LONG time, but I'm pretty sure there are tons of ppl who would agree with me. I don't think DAT destroyer is a good representative of the real DAT except OC part.

This I agree with.

The Destroyer isn't a simulation of what kinda score one can get.... But I felt that if one puts in the time with the GC, there are alot of GC fundamental principles you can learn, plus the problems are so much harder than the DAT that makes the GC portion of the DAT relatively easy.

 

[glo1984]

This I agree with.

The Destroyer isn't a simulation of what kinda score one can get.... But I felt that if one puts in the time with the GC, there are alot of GC fundamental principles you can learn, plus the problems are so much harder than the DAT that makes the GC portion of the DAT relatively easy.

Well said... I thought the DAT Destroyer was a perfect way to study.

 

[chromosome21]

This I agree with.

The Destroyer isn't a simulation of what kinda score one can get.... But I felt that if one puts in the time with the GC, there are alot of GC fundamental principles you can learn, plus the problems are so much harder than the DAT that makes the GC portion of the DAT relatively easy.

Nah, I don't agree with you. I believe destroying destroyer wouldn't make the GC part of the DAT any easier. I already knew concepts before hitting destroyer, and I didn't think destroyer GC helped me understand the concepts better. It was wasting my precious time. I could have used that time in something else. Personally I feel that destroyer wasn't as good as some ppl make it seem like to be. Ppl can be fine w/o destroyer too.

 

[dental13]

Nah, I don't agree with you. I believe destroying destroyer wouldn't make the GC part of the DAT any easier. I already knew concepts before hitting destroyer, and I didn't think destroyer GC helped me understand the concepts better. It was wasting my precious time. I could have used that time in something else. Personally I feel that destroyer wasn't as good as some ppl make it seem like to be. Ppl can be fine w/o destroyer too.

chromosome21 I see you got nice stats, but most people who got high scores on their DAT's highly recommend using DAT destroyer. I personally know a person who got TS 27 (almost perfect with ORgo and Chem) and was told study destroyer...

 

[chromosome21]

chromosome21 I see you got nice stats, but most people who got high scores on their DAT's highly recommend using DAT destroyer. I personally know a person who got TS 27 (almost perfect with ORgo and Chem) and was told study destroyer...

dental13, whatever I said was my personal point of view. I know someone who never used destroyer and still got a 29 TS. I personally think that spending over 150 dollars for destroyer isn't worth the money. And studying destroyer doesn't mean you're guaranteed 20+ TS. Math destroyer on the other hand is right on the money. I would encourage people to use math destroyer b/c it's a very good representative of the real DAT. But DAT destroyer isn't very useful in my views. I've read countless breakdowns and I've been here for quite some time now. I don't think destroyer is the key to do better on the test. Tons of people never used destroyer and still got highest scores. Destroyer is definitely NOT a must for the DAT. There are cheaper and very effective ways to study for the science portion, then why waste so much money and time after it?

Everyone knows that speaking against destroyer and speaking in favor of Kaplan on sdn is a crime! I've seen people praising for destroyer all the time here. They'd never try answering any problem, but definitely always suggest others to purchase destroyer!!