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Here they are!!!
PAT: 24
QR: 23 (not expecting this...)
RC: 26 (or this...)
BIO: 24 (or this...)
GC: 30
OC: 23
TS: 26
AA: 25
D-Day: After hearing about how important sleep is on this forum, I was so worried at 2 am when I was still awake and couldn't fall asleep. I was getting mad that on possibly the most important day of my life I would be tired and exhausted. I then decided that I wasn't going to let it affect me. I fell asleep at 3am and woke at 6:30 to get ready for my 9am test appointment. I worried when I woke up that maybe I should have studied more the past week(but I was so burnt out after 3 months!) Finally, I just told myself there was no way any last second reviewing was going to help me, so I just emptied my head and tried to be calm. On the way to the testing center, I blared songs that I used to listen to in high school and belted them at the top of my lungs. It cleared my head a little bit and I was able to get to a place where I would be okay no matter what score I got. Staying calm during the whole thing helped a ton and it probably had a lot to do with all the practice tests I took. Anyway, here goes the breakdown.
BIO(24):Topscore, DatQvault, DAT Destroyer, DAT achiever, Cliff Bio, Kaplan Bio, Chad's Bio I'm absolutely shocked by this score. True, a lot of the questions were very basic but there were at least 5 or 6 I felt pretty unsure about. I highly recommend datQvault. I felt like it was a really good representation of the real deal. On the questions you don't know, it's most important to have a clear mind to apply what you do know and narrow down the answers. DAT Destroyer was great, just make sure you really understand the answers(like everyone says). To be honest, looking back, I wish I had starting studying BIO throughout the year making flashcards and then just had to review them for the test. There are a lot of things I would have done differently but it worked out. Kaplan Bio is a great opening resource and I felt it actually complemented Cliff Bio pretty well. Going through each practice exam and taking notes on what you missed and what you didn't understand is crucial. Chad's Bio videos are worth a look, they'll get you a lot of easy points on questions that will show up again and again.
GC(30): Chad's Videos, DAT Destroyer, DAT Achiever, Topscore You already know. Chad is will be your guide to a high chemistry score. If I could go back, I would follow the sample study schedule to the T. I chose to start doing practice problems right away because I felt like I learn better by doing. I started by just watching Chad's videos on the areas I felt weak. JUST WATCH THEM ALL(AT LEAST ONCE) It's worth it, he teaches you how you need to think for the DAT, trust me it's worth it. DAT Destroyer is all you need after Chad, apply what you learned from him and then work on what you don't know.
OC(23): Chad's Videos, DAT Destroyer, DAT Achiever, Topscore Chad saves the day again. Watch all his videos, take good notes and refer to them when you get something wrong in destroyer. Don't get discouraged by destroyer, it sucks so that the real dat doesn't. Remember that the real DAT is super basic. I had like 45 minutes left on the science section to go over EVERYTHING again. Train hard so the real thing is easy.
PAT(24): CDP, DAT Achiever I was averaging like 23-24's on CDP...then DAT Achiever came along and made me feel pathetic. But I eventually got my average up to a 20 on DAT Achiever. If you can do well on DAT Achiever, the real thing is cake.
Keyholes: CDP will train you well but make you take the time to imagine what proportions would be like. Everyone is right about the fact that the real PAT is more about proportions. After a while, this section is a breeze on CDP, but slow yourself down to make sure you can see it from all angles. If CDP is the only resource you're using, imagine what a wrong answer would be due to proportions. However, if you're using achiever, and you think keyholes suck, they do. On the real PAT, they're probably easier but achiever will help you think the right way.
TFE: CDP is pretty money on this section. Achiever is painful but if you can do achiever then the real thing is a breeze. Get good at eliminating answers quickly so you can just compare the two that are left and look for the differences.
Angles: I stressed really hard about this section. I think it's a little easier on the DAT but who knows if they're easier on one DAT then harder on another. This was my worst section in CDP. I just decided to go with my gut and not second guess myself. I stopped looking at the problems that I just couldn't see. My advice is dominate the other sections then do your best here b/c some of them you really can't tell.
Hole Punching: CDP all the way. Yes there are some weird one-third folds you don't see on CDP but it's not bad. Achiever shows you some of the one-third folds but it's not super necessary to do well.
Cube Counting: It was way easier than CDP for me. I'm sure there are versions of the DAT with way more cubes but mine was really manageable.
Pattern Folding: So I always restrict myself to 10 minutes a section for keyholes and TFE just b/c I know I can lose a lot of time here. I then start building up time on angles, hole punching and cube counting. For this section, I had 25 minutes left. Pattern folding is a section you can absolutely master if you practice enough. Find the hardest problem you can then keep trying to fold it until you can. After enough practice, it's really easy to eliminate wrong answers. CDP was great! Achiever was pretty hard but it made the real thing a breeze.(Don't just do achiever, get good at it, then the real thing is cake)
RC: (26) So relieved when I was almost done with this section. It really wasn't too bad. I thought I figured out a good method for topscore but when I switched to achiever I was getting like half the questions wrong. The key for me was not to rush. Today, I decided to read all the questions first. Then I would read 3-4 paragraphs, then answer all the questions I could. Rinse, repeat. Topscore is pretty good but if you do your best on achiever and get good at it, you'll rock the real thing. I don't skim the passage, I read the whole thing but I do it in chunks. Find what works for you though. I was really grateful that the passages weren't 16 long paragraphs like they were in achiever though.
QR: (23) Guess, mark, move on. Theme of my life for this section. Basically this last week I decided that it wasn't worth it to learn some of the nitty gritty things they could test you on here. Get really good at the basics and get all the easy points you can. I kid you not, I skipped like 10-12 problems in this section then came back to them with plenty of time. GET THE EASY POINTS, there are plenty. I think the DAT people have it figured out where they put a bunch of obnoxious questions at the beginning to get you caught up on those so you end up guessing on the last few which were gimmes for me. Know your trig stuff but mainly, just work on your algebra and fast math skills. I used the calculator for a lot of calculation. For decimals, remember to press 0 then decimal, don't just press decimal first.
Anyway, overall this has been the most stressful, monotonous time of my life. It was worth it but just barely haha. If I could do it over, I would have done a few things differently. I would have followed the sample study schedule. I think it's nice to be able to learn things then apply it with destroyer. I took topscore and achiever. Achiever sucks...a lot. But it helped me to think critically under pressure. The interface is exactly like the DAT so that helped as well. Topscore was a great representation of the real exam. At the end of the day, just remember to remain calm. Trust in your preparation. Sorry this thing is going on and on. Read it, don't read it. I'm just happy to be done, hopefully you find this helpful.
Here are my Achiever practice scores:
Achiever 1
PAT: 18
QR: 20
RC: 17
BIO: 21
GC: 19
OC: 23
TS: 21
AA: 20
Achiever 2
PAT: 19
QR: 18
RC: 19
BIO: 19
GC: 21
OC: 19
TS: 20
AA: 19
Achiever 3
PAT: 19
QR: 20
RC: 17
BIO: 17
GC: 19
OC: 19
TS: 18
AA: 18
Achiever 4
PAT: 18
QR: 17
RC: 17
BIO: 17
GC: 19
OC: 20
TS: 19
AA: 18
Achiever 5
PAT:18
QR: 21
RC: 18
BIO:19
GC: 18
OC: 17
TS: 18
AA: 19
Achiever 6
PAT: 19
QR: 18
RC: 22
BIO: 19
GC: 23
OC: 20
TS: 20
AA: 20
Achiever 7
PAT: 20
QR: 18
RC: 21
BIO: 17
GC: 20
OC: 23
TS: 20
AA: 20
THANKS FOR ALL THE BREAKDOWNS! THEY WERE INSPIRING!
PAT: 24
QR: 23 (not expecting this...)
RC: 26 (or this...)
BIO: 24 (or this...)
GC: 30
OC: 23
TS: 26
AA: 25
D-Day: After hearing about how important sleep is on this forum, I was so worried at 2 am when I was still awake and couldn't fall asleep. I was getting mad that on possibly the most important day of my life I would be tired and exhausted. I then decided that I wasn't going to let it affect me. I fell asleep at 3am and woke at 6:30 to get ready for my 9am test appointment. I worried when I woke up that maybe I should have studied more the past week(but I was so burnt out after 3 months!) Finally, I just told myself there was no way any last second reviewing was going to help me, so I just emptied my head and tried to be calm. On the way to the testing center, I blared songs that I used to listen to in high school and belted them at the top of my lungs. It cleared my head a little bit and I was able to get to a place where I would be okay no matter what score I got. Staying calm during the whole thing helped a ton and it probably had a lot to do with all the practice tests I took. Anyway, here goes the breakdown.
BIO(24):Topscore, DatQvault, DAT Destroyer, DAT achiever, Cliff Bio, Kaplan Bio, Chad's Bio I'm absolutely shocked by this score. True, a lot of the questions were very basic but there were at least 5 or 6 I felt pretty unsure about. I highly recommend datQvault. I felt like it was a really good representation of the real deal. On the questions you don't know, it's most important to have a clear mind to apply what you do know and narrow down the answers. DAT Destroyer was great, just make sure you really understand the answers(like everyone says). To be honest, looking back, I wish I had starting studying BIO throughout the year making flashcards and then just had to review them for the test. There are a lot of things I would have done differently but it worked out. Kaplan Bio is a great opening resource and I felt it actually complemented Cliff Bio pretty well. Going through each practice exam and taking notes on what you missed and what you didn't understand is crucial. Chad's Bio videos are worth a look, they'll get you a lot of easy points on questions that will show up again and again.
GC(30): Chad's Videos, DAT Destroyer, DAT Achiever, Topscore You already know. Chad is will be your guide to a high chemistry score. If I could go back, I would follow the sample study schedule to the T. I chose to start doing practice problems right away because I felt like I learn better by doing. I started by just watching Chad's videos on the areas I felt weak. JUST WATCH THEM ALL(AT LEAST ONCE) It's worth it, he teaches you how you need to think for the DAT, trust me it's worth it. DAT Destroyer is all you need after Chad, apply what you learned from him and then work on what you don't know.
OC(23): Chad's Videos, DAT Destroyer, DAT Achiever, Topscore Chad saves the day again. Watch all his videos, take good notes and refer to them when you get something wrong in destroyer. Don't get discouraged by destroyer, it sucks so that the real dat doesn't. Remember that the real DAT is super basic. I had like 45 minutes left on the science section to go over EVERYTHING again. Train hard so the real thing is easy.
PAT(24): CDP, DAT Achiever I was averaging like 23-24's on CDP...then DAT Achiever came along and made me feel pathetic. But I eventually got my average up to a 20 on DAT Achiever. If you can do well on DAT Achiever, the real thing is cake.
Keyholes: CDP will train you well but make you take the time to imagine what proportions would be like. Everyone is right about the fact that the real PAT is more about proportions. After a while, this section is a breeze on CDP, but slow yourself down to make sure you can see it from all angles. If CDP is the only resource you're using, imagine what a wrong answer would be due to proportions. However, if you're using achiever, and you think keyholes suck, they do. On the real PAT, they're probably easier but achiever will help you think the right way.
TFE: CDP is pretty money on this section. Achiever is painful but if you can do achiever then the real thing is a breeze. Get good at eliminating answers quickly so you can just compare the two that are left and look for the differences.
Angles: I stressed really hard about this section. I think it's a little easier on the DAT but who knows if they're easier on one DAT then harder on another. This was my worst section in CDP. I just decided to go with my gut and not second guess myself. I stopped looking at the problems that I just couldn't see. My advice is dominate the other sections then do your best here b/c some of them you really can't tell.
Hole Punching: CDP all the way. Yes there are some weird one-third folds you don't see on CDP but it's not bad. Achiever shows you some of the one-third folds but it's not super necessary to do well.
Cube Counting: It was way easier than CDP for me. I'm sure there are versions of the DAT with way more cubes but mine was really manageable.
Pattern Folding: So I always restrict myself to 10 minutes a section for keyholes and TFE just b/c I know I can lose a lot of time here. I then start building up time on angles, hole punching and cube counting. For this section, I had 25 minutes left. Pattern folding is a section you can absolutely master if you practice enough. Find the hardest problem you can then keep trying to fold it until you can. After enough practice, it's really easy to eliminate wrong answers. CDP was great! Achiever was pretty hard but it made the real thing a breeze.(Don't just do achiever, get good at it, then the real thing is cake)
RC: (26) So relieved when I was almost done with this section. It really wasn't too bad. I thought I figured out a good method for topscore but when I switched to achiever I was getting like half the questions wrong. The key for me was not to rush. Today, I decided to read all the questions first. Then I would read 3-4 paragraphs, then answer all the questions I could. Rinse, repeat. Topscore is pretty good but if you do your best on achiever and get good at it, you'll rock the real thing. I don't skim the passage, I read the whole thing but I do it in chunks. Find what works for you though. I was really grateful that the passages weren't 16 long paragraphs like they were in achiever though.
QR: (23) Guess, mark, move on. Theme of my life for this section. Basically this last week I decided that it wasn't worth it to learn some of the nitty gritty things they could test you on here. Get really good at the basics and get all the easy points you can. I kid you not, I skipped like 10-12 problems in this section then came back to them with plenty of time. GET THE EASY POINTS, there are plenty. I think the DAT people have it figured out where they put a bunch of obnoxious questions at the beginning to get you caught up on those so you end up guessing on the last few which were gimmes for me. Know your trig stuff but mainly, just work on your algebra and fast math skills. I used the calculator for a lot of calculation. For decimals, remember to press 0 then decimal, don't just press decimal first.
Anyway, overall this has been the most stressful, monotonous time of my life. It was worth it but just barely haha. If I could do it over, I would have done a few things differently. I would have followed the sample study schedule. I think it's nice to be able to learn things then apply it with destroyer. I took topscore and achiever. Achiever sucks...a lot. But it helped me to think critically under pressure. The interface is exactly like the DAT so that helped as well. Topscore was a great representation of the real exam. At the end of the day, just remember to remain calm. Trust in your preparation. Sorry this thing is going on and on. Read it, don't read it. I'm just happy to be done, hopefully you find this helpful.
Here are my Achiever practice scores:
Achiever 1
PAT: 18
QR: 20
RC: 17
BIO: 21
GC: 19
OC: 23
TS: 21
AA: 20
Achiever 2
PAT: 19
QR: 18
RC: 19
BIO: 19
GC: 21
OC: 19
TS: 20
AA: 19
Achiever 3
PAT: 19
QR: 20
RC: 17
BIO: 17
GC: 19
OC: 19
TS: 18
AA: 18
Achiever 4
PAT: 18
QR: 17
RC: 17
BIO: 17
GC: 19
OC: 20
TS: 19
AA: 18
Achiever 5
PAT:18
QR: 21
RC: 18
BIO:19
GC: 18
OC: 17
TS: 18
AA: 19
Achiever 6
PAT: 19
QR: 18
RC: 22
BIO: 19
GC: 23
OC: 20
TS: 20
AA: 20
Achiever 7
PAT: 20
QR: 18
RC: 21
BIO: 17
GC: 20
OC: 23
TS: 20
AA: 20
THANKS FOR ALL THE BREAKDOWNS! THEY WERE INSPIRING!
