Minor DAT freak out!

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McSexyDDS

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i'm sure once i whine and cry i'll get it out of my system and go back to studying so thanks for listening...

someone here has a signature that says A.D.I.D.A.D.A.T's (all day i dream about Dat's) i so believe that...is that what has happened to my life...DATs

cause um yesterday i took the diagnostic DAT on the kaplan online course, um yeah, it's like so what was my other career choice?

AA 14, TS 12, PAT 13
kaplan higher score guarentee, means that for $1200 i can get an AA of 15 on the real thing...gee how great, now all i need is a 4.0 and if only my mom and dad were on the admissions committee i could sleep better:p

i was planning on taking my DAT's at the end of may, i'm not an idiot, and if i didn't have 20 million (slight exaggeration) other things to do, i'd be ok

so i'm finishing up organic chem II, o.chem lab, physics II, physics lab and biochem lecture...working full time, and now enrolled in the DAT online program, which is like taking 10 bio's 4 chems' 3 levels of math, reading the most dull research and then the crap with the shapes, angles and keyholes :laugh:

so what i need is someone to say...
1. oh you can do it
2. hey i'm in your same situation
3. i know someone like you....
4. keep trying the scores will go up

..and then i'll be on my merry little way.

despite all the smiley and goofy faces, that's cause i'm really in that stage right before i freak out, denile?

so i've got the Kaplan thing going on, and just ordered top score, i'm going to treat studying for DAT's like my other classes, like making sure i set aside time to study for it...hopefully there will be a better update soon!
i figure the more studying and practice i get, the better...so if anyone has any other things they think can help, or any resources that i should use, let me know!
thank you

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I think your trying to prove yourself too quickly. With that course load maybe you should think about taking another year before applying. The last thing you want is a bad GPA, low DAT scores and to lose your job because you were sleeping from studying too much from the above. I understand that you just want to get into dental school quickly, but that doesn't sound like a great plan.
 
i'm sure once i whine and cry i'll get it out of my system and go back to studying so thanks for listening...

someone here has a signature that says A.D.I.D.A.D.A.T's (all day i dream about Dat's) i so believe that...is that what has happened to my life...DATs

cause um yesterday i took the diagnostic DAT on the kaplan online course, um yeah, it's like so what was my other career choice?

AA 14, TS 12, PAT 13
kaplan higher score guarentee, means that for $1200 i can get an AA of 15 on the real thing...gee how great, now all i need is a 4.0 and if only my mom and dad were on the admissions committee i could sleep better:p

i was planning on taking my DAT's at the end of may, i'm not an idiot, and if i didn't have 20 million (slight exaggeration) other things to do, i'd be ok

so i'm finishing up organic chem II, o.chem lab, physics II, physics lab and biochem lecture...working full time, and now enrolled in the DAT online program, which is like taking 10 bio's 4 chems' 3 levels of math, reading the most dull research and then the crap with the shapes, angles and keyholes :laugh:

so what i need is someone to say...
1. oh you can do it
2. hey i'm in your same situation
3. i know someone like you....
4. keep trying the scores will go up

..and then i'll be on my merry little way.

despite all the smiley and goofy faces, that's cause i'm really in that stage right before i freak out, denile?

so i've got the Kaplan thing going on, and just ordered top score, i'm going to treat studying for DAT's like my other classes, like making sure i set aside time to study for it...hopefully there will be a better update soon!
i figure the more studying and practice i get, the better...so if anyone has any other things they think can help, or any resources that i should use, let me know!
thank you

First thing that you should do is take a deep breath because you panic, you basically dig your hole deeper. STAY CALM.

Alright so you want to take it at the end of May and you have a huge load (how are you taking Biochem and Orgo 2 together? Some schools have Orgo 2 as a pre-req for Biochem). Anyways, you have essentially 2.75-3 months. That's a lot of time. My pointers:

1. You should probably try to lower your hours at work. You don't want to burn yourself out. I worked all weekend and had 5 days of school - I was always tired. I recently stopped working on Sundays to get some studying and rest - it did wonders for me...

2. There is little reason to freak out about your score. I took a practice and I got a 12 in Orgo. What did that tell me? That I'm horrible at Orgo and I need to study it. Plus, now you have a brief idea of what you should be studying and what questions to expect. I took a practice test and felt a whole lot better. Before that? I was losing a whole lot of sleep.

3. Follow the schedule in the online class (this means DISCIPLINE). It at least gives you some structure. There are people who self study and have it a little harder since they do not have the resources the online class/classroom brings.
 
I agree with EnviroDentist. You don't want to over work yourself and have a nervous breakdown. If you're one of those people who can do as you said "20 million" things at once, then fine. Some people actually thrive on stress, but if you aren't one of those people . . . then think about your quality of life. It sounds like you have a lot on your plate, and you need to re-evaluate how much work/stress you can handle. There's no point in rushing if doing so will result in poor DAT scores and not getting the acceptance you want. I recommend only taking the DAT when you are truly ready. Just do your best, and be smart about how much you can realistically handle.
 
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Kaplan's higher score guarantee doesn't mean 'oh you went from 14 to 15 so you can't retake the course'.

It means 'oh you went from 14 to 15 and are not happy at all with that score so we'll let you retake the course'.

Honestly if you got an 18 and weren't happy they'd probably let you retake the course. There's something in the 'fine print' (so to speak) that says the score increase + the actual new score itself have to be reasonably good and you have to be satisfied with it. Of course if you bump up to a 24 and you say 'no good I want a 25' they'll probably tell you to ---- off (use your imagination there).
 
Kaplan's higher score guarantee doesn't mean 'oh you went from 14 to 15 so you can't retake the course'.

It means 'oh you went from 14 to 15 and are not happy at all with that score so we'll let you retake the course'.

Honestly if you got an 18 and weren't happy they'd probably let you retake the course. There's something in the 'fine print' (so to speak) that says the score increase + the actual new score itself have to be reasonably good and you have to be satisfied with it. Of course if you bump up to a 24 and you say 'no good I want a 25' they'll probably tell you to ---- off (use your imagination there).

LOL street wolf :laugh: funny post

McSexy You forgot to add option#5 to your list of things you want someone to say to you.
#5.Plz dont have a nervous breakdown and keep working at it. lol
 
<<You forgot to add option#5 to your list of things you want someone to say to you.
#5.Plz dont have a nervous breakdown and keep working at it. lol>>

yes i'm going to try avoid the nervous breakdown....

<<(how are you taking Biochem and Orgo 2 together? Some schools have Orgo 2 as a pre-req for Biochem). >>

um yeah it needs to be the freaking prereq, cause i've learned more organic in biochem than in the actual organic class

thank you guys for the advice. i've just come so far, and it's been such a long long journey (not the cute 3 and 4 years most people do) and i can see the finish line, finally, and i don't want to give up, i know i can do it, right now as we're approaching mid-terms i have A's in those classes, work is, eh, work, and then there's DAT. i just feel like i've had waaay worse school/work schedules, like no sleep, like staying up studying, then finally getting to shower at 5:15am, and going to bed and my alarm goes off at 6:30am so i can get ready for work...

i guess i'm just trying to convince myself that my dat score will go up if i put the time and effort into it, i just need to know that i'm using every resource i can.
 
If I were you I would push the DAT back about a month or so. It seems that you have a full plate as it is, and it would not really hurt your application to push the DAT back a little. It is better to feel prepared and do well on the DAT instead of rushing it and not preforming as well. A low DAT score could seriously reduce your chances of being admitted to Dental school. Just take some time and study. Also, don't put to much stock in your Kaplan scores, I also took the Kaplan course. I think that my best Kaplan test was a 18 AA/17 TS/17 PAT, my actual test scores were 20 AA/ 21 TS/ 18 PAT.
 
Don't worry about your first scores. Most people do badly on their first test. My first scores were terrible:mad: , but I did very well on real DAT (I didn't take Kaplan classes, just used Kaplan books). You still have enough time. Start stuying, and see if you're ready to take the test in May.
Good luck :luck:
 
As long as the low diagnostic scores motivate you to study more, it's not a bad thing. yah?
 
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