New here... just starting to study... advice?

[Katdags]

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Hi and good day! 🙂

I'm new to this site, but have been reading posts on here for a while.

I'm planning on taking the DAT in January and am wondering where to start... and how to get the motivation!

I've already taken the Kaplan course, and am registered to take it again starting Tuesday. I'm a bit hesitant on taking it again... I guess all I want is access to the online materials again!

If anyone knows of better online materials (that will test/grade my performance) please offer your wisdom so I don't have to take the 6 hours a week out of my crazy schedule to sit through those classes again! 😎

And any advice on easy-reads? I gather Cliffs AP Bio & Princeton Review AP Chem are good? Destroyer & CrackPAT & Topscore? Achiever too hard? hee hee... I have lots of questions.

Any direction... and I'd be thankful.
Katdags*

 

[Dmitry Malayev]

Hello and welcome to the site.

I would personally recommend going with Destroyer, Cliff's AP Biology, Kaplan, Notes, and Textbooks.

I would use TopScore for timing yourself and if you really must and have the extra money you can go ahead and buy Achiever but i felt like it was the more useless of all my purchases. It was way to hard imo.

I never used this one, but a lot of my friends did and it seems to help them. If you need to practice PAT, go with Crack DAT PAT. Whatever you get on CDP is probably a good indication of what you'll get on the actual exam for PAT.

May i ask if you're applying for the 2009 cycle or the 2010 cycle?

 

[gentile1225]

for the most part i definitely agree with dmitry, every one of the cliff's books are definitely worth using, destroyer and top score. i did not use achiever or crack dat pat, but i think you could do without them. most of all i say make sure you point out your weaknesses now and work on them, dont push them off like i did cause it will come and bite you in the a**! also, you this forum to the best of your advantage, you could learn alot from these people.

 

[Dmitry Malayev]

Yep, like Gentile said, use this forum, if anything it'll be more beneficial for you the more you use it.

 

[klpennin]

Yeah, I wouldn't go to class... I would just read the chapters in the book. Basically, you need to read the Kaplan book and take notes on things that you are not sure about. Make flashcards for all the organic reactions and memorize all the reagents. Take tons of kaplan quizzes online. Buy Destroyer and go through it (add unknown reagents to notecrads). Practice for PAT...all you need is practice for that section. The last week or so, take a few practice tests to build up your stamina.

 

[yakuza]

Bio: read Cliff's AP bio once then do the destroyer 3times

Chem: read the kaplan PCAT book..it has problems behind every chapter unlike the DAT version then destroyer

Organic: read kaplan DAT then destroyer


Don't touch schaums and don't do practice tests until youre fully ready BUT do the ADA practice test to get a feel of the DAT format.

 

[drpsuedonym]

You don't actually have to go to class. Just use the online materials, which are fantastic.

 

[Katdags]

Hi. Thanks for the input.

I'm going to apply for the 2010 cycle...Kinda missed the boat on '09 since I put this test off for so long. 🙂

 

[ZenoVT]

My advice is to do as many questions and problems as you possibly can. Learn where you are lacking and fill up them gaps. A good place to build your foundation is with the Kaplan book and their online material. After that move on to bigger and better things =), like the destroyer and cliffsAP Bio. Get as many practice tests as you could get, like Achievers, Topscore, Crack DAT PAT, GRE math books. If you don't want to spend too much money, the public library has a LOT of the prep books listed on this site, which have hundreds of practice questions in all areas of the test. Good Luck.

 

[Dmitry Malayev]

Hi. Thanks for the input.

I'm going to apply for the 2010 cycle...Kinda missed the boat on '09 since I put this test off for so long. 🙂

Yeah that will probably be the best thing to do.

 

[klutzy1987]

I loved CDP, golden for the PAT. If you are shooting for a January DAT, you might as well get started studying now. Read the entire cliffs like 2 times before you start destroyer Bio. For the Ochm and Gchem, if you have a strong background then you can jump right nito the destroyer, but otherwise read through Kaplans or clifs and learn all of the basics. Then go through destroyer very slowly and learn all of the tricks and more complicated topics and reactions. For crack, start with Kaplans which is way easy and learn the basics then just jump right into CDP and do all of the practice tests twice. You should be scoring 22-23 when you finish going over CDP a second time and you will get about the same PAT score on the DAT. For RC i dont know how to help, just hope you get easy passages. Achievers RC is way too easy and i dont really know anythng about Kaplans. QR, spme people like Crack MAT but ive never seen it. SAT prep books and destroyer and any onliny materia you can get you hands on. Study hard and you will be golden, good luck.

 

[Retimo]

LOL.. is anyone else thinking that if she didn't have that hottie blonde pic, then everyone would've been like "DO A SEARCH BEFORE YOU POST, NOOB.. all the info is out there already"

meh?? 😛

 

[klutzy1987]

LOL.. is anyone else thinking that if she didn't have that hottie blonde pic, then everyone would've been like "DO A SEARCH BEFORE YOU POST, NOOB.. all the info is out there already"

meh?? 😛

So pretty and knows how to use it nothing wrong with that. Us guys get played by pretty girls all the time lol were used to it.