Reapplicant - Need Advice!

[predental2]

Hey everyone!

Congrats to all those who have been accepted and good luck to those who will be applying/reapplying this upcoming cycle!

I am in need of some advice for my current situation. I applied to dental schools this past cycle and have received a couple of interviews but was waitlisted at all of them. I am planning on reapplying this upcoming cycle and I am trying to figure out what to do to improve my application.

Some background info on my application:

Submitted app in August 2015 and schools received app in early September 2015

GPA: 3.8
DAT: 17 (first attempt)

I know my dat score is low and I am trying everything in my power to bring it up however, I am seriously struggling. I used kaplan, dat destroyer, dat bootcamp, and chad videos the first time around and that is the score I got. I am planning on retaking the dat some time this summer but I am trying to get a game plan on how I should go about studying this time. Has anyone done the Princeton dat prep course or any other program that helped them do well on the dat?

I was also looking into doing an SMP but I don't know if it will be necessary given I have a strong GPA. I am just worried that if I retake the dat this summer and I receive the same or lower score, I won't have anything else to fall back on. The deadlines for the SMPs are also coming up so that's why I'm trying to decide whether or not I should apply.

Any advice is greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance!

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[Advance]

Whattt don't do an SMP, waste of money. Just re-take the DAT.

 

[customx]

I'm a firm believe that all you need is Chad's, Destroyer (including Math), Bootcamp and Feralis' notes for bio. You should go through every question in Destroyer at least twice. Study up on why the correct answer is correct and why the other selections are incorrect. Take detailed notes. Do 40-50 questions a day for each section. Do the same with Chad's videos. Print out his study guides, write down everything he says and take all the quizzes. I think many adcoms will expect a 20+ from you with a 3.8, otherwise they may think you have some grade inflation.

 

[meeshii00]

How were you studying? Those are all good resources for the DATs but maybe you should go at it with a different game plan. Your gpa is great so I dont think you need a smp. A higher DAT score will help because right now your gpa and DAT are too different.

 

[1passbbsSHAVE]

GPA is excellent. 19+DAT will enhance your chance greatly. Higher the better, but with your GPA, I think all you need is 19+, or let's say 20+ to be conservtive.

good advice on how to study for DAT above by customx.

destroyer - a must
chad - a must
cliffs or barrons ap bio - a must
bootcamp - a must
crack dat pat for pat.

prep courses are not worth the money imo.

 

[Likkriue]

What were your scores on boot camp? How many times did you go through destroyer?

You need to post your study habits your first try so we can try and see what went wrong. You can have al the materials but if you don't utilize them correctly, nothing will help.

 

[predental2]

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[predental2]

What were your scores on boot camp? How many times did you go through destroyer?

You need to post your study habits your first try so we can try and see what went wrong. You can have al the materials but if you don't utilize them correctly, nothing will help.

GPA is excellent. 19+DAT will enhance your chance greatly. Higher the better, but with your GPA, I think all you need is 19+, or let's say 20+ to be conservtive.

good advice on how to study for DAT above by customx.

destroyer - a must
chad - a must
cliffs or barrons ap bio - a must
bootcamp - a must
crack dat pat for pat.

prep courses are not worth the money imo.

How were you studying? Those are all good resources for the DATs but maybe you should go at it with a different game plan. Your gpa is great so I dont think you need a smp. A higher DAT score will help because right now your gpa and DAT are too different.

I mostly used Kaplan materials because I was taking the course. I took five of their full lengths as well. For bootcamp I was scoring between 14-16 for the sciences and 18-19 for the reading comprehension section. I used Kaplan for the math section and bootcamp for the PAT. I also didn't finish the entire destroyer since I felt it wasn't really helping me and instead focused on taking a lot of the full lengths. Comparing my scores on the real DAT to the Kaplan full lengths, my scores did go up but not as much as I would have liked. I also ran out of time for the math section and ended up guessing for many of the questions.

Here are the individual scores I got on the real DAT:

AA: 17
TS: 17
BIO: 17
GC: 18
OC: 19
PAT: 17
RC: 17
QR: 13

 

[Likkriue]

I would suggest going through destroyer multiple times (I went through it multiple times) and working with boot camp. Both have great resources for the QR section.

Doing chads quizzes is an important must after his videos to show understanding. Your science scores show that you aren't completely out of the loop. Don't take the DAT until you know everything like the back of your hand.

 

[meeshii00]

The math destroyer book helped me A LOT for preparing for QR. Besides taking practice tests. How are you doing to review everything? Do you use flash cards? I think your science scores show that maybe there may be a few topics you still haven't fully understood. I agree that you shouldn't retake the DAT until you fully think you know everything. Don't rush and work hard!