Retake or Nah?

[BioForLife]

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Hey, all! I am graduating next semester with a GPA ~3.3. I just took the DAT and got the following scores:

Biology: 19
General Chemistry: 18
Organic Chemistry: 17
RC:22
QR: 18
Perceptual Ability: 15

TS: 18
AA: 19

As you can see, the real standout here is my perceptual ability. I'm happy with the rest of my scores, though. Is it worth retaking the DAT to see if I can improve on this or am I better off taking my chances with a low PA?

 

[deadragonz]

def. retake! That is a 15PAT that u scored or is that a typo of 25PAT? My gah man...did you even practice?

 

[Sweet_Tooth]

Depends on your other stats...if you have an exemplary GPA/EC's you could get away with no retake but to play it safe you may want to retake

 

[FeralisExtremum]

I would retake if I were in your position. PAT usually doesn't count for much, but 15 in that section is stands out as being particularly low. Your overall DAT score is by no means bad, but your GPA isn't very high, so the combination of the two might be considered a bit underwhelming academically. Unless your application is really strong in other areas, retaking the DAT (and scoring well) is a good way to potentially improve that.

This doesn't mean that you wouldn't get in if you took your chances with applying, you still might - I just wouldn't feel completely confident that you wouldn't have to risk applying again next cycle.

 

[DAT Destroyer]

Hey, all! I am graduating next semester with a GPA ~3.3. I just took the DAT and got the following scores:

Biology: 19
General Chemistry: 18
Organic Chemistry: 17
RC:22
QR: 18
Perceptual Ability: 15

TS: 18
AA: 19

As you can see, the real standout here is my perceptual ability. I'm happy with the rest of my scores, though. Is it worth retaking the DAT to see if I can improve on this or am I better off taking my chances with a low PA?

Hi Bioforlife!

Unfortunately from what you have posted it more than likely will be a retake. But because I don't know your whole situation or where you are applying it is hard to determine with certainty if a retake will be necessary. I highly recommend you contact the schools you would like to attend and get their opinions.

I would NOT be discouraged if you need to take it again, identify your weakness, make it a strength and Destroy it the next time.

Take care..Nancy

 

[tooth knockn]

How about
Pat-20
QR-15
RC-18
Bio-16
GC-16
OC-18

Averages 17

 

[tooth knockn]

Hi Bioforlife!

Unfortunately from what you have posted it more than likely will be a retake. But because I don't know your whole situation or where you are applying it is hard to determine with certainty if a retake will be necessary. I highly recommend you contact the schools you would like to attend and get their opinions.

I would NOT be discouraged if you need to take it again, identify your weakness, make it a strength and Destroy it the next time.

Take care..Nancy

 

[SyracuseOrange92]

My vote is to retake it

 

[BioForLife]

Thanks for the advice, everyone. It's a bit of a letdown but I'll pick myself up and give it another shot in August, focusing on improving my perceptual ability. I may be able to get by with my current scores, but it may be better not to risk it.

 

[deadragonz]

How about
Pat-20
QR-15
RC-18
Bio-16
GC-16
OC-18

Averages 17

Yes, your 17AA is way below par compare to today's standard. Heck, I think the national average now is 20AA, which is a point higher than a few years ago. Also 16Bio & 16GC will not be look at kindly by Adcom. So, retake, score well, and don't waste your money on the application process.

 

[DAT Destroyer]

Yes, your 17AA is way below par compare to today's standard. Heck, I think the national average now is 20AA, which is a point higher than a few years ago. Also 16Bio & 16GC will not be look at kindly by Adcom. So, retake, score well, and don't waste your money on the application process.

Excellent advice Deaddragonz!

 

[LizLemongrab]

That PAT score is very risky. I will admit that I got in with a 15 PAT myself, but it came with a 22AA/23TS which I'm sure was a mitigating factor. I am under the impression that some schools have hard PAT cutoffs at between 15-18 depending on the school.

You should work on general improvements. Matriculants on average have about a 20AA/TS. I think you have enough time to prep for an August date given good habits and a studying method that works for you. Good luck.

 

[BioForLife]

I retook the DAT earlier this week and improved on most of my scores. Math did go down to 17, though.

New scores:
Bio: 19
GC: 20
OC: 23
RC: 22
PAT: 19
QR: 17
AA: 20
TS: 20

I'm pretty happy with my scores this time around. Wish I could have hit 21, but not too bad.

 

[DAT Destroyer]

I retook the DAT earlier this week and improved on most of my scores. Math did go down to 17, though.

New scores:
Bio: 19
GC: 20
OC: 23
RC: 22
PAT: 19
QR: 17
AA: 20
TS: 20

I'm pretty happy with my scores this time around. Wish I could have hit 21, but not too bad.

Congratulations BioForLife!

Wow, you faced the DAT Beast again and this time you succeeded! Job well done, you should be very proud of these scores. Very consistent scores and don't worry about the QR score, it's the least important, that 22 RC score is what they will notice. You should have not problems receiving interviews.

Thanks for the update and wishing you the very best.

take care.

Dr. Jim Romano and Nancy

 

[LizLemongrab]

Good job!

 

[BioForLife]

Congratulations BioForLife!

Wow, you faced the DAT Beast again and this time you succeeded! Job well done, you should be very proud of these scores. Very consistent scores and don't worry about the QR score, it's the least important, that 22 RC score is what they will notice. You should have not problems receiving interviews.

Thanks for the update and wishing you the very best.

take care.

Dr. Jim Romano and Nancy

Thank you for the support!

 

[enamel88]

I would definitely retake! Try to shoot for at least a 20. I think if you study efficiently and pick up the right study materials you can def achieve that!

 

[DAT Destroyer]

I would definitely retake! Try to shoot for at least a 20. I think if you study efficiently and pick up the right study materials you can def achieve that!

She did retake it, scroll down for her retake scores, she smashed it!

Nancy

 

[enamel88]

oops I only read the first post haha!! sorry didn't see the new scores hidden within the post. Great improvement!!

 

[jb305305]

Guys, what do you think my chances are? Bcpm GPA is 3.1, cumulative is 3.2 and non science is 3.2 or 3.3. Pat: 19, reading: 19, math: 19, orgo: 19, bio: 21, & gen chem: 23. Ts: 21. AA: 20. Do I have any chances? I applied to 15 schools.

 

[Dr.Toothenstein]

Great job! Huge improvement. What did you do differently the second time around?

 

[BioForLife]

Great job! Huge improvement. What did you do differently the second time around?

Thank you! This time around I focused much more on the areas in chemistry that were giving me the most trouble. As I worked through DAT Destroyer again, I kept a notepad with the problems that I struggled with the most and went back to those again. I used DAT Bootcamp mainly for GC, OC, and PAT and it was a big help in all of them. The gen chem on the actual DAT was very similar for me to Bootcamp's and for PAT, the difficulty was spot on. So overall, it was focusing on my weak topics within chemistry and doing more timed exams that helped me improve my scores.

 

[phillyeagles1]

Great improvement!! Did you apply this cycle?

 

[BioForLife]

Great improvement!! Did you apply this cycle?

Thanks. I'm sending my application as soon as my new DAT scores come in. I know some people send it before the scores are posted but others have mentioned it's safer to wait.

 

[Dr.Toothenstein]

Thanks. I'm sending my application as soon as my new DAT scores come in. I know some people send it before the scores are posted but others have mentioned it's safer to wait.

I would submit now. It will take 4 weeks to calculate your GPA! Im sure it will come in before its calculated.

 

[BioForLife]

I would submit now. It will take 4 weeks to calculate your GPA! Im sure it will come in before its calculated.

Thanks for the heads up. If that's the case, I'll send it asap!

 

[phillyeagles1]

Yea I would send it asap! Congrats again.