I learned so much from SDN, so here's my thank you gift.
Bio Major, 3.5 GPA
Study Duration: 6 weeks (12 hrs/day)
Resources: DAT Bootcamp, DAT Destroyer, Feralis Notes, Chad's GC/OC
Schedule: Learn (3 weeks), Review (2 weeks), Assess (1 week).
My Goal: Score a 20 for TS/AA
Golden Rule: Learn to love the beauty of benzenes, biological processes, and Bond (James Bond).
PAT (19): I completed 8 of 10 DAT Bootcamp Tests to learn and practice. PRACTICE is understated. Train your brain to visualize shapes and contours of objects. Speed is key: work fast to save time for difficult sections. TFE was my hardest. I started KH, skipped TFE, sped thru AR (don't spend more than 5 min here; angles are too close to distinguish), completed HP/CC/PF, and returned to TFE with extra time. Pro-Tip: Never leave a question blank. Always mark a question you can't answer.
Bootcamp: 17/19/17/18/20/19/20/21
QR (21): I completed 7 Math Destroyer Tests to learn and practice. I'm naturally good at Algebra/Geometry, but not at Trig. Given QR wasn't emphasized as much as other sections, I stopped studying after those 7 tests. On the test, I couldn't answer some higher-level probability and trig questions. Pro-Tip: Skim the question, assess the time required to answer, and either complete the question or mark for review.
MATH Destroyer Tests: scored 75%
Bootcamp: 22/21/22/22/19
RC (19): I completed 5 DAT Bootcamp Tests to learn and practice. Everyone can read, but not everyone can interpret or remember info. My best method was numbering a note sheet 1-17 for each paragraph and noting keywords in each paragraph. I always wrote extra notes for each paragraph, so much/so fast that they were illegible. Pro-Tip: Note keywords like numbers, years, words that are defined, names, title of journals, categories, classifications, arguments (author's purpose/POV).
Bootcamp: 18/17/22/19/20
Bio (26): I read Feralis Notes twice, once in the first week to learn and once more 2 days before the exam. Learn it. Refresh it. I did Bio Destroyer twice, once in the first 3 weeks and once more in the second 3 weeks. Destroyer covers ALL of biology with a hint of humor (You'll get a pet dinosaur one day). After getting destroyed by Destroyer, evaluate your learning with 5 DAT Bootcamp tests. Ari touches base on every bio topic and explains all answer choices extremely well. Pro-Tip: Learn to associate keywords with each biological topic to eliminate unrelated answer choices.
Bio Destroyer: scored 60% (1st time) and 85% (2nd time)
Bootcamp: 18/17/19/18/21
GC (23): I took extensive notes on Chad videos over winter break and reviewed them in the first week and last week. Learn it. Refresh it. I did GC Destroyer twice, once in the first 3 weeks and once more in the second 3 weeks. After doing so much, you'd think the repetition drowns you in pure boredom, but it merely serves to reinforce your learning. The 5 DAT Bootcamp tests tested every mathematical and conceptual dimension of GC. Pro-Tip: Associate hard-to-imagine concepts with real-life situations (ex. does entropy, density, BP, VP, FP change with different phase transitions in water (s) (l) (g)?)
GC Destroyer: Scored 50% (1st time) and 80% (2nd time)
Bootcamp: 22/23/20/21/22
OC (29): I sat in the car for 1 hour before my DAT and decided to look at the Orgo Road Maps for the first time. They saved me. All the reactions you need to know are there. Like GC, I took notes on Chad's, did OC Destroyer twice, and assessed my learning with 5 DAT Bootcamp tests. Learn it. Refresh it. Assess it. Pro-Tip: Follow the electrons...Where they go, you go.
OC Destroyer: scored 50% (1st time) and 75% (2nd time)
Bootcamp: 18/19/18/21/20
A Few Words...
The day after my graduation, I committed to studying. Eat. Study. Sleep. Repeat. If this cycle exists in dental school, we might as well practice it. Stay curious and positive about learning; you remember best this way. Shout out to Ari of DAT Bootcamp, from whom I won a free subscription on his Facebook page. Check out his DAT Question of the Day (email version/FB version). I used this every week during my senior year of college. I think he also has Scientific American articles; read and write keywords for each paragraph to practice RC. Thanks to GLIMMER for the motivating list of breakdowns.
Life-Tip: Smile as you learn now. They will be reflected by those of your dental patients later.
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