study schedule

[michaelamae1]

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What does anybody think about mastering a subject at a time? I was trying to study a lil bit of each subject like the 8 wk study guide but I felt like I was not accomplishing much. I just started studying and plan to take the DAT by early summer. I'm rough pretty much on all subjects right now. I am doing Chad's but trying to go through gc first then oc. Then PAT, BIO, QR, RC. Can anyone tell me if this may or maynot work for any reason!!!!!!😱

 

[NguyenDDS]

I'd like to know this too 🙂
I, too, am doing what you're doing! lol. Maybe it's psychological or whatever, but I feel like mastering one subject at a time feels good.

I'm guessing it's not a good idea to completely stop studying the subject once you're done with that subject, but at least review a little each day while hardcore studying the other subject. I guess that's what I'm going to do. This will ensure that you don't forget anything you learned from the previous subjects.

 

[p2vanlon]

I am 2.5 weeks in to the 8-week guide that Dentalworks put out and I am really feeling the progress.

The thing I like the most is the way it is set up to basically kick your butt for the first 4 weeks with as much reading and reviewing and studying as possible

and then

Kick your butt the next 4 weeks with application of all areas everyday for the material you just read/reviewed/took notes/made flash cards etc.

I am putting in no less than 8 hours everyday to make sure that I am covering all of my bases with each topic and I feel like I am making some very good progress towards feeling as prepared as possible for the DAT


You gotta do what you feel comfortable with, but I didn't like the idea of focusing on Gen Chem for 3 weeks then neglecting it for the next 6-8 weeks while I focused on the other stuff. The everything at once approach immerses you into all the subjects at once which I like.

 

[dentalWorks]

What does anybody think about mastering a subject at a time? I was trying to study a lil bit of each subject like the 8 wk study guide but I felt like I was not accomplishing much. I just started studying and plan to take the DAT by early summer. I'm rough pretty much on all subjects right now. I am doing Chad's but trying to go through gc first then oc. Then PAT, BIO, QR, RC. Can anyone tell me if this may or maynot work for any reason!!!!!!😱

thats certainly understandable. The reason the 8-week study plan is set up such that you cover all topics in 1 day is because.... well lets be honest here, can you imagine yourself doing 8-10 hours of ONLY organic chemistry in 1 day for the next 7-10 days? I can't, thats too much of the same topic over 1 day. But some people (such as yourself) can and actually study better that way.

Ultimately, your the one studying and taking the exam, do the thing that you FEEL helps you retain better....

 

[Philippines03j]

For some people 1 topic at a time will work. For instance if you are really weak in Gen Chem then put a lot of time and effort into that topic. For breaks (if you are studying all day or a good portion of the day 5 hours+) practice some pat or do some math problems. Once you feel like you have gen chem down go onto the next subject...

As indicated this is where it can get tricky. Now for breaks, instead of doing perceptual ability all the time (hopefully it is getting better from practicing between gen chem). Go back and do a few problems of gen chem each day to keep it fresh.

By the time you get to your third topic it is going to be up to you what to practice during your breaks.

Taking small 30 minute breaks and changing focus every once in a while will help to retain information and keep focused longer.

Will studying 1 subject at a time work? Yes, but you cannot totally neglect the subjects you just studied while you move onto the next ones.

I have a study plan guide that will give suggestions on how to study each section. Good luck👍

 

[michaelamae1]

Thanks everyone for yall's opinion. It's just like I feel like I am starting from scratch in every subject and just wanted to know gc and oc cold first. I am doing very little of studying other subjects but not spending hours like I am for these two. I just received Math Destroyer in the mail today and guys WOWWWW I have alot to learn. Some of the explanations I have questions on how they solved it. Any suggestions??😕

 

[Bchance]

Don't feel bad about starting from scratch...... I feel that way also, and i'm practically teaching myself most of the material for the chems... It is very doable and there has been alot of people on SDN that has gotten good scores on the DAT and had to teach themselves the material... I'm also kinda doing what your doing, except what i'm going to do is:

1) Go through each topic individually i.e.. All of Gen chem, then all of O-chem and taking all the quizzes along the way..
2) Working on PAT a little each day while going through the sections.
3) Then when I have done the two chem sections, i'm going to start on biology and QR, while still taking some of the chem quizzes each day...

That is what i'm currently doing and the reason is to build somewhat of a foundation on all the subjects before hitting Destroyer... However, I will probably go through chads videos again on Fast-Play before hand if I have time...

I hope this helps!

 

[michaelamae1]

Thanks Bchance for your quick response! I do have a question for you. How long and how much do you for each in a day? Are you now just starting to study also and when do you plan to take the DAT?

 

[jonishere5]

What does anybody think about mastering a subject at a time? I was trying to study a lil bit of each subject like the 8 wk study guide but I felt like I was not accomplishing much. I just started studying and plan to take the DAT by early summer. I'm rough pretty much on all subjects right now. I am doing Chad's but trying to go through gc first then oc. Then PAT, BIO, QR, RC. Can anyone tell me if this may or maynot work for any reason!!!!!!😱

I think this could work however lets say you go through the entire organic chemistry section in your 1st 1.5 weeks of studying and then you don't work on O'chem for the next 6 weeks, you would forget a lot of the material you have learned, if you do go through one section at a time, make sure you go back periodically to review and practice the stuff you learned, repetition and application of concepts is the key!

 

[michaelamae1]

You definitely have a good point and that is why I am going over previous notes from the same subject as I go and the quizzes. It was just that I need to really learn the concepts to gc and oc before I can do any problems. When I mean Im starting from scratch I mean starting from the bottom. I didn't learn very much in my gc classes although I managed to get B's but still. I think I learned more in my oc classes than gc. Thank u so much for your feedback.

 

[Bchance]

Thanks Bchance for your quick response! I do have a question for you. How long and how much do you for each in a day? Are you now just starting to study also and when do you plan to take the DAT?

My test date is June 4th and I plan on taking it on that date if ready👍

I try to go through a section each day i.e.. Gen chem- Section G1.1-G1.5 etc.. Take tests for each section.. If I have more time then I will go through 2 sections, but alteast 1 per day.. You will finish all of Gen-chem in about a week I think..

Then on to O-chem.. Since there is more to memorize on O-chem ( I think anyways ) It might take longer... But you can get my point..

Right now i'm in the middle of classes and i'm taking Biochem II and Physics II along with a few other classes, so my time is split btwn Class work and DAT prep so that my GPA ( which is more important atm ) doesn't slip and I can ( Hopefully ) get A's.

Ummm, I've been studying a lil here and there for the past month, which hasn't done me much good lol.. However, i'm starting a full out assult on it as of right now until the test day... I have finals around the first couple weeks of May, so it will give me 3 full weeks of more intense studying...

Hope this helps... Ask if you have any other questions.. 🙂

 

[michaelamae1]

I know my gpa is pretty low and I definitely have to continue to bring it up. Last year it was 3.2 area but since two semesters I have made several A's so I really don't know what it is now. How is yours?

 

[Bchance]

I have a 3.58 cGPA and a 3.7 sGPA.... But I pride myself in class work and maintaining a high gpa, the thing is though, alot of times before test I would cram.. Ya I got a good test grade, but I didn't remember a thing!! lol....

 

[olive6]

i did one at a time and it worked for me! but i did do a big review over everything in the 2-3 weeks before the test which helped refresh everything

 

[tendram]

I think the amount of time spent on a subject depends on 1) how familiar you are with each particular subject and 2) how much time you have to spend each day studying. For me, I can't do the 8 week study schedule, however some others can. I have school and work and my studying is limited to around 4-5 hours a day if that. I've been stressing out the past few weeks trying to get all the material in before summer classes start and I finally found that doing a variation on the 8 week program of reading two chapters/taking notes on two chapters is really working for me. I plan on finishing up around the end of this month and hitting Destroyer really hard in the time off before summer classes with some thorough review. Good luck 👍