took the dat last week, and figured I can help those who are still stressing out about the test.
First off, here are my scores>
PAT: 27
QR: 24
RC: 20
BIO: 19
OC: 21
GC:21
TS: 20
AA: 21
This was my second time taking the test. The first time I took it, I only studied for about a week, and so I will be able to actually tell you guys what study methods work and what doesn't by comparing my two scores.
PAT: from a 21 to 27. Overall, taking several practice tests helped
Angle ranking : you know how some lines are short and some are long so that it makes somewhat of an illusion. well just look at the tip of the angle only. for acute angles, if the tip seems a little darker, then its a smaller angle. for obtuse angles, if the tip seems to be almost nonexistent, then it is a larger angle.
Hole punching: looking for symmetries first before trying to figure out the whole thing really saves time.
cube counting: be able to know at a glance if the cube is a 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 sided one. (i don't know if this will help, but i found it easier to actually look at how many surfaces the cube was in contact with other cubes. the 5 sided ones only touch another surface once, 4 sided twice.....etc)
overall, I practiced through topscore and achiever.
QR: destroyer really helped. I timed myself each day for 40 questions. As I solved the problems, I marked ones where I kinda sorta knew the answer but wasn't really postiive about. After that, I graded my self and marked the ones that I got wrong. (if i got it wrong because of calculation mistakes, I just didn't mark it). after finishing the whole thing just make a list of the kinds of problems you got wrong. the kinds of questions in the DAT QR is very limited. so if you familiarize yourself with the kinds of questions on the destroyer, you'll be mroe than ready.
RC: from a 18 to 20. don't read the passage! read the problem, find a key word or phrase you are looking for and look for it in the passage. Got about 4 tone questions. for that, just read the intro and last paragraph.
BIO: from a 17 to 19. I LLLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOVVVVEEEEE AP Bio Cliffnote. I read through it twice. I wished I had read it a couple of more times too. It took me 4 days to read through it thoroughly. Then I marked parts that I feel like I didn't know before. Then, when reread it the second time, I skimed through the parts that I already knew, and read the marked parts more thoroughly. this way, it took only a day to actually reread it the second time. after that, destroyer helped me with parts that is not covered in the cliffnotes. again, mark questions you got wrong and go over those problems several times. if you don't know a term in one of the choices (even if it isn't the answer) use wikipedia to find what it is.
OC: from 24 to 21. I think overall, I just forgot orgo. (the first time I took it, it was right after I took a year of orgo). so can't really help you out here. I felt like dat destroyer didn't help. only a couple of reaction questions. most questions were about miscellaneous topics like testing reagents and processes i've never heard of.
GC: stayed at 21. it's been four years since I last took GC. dat destroyer really helped me refresh my memories. not many calculation problems though (maybe 4). and for those calculation problems, they give equations as choices (so you don't really have to calculate it out)
Overall, I studied about 3 hours each day for 3 weeks. First, read the cliffnotes twice, solve all the problems in dat destroyer and spend your last week taking sample tests (achiever and topscore). take the tests as if you were actually at the test center (use markers, keep wearing what you are wearing even if you're cold or hot, don't snack while taking it, use your nonwriting hand to use the mouse...) and the scores you get the from the practice tests say nothing about your real dat score. the tests are designed to discourage students so that they can study harder. a little bit of anxiety actually helps you do better in the real dat (cause you get more focused)
hope this helped a little (hope i didn't basically repeat what others have already posted)
last thing to say is... if you find that you are not happy with your scores, don't ask the forum for advice of whether to retake or not. ask yourself the question. are you just unhappy because you got a low score, or are you unhappy because you think you could have done better. despite what statistics show, I think there is a good chance that you'll do better. First off, you'll be familiar with the testing environment and what to expect on your second time. Secondly, you'll know what sections you'll have to imrpvoe on. lastly, you won't have to regret not taking it again if you don't get into the dental school you wnated (even if you don't improve on your second dat, it will confirm that that is the score that represents your knowledge, and that you've tried your best)
GOOD LUCK PEEPZ 🙂
First off, here are my scores>
PAT: 27
QR: 24
RC: 20
BIO: 19
OC: 21
GC:21
TS: 20
AA: 21
This was my second time taking the test. The first time I took it, I only studied for about a week, and so I will be able to actually tell you guys what study methods work and what doesn't by comparing my two scores.
PAT: from a 21 to 27. Overall, taking several practice tests helped
Angle ranking : you know how some lines are short and some are long so that it makes somewhat of an illusion. well just look at the tip of the angle only. for acute angles, if the tip seems a little darker, then its a smaller angle. for obtuse angles, if the tip seems to be almost nonexistent, then it is a larger angle.
Hole punching: looking for symmetries first before trying to figure out the whole thing really saves time.
cube counting: be able to know at a glance if the cube is a 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 sided one. (i don't know if this will help, but i found it easier to actually look at how many surfaces the cube was in contact with other cubes. the 5 sided ones only touch another surface once, 4 sided twice.....etc)
overall, I practiced through topscore and achiever.
QR: destroyer really helped. I timed myself each day for 40 questions. As I solved the problems, I marked ones where I kinda sorta knew the answer but wasn't really postiive about. After that, I graded my self and marked the ones that I got wrong. (if i got it wrong because of calculation mistakes, I just didn't mark it). after finishing the whole thing just make a list of the kinds of problems you got wrong. the kinds of questions in the DAT QR is very limited. so if you familiarize yourself with the kinds of questions on the destroyer, you'll be mroe than ready.
RC: from a 18 to 20. don't read the passage! read the problem, find a key word or phrase you are looking for and look for it in the passage. Got about 4 tone questions. for that, just read the intro and last paragraph.
BIO: from a 17 to 19. I LLLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOVVVVEEEEE AP Bio Cliffnote. I read through it twice. I wished I had read it a couple of more times too. It took me 4 days to read through it thoroughly. Then I marked parts that I feel like I didn't know before. Then, when reread it the second time, I skimed through the parts that I already knew, and read the marked parts more thoroughly. this way, it took only a day to actually reread it the second time. after that, destroyer helped me with parts that is not covered in the cliffnotes. again, mark questions you got wrong and go over those problems several times. if you don't know a term in one of the choices (even if it isn't the answer) use wikipedia to find what it is.
OC: from 24 to 21. I think overall, I just forgot orgo. (the first time I took it, it was right after I took a year of orgo). so can't really help you out here. I felt like dat destroyer didn't help. only a couple of reaction questions. most questions were about miscellaneous topics like testing reagents and processes i've never heard of.
GC: stayed at 21. it's been four years since I last took GC. dat destroyer really helped me refresh my memories. not many calculation problems though (maybe 4). and for those calculation problems, they give equations as choices (so you don't really have to calculate it out)
Overall, I studied about 3 hours each day for 3 weeks. First, read the cliffnotes twice, solve all the problems in dat destroyer and spend your last week taking sample tests (achiever and topscore). take the tests as if you were actually at the test center (use markers, keep wearing what you are wearing even if you're cold or hot, don't snack while taking it, use your nonwriting hand to use the mouse...) and the scores you get the from the practice tests say nothing about your real dat score. the tests are designed to discourage students so that they can study harder. a little bit of anxiety actually helps you do better in the real dat (cause you get more focused)
hope this helped a little (hope i didn't basically repeat what others have already posted)
last thing to say is... if you find that you are not happy with your scores, don't ask the forum for advice of whether to retake or not. ask yourself the question. are you just unhappy because you got a low score, or are you unhappy because you think you could have done better. despite what statistics show, I think there is a good chance that you'll do better. First off, you'll be familiar with the testing environment and what to expect on your second time. Secondly, you'll know what sections you'll have to imrpvoe on. lastly, you won't have to regret not taking it again if you don't get into the dental school you wnated (even if you don't improve on your second dat, it will confirm that that is the score that represents your knowledge, and that you've tried your best)
GOOD LUCK PEEPZ 🙂
