Timing Issue with the PAT

[Ellabelle]

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I just took my second Crack the DAT PAT test and got the same exact score as my first one (15! Really pathetic!)
I'm not sure how to pace myself. How much time should I be spending for each section?
Also, I need to write down A B C D on a sheet of paper to cross out the answers for elimination and I do that DURING the test. I'm not sure if we're allowed to do that before the test.
I need some serious advice!

Thanks

 

[SafetyDog]

I think you'll get better with practice.

I know I can buy a lot of time with angles since those don't take long (but I don't always do too well on them) and hole punching.

Skip your hardest section and come back to it at the end. For me, it's TFE.

This worked for me, and I've been getting 22's on CDP while missing 6-7 angles =\.

After all of this, I still have 5 minutes left and i just reviewed the ones I marked or skipped, but I usually end the test earlier since my head hurts (which I won't do on the real test).

 

[dent777]

I just took my second Crack the DAT PAT test and got the same exact score as my first one (15! Really pathetic!)
I'm not sure how to pace myself. How much time should I be spending for each section?
Also, I need to write down A B C D on a sheet of paper to cross out the answers for elimination and I do that DURING the test. I'm not sure if we're allowed to do that before the test.
I need some serious advice!

Thanks

10 minutes per section. If you run over, guess on the remaining and move on, mark them if need to. Cube counting should be practiced to such a point where you count them with your fingers and finish all of the cubes in 6-7 min. CDP has extra questions for cube counting, angle ranking and hole punching, practice those until you are sick of them🙂. Tally method for cube counting steals time, I avoid it. Analyze your mistakes with explanations provided. This is the key to your future improvement. This skill needs daily practice and constant analysis of mistakes.

 

[Ellabelle]

I have the Ace edition. I only have access to 10 tests. I don't know what people are talking about when they say practice "questions".
Does the Ace edition have extra questions in addition to the tests?

 

[ModifiedBass]

I have the Ace edition. I only have access to 10 tests. I don't know what people are talking about when they say practice "questions".
Does the Ace edition have extra questions in addition to the tests?

You don't need anything more than the Ace edition IMO. Just run through those tests/analyze the correct answers carefully, and you should pick it up eventually.

 

[shulace]

I started off in the same situation as you. I got a 16 on my first CDP, which was really depressing. For the next 2 exam I gave myself 30 extra minutes in order to make sure I could complete the entire exam and still did pretty bad. Afterwards, I would wait a day then go back, review my mistakes, then focus on my weakest sections (which were all of them in the beginning), and take individual sections timed for 10 minutes. I'm not sure exactly what happened for me, but things started making sense after a while. Since exam 5, I've been consistently scoring 23 average with around 5 minutes to spare.

Check out the line of symmetry (LOS) method for keyholes on youtube, a truly amazing method. I literally get 100% keyholes every time since I started using that method (origami was a hobby of mine as a kid so that helped too lol). Just keep practicing and don't give up!

 

[Ellabelle]

I started off in the same situation as you. I got a 16 on my first CDP, which was really depressing. For the next 2 exam I gave myself 30 extra minutes in order to make sure I could complete the entire exam and still did pretty bad. Afterwards, I would wait a day then go back, review my mistakes, then focus on my weakest sections (which were all of them in the beginning), and take individual sections timed for 10 minutes. I'm not sure exactly what happened for me, but things started making sense after a while. Since exam 5, I've been consistently scoring 23 average with around 5 minutes to spare.

Check out the line of symmetry (LOS) method for keyholes on youtube, a truly amazing method. I literally get 100% keyholes every time since I started using that method (origami was a hobby of mine as a kid so that helped too lol). Just keep practicing and don't give up!

Isn't the LOS for hole punching?
If so, I really think it's the best method ever.

Thanks

 

[Minion]

I started off in the same situation as you. I got a 16 on my first CDP, which was really depressing. For the next 2 exam I gave myself 30 extra minutes in order to make sure I could complete the entire exam and still did pretty bad. Afterwards, I would wait a day then go back, review my mistakes, then focus on my weakest sections (which were all of them in the beginning), and take individual sections timed for 10 minutes. I'm not sure exactly what happened for me, but things started making sense after a while. Since exam 5, I've been consistently scoring 23 average with around 5 minutes to spare.

Check out the line of symmetry (LOS) method for keyholes on youtube, a truly amazing method. I literally get 100% keyholes every time since I started using that method (origami was a hobby of mine as a kid so that helped too lol). Just keep practicing and don't give up!

How long did it take you to get from a 16 to a 23?

 

[shulace]

How long did it take you to get from a 16 to a 23?

Lol, thanks for catching my mistake. I meant to say hole punches (doh), was eating lunch while typing.

It took about 3 weeks of on and off practice to get better. Hole punches came naturally, TFE and keyholes were next, and then pattern folding. I'm still working on cube counting and angle ranking. I just pick a random test and do a section of each first thing in the morning. Look over my mistakes, proceed to the sciences, and towards the end of the day I'll go back and take a full PAT.

Just keep on practicing. It sucks, but it will pay off. Once you get the hang of it, try DAT Bootcamps PAT. Their keyhole and TFE questions are tougher than CDP.

For angle ranking, I've tried to visualize it as a flag pole, hill, laptop, hand on the clock, etc, and I'm still getting 4-5 wrong each time. Face palm. Anyone here a PC gamer? If so what do you think about using antialiasing to judge the steepness in a line? CDP sure as heck isn't using x16 MSAA.