Understanding the DAT

[busupshot83]

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When posting DAT scores on SDN, people use the following format:

Academic / Science / PAT

What do these mean?

 

[jjdaddy]

There are 3 sections on the DAT:
academic
science and
PAT !

 

[busupshot83]

Originally posted by jjdaddy
There are 3 sections on the DAT:
academic
science and
PAT !

Yeah, I figured that smart guy. Can anyone explain what the Academic and PAT is?

 

[ItsGavinC]

The PAT is the perceptual ability test portion of the PAT.

The Academic score is the average of the remaining sections of the DAT (the science sections, the math, and the reading section).

The Science DAT scores is just the science sections of Biology, Chem., and Organic Chem. This score, when reported, doesn't include the math or reading scores.

Does that make sense?

So people usually report the Academic average (the average of ALL the academic portions) and then the PAT score (the only test on the DAT that is NOT included in the academic average score).

 

[busupshot83]

THanks Gav.

 

[jjdaddy]

Originally posted by ItsGavinC
The PAT is the perceptual ability test portion of the PAT.

The Academic score is the average of the remaining sections of the DAT (the science sections, the math, and the reading section).

The Science DAT scores is just the science sections of Biology, Chem., and Organic Chem. This score, when reported, doesn't include the math or reading scores.

Does that make sense?

So people usually report the Academic average (the average of ALL the academic portions) and then the PAT score (the only test on the DAT that is NOT included in the academic average score).

I'm sorry, I didn't know you REALLY didn't know...

Just you know, there are 100 questions in the science section of Bio(40), general chem(30) and organic chem(30).

Total Science score is NOT the average score of bio, chem, and orgo, but calculated from how many questions you got right out of the total 100 questions.

 

[ItsGavinC]

Originally posted by jjdaddy

Total Science score is NOT the average score of bio, chem, and orgo, but calculated from how many questions you got right out of the total 100 questions.

Nope, the total science score IS the average of the three science subsections. It is NOT how many you got right out of the total 100 questions (not directly, at any rate).

That is, the scoring STILL breaks down those 100 questions into their respective subsections, and then puts those sections to the appropriate curves to yield the DAT score (1-30).

 

[jjdaddy]

I don't think so. For many ppl, it may turn out that way, but if TS was the avg, my TS should be way better:

Bio 21
Chem 22
Orgo 29

TS : 22

Barron's DAT book confirms this.

 

[zimaad]

Check out this link as information on the DAT. Also, check out the DAT forum...you can find tons of info there!

http://www.ada.org/prof/ed/testing/dat/index.asp#general

 

[shizzleDDS]

jjdaddy,

You're right, the total science score is based off the number of questions correct out of 100, not an average of the three sections (bio, orgo, and gchem).

 

[ItsGavinC]

Originally posted by jjdaddy
I don't think so. For many ppl, it may turn out that way, but if TS was the avg, my TS should be way better:

Bio 21
Chem 22
Orgo 29

TS : 22

Barron's DAT book confirms this.

Thanks for the heads up. I'd actually never seen ANYBODY whose score wasn't an average.

Thanks.

 

[Comet208]

Gavin, I suggest you add the OP's question to your FAQ.