what is in DAT Destroyer?

[sleepinxlionhar]

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Hi guys,

I'm new to this forum, and I found it to be really helpful! Thanks to this site, I found lots of good resources to study for the DAT. However, they are pretty expensive. Right now, I'm debating whether or not I should get the DAT Destroyer. So I just want to ask, for those who used the DAT Destroyer, what is exactly inside the book? Is it just like practice problems or like review of materials?

I'm planning on getting DAT Achiever and Crack DAT PAT Royal Flush Edition & Crack DAT MATH Royal Flush Edition - 2009-2010 Ultimate Bundle Package + FREE EXCLUSIVE CRACK THE SCIENCE, and that's like $350 right there, not counting the other books I plan on buying.

So I was just wondering if I would miss out on anything if I don't get the DAT Destroyer?

Thanks!

 

[userah]

you don't need the royal flush edition. the ace edition is more than enough. you're better off using that money to get destroyer. unless you feel you're prepared for the sciences. destroyer is a much more useful study aid. good luck =)

 

[Broncos85]

The destroyer is totally worth it for the sciences, it contains about 200-250 problems for each science and explains vital information in the each solution section. I'm using it now and its completely worth it, plus if you have any questions who don't know or understand you could post them here in the forum.

 

[Klumzy]

The DAT Destroyer is a great book and it is worth your money. The book contains Organic Chemistry, General Chemistry, Biology, and Quantitative Reasoning sections. The book is organized in the following way: It consists of hundreds of questions for each section as well as very and I mean very detailed explanations to each question. This way everytime you study you get a chance to practise DAT like questions and get an indepth answers to them, even if you get the question right it is sooo worth to read the explanation since it will help you to remember concepts that you absolutely have to know. In addition this book prepares you very well for the actaul DAT because the difficulty level is a little higher than DAT test, therefore if you score in the low twenties on your sciences in destroyer I can almost guarantee you that you will score higher on the DAT itself. After studying Orgo from destroyer I took a practise orgo section test from Kaplan BB and I got all questions right because they are much easier than what you will encounter in the destroyer. Let me put it this way... If dental school is really your dream and you are aiming to maximize science scores you should get that book even if it was to cost you a billion bucks. Anywayz it is just my opinion but that book has helped me to understand concepts that I couldn't even get in my undergraduate orgo classes. Best of luck to you.

 

[sleepinxlionhar]

So you guys think that the DAT Destroyer is enough practice for the sciences section? I mean, like enough problems, and review kinda? Because I'll still planning on getting some AP bio books to study with

 

[gentile1225]

To be honest i haven't heard too many good things about CRACK DAT SCIENCE, overall i heard the material is pretty head-on with minor mistakes here and there. Destroyer definitely worth it. However, as many people have said before on this forum, it's a tough book and picks on the details of topics so it's a tool I used to test myself. I studied my sciences with class notes and Kaplan BB and cleaned it up with destroyer.

Best thing I'd say to do, is save your money on CRACK DAT SCIENCE, use it to buy CRACK DAT PAT and Destroyer, and go to a local barnes and noble and study there for a little bit using the Kaplan book. it's money saved and an extra resource for free.

 

[Californian]

Question: so orgo,gchem,bio section will be good with DAT destroyer.
Then, what about the rest sections (PAT,RC,math)? which book should I use?

 

[qk1984]

I think the Destroyer is really good for the sciences and quantitative reasoning. If you just want more practice, I used the examkrackers 1001 for gen chem and orgo, and 101 passages for reading comp.

 

[RHONDAROBINSON]

How are you guys studying the DAT Destroyer? Are you going through the problems then going to your books for reference? What is your game plan?

Rhonda

 

[lalu]

hi,
myself lalu n im a new member. pls let me know abt the DAT n tell me abt the rules that has been changes for the admission in dds as i m a foreign student.

 

[PSU SHC 414]

Hi guys,

I'm new to this forum, and I found it to be really helpful! Thanks to this site, I found lots of good resources to study for the DAT. However, they are pretty expensive. Right now, I'm debating whether or not I should get the DAT Destroyer. So I just want to ask, for those who used the DAT Destroyer, what is exactly inside the book? Is it just like practice problems or like review of materials?

I'm planning on getting DAT Achiever and Crack DAT PAT Royal Flush Edition & Crack DAT MATH Royal Flush Edition - 2009-2010 Ultimate Bundle Package + FREE EXCLUSIVE CRACK THE SCIENCE, and that's like $350 right there, not counting the other books I plan on buying.

So I was just wondering if I would miss out on anything if I don't get the DAT Destroyer?

Thanks!

Simple question, simple answer:

A sh*tload of Bio, GChem, and Ochem questions with very useful answer explanations.

How useful it is to you really depends on how you use it. If you breeze through all the questions in it and just shrug off the questions you got wrong (or even the ones you might've gotten right, but only b/c it was a lucky guess) without bothering to read through the answer explanations, then it'll be a big waste of money, IMO.

If you use it effectively (and this will take TIME), it'll pay off dividends for you. It did for me.

To make it worth the while, I wouldn't use Destroyer until after you've developed a fairly solid base using Kaplan, your own class notes, etc. Once you feel like you've learned and memorized enough info, start attacking Destroyer. If nothing else, Destroyer will make it readily apparent where your weaknesses are and what you still need to study. It definitely surprised me - there were things that I THOUGHT I knew cold from repeated memorization, but when it came to ACTIVELY applying to answer questions, Destroyer showed me what I needed to go back and learn/memorize. Everyone who knows how to study talks about the importance of ACTIVE studying (vs just rote memorization of concepts/facts), and IMO, Destroyer is great for that purpose.

I'd also make a list of certain questions that you need to go back and review (say 1-2 weeks before test day). I think I went through each of the sections in Destroyer at least 2 times over just to make sure I retained everything. I had tabs coming out of every edge of the book, and post-it notes all over many of the pages by the time I was done.

Also, you don't necessarily need to buy a brand-new version. As I've told others, you can get a used copy (preferably with little to no writing in it - it'll be useless to you if all the answers have been marked) of a recent version (I'd say within 6 months or so), and ask the owner to include copies of all the updates (i.e. more questions) they've received so far from Dr. Romano. Look in the classifieds section of SDN and search for "Destroyer". That's how I got mine!

Hope this helps... good luck to you all.

 

[Chisomu]

Thanks guys for all the post. It helped me make my decision. I just bought my own DAT destroyer and i'll start using it once i'm done studying my Kaplan BB and Cliff's.

 

[Californian]

can I buy kaplan BB at bookstore or I have to take a Kaplan course to get it?

 

[sleepinxlionhar]

Thanks guys, my DAT Destroyer is on the way. 😀

I think I got everything else squared away, as in materials I need to study. Except for the RC. I think I'll just start reading lots of research articles. I'm not so sure as in using 101 passages for RC, because I heard for MCATs it's pretty different. And also that 101 passages isn't in stock in any bookstores near where I live, so I can't flip through it before buying it.