Dat 8/1/13 (25aa, 25ts, 27pat)

ayel91 said:

Hello Hello all, I'm finally done! PTL. I learned a lot from SDN these past few years, so hopefully this is helpful.

PAT: 27 (99.7)
QR: 27 (99.7)
RC: 22 (84.4)
BIO: 23 (97.4)
GC: 26 (98.8)
OC: 29 (98.9)
TS: 25 (99.5)
AA: 25 (99.9)


Background:
I'm going to be a senior and am graduating in December. CA resident. oGPA 3.47, BCP 3.33. Applications off 2nd batch. I think I go to a pretty competitive university, although I'm biased, but regardless I needed the DAT to be my equalizer. I had one of those poor Freshman years, but since then I have done pretty well and kept an upward trend. I didn't have a strong GC or Gen Bio background. I did take Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, and Physiology. If anything, I recommend taking Physiology before the DAT. I had a wonderful teacher and having that background tremendously helped. Also, make sure to do well in OChem. You'll never have to memorize a reaction if you do well and really learn it the first time. The more science classes you take, obviously, the more prepared you'll be.

I didn't have a set study schedule because I wanted to go at a faster pace than the normal 8 week schedule but didn't know how long each set of materials would take.

Crack the DAT (I got everything; don't.)
CHAD's videos*
Cliffs*
Topscore
Achiever*
DAT Bootcamp*
QVault
Feralis' Notes* (http://datbootcamp.com/feralis-biology-notes/)
ADA 2007/2009 Sample Tests
ANKI (I had like 1,000 flashcards of literally everything)
If time and/or money aren't an issue, get anything and everything. Otherwise I recommend: Cliffs, Bootcamp, QVault Bio, Feralis's Notes, Achiever; CHAD.
I also recommend going in this order: Cliffs/Chads > Destroyer/QVault Bio/Feralis' Notes/CDP > Bootcamp > Achiever + others > ADA 07 > 09.


PAT (27): Achiever; CDP
Get Achiever. Period. Maybe my test was on the easier side but everything was ridiculously easy after Achiever. I worked through CDP in the beginning, after kind of figuring out how to do everything. Moved onto Achiever and man, those Keyholes on there kicked my butt. But when everyone talks about proportions, you really understand when you move on to Achiever. I took a carving class a couple semesters ago, made 3D models out of plaster, wax, and paper. It really helped with orientation and TFE I think. I wasn't a huge fan of Bootcamp or QVault's PAT section. I scored like 19 on the first Bootcamp, but averaged around 21 on Achiever so I just kind of just focused on that.

Achiever: 21/20/21/22/20
CDP: 25/22/23/24

Keyholes: I got the rock!! Literally, got a blob. But generally pretty easy. Maybe a few on the Achiever level but mostly really easy. Proportions.
TFE: Maybe 2 I was sort of stuck on. Very easy, much easier than Achiever and CDP.
Angles: I was horrible in CDP angles… Achiever I think is fair. But the real test had like 7 super obvious ones. I tried just about every method and really couldn't get a feel for things. I practiced by covering parts of the angles with my thumbs until I found out you couldn't do that… but it kind of helped me pick up my method. Just focus on the tip of acute angles use the rapid eye method while squinting. Obtuse Angles I'm pretty bad at, but again most of the answers were obvious. Luckily I can spot a 20 degree difference…lol okay maybe not that easy, but you get the point. Overall way easier than CDP or Achiever.
Hole Punch: LOS like everyone says. Most were super easy but still got a few third folds. Like someone said not too long ago, the hole punches were smaller and closer towards the center, which kind of threw me off. Then around the 10th Hole Punch the circles got super big...
Cube Counting: Just tally them up. Just takes a little practice to get fast.
Pattern Folding: I'm usually pretty good in this section. A couple that took me a while but for the most part on the level of CDP. Also, if it helps, trace the edges to see where they touch. It'll help you connect pieces that aren't close.
Overall: I think half of it was stupid easy, but they put in like 3 or 4 more challenging problems in each section. Each section gets gradually harder as you progress. Get familiar with CDP but definitely go through Achiever. It really helped so much, especially Keyholes, TFE, and Pattern Folding. I finished with 10 or 15 minutes left, went over Keyholes mostly.


Bio (23): Cliffs, Destroyer, Qvault, Bootcamp, Achiever, Topscore

I recommend starting with Cliff's, then moving onto Destroyer and QVault. There's a lot of random information that you may find unnecessary or useless but try to learn and memorize everything. Supplement and memorize everything from Feralis' Notes. 90% will be there. I had to fill in some other bits of information that wasn't in there, but you'll pick them up if you go through all the practice tests. Bootcamp was very representative, and closest to my actual. Know EVERYTHING. lol. Heck, I studied the ruminant digestive system too.

QVault Bio: 18/20/19/20/19/20/20/23/19/21
Bootcamp: 21/23/22/26/25

Here's a few anatomy videos that helped me. Takes maybe 20 minutes to learn all the anatomy you need to know!
(Haversian System)
(Auditory)
(Eye)
(Embryo Development)
(Digestion)
There's a lot of animated AP Bio/Med videos that really help visualize everything.

Real: Grr. Really though I should have done better here. This was like 50% of my studying. No facts I didn't know. The questions were worded sort of strangely, I'm not entirely sure I understood one of the questions. Kind of a crapshoot here, you never know what you're gonna get. No plants. Seems like a lot of what I studied wasn't on there, but there's just a huge spectrum of possible questions. I finished the sciences with like an hour to spare, so I went through everything like 3 times, caught 2 mistakes!


GC (26): Chad, Bootcamp, Destroyer, (QVault).
Start reviewing with Chad's, go over the quizzes and continue to go over them periodically. Bootcamp was excellent. Very, very similar. Explanations are great and very indicative of actual scores, except that test 5 -___-;; Seriously, Chad is amazing. Destroyer was almost useless on this section, you could easily do very well with Chad's videos alone. I had maybe a handful of actual calculation question.

Bootcamp GC: 23/23/24/25/19


OC (29): Chad's, Destroyer, Bootcamp.
If you know the reactions, no need to memorize the roadmaps. Understanding mechanisms help you understand and memorize reactions/reagents. If you keep in mind the concept of dipole and EDG/EWG, then you can work through almost any ochem problem. Destroyer was overkill, but it saved me on 2 questions for sure. Chad's was a wonderful review, really brings you back up to speed very quickly. Got a lab question, either Destroyer or Bootcamp covered it though.

Bootcamp OC: 20/22/22/26/24


RC (22): CDR, Bootcamp, Achiever.
I'm not a fast reader, nor am I particularly good at this section. Very fortunate to get a 22. Find whatever works for you, but don't entirely rely on Search and Destroy. I like to skim and map out the paragraphs, try to read if it's fluid. I don't think I had those "Statement is true but reason is false" type questions that Bootcamp and Achiever went over. I thought Bootcamp was great practice, and it even includes a couple articles related to Bio topics you should cover. Achiever was insane, I cried inside.
The real test was very straightforward. 75% SnD? I quickly read through each passage, mapped out the passage, and just worked through it that way. Not word-for-word like Topscore, but quick SnD will manage. I typically run on the short side of time so I worked through the first passage really quickly, then ended up with 10 minutes extra. I went back, but going through it patiently and correctly the first time would have been easier. Two 14 paragraphs and last one was a bit longer.

Bootcamp RC: 19/18/21


QR (27): Bootcamp, Math Destroyer. (QVault is way too easy; Achiever was probably a little bit harder)
I'm pretty good at math (I love algebra) but Bootcamp & Math Destroyer go over the random problems in Trig or Geometry that I did't know how to set up or approach. Luckily I didn't get any of those questions. Warm up to QR by going through Math in the big Destroyer book, then move on to Math Destroyer and Bootcamp. If you don't know, just plug and chug away. Calculator was a bit slow only when clicking the same digit. I finished with 15 minutes to spare and went over everything twice.

Bootcamp QR: 25/23/20/22


Practice Scores: (BIO, GC, OC, PAT, RC, QR, TS, AA)
Achiever 1: 18/23/20/21/17/26/20/21
Achiever 2: 17/17/17/20/18/23/17/18
Achiever 3: 18/19/23/21/xx/xx/20/xx
I did more but after Achiever 4, but they get really hard… However, I do recommend doing all 7 PATs. If you've finished going through all the easier things, definitely recommend going over Achiever. Despite being really hard, sometimes unnecessarily hard, it over-prepares you in timing and difficulty. Don't pay attention to the scores, except maybe PAT.

Topscore 1: 18/19/19/21/21/21/19/21
Topscore 2: 21/20/25/23/25/23/22/22
Topscore 3: 20/19/20
Didn't like Topscore all that much. Super ghetto, and unnecessarily specific on Bio Diversity. RC had too much SnD, no way I should score a 25 on reading. Nonetheless, good practice to point out weak areas or go over test situation.

ADA 2007: BIO 24, GC 25, OC 30, TS 26
ADA 2009: BIO 30, GC 26, OC 24, PAT 23, RC 21, QR 20, TS 25, AA 24
09 was very close to the real difficulty, except QR is much, much easier.

QVault: Mostly recommend for Bio. Don't take those scores to heart, they introduce a few more random facts each test. Good practice for GC but not necessary. Everything else was just okay.
Bootcamp: was really similar to the real thing. Definitely a good investment. Like Ari says, I think most sections are a little bit harder than the real DAT. They do prepare you well though. Probably the best source across all subjects. Wonderful explanations! Like the real DAT, Bootcamp makes you apply your knowledge. Cannot emphasize that enough for the real deal.


Don't focus on practice scores all that much. Don't beat yourself up if you do poorly or slack off cause you did well. I struggled lots early on, but really took the time to understand. Review problems right after getting them wrong. Learn from your mistakes and try to improve each time. It's all about exposure and practice. Make sure to focus, and understand what they're asking. Sometimes I would just get stuff wrong in practice because I didn't read carefully. Make sure to read carefully, especially on the real thing. Do your best! Everything will turn out alright!!

"Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed." (Proverbs 16:3)

Click to expand...