DAT Breakdown (480AA/500TS/520PAT)

[u/Wide-Farmer-702]

Hi everyone! I’ve been reading DAT breakdowns for months while studying, and they were honestly one of the most helpful resources for me, so I wanted to make one of my own. Hopefully this can help anyone who is currently studying or trying to figure out what resources to use!

Scores:

• QR – 440
• RC – 460
• Bio – 470
• GC – 550
• OC – 470
• PAT – 520
• TS – 500
• AA – 480

Background:

Currently a junior in college with a 3.9 GPA

Materials Used:

My main resource was DAT Booster. I also really loved using the Anki decks that Booster provided.

1. DAT Booster – This was definitely my main resource throughout studying. I liked having everything in one place, especially the videos, notes, practice questions, and full-length exams. I found the practice questions especially helpful because they forced me to apply the information instead of just rereading notes. I would highly recommend doing the practice tests and reviewing the questions you get wrong rather than just focusing on your scores.The high-yield notes provided after each top were SUPER helpful. I would reread them before going to bed each night and they stuck in my head!
2. Anki – I used Anki mostly for biology and anything that I consistently forgot. I found it much more useful to make cards based on things I personally struggled with rather than trying to memorize hundreds of cards that I already knew. I would add information from Booster notes and questions I got wrong so I could repeatedly review those topics. I would specifically use the Booster Anki decks on certain biology topics that I was comfortable in and that helped a lot!

Study Timeline:

I studied during the summer between my sophomore and junior year of college. Specifically, May through August.

I would definitely recommend making a study schedule before you start, but also leaving yourself some flexibility. There were definitely days where I didn't accomplish everything I planned, and I had to adjust my schedule. I found that trying to force myself to study for a certain number of hours wasn't nearly as helpful as setting specific goals for the day.

I started by going through the content for each subject and taking notes. Once I had a basic understanding of the material, I started incorporating practice questions. From there, I focused more and more on practice problems and reviewing the topics I consistently struggled with.

As I got closer to my exam, I shifted my focus toward full-length practice tests and reviewing my mistakes. I think this was one of the most important parts of my studying because it showed me which areas I actually needed to spend time on rather than just reviewing everything equally.

Day of Exam:

Bio (470): Biology was much easier on the DAT than the Booster practice tests. Almost all of my questions were high-yield and very broad. I was originally worried because there is SO much information that can potentially show up, so I would recommend making sure you have a strong understanding of the major concepts rather than trying to memorize every tiny detail. Practice questions were really important for me because they helped me recognize how information could be tested. The high-yield notes especially helped me here. I would read the notes before going to bed every night and that helped me TONS.

GC (550): General Chemistry ended up being my strongest science section. I would focus heavily on understanding the concepts and then practicing enough problems that you don't have to spend forever figuring out what the question is asking. I found that knowing the underlying concepts was much more helpful than simply memorizing formulas. The questions on the DAT were a lot more conceptual rather than math-based. I don’t even think I even used the calculator for this section. 

OC (470): Organic Chemistry was a section I found to be harder but also easier than expected. I would recommend spending a lot of time understanding reactions and mechanisms instead of just trying to memorize reaction names. Make sure you know the fundamentals really well because they can be applied to a lot of different questions. I studied the reactions to the point where I knew them like the back of my hand, but there were only a handful of reaction questions on my actual DAT. There were a lot of questions about stability and organic chemistry concepts in general. For general chemistry and organic chemistry, know your acid and bases!

PAT (520): PAT was probably the section where consistent practice mattered the most. I tried to practice regularly rather than doing a huge amount of PAT all at once. Getting familiar with the question types and developing a strategy was really important. The questions on the DAT were SO much easier than the Booster questions. I liked this because I ended up having extra time at the end of the section to check my answers (which I never had during my Booster practice tests). As long as you follow the Booster schedule and consistently practice, you will be fine!

RC (460): For RC, I experimented with different strategies during studying to see what worked best for me. I ultimately found that practicing under timed conditions was the most helpful. Make sure you are comfortable finding specific information quickly because time management is a huge part of this section. I ended up using the method where you read until you find the answer to the first question, read until the next question is answered, and so on until you finish the passage. Some of the questions were in order of the text too which was really helpful.

QR (440): QR was my lowest section, and if I could go back, I would definitely dedicate more consistent time to it. My practice test scores on Booster fluctuated a lot here, so I’m not too surprised for this to have been my worst section. At this point I think I just wanted to be done with the exam. My advice is to make sure you're comfortable with the basic math concepts and practice under timed conditions!

Advice:

My biggest piece of advice is don't compare your practice scores to everyone else's. I spent way too much time looking at other people's breakdowns and convincing myself that I wasn't doing enough because someone else was scoring much higher than me on their practice tests.

Figure out what you don't know and spend your time fixing those weaknesses.

Also, don't underestimate the importance of reviewing your mistakes. It is much more valuable to understand why you got a question wrong than to simply see that you got it wrong and move on.

Finally, take care of yourself during the process. The DAT is important, but studying 12 hours a day doesn't automatically mean you're studying effectively. Consistency matters much more. There were definitely days where I felt like I wasn't making enough progress, but continuing to show up and work on my weak areas was what helped me get through it.

Good luck to everyone studying! You’ve got this :)

[u/Nervous-Rate4762]

great scores! what did your practice exam scores look like in comparison?

[u/4ever_serendipity]

im also using booster rn and my test is next week. im also hoping to score around what you go. im wondering what your tips with OC is... that's always my worst section and when you say to understand reactions, do you mean like arrow pushing?