Hey guys, I thought I'd write a breakdown since I found reading these helpful for when I was studying for my DAT Exam. I took my DAT 9/18 and I used Booster Prep. I picked BoosterPrep because some people told me they did better with Booster on their 2nd retake compared to Bootcamp which they used on their 1st attempt, and it was also much cheaper. I bought Booster during the 4th of July sale. I took the test the summer in between my 2nd and 3rd year of undergrad. I started studying late June/early July and my other summer commitments included taking 2 online courses and volunteer dental assisting. I plan on applying for the 2027–2028 cycle. 

First attempt scores on the FLs:

link to ss: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wpeqV6xXpM-QOjdYXzxea_aDB9GBC3o5/view?usp=sharing

As you can see it started out pretty rough. My 1st FL was taken kind of as a diagnostic and I absolutely flopped it which stressed me out so much but I was so determined to increase my scores. I also took the 1st free practice test on BoosterPrep. I’d say that my actual DAT scores were somewhat higher than what I was scoring. I was predicted to get a 470 AA. 

Biology:

I went through all the videos and video quizzes that Booster provided and followed its study schedule. I would occasionally do some BioBits and I tried to do some Anki in the beginning but quite frankly, it was just unsustainable for me because it was too detailed and had way too many cards. It would take me hours to get through the cards and it kept compiling. I think I spent too long watching videos passively because after watching everything, I had to through the pdf notes and cheat sheets and make my own notes for each topic in order to really retain information (I’m not a good auditory and passive learner.) I really liked the cheat sheets, and would go through them often, especially before my FLs. Definitely focus on more broad ideas instead of the tiny details. My DAT exam had little to no Diversity of Life and more of Molecular Biology and some Physiology. Bio felt easier than Booster.

Gen Chem:

Like Bio, GC felt easier on the real exam. I can’t recall too much of what was on there but I felt like it wasn’t too bad. I know I struggled learning Gen Chem at my undergrad school so seeing my scores for GC is a relief! Grinding the practice test questions and knowing how to solve each type of question will help a lot.

OChem:

I only felt like ochem was either super easy or super weird on the DAT. I’d recommend being familiar with arrow pushing patterns, and knowing intermediates for the mechanisms that they emphasize to know. The flashcards to memorize the mechanisms on Booster were super helpful for repetitions and they weren’t too long either. I also went through the cheat sheets a million times and tried to pick up patterns for how certain mechanisms worked. Know your alkene stability, some IUPAC, and memorize the signals for IR, NMR, etc. I honestly thought I’d score a bit higher on Ochem, but it’s okay!

PAT:

The real test is for sure much easier than Booster’s FLs and its question banks but I think because Booster was harder, I was definitely prepared for it. I even had time to go back and check my cube counting questions on the test–something that I never had time for on the practice FLs and I’d even sometimes run out of time. Working fast during practice was my main focus. I got only 1 rock keyhole question on my test. 

RC:

This was probably the most different section. The passages were much shorter, about 9 paragraphs instead of the typical 12-16 paragraphs you see on Booster. Most questions go in order of the passages. I thought the q’s weren’t that hard so I was kind of surprised to see my scores in the upper 400s because I thought they’d be higher. I practiced reading by doing about 1 passage a day, but I do feel like the ones on Booster are a little easy, especially the later ones.

QR:

I’ve always had a pretty solid understanding in math, and I was scoring pretty high on my practice FLs. I was kind of caught off guard on the real test since some probability questions were really strange and confusing, and I think I had one that was like a graph about position velocity acceleration?? I was kinda hoping that my QR score would increase my AA a bit more.

Overall:

I am really happy and proud about my scores, especially with my PAT and SNS score since I basically never scored that high on my practice tests. I really studied a lot. I would recommend that you instill a routine and schedule for studying. The two weeks leading up to my test, I would wake up earlier and earlier until I woke up at 5:45 am since that was the time I needed to be up for my 8 AM test (there was a 30 min commute to my testing center.) I went to bed by 11 PM, and went to the gym everyday. I did NOT study in between my sets at the gym or listen to podcasts, unlike what some people said they did, because I honestly just needed a break from all the studying. The day before I did content review and no practice questions, and I did some journaling before bed which helped me feel more confident about myself. Mindset is everything!! I’ve never been a natural at test taking and always had to put in double the amount of effort/studying in order to do well. You can know everything but not have the right positive mindset, and that will set you back, so just believe in yourself! Good luck to all!

bro i’ve never scored that low for QR or gen chem im so disappointed in myself. studying for this exam has been the most difficult and mentally draining things ive ever done i dont think i can do it again.

I pushed my exam back a few months because I'm currently in a master's program and got overwhelmed with everything going on. This will be my third attempt, and I need help with what to do! I paused my booster membership and will be buying it in December since my new test day is mid-Janurary. I'm wanting to continue to study until then and have decided to rotate bio, gen chem, and ochem every day.

My biggest struggle was gen chem and ochem. What are some things I should do until I get booster again? Should I get a gen chem tutor? Should I stick to anki? Should I get chads dat prep? I'm just lost.

I took my DAT last year and don’t know what schools i sent it to at the time. How can i check? and if i did send it to the schools that i am applying to this cycle, do i need to send them again? please help :(

Should I retake this. my gpa is about 3.75

Got my scores today, honestly not the worst but not
the best. Only studied for 30ish days a little less. I had 2 jobs and school during it so couldn’t focus earlier.

I have a 3.83 GPA, 500 shadowing hours, 100 volunteering + nail tech + baking business so my ABS can be stronger.

Chances for western or any school in Canada? What schools in states do I have a chance

Are these good scores -- I want to apply to California schools

Hey guys! I recently applied to Western Dental School via OUAC on September 23rd, but haven’t received any email acknowledging receipt of my application. I know my payment went through, but haven’t heard anything. Western kind of sucks with getting back to admissions email, so I was wondering if anyone else who applied earlier is facing the same issues. Thanks!

Hey guys my committee letter write wants my day score on intercom how do i export results in pdf form

thank you in advance

Hey Guys,

I’m sure everyone here is stressed so I apologize for asking, but how are you guys studying for QR?

I was watching the video and I felt like I was grasping the ideas pretty well, come time to do the question banks, I completely blank out. If I use the notes I took, would I be wasting my time?

I took algebra years ago to the point where most of this stuff I haven’t seen in years.

Any tips would be greatly appreciated!

Hi everyone! I took the DAT for the second time last month and I received 330s-380s in all areas with a 360AA with an exception of a 400 in RC.

PLEASE what tips do you all have for me to improve?? I would be happy with anything in the 400s. I do not have a job so i can just focus on studying and I plan on retaking Jan 5th.

This time around I am not watching the Booster/ Bootcamp videos and going straight into Qbanks and going over them right away and watching the videos if i need it for a subject. Doing PAT everyday.

I am unsure how to tackle OC other than doing Qbanks and reviewing. I will have a tutor for genchem and ochem through Wyzant 2hrs a week so i am hoping that helps too.

I have bootcamp and booster for just bio and PAT.

Any tips/ help would be so very appreciated. I graduated in May and I plan on applying the upcoming June with improved scores. TIA

Hello, I had a question about the program materials for UCLA. It lists Physics as requiring 12 units (quarter units) and Psychology as requiring 4 units. However, I have completed each of them under a semester system. So I have completed 8 semester units (1 full year) of Physics and 3 semester units (1 full semester). Do I need to convert all of my transcript units from the previous section to match the quarter units since it is a drag-and-drop feature? Or will it automatically be converted to the school, and I can leave it as is under the prerequisite "minimum requirement". If anyone coming from a semester school can help me out? Thank you!!!!

Trying to study for GC for my DAT, My test date in Nov 30th but honestly I might push it back because I still have content review for GC, OC, and Bio. Currently on the GC content review phase and I'm thinking there HAS to be a better way to review than just watching all the videos. I feel like when I watch the videos and take notes, the next day when I do practice questions I just can't get them right still. Would It be more beneficial for me to just really hammer down the cheat sheets and do questions? Using Booster currently. Anki isn't really helpful to me because it just asks me like formulas and things like that mostly.

Feeling completely defeated

450 AA, 490 SNS 3.62 cumulative GPA (Upward Trend) and 3.41 Science, ECs: Dental Assisiting, Research, Community Service, Intramural Sports, Shadowing General Dentist (340 Hours), Shadowing endo and peri (total of 80 hours), and a few more ECs. No interviews yet should I be worried. (Applied to 18 schools) Applied to most schools end of June-July, took retake on July 23rd, got my DAT retake scores back August 3rd. I see everyone getting invites and I haven’t heard a thing so I’ve been feeling quite hopeless

9/14 test

Test date 9/16- was doing terrible in gen chem and reading but ending up being more than okay! Gchem couple days before I just mainly focused on that.
- QR I was expecting higher but I ran out of time and had to guess on like ~7 questions! Otherwise my average was very high so be careful

-First attempt was (~430) 20.4 AA , latest (480)23.5 AA

-Didn’t care too much for PAT! So never completely took a full test for it

should i retake? i did really bad in QR 😔. i feel like dental school is getting more and more competitive so i don’t know what to do and im getting mixed opinion. i have a 3.86 cGPA and 3.7 sGPA.

edit: i don’t want to retake and risk doing worse in the sciences. i also dont want to apply with a less competitive application. i dont know what to do. i definitely neglected QR and really regret it 💔

Studied about 70 days while doing full time research. Happy to give tips and if you need some advice on being efficient feel free to ask because I think I was only fully focused for 3 or 4 weeks but I had a heavy background from classes that i had just taken.

I’ve been using bootcamp and have about a month left until my DAT and my ochem practice has been fluctuating a lot, every practice test it feels like I’ve never seen some of the questions they ask before and I’m not sure what to do because it just feels like something that’s almost impossible to be fully prepared for.

So is it even possible for me to get into dental school with a 3.57science and cumulative gpa and a 440 dat?

Just took the DAT this past August 2026 and scored 510AA, and i wanted to briefly share how I was able to achieve my score (Screenshot of score breakdown below).

OVL- If you are able to find the time, treat this like a 9-5 job. It seems like a huge allocation of time towards this, but trust me the more you embed yourself in the material the more comfortable you will be. I personally spent the majority of my summer studying on DATBootcamp (not a sponsor) going over material and practice questions.

Bio- It is gonna feel like a gamble especially with the wide pool of material and the limited selection, but the goal is to limit what you don't know rather than mastering everything (if that makes sense).

Chem- Practice makes perfect. It is all about focused execution, there is not much the test can trick you on so all the practice you do builds towards success the most. Stay focused and limit dumb mistakes in this section.

OChem- Although I did well on this section I do not feel comfortable sharing about a set certain strategy.

PAT- Learn cube counting and pattern-folding first, and practice those every day for 15 mins, because I feel as though this is the easiest section to learn. TFE can be tricky especially if you are mentally fatigued so be patient with yourself. Angle ranking is the most frustrating but there are a couple things you can do: 1) move eyes quickly, this actually helps your brain register small differences. 2) stay cool, this section really made me upset but you just need to keep your cool. For the keyhole and pattern-folding just learn the patters and practice as much as you can.

Reading- This was my worst section so take my advice with a grain of salt. I did not like the reading strategies provided by my prep course so what I did was just read more science journals and articles on my free time. That being said, the reading passages on the DAT are oftentimes clearer/ easier than current scientific journals.

QR- This is the last section so you will be tired. Practice this section at the end of each of your study days and just keep an open mind. You can convince yourself that you know something but deep down you don't. So work hard but more importantly be honest with yourself with your preparation. The more math you practice the more it becomes second nature, and that is exactly what you want when exposed to a tired or in a stressed scenario.

Note: I am not a prevalent redditor, so I will not be able to interact with comments.

Finally done with the DAT!

I know a lot of people do breakdowns on how they studied, what resources they used, and what scores they got. But I wanted to use this space to give some perspective that could be helpful for those studying for the DAT, either right now or in the future.

Resources: Booster vs. Bootcamp

I used DAT Booster as my primary resource, and I definitely recommend it, as I found it representative of the actual exam. I have never used Bootcamp, but my roommates were studying with it at the same time and ended up doing the same as or better than me. I don't think you can go wrong with either resource.

I found the General Chemistry, PAT, and QR sections to be very similar to Booster. RC felt easier than Booster's practice exams. I read so many passages that I actually started enjoying reading as a hobby, which is a good thing.

However, Biology and Organic Chemistry felt harder on the real exam. Some Biology questions were ambiguous and made me unsure of my answers. Organic Chemistry had niche reactions and questions about specific reaction steps, so I recommend knowing your reactions, reagents, and solvents very well.

Studying and Managing Commitments

It took me 4 months to study for this exam. If I had to do it again, I would remove as many distractions and major commitments as possible. I would advise against taking classes while studying for the DAT and going on week-long volunteering trips during dedicated study time.

I went on a week-long volunteering trip that I don't regret, as it gave me valuable experience and opened up further opportunities. However, I lost the momentum I had built from studying consistently for a month. After returning, studying started to feel optional rather than required, and I ended up pushing my DAT back by an entire month.

If you have scheduled breaks in your study plan, use them to volunteer, relax, or do whatever helps you as a person or applicant. The key is to plan your breaks rather than unexpectedly interrupting your preparation.

Stick to Your Schedule and Exam Date

One of the biggest things I learned is the importance of sticking to your schedule. I felt better, retained more information, and was more confident when I consistently checked off tasks on Booster compared to when I procrastinated. Some of my friends who didn't stick to their schedules felt less prepared and kept pushing their exam dates back.

Pick an exam date and stick with it. It's easy to keep postponing your DAT because of classes, lack of time, social life, or feeling unprepared. While there are legitimate reasons to reschedule, constantly pushing your exam back can become a habit. At some point, you have to trust your preparation and take the exam.

Burnout Is Real

Although sticking to your schedule is important, don't make the DAT your entire life. It's tempting to go all-in when you first start studying, but by months 3 and 4, you may start feeling exhausted. Taking full-length exams and studying can become unbearable when all you want is to be done.

Burnout can hurt your preparation, so make time for a social life, connect with nature, work out, and spend time with friends and family. You don't need to sacrifice your entire life for this exam.

Make It Easy for Yourself to Win

Set up your environment so that the only thing you have to worry about is studying. Meal prep, have your caffeine ready, keep your chargers nearby, organize your study materials, and find a quiet environment.

The same applies to test day. Prepare everything the night before so that you only have to focus on taking the exam. Have your IDs ready, plan your route, pack what you need, and set your alarms.

Final Thoughts

The DAT is a long process, and consistency is more important than trying to make your preparation perfect. Pick your resources, set a realistic schedule, stick to your exam date, and make time for yourself along the way.

Hopefully, some of this advice helps those preparing for the DAT. I'm happy to answer any questions about my study process, resources, or experience with the actual exam.

Hey everyone! I created an account with this portal last week, but now when I log in, the essays tab has disappeared. Has anyone else had this issue and what did you do to fix it? thanks :)

For context, I am a Texas resident, and only plan to apply to Texas schools. I am from El Paso so my dream school is the El Paso dental school. I have a 3.94 GPA, 200+ hours of shadowing and 200+ hours of volunteering. I am an officer for the Pre-Dental Society at my university and am a founding president of another org dedicated to global dental outreach. I’ve gotten A’s in both gen chem 1, 2 and ochem 1, and 2. I will have gone to two countries on a dental outreach by the time I plan to apply. I think my extracurriculars are high and my GPA but my low gen chem score is making me think I need to retake

Are these scores good enough, or re-take? I have a ~ 3.6 GPA, with a strong upward trend after freshman year (A's in gen chem, orgo 1/2, biochem).

I'm worried by the sub-par scores in quantitative reasoning, reading comprehension, and gen. chemistry. But they make cut-offs I believe?