Do you mark up your soap with pencil or felt?

[Guest smooth operater]

Hey guys!

 

I just started practicing carving by myself today, and the felt I received with the CDA package did not mark up the soap very well since the soap is waxy. The marks just smear all the time. And the tip of the felt is not thin enough for me to draw accurate and clean lines.

 

So, I tried using a very sharp pencil instead. It worked like a charm. I was able to draw straight, accurate, and clean lines with the pencil. But ONE biggest problem is that these lines are not pencil mark lines (not lead mark). These are lines that I have CARVED by the pencil. So I could see some of these lines left on the soap after I finished craving the design. Will I lose marks on the real exam? What is the best way to mark up the soap? Hope you guys can give some tips. THANKS!

[Guest orlinmyer]

Yeah, the felts suck to mark up the soap. What you can try to do is shave the tip of the felt into more of a point. I don't know if they'll deduct marks for using a pencil.

[Guest Adversary]

Um... most people I know who have done the DAT use the pencil. Both Kaplan and DAT_Tutor taught it that way.

[Guest dentforsure]

I used pencil, the sharper the better

[Guest smooth operater]

yeah, dat_tutor taught me to use to pencil. But TopScore guide said mark will be deduced if carving lines from pencil appear on the final design.

[Guest Adversary]

Well, everyone seems to use the pencil. Is there anyone out there who came up with something different?

[Guest Dent08]

They do not deduct marks if you have pencil "grooves" all over your soap.

[Guest snoop99]

They don't deduct marks for barely anything.....

 

Carving has such a wide range of marks by all writers, that it is scaled somewhat i believe unlike the reading section (set # of questions right = your score)

 

Personally...

 

-I chipped my soap

-I carved one of the ends crooked (took a swipe and my blade went couple mm below my line)

-I wrote my name on the soap with the black felt pen, and it smudged all over (my soap had black marks everywhere from this, looked like a 13yr old carved it)

-I dropped my soap on the ground as well (slanted desks in buchanan building at UBC)

 

I felt I failed after this (most would i suspect). So I didnt try on the rest of the DAT exam. Carving was my highest at 26/30

 

So Take it easy, carving is a joke. I believe there is a huge level of difference between a person who scores 8-12 and 15-19 and 21-29.

 

people who score a 10 feel like they shoulda got a 25

 

People with a 28 feel like they failed it

 

Basically, if you leave the section and feel like u bombed the carving, you probably got 90%+ percentile

[Guest belledentiste]

Actually, carving is not a very important component of the DAT. In fact, I know U of T doesn't care if you failed the carving section. I have several good friends who have already graduated from U of T dents and some of them failed the carving component of the exam. Coming from U of T, I know that they're very academically-orieted. So if you're planning to apply to U of T and your GPA is stellar, you have a very good chance of getting in.

 

As for using a felt tip marker or pencil, I used a lead pencil to mark my soap. Just don't use the cheap dollar-store lead, otherwise, it will constantly break into itty-bitty little pieces when you're doing your markings. The reason why a lead pencil would be easier than using a regular HB pencil is because you always have a sharp end to work with.

 

With felt tip marker, you're going to end up with permanent black smudges all over your hands. Also, the markers do not have a very fine end so your lines end up being 0.5 cm thick.

[Guest smooth operater]

cool, thanks for the tips. But are we only given HB pencil at the real exam? I hope the one they give is sharp. Can we bring and use our own pencil for the carving section?

[Guest Dent08]

Maybe U of T doesn't care about carving, but the majority of Canadian dental schools do. Practice your carving like a madman.

 

When you get into dent and start wax-ups n' such, you'll realize that improving your manual dexterity was well worth it.

 

Oh ... for a pencil, use one of those Bic disposable ones. The graphite tip stays constantly sharp, and you're allowed to use them in the real DAT.

[Guest Adversary]

Did you know someone once brought a finished carving into the DAT in an attempt to pass it off as the one done during the time allotted. Of course, this piece of soap was not only a different carving, but also of different material. Needless to say, I don't think this person understood how he/she was marked.

[Guest apical meristems]

Hey,

 

When I wrote the DAT this past November here in Edmonton, the person sitting next to me almost got kicked out for using a mechanical pencil.

 

Later,

ap

 

Basically, they wanted us to only use the materials provided.

[Guest Adversary]

Wow.. it isn't very standardized because I know people brought their own pencils for the DAT at UBC.

[Guest Justanotherkeener]

Hey ap,

 

So what did you use in the DAT? What materials are we given to use for the carving section?

 

Thanks,

Keener

[Guest Dent08]

Kicked out for using a mechanical pencil? Wow. I wrote it at the U of C and they didn't care what you used.

[Guest smooth operater]

wait, I am kinda confused. Are we given the regular HB yellow pencil on the real exam? Or Bic disposable one? I just wanna practice with the one that will be just like the one in the real exam. Or can we bring our own pencil? Hope someone can clear this out. THANKS!!

[Guest belledentiste]

You are given a standard yellow HB pencil. When I wrote the DAT in Toronto, I used a mechanical pencil, which helps you mark the soap more easily. A standard wooden pencil is fine. It's just that based on experience, I find that using a lead pencil made it easier for me to mark the soap.

 

I don't think there is a rule against using lead pencils. Almost everyone brought their own pencils to write the DAT in TO. The rules may be different elsewhere.!?!?!

[Guest apical meristems]

The rules are definitely different in Edmonton. The proctor specifically stated no mechanical pencils - only the supplies provided. In my opinion, the marker is the best way to go. Rather than obsessing over lines, I just made tiny marks indicating depth and length . From there, I carved and used the ruler to ensure proper measurements, and to determine adequate smoothness and accurate orientation.

 

Good luck,

ap

[Guest omizu]

Sounds like there isn't much consistency in how the tests are administered. Still, it's probably a good bet to practice with the marker or an HB pencil just in case.

 

How much is everyone planning to practice carving and what are you practising on?

 

Thanks.

[Guest Adversary]

Well, it depends on how good you are naturally. Some people barely practice and do well. Others take about 20 soap cravings before feeling comfortable with the exam.