Format of the DAT?

[kevinkwon84]

Hey guys.

I'm preparing for my DAT exam (although I don't know exactly

when I'm going to write it) and I was just curious about the

format of the exam. I've heard that the questions are mc -

but what "kind" of mc questions are they? Do they simply

give you a question with mutiple choices or do they give

u some passages to read and apply what u have read to

solve the questions (like MCAT?)?

 

Also, I've found it very hard to find sample DAT questions.

I've heard that Canadian Dental Association sells DAT Kit which

will aid our preparation. How many sample tests are included in

this kit? Are they just "mock exams" or the actual previous exams?

[Visceral]

I have never taken the MCATs so I do not know their format really, however the DAT MC questions are generally rather simple ones without any buildup, i.e, quickly just making one up:

 

What occurs when a red blood cell is put in pure water?

a) Crenation

It shrinks

c) Nothing

d) Hemolysis

e) It gets larger and then returns to normal size

 

About 40 of those in biology, and 30 in chemistry. Then you have 90 perception questions and 50 reading comprehension questions. Of course, you do the infamous carving too.

 

The CDA test preperation package comes with one exam that mimics the format of the actual test, however I am not too certain if it was actually used on a real DAT. Regardless, I found it to be pretty accurate in terms of difficulty to the real thing.

[606]

hey,

 

The DAT is a joke, nothing compared to the MCAT. There is no comparison between the VR (MCAT) and English Comprehension (DAT). For the DAT all you need is 2 weeks to study and you will get a competitive score.

 

Good luck

[Goldenboy6]

Unless you're just coming off finishing courses that cover all the sections in biology and and general chem, I would not recommend studying for two weeks only (especially if you have other courses to deal with). Although the verbal reasoning on the mcat is a bit harder than on the dat, remember to time urself appropriately. If your looking for more practice exams, I recommend checking out IQ publications books for the DAT, if you can afford them they're great practice, if you cannot then I would suggest checking your university's libraries to see if they carry them. The sample test the CDA gives is good but I found the bio and chem sections of the sample test much easier than the actual exam.