University Of Toronto: American Dat

[1629fan]

Has anyone used the American DAT to apply to UofT?  I emailed them asking whether Canadian students can use the American DAT and they responded saying that it is allowed.  However, on their website, it states: 

 

The American Dental Admission Test (DAT) is an acceptable equivalent for applicants living or attending school outside of Canada

 

I'm not sure what this statement means, but it implies that Canadian university students cannot use the ADAT in application process.

 

Any info on this topic would be appreciated!

 

 

[Harkonnen]

Unless you're living in the states, it's not accepted. Just write the Canadian version, it's easier anyways, my AA went from a 20 on the American to a 24 on the Canadian.

[1629fan]

@harkonnen, I should have added that when I emailed them, I explicitly asked about whether Canadian students attending Canadian university could write the American DAT as a substitute and they said yes, twice.

 

The reason I want to take the American DAT is because I'm sure my GPA will be affected slightly should I choose to write the Canadian DAT in November.

[Harkonnen]

If you can't you might as well write the American one once or twice over the summer as practice (and you can use your scores to apply to US schools as a backup). That way, if you have to write the Canadian one in November, you won't have to study as much since the material will be fresh in your mind.

[mp99]

Has anyone used the American DAT to apply to UofT?  I emailed them asking whether Canadian students can use the American DAT and they responded saying that it is allowed.  However, on their website, it states: 

 

The American Dental Admission Test (DAT) is an acceptable equivalent for applicants living or attending school outside of Canada

 

I'm not sure what this statement means, but it implies that Canadian university students cannot use the ADAT in application process.

 

Any info on this topic would be appreciated!

I recently emailed them about this , and they also told me that the American DAT is fine lol.

 

Not sure what to think

[dentsmiles]

Wow, that's strange! It could be that this is something new that they're allowing and they just haven't updated their website lol. I would definitely email them again about it, citing what you posted from their website and just explaining that you would like to confirm that you can write the American DAT, in light of the info on their site. I know it sucks to email them again lol, but atleast that way you can be sure it's not a misunderstanding and can have a paper trail of their responses  

[mp99]

So I emailed them again, and they said that they count it LOL. However, they will not look at Organic or quantitative scores (since those are not present in the canadian exam). That would suck if QR and OC boosted your AA


I'll probably still write the Canadian to be safe + keep options open. It is weird that their website and email say two contrasting things...

 

[1629fan]

So I emailed them again, and they said that they count it LOL. However, they will not look at Organic or quantitative scores (since those are not present in the canadian exam). That would suck if QR and OC boosted your AA

 

 

I'll probably still write the Canadian to be safe + keep options open. It is weird that their website and email say two contrasting things...

 

 

Agreed, I'd write the Canadian to be safe.  UofT takes the best DAT score anyway.

 

Interestingly, their website has been updated to state:

 

"The American Dental Admission Test (DAT) is an acceptable equivalent for those unable to take the Canadian Dental Aptitude Test (DAT). These scores must be received by the December 1st application deadline."

 

 

Does this mean that if I write the Canadian DAT, that would mean that I would technically be able to take the Canadian DAT. Then, would they not even look at my American DAT?

[1629fan]

As an update to anyone who's deciding between the American and Canadian DAT, University of Toronto has updated their website, saying:

"Write either the Canadian or American Dental Aptitude Test (DAT) and arrange for the test results to be forwarded to the Admissions Office. The Academic Average (AA) and Perceptual Ability Test (PAT) scores are part of the admission process."
 

Couple things to keep in mind for those who don't already know:  

1. American DAT has 2 additional sections (Organic Chemistry and Quantitative Reasoning), on top of the sections on the Canadian DAT (Biology, General Chemistry, Perceptual Ability, and Reading Comprehension)

2. American DAT is computer-based, whereas Canadian DAT uses paper/scantron.  Keep this in mind while practicing, since it will take a few extra minutes overall to transfer your answers to scantron, whereas computer-based tests will only need one click to register your answers.

3. and most importantly, in my opinion, American DAT can be taken year round, whereas the Canadian DAT is only written twice a year (one day in November and one day in February).  Personally, I found it difficult to manage my GPA on top of studying for the Canadian DAT, especially since midterms usually overlap with the test dates.  However, for the American DAT, I opted to take the test at the end of summer, so that I'd be able to get a full summer to focus on one test and thus, have more time for my regular academic studies during the year.

 

(To my knowledge, the only other Canadian dental school to use American DAT scores is UBC.  Schulich won't use your American DAT scores unless you "reside outside of Canada during the test dates and you literally cannot write the Canadian DAT")