DAT Study Materials

I have spoken to many current dental students at Columbia University + NYU + UF, and they generally agree this list has some of the best study resources for specific sections of the DAT.


* Biology

o Cliff’s AP Biology / Barron's AP Biology (only buy one)
+ Many people prefer Cliff’s since it strikes a nice balance between detail and readablity.
o Schaum’s Outline of Biology
+ Many find Schaum's too detailed and very dry.

* Natural Sciences

o DAT Destroyer
o General Chemistry: Course Saver

* Perceptual Ability
* Crack DAT PAT / MATH - Royal Flush Edition
o Very comparable to the real DAT.

* Quantitative Reasoning

o Crack DAT PAT / MATH - Royal Flush Edition
+ About ~3 mistakes per math test on average. You should be scoring ~19+ fairly constantly. The test is easier than the real DAT so additional quantitative reasoning resources are necessary.
o Top Score
+ Very comparable to the real DAT. Learn the concepts behind every question.
o DAT Achiever
+ Very comparable to the real DAT. Learn the concepts behind every question.

* Practice Tests

o Top Score
+ Very similar to the real test overall. Natural sciences is very similar, however, the real test can differ quite a bit depending on what version of the DAT you receive. PAT is harder on the real test. RC and QR are very similar to that of the real test. Learn the concepts behind each question.
o DAT Achiever
+ Bio seems more “nit-picky” and more difficult than the real test. G-Chem and O-Chem are harder than the real test. PAT is much harder than the real test, but fairly similar. RC and QR are very similar to that of the real test. Again learn the concepts behind each question.
o Sample DAT from the ADA.


* Websites

o Student Doctor Network (SDN) Forums – DAT Discussions
+ Stay up to date on current DAT issues and find out what to expect. For example, which sections are difficult and why. What types of difficult questions are people receiving on the test (ie: lots of IR/H-NMR/C-13 or ‘crazy’ Bio or hard RC passages –FRAP/Piano/Ethics)
o How to Ace your DAT

*taken from student doctor network