DAT - Arete Educational Consulting

The Dental Admission Test or the DAT, administered by the American Dental Association, is an entrance exam to dental school.

There is no passing score for the exam; rather it is considered as a component of the dental applicant’s application package. Each dental education program makes its own determination as to what constitutes an acceptable score on the DAT; however, a scale score of 19 typically signifies average performance.

The DAT consists of four multiple choice subsections: the survey of natural sciences, which covers biology and chemistry (90 minutes); the perceptual ability test (60 minutes); the reading comprehension test (60 minutes); and the quantitative reasoning test (45 minutes).

After taking a practice test, you and your Arete tutor will analyze the results of an initial diagnostic test to determine the best plan of action. Your tutor will work with you on both academic skill sets (e.g., science review) and test-taking techniques designed to save you time and help you avoid common DAT pitfalls.

How long is the test?

Four-hours and fifteen minutes. There is one hour of optional, additional time used for a tutorial at the beginning of the test, a break at the halfway point, and a survey after completing the test.

How many months in advance should I start preparing?

Take the exam early enough to allow sufficient time to improve your DAT if necessary. Dental school applications are not typically processed until they are complete, including DAT scores. If you have to retake the exam, you will have to wait 90 days. You cannot take the DAT more than three times.

When is the test offered?

The DAT is a computer administered exam and can be taken almost every day of the year.

Section	# of Questions	Minutes	Content
Survey of the Natural Sciences	100 total (40 biology, 30 general chemistry, 30 organic chemistry)	90 minutes	Biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry
Perceptual Ability	90 total (6 subtests)	60 minutes	Subtest topics include apertures, view recognition, angle discrimination, paper folding, cube counting, 3D form development
Reading Comprehension	50	60 minutes	Three reading passages on various scientific topics testing the ability to read, comprehend, and thoroughly analyze basic scientific information Prior understanding of the science topics is not a prerequisite to answering the test items
Quantitative Reasoning	40	45 minutes	Mathematical problems: algebra; data analysis, interpretation, and sufficiency; quantitative comparison; and probability and statistics Applied mathematics (word) problem