That’s right, effectively studying for the DAT requires more than just reading through pages and pages of review books. Like every other important exam you have taken, acing the DAT will require you to study actively. This means you must adapt your study habits according to your character, circumstances, and ability to cope with multiple priorities.

Perhaps you prefer to compile notes on every topic in order to feel confident that you have everything covered. If so, you can save time by developing your own abbreviation systems, acronyms, or mnemonics thereby increasing your understanding of important topics and making those topics easier to memorize. With this technique, you should always leave space to add comments or additional notes during future study sessions. Furthermore, keep in mind that studying actively does not mean taking notes just to take them. On the contrary, those DAT notes will only help you if you take the time to study them.

Now, some premed students may consider it a waste of time to take notes and that is fine because you know best what kind of learner you are. If that is the case, then studying actively for you may mean reviewing flashcards (The Gold Standard DAT Flashcards) and mobile apps.

You can even create you own!

Here are some tips:

1) Gather only the most important points or equations/formulas on a specific topic. Write down each point or equation on a notecard or post-it.

2) Search your prefered mobile device’s app store or the internet for free and convenient note-taking apps with customizable features. This will allow you to store your flashcards in a digital format.

Remember, learning the techniques of effective note-taking is easy, but actually applying them takes a lot of motivation and self-discipline. So, assess exactly what you would like to achieve from your DAT studying and how willing you are to work for that excellent DAT score.