anahorvath.com

Tag: studying

  • Let the DAT Studying Commence…

    DAT
    Photo by Marten Bjork on Unsplash

    This upcoming week is finally the week that things kick into gear. I begin my study schedule for the Dental Admissions Test or the DAT. For those of you who don’t know what the DAT is, it’s basically the SAT or ACT, but for dental school and it’s tough.

    There are four sections on the exam, the survey of natural sciences, reading comprehension, quantitative reasoning, and perceptual ability or the PAT. In total, I believe the exam is 4.5 hours and there’s an optional 30 minute break at some point through the exam (Thank goodness!). The highest you can get is a 30 and most dental schools admit students who average a 20 on the exam. From what I’ve heard, the PAT section is the toughest, and based on my study program, that seems to be the case, as there is a lot of focus on the strategy behind that section.

    For the PAT, there are 90 questions and you have 60 minutes to answer them. The questions on that section are supposed to include keyhole, cube face, folding, and hole-punch problems that all come with their own twists and mind-breaking characteristics. From what I’ve heard, that section is meant to test how you do with visual things but it’s also meant to destroy you and tire you out mentally. Yippeeeee. I’m most nervous for the other sections.

    The survey of natural sciences section is exactly what it sounds like, a survey of all things from basic biology to organic chemistry. The reading comprehension section involves scientific articles and those articles are followed by a variety of questions testing how well you understood the article. The quantitative reasoning section on the DAT is the math section of the exam. As far as I know, it’s supposed to cover algebra through pre-calculus, which is super manageable for me.

    To prepare for the exam, I’m going through DAT Bootcamp. It’s a program created by a student who did extremely well on the DAT and has shared their study schedule as well as a BUNCH of incredible resources to crush this exam.

    I’m nervous to begin this journey but I’m also really excited because I look forward to the progress I make and all that I get to review and learn this summer. You’re all on this ride with me so let’s crush this DAT! See you next Sunday. 🙂

  • I Survived This Semester

    I survived this semester
    Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

    Oh. My. Goodness. I don’t know how I did it, but I did it. This semester is over and I actually did decent. I survived this semester.

    There was one class (my evolution class) which was the one class I didn’t do as well as I had hoped to, but I still did decent enough. My organic chemistry class was my favorite by far, and I did extremely well on the final and with the help of my professor, I got the grade I was shooting for the entire semester. 🙂 My physics final was HARD, but I snuck by with the grade I wanted in that class too so I was proud of myself for that. And then for my honors seminar, I never had any concerns for that class, it was always just a lot of busy work.

    And you might notice that I never distinctly pointed out any grades in that last little bit of this post. To be quite honest, I hate sharing my grades with others. My grades are my business and in college I’ve learned that people either are like me and prefer not to share their grades, or they share their grades and make it all about a competition. There’s no need to make comparisons and compete to see who’s doing the best. We all have our own plans and goals and we all need to stick to those plans and goals.

    Sorry for the little tangent haha. Anyway! The past two weeks have honestly been so intense. I studied so much and for organic chemistry, I don’t think I’ve ever been as dedicated in my entire life. I also don’t think I’ve truly ever felt as interested and passionate about something in my life. And so now this is going down in writing… If dental school doesn’t work out for me, I think I might pursue organic chemistry as a career. Whether that means a masters or PhD in it, I don’t know, but I love organic chemistry. What a nerd I am!

    I’m honestly still in shock and have no clue how I did it. I legitimately was worried that I would burn out, considering how many credit hours I took this past summer. But I didn’t! I pushed through and I survived this semester. 🙂 I hope those of you with finals had a decent finish and that you’re all enjoying winter break now, because I sure know I am! Have a great week, Merry Christmas, and I’ll see you all next Sunday.

  • When Things Don’t Go Your Way: College Exams

    college exams

    So this past week, I had my first exam for my second semester of general chemistry. I studied super hard for it and took several practice tests. My study group and I worked through any confusion we had and just like that, Wednesday (exam day) rolled around. During the exam, I felt super confident. After the exam, I felt super confident. Seeing my grade on Friday, I didn’t feel confident at all. Why college exams?! Why??

    It was truly devastating to see my hard work go down the drain like that but sometimes you work really hard and you don’t get the results you asked for or worked toward. From what I’ve learned, that’s a part of life! It sucks, but you have to learn to move on and not make the same mistakes down the road.

    Hearing all of my friends do well on the exam crushed me and honestly, after seeing my grade, I was feeling pretty down. One of the things I learned from this experience is that grades matter, but they don’t define you. This is something that high school teachers drilled into our heads but it didn’t sink in until now. A test is a test and I know that I have a better understanding of the chemistry material than was reflected by my grade.

    Also, from this experience, I’ve learned that it’s okay to not say anything about how a test went. If a friend asks about how it goes, it’s honestly none of their business. My grade and circumstances are my grade and circumstances while their grades and circumstances are their own thing. For myself and other people who have been in this situation, it’s important to understand that we are our own human beings and we all mess up in our own ways. The only people we can compare ourselves to are ourselves.

    So now looking forward to this next exam, I’m not going to bite myself in the butt for my last unfortunate performance. I’m going to study just as hard and take what I’ve learned from this experience. The only way to go from here is up with my grade in chemistry. This isn’t the way I planned to start off my semester in general chemistry II but it is what it is!

    College exams can be a real kicker and sometimes, you don’t know what you’re going to get. You do know that you’ll always come away from an exam with more knowledge though, regardless of the outcome. This not only relates to college exams, but it can relate to many other things in life. It’s important to remember that you learn from everything you do and it’s all about a growth mindset. Keep this in mind!

    If you’ve got an idea for a blog post don’t be afraid to leave a comment on my new page, “Contact Me!”. You’ll find this page in the menu above. 🙂 And even if you don’t have an idea and just want to say hi or ask a question, that’s okay too. Have a good week everyone!

  • How to Be Productive in College

    productive

    As I found out very quickly over these past two weeks of classes, making use of the free time you have is crucial to staying afloat in college. Being in honors, I feel like I have fewer classes, but by no means does that mean I have less work. Having fewer classes means that I have more time to do what I want, which can be a good and a bad thing. Here’s what I’ve done to stay productive in college, so far. 

    • When you have nothing to do, study! I’ve found that if I have a chunk of time where I’m doing nothing, it’s best to study. They do recommend that for every hour you spend in class, you need to spend 3 hours studying, so use your time to study!
    • Be smart about how you study. Personally, I can’t study with a lot of noise or music just because I get distracted by that stuff easily. Find what works best for you and go with it. If you need highlighters to emphasize certain points in your notes, use them. If notecards make studying for tests easier, use them. If working on homework and studying in a group works best for you, do that! Do whatever you can to better your understanding of what you’re learning. 
    • Take time out of your day to exercise. I’ve heard that the “Freshman 15” is a thing, and oh boy do I see how easily it could hit you! I will not allow myself to gain weight because I’m feeling lazy and have access to all the carbs, cookies, and other sweets in the world right now. For all of you, find some physical activity you like to do and do that. Exercise is also a great way to destress and relax. I recommend working out before studying just because it makes your brain much more active and helps get out any jitters you may have before going to do homework.
    • Get a healthy amount of sleep. You can’t be a productive person if you can’t even stay awake in class. Get the recommended 8-9 hours of sleep to let your mind and body recharge so that you can have a great next day. Just take good care of yourself.
    • Use a planner. I honestly haven’t seen many college kids using planners, but I know that I use one and I need one. Planners are a great way to organize your exams, due dates for assignments, and other events going on in your life. Even if you don’t use a planner, at least look into putting down some stuff in your phone calendar. Keeping track of everything makes your life soooo much easier and allows you to see what you’ve done and what still needs to be done.

    College is a totally different world from high school and it’s been exciting to figure out life on my own and test my productivity and ability to manage my time properly. The one thing I’m still trying to get used to is showering in flip flops… We’ll get there some day. Have a good week everyone! 🙂