The DAT is designed to provide dental schools with common measures for comparing the qualifications of applicants. The exam measures general academic aptitude, comprehension of scientific information, and perceptual ability. The exam is offered exclusively on computer and consists of a battery of four distinct tests. The DAT battery takes approximately four and a half hours to complete.
Time: 90 minutes
Format: 100 Questions
Topics Tested: Biology, General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry
Natural Sciences Information • Natural Sciences Sample Questions
Time: 60 minutes
Format: 90 Questions
Topics Tested: Visualization in three dimension, Angle discrimination
Time: 60 minutes
Format: 50 Questions
Topics Tested: Reading Comprehension
Time: 45 minutes
Format: 40 Questions
Topics Tested: Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Word Problems
Quantitative Reasoning Information • Quantitative Reasoning Questions
Please see a full description in our scoring process
With the introduction of the computerized DAT in 1999, the four tests can be taken nearly any day of the year at 282 Prometric Testing Centers throughout the U.S.
Current policy allows individuals to take the DAT an unlimited number of times, however examinees must wait 90 days before retesting. Furthermore, recent regulation is heading towards taking it a maximum of three times after which an examinee has to seek special permission to re-take the test. When a candidate repeats the examinations, the results of the four most recent attempts are released on the official transcript forwarded to the dental schools. Also, for all candidates, the total number of attempts is listed. Those who take review courses between their first and second attempts have statistically significant average increases in their scores for all tests on the battery except for reading comprehension. In a study of 1,245 examinees who repeated the DAT during 2004, all showed gains in scores.