Question 1
A square sheet of paper is folded as shown and a hole is punched through it. Where are the holes when the paper is unfolded?
How hard is the DAT?
The DAT is hard mainly because of its breadth and pace: four sciences, a spatial reasoning test unlike anything in college, reading and maths, 280 questions in just over four hours. On the ADA's own table, a 400 Academic Average is the 54th percentile and a 450 is the 85th.
| Candidates in 2025 | 17,099 examinees (ADA Examinee Information Report) |
|---|---|
| Middle of the field | A 400 Academic Average is the 54th percentile |
| Top 15% | A 450 Academic Average is the 85th percentile |
| Pace | 54 seconds a science question, 40 seconds a perceptual ability question |
What makes it hard
- Breadth: biology, general chemistry and organic chemistry share one 90-minute clock, 100 questions in all.
- Perceptual Ability: six visual subtests in 60 minutes, which most candidates have never practiced.
- Speed: 90 perceptual questions in 60 minutes is 40 seconds each.
- Organic chemistry has new specifications from 2026, which list curved-arrow mechanisms, reaction coordinate diagrams and multi-step synthesis by name.
Where to start
Take a short diagnostic across all four tests first, then spend most of your time on the weakest section. Perceptual ability improves quickly with practice because each subtest has a method; the sciences take longer because they rest on coursework.
Try 2 questions
Question 2
Blood calcium falls below its set point. Which response restores it?
Next step
Questions people ask
Does the DAT test physics?
No. The sciences on the DAT are biology, general chemistry and organic chemistry. In place of physics it has a perceptual ability test.
Which part of the DAT should I practice first?
Whichever is weakest on a short diagnostic. Perceptual Ability is worth early practice because it is unlike college coursework and each of its six subtests has a method you can learn.
How many people take the DAT?
The ADA reports 17,099 examinees in 2025, up from 15,206 in 2024.