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The DAT score scale, 200 to 600.
Since March 1, 2025, the DAT reports scores on a three-digit scale from 200 to 600. Before that, scores ran from 1 to 30. Here is how the two line up, and how to compare your score with numbers written on the old scale.
The short version
- New scale: 200 to 600, in steps of 10. Old scale: 1 to 30.
- The switch: tests taken on or after March 1, 2025 report on the new scale.
- Converting: the ADA published a table that lines the two scales up. The matches are approximate.
- Why it matters: many class averages you'll find were reported on the old scale, so you need both to compare.
Convert an old score
This covers the Academic Average (AA), the number schools quote most often. Pick an old score to see where it lands on the new scale.
An Academic Average of 20 on the old scale is about 420 on the new one, around the 69th percentile.
The full table
| Old scale | New scale | Percentile |
|---|---|---|
| 30 | 600 | 99th+ |
| 29 | 580 | 99th+ |
| 28 | 560 | 99th+ |
| 27 | 540 | 99th+ |
| 26 | 520 | 99th |
| 25 | 510 | 98th |
| 24 | 490 | 96th |
| 23 | 470 | 91st |
| 22 | 460 | 88th |
| 21 | 440 | 81st |
| 20 | 420 | 69th |
| 19 | 410 | 62nd |
| 18 | 390 | 47th |
| 17 | 370 | 32nd |
| 16 | 350 | 20th |
| 15 | 330 | 11th |
| 14 | 310 | 6th |
| 13 | 290 | 3rd |
| 12 | 270 | 1st |
| 11 | 260 | 1st |
| 10 | 250 | under 1st |
What the percentile means
A percentile tells you how a score compares with everyone else's. A 430 sits at about the 75th percentile: about 75 out of 100 test takers in the ADA's national sample scored at or below it.
Percentiles bunch up at the top. The gap between two high scores can be only a point or two of percentile, so read them as a rough guide to where you stand, not a precise rank.
Comparing with a school's class average
Many class averages were reported on the old scale, often with a decimal. To compare, convert the school's number to the new scale and set it beside yours.
An average that falls between two rows is estimated between them and rounded to the nearest 10, because the new scale only moves in steps of 10. A class average of 22.4, for example, comes out at about 460.
Treat a converted class average as an estimate. The matches between the two scales are approximate, and schools update their numbers every year. Check the school's own page for its latest class profile. The free school directory links to each school's admissions page.
Section scores
Each section of the DAT has its own conversion and its own percentiles in the ADA's document. The numbers on this page are for the Academic Average only, so don't use them to convert a single section.
Where this comes from. ADA Department of Testing Services, "Understanding the New Dental Admission Test (DAT) Score Reporting Scale" (updated January 29, 2025), Tables 1 and 2, Academic Average columns. The ADA's DAT page has the current version. Cyclo is independent and is not affiliated with the ADA.