Section guide · RC
DAT Reading Comprehension (RC)
3 long scientific passages, 50 questions in 60 minutes. No outside knowledge is needed; the test is reading speed and precision under a clock.
How the section is built
3 passages with 50 questions between them, in 60 minutes. Every passage is long-form academic prose on a science topic, and its questions follow it.
That is about 72 seconds per question, but the time has to cover the reading as well. Budget roughly 20 minutes per passage, reading included.
You can highlight text on screen and move freely between passages within the section.
What it tests
Detail and retrieval
Where the passage states a fact, a number or a definition. These are the most common, and they reward knowing where things are in the passage rather than remembering them.
Main idea and purpose
What the passage or a paragraph is mostly about, and why the author included a given example.
Inference
What the passage implies but does not say outright. The right answer stays close to the text; the wrong ones go one step too far.
Reasoning and structure
How a claim is supported, what would strengthen or weaken it, and the author's attitude toward a view.
Except and not questions
Three choices are in the passage and one is not. These take the longest, so they are good candidates to mark and come back to.
How to practise it
- 01Practise one reading method until it is fixed: skim for structure, read fully, or go question-first. Changing method from passage to passage costs more than any method saves.
- 02Time each passage on its own at 20 minutes before you sit full sections, so the per-passage budget becomes a habit.
- 03While reading, note in a word or two what each paragraph is about. Most questions send you back to a paragraph, and the note tells you which one.
- 04Read dense science writing outside of practice - review articles, long-form science journalism - to build speed with the vocabulary.
- 05In review, find the line that proves each right answer. If you cannot point to it, you got the question right by luck.
Common mistakes
Answering from memory
The answer that matches what you know about the topic is not always what the passage says. Go back and check the line.
Letting one passage overrun
A hard first passage that takes 30 minutes leaves the last one rushed. Keep the budget and mark what is left.
Choosing the extreme option
Words like always, never and only usually go further than the passage. The right answer is often the more cautious one.
Highlighting everything
A highlighted page is the same as an unhighlighted one. Mark names, numbers and turns in the argument only.
How it is scored
Reading Comprehension is reported as one 200-600 score for all 50 questions, and it is one of the five scores in the Academic Average. The ADA reports a first-time mean of about 433 (DAT User's Manual 2026, tests taken March to December 2025).
Near the top the scale is unforgiving: a few misses separate a good score from an excellent one, which is why careful reading pays off more than speed alone.
The ADA does not publish the table that turns correct answers into a 200-600 score, so every practice score is an estimate. How DAT600 estimates a score explains ours, and the DAT score calculator turns a raw score into an estimate with its range.
RC questions
How many passages are on DAT Reading Comprehension?
3 passages with 50 questions in total, in 60 minutes.
How long should I spend on each DAT RC passage?
About 20 minutes per passage, including the reading.
Do I need outside science knowledge for DAT RC?
No. Every answer is supported by the passage. Background knowledge can help you read faster, but answering from it rather than from the text is a common mistake.
Can I highlight on DAT Reading Comprehension?
Yes. The test screen lets you highlight passage text, and you can move between passages within the section.
Does RC count toward the Academic Average?
Yes. It is one of the five scores averaged, with Quantitative Reasoning, Biology, General Chemistry and Organic Chemistry.
Other sections
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