Waterloo Optometry 2011 Cycle

[Miru]

Hey Miru,

Were there a lot of questions that's like "so tell me about a time when you"..? My friend applied 2 years ago and told me she got none of those! But of course questions change... just wondering.

As for the part that's like after you respond to question, and they ask you "follow up" questions on your answers... i've been told they only keep asking you if they think you didn't say "enough" for the first question, otherwise they just move on to the next. So tip guys, give thorough answers!

GOOD LUCK EVERYBODY!

Nope, I got none of those either. So perhaps we've discovered their trend?
Lol...I much rather they keep asking me questions rather than me sitting there talking for 8 minutes straight.
I think the most important thing is to relax! Good luck everyone.

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[quackquack]

Nope, I got none of those either. So perhaps we've discovered their trend?
Lol...I much rather they keep asking me questions rather than me sitting there talking for 8 minutes straight.
I think the most important thing is to relax! Good luck everyone.

I agree : ) it's important to keep them interested too haha, after going through maybe 100+ people a day ... I heard the most "relaxing" part (aside from walking out of the building after wards haha) is the round table discussion - because you're basically talking to students. I'm looking forward to that.

Again, GL! For people visiting UW for the first time, enjoy and have fun!

 

[neuro89]

Annnnd now we can all breathe a huge sigh of relief!

Hope everyone's interview went well, or at least went by quickly (mine definitely did). What a great experience (interview aside )! And now the waiting game begins...

 

[quackquack]

I just had mine today! (I might have saw you! =P) It was okaaaay.... could have gone a bit better but... yes, now we wait. They said we'll find out end of march?

I wonder if they changed it from usually finding out beginning of march (for QUEST anyway).

 

[neuro89]

I just had mine today! (I might have saw you! =P) It was okaaaay.... could have gone a bit better but... yes, now we wait. They said we'll find out end of march?

I wonder if they changed it from usually finding out beginning of march (for QUEST anyway).

Out of interest, does anyone know if non-Waterloo students are able to access QUEST to check their optometry admission status closer to the time?

 

[quackquack]

They changed the format around a bit! I'm not sure if I liked it much, seeing how there were less emphasis on "ourselves" than the interviews in the past. They also asked less questions than the past, so I felt that there was "less room" for screwing up.

Yeah I was told today that yesterday had about 150 people, and today had 53 people (internal waterloo students only, apparently) so that pushes our odds closer to half half!

I'm not non-waterloo so not sure if I can answer your question but I read from threads years back that non-UW students can sign up on QUEST also. I'm not sure what info you would need to sign up though.

How did everyone else find the interview?

 

[HappyMilkshake]

They changed the format around a bit! I'm not sure if I liked it much, seeing how there were less emphasis on "ourselves" than the interviews in the past. They also asked less questions than the past, so I felt that there was "less room" for screwing up.

Yeah I was told today that yesterday had about 150 people, and today had 53 people (internal waterloo students only, apparently) so that pushes our odds closer to half half!

I'm not non-waterloo so not sure if I can answer your question but I read from threads years back that non-UW students can sign up on QUEST also. I'm not sure what info you would need to sign up though.

How did everyone else find the interview?

You have to keep in mind that there were also external interviews too, so there is likely more like 225-250, unfortunately, haha.

From what I've heard, you can sign up for quest as long as you have a UW ID#, which I'm sure you all got when you sent in your applications, I know I did at least.

I'm also not sure if I liked that we couldn't really get "ourselves" out there in the interview, but at the same time I think I felt good about my answers. I guess they have to see if we are the kind of people that can think on our feet logically, because the job would deffinitely require it. There is probably a lot they can tell about a person from the way those questions were answered.

 

[outsidechance]

They changed the format around a bit! I'm not sure if I liked it much, seeing how there were less emphasis on "ourselves" than the interviews in the past. They also asked less questions than the past, so I felt that there was "less room" for screwing up.

Yeah I was told today that yesterday had about 150 people, and today had 53 people (internal waterloo students only, apparently) so that pushes our odds closer to half half!

I'm not non-waterloo so not sure if I can answer your question but I read from threads years back that non-UW students can sign up on QUEST also. I'm not sure what info you would need to sign up though.

How did everyone else find the interview?

I totally thought the interviewers would ask a bit more about us... but I guess scenarios speak volumes more about your true character?

One other question, anyone know how much weight each aspect of our applications has? gpa, interview score, OAT score, extra-curriculars on their final decision?

Sooo how do they get back us with their decisions? on quest, email or mail?

 

[quackquack]

Yeah I know what you guys mean, that some of your personality shows depending on how you answered it. But come on, would it have killed them to have included "some" aspect of ourselves? Previous years, they showed more emphasis on ethics/optometry but one of the rooms is always "talk about yourself" scenario. 2/3 was still related to optometry, but it gave us a bit of creativity to work with for 1/3 of the interview. Now 3/3 is on optometry - for some it's a good thing, but in my opinion I felt like I never got the opportunity to show them who I am, outside of optometry. From such answers I think we can conclude that they won't know how in depth we are in music, in athletics, in our research. (I know that on the sup app they give you room to talk about yourself, but that form doesn't have enough space.) Still, I think it went ok, but I was just a bit surprised since it always seemed to me that the school was very diversified, so I thought they would incorporate that somehow into the interview.

I think people have heard back from them via email, but quest seems like the place you would find out first. As for snail-mail - not sure about this!

And during round table discussion, our guide said this year there is about 150-200. It's probably an estimate though... I wonder generally how many people go for external interviews. I don't know many out of province students D:

 

[dawnfirenight]

And during round table discussion, our guide said this year there is about 150-200. It's probably an estimate though... I wonder generally how many people go for external interviews. I don't know many out of province students D:

There were a TON of Alberta students in my interview session on Saturday morning who could have all done the external in Calgary, so I wouldn't be surprised if the turnout for the external interviews was pretty low. I'm really glad I chose to actually go out to Waterloo - it was a great experience and made me feel really comfortable about wanting to go there.

As for people wondering about Quest, you can log into it now even if you're not currently a UWaterloo student - I logged in a month or two ago just to play with it. I can't remember how I figured it out though - I think I Googled "Waterloo Quest" and followed directions from there. It wasn't too difficult. You just need your Waterloo student number that was provided when you got your interview invitation.

 

[outsidechance]

There were a TON of Alberta students in my interview session on Saturday morning who could have all done the external in Calgary, so I wouldn't be surprised if the turnout for the external interviews was pretty low. I'm really glad I chose to actually go out to Waterloo - it was a great experience and made me feel really comfortable about wanting to go there.

As for people wondering about Quest, you can log into it now even if you're not currently a UWaterloo student - I logged in a month or two ago just to play with it. I can't remember how I figured it out though - I think I Googled "Waterloo Quest" and followed directions from there. It wasn't too difficult. You just need your Waterloo student number that was provided when you got your interview invitation.

yeah I found my fall 2011 application under quest aswell.

 

[neuro89]

There were a TON of Alberta students in my interview session on Saturday morning who could have all done the external in Calgary, so I wouldn't be surprised if the turnout for the external interviews was pretty low. I'm really glad I chose to actually go out to Waterloo - it was a great experience and made me feel really comfortable about wanting to go there.

As for people wondering about Quest, you can log into it now even if you're not currently a UWaterloo student - I logged in a month or two ago just to play with it. I can't remember how I figured it out though - I think I Googled "Waterloo Quest" and followed directions from there. It wasn't too difficult. You just need your Waterloo student number that was provided when you got your interview invitation.

Similarly, there were quite a few people from the Atlantic provinces there too. I probably saw you there! I doubt that there would possibly be more than 10-20 students at each of the external interviews. Or at least I hope so! I'm definitely glad I decided to come to Waterloo too, the tours I went on and just being in the city in general were fantastic experiences.

I'm going to try to find my way on to Quest so that when February/March roll around, I can start checking obsessively!

 

[quackquack]

Did anything think to ask how much the interview is worth? (our group certainly forgot) My optometrist says it's equal weighting (but he was at school like 20 years ago) - students in the past say it's mostly marks - on the day of i heard it's the interview. So confusing. Nobody knows for sure huh?

 

[Physio101]

i don't think there's a lot of weight on the interview....just as long as you don't really mess it up. on waterloo's website under FAQs it says:

'The Admissions Committee is committed to admitting applicants who are socially and academically well-rounded. Your admission decision is based on both academic performance and non-academic factors, including the Optometry Admissions Test, your autobiographical sketch, your references, and, in some cases, your interview.'

 

[pastaboy]

Hey just wonderin, did most of you guys apply after graduation or are most of you still enrolled in your 4th year?

 

[dawnfirenight]

Hey just wonderin, did most of you guys apply after graduation or are most of you still enrolled in your 4th year?

I'm halfway through fourth year.

 

[Physio101]

i'm just in third year right now

 

[ophope]

i don't think there's a lot of weight on the interview....just as long as you don't really mess it up. on waterloo's website under FAQs it says:

'The Admissions Committee is committed to admitting applicants who are socially and academically well-rounded. Your admission decision is based on both academic performance and non-academic factors, including the Optometry Admissions Test, your autobiographical sketch, your references, and, in some cases, your interview.'

Just to add to what to what Physio101 said, in the catalogue that Waterloo sent out, they have the same quote as the website but with "especially" instead of "in some cases". It's on page 7 in the fact or fiction section.
But one of the 4th yr students there told us that the interview is worth less than the gpa/OAT so I'm so confused. And he also told us that they have weighted scores for each section like gpa, oat, interview, LORs, etc... then they use the total score to see who to take. I don't know if this is true, but it really sounds like something they would do.

And I'm in third year now

 

[OptomHope]

Fourth Year!!

 

[quackquack]

Just to add to what to what Physio101 said, in the catalogue that Waterloo sent out, they have the same quote as the website but with "especially" instead of "in some cases". It's on page 7 in the fact or fiction section.
But one of the 4th yr students there told us that the interview is worth less than the gpa/OAT so I'm so confused. And he also told us that they have weighted scores for each section like gpa, oat, interview, LORs, etc... then they use the total score to see who to take. I don't know if this is true, but it really sounds like something they would do.

And I'm in third year now

I graduated lol. D: *feels lefted out*

Hmmm did the fourth year person say it's how it's done now or it was like that back when he got in? I would assumed he meant now though... but it doesn't sound too far off from how they did things back then either (which was hugely based on marks). I wished i asked my guide more about this on that day!

 

[ophope]

He said that's how he thinks it's done now... he wasn't totally sure. It makes sense though cuz I know some med schools do it that way too. In his year, interviews weren't even required. So you're right, it was probably just marks back then

 

[neuro89]

I graduated lol. D: *feels lefted out*

Hmmm did the fourth year person say it's how it's done now or it was like that back when he got in? I would assumed he meant now though... but it doesn't sound too far off from how they did things back then either (which was hugely based on marks). I wished i asked my guide more about this on that day!

I graduated too! You're not alone! xD

 

[outsidechance]

I graduated too! You're not alone! xD

My impression of the interview was that its purpose was to make sure we were articulate and quick-thinking(ish), and don't have some kind of social anomaly. I would expect that other factors (GPA, OAT, previous opt. experience) would count for more, unless your interview went atrociously.

Just my thoughts though!

I graduated last year aswell lol. Just wondering how many people have other applications pending to other schools/professions?

 

[quackquack]

For me it's only Waterloo. I applied to the states and got some interviews, but I don't think I'm going. The costs scare me and I'm still trying to repay osap.

 

[HappyMilkshake]

I've been accepted to a school in the states, and received interviews for the other ones I've applied to, but I won't need to go to those since I'm already in to the one that was my first choice. The cost is definitely frightening, however I wanted to have a back-up plan for if I don't get into Waterloo, which, sadly, is probably what's going to happen.

 

[quackquack]

@HappyMilkshake

Why do you say that? I believe in the previous posts you said you felt confident about it... Congrats on the acceptance! Are you going there for sure if UW doesn't work out?

 

[HappyMilkshake]

@HappyMilkshake

Why do you say that? I believe in the previous posts you said you felt confident about it... Congrats on the acceptance! Are you going there for sure if UW doesn't work out?

Thanks! I did feel good about the interview, it's my marks I'm not so confident about. Especially my OAT. If I don't get in to Waterloo I'll be going to the other school for sure, I really did enjoy it there. And I really don't want to take a year off either.

 

[neuro89]

Thanks! I did feel good about the interview, it's my marks I'm not so confident about. Especially my OAT. If I don't get in to Waterloo I'll be going to the other school for sure, I really did enjoy it there. And I really don't want to take a year off either.

I wouldn't worry too too much about the OAT - during the round table discussion in my session, the opt students made a point to tell us that although the average OAT of accepted students is 360-370, there are PLENTY of students accepted with OATs of 320-330, and even getting lower than that will not ruin your chances. That's exactly what they said. GPA wasn't discussed though.

I think given the fact that we had interviews, we should all feel confident. It'd be great if everyone posting on this forum got accepted!

 

[outsidechance]

I wouldn't worry too too much about the OAT - during the round table discussion in my session, the opt students made a point to tell us that although the average OAT of accepted students is 360-370, there are PLENTY of students accepted with OATs of 320-330, and even getting lower than that will not ruin your chances. That's exactly what they said. GPA wasn't discussed though.

I think given the fact that we had interviews, we should all feel confident. It'd be great if everyone posting on this forum got accepted!

yeah that would be exciting and great news for everyone. its great to hear the spread for the OAT is pretty large as I am writing my OAT at the end of this month.. Pressure much lol..

 

[quackquack]

Study hard and you should be ok. The most important thing I found was practicing questions to work on timing. I knew pretty much by the last month that if I don't know the material then, I wasn't going to be able to do much more. So I spent 2 good weeks doing practice tests everyday. It really helped (make sure you time yourself with a timer/phone).

 

[outsidechance]

Study hard and you should be ok. The most important thing I found was practicing questions to work on timing. I knew pretty much by the last month that if I don't know the material then, I wasn't going to be able to do much more. So I spent 2 good weeks doing practice tests everyday. It really helped (make sure you time yourself with a timer/phone).

Thanks for the advice. I just have to write 2 finals this saturday and then I am going to start studying for it. Ill have 3 weeks with christmas in the middle lol

 

[outsidechance]

Study hard and you should be ok. The most important thing I found was practicing questions to work on timing. I knew pretty much by the last month that if I don't know the material then, I wasn't going to be able to do much more. So I spent 2 good weeks doing practice tests everyday. It really helped (make sure you time yourself with a timer/phone).

Does anyone have a Kaplan OAT book I could buy off them from the toronto area? I could use it asap.

 

[Strutter]

Does anybody know if we can take Statistics For Life Sciences to fulfill the stats prerequisite requirement?

I emailed Waterloo's optometry school well over a month ago and have not received a reply yet.

Here is a course description from my school:
"Students will learn statistical techniques and their application to life sciences. They will study descriptive statistics, elementary probability, random variables, probability distributions, in particular, the binomial, normal, t and chi-square distributions, confidence intervals and hypothesis testing for population means, proportions and variances, as well as for differences in population means and proportions. Students will also study linear regression."

I understand that this course description doesn't fully match the one on their website, and there's another stats course at my school that matches Waterloo's stats prerequisite better. However, that course has a time conflict with my Physics II course, and I can only choose one of them to take.

 

[Physio101]

i emailed them with this question a while ago too! i took a biostats course (which i'm assuming is the same as stats for life sciences), and they said that it was fine.

 

[quackquack]

Probably most stats will be alright as long as it's not a stats for business course. That's my guess...

 

[OptomHope]

Wondering if anyone could offer any insight on this. I fell very ill during exam period and was unable to write a final exam - i have deferred it until later on in next semester and currently have an "incomplete" on my transcript. Do you think this would affect me negatively with regards to decision of admission? Would you suggest that I contact the school to tell them about the circumstances?

 

[outsidechance]

Wondering if anyone could offer any insight on this. I fell very ill during exam period and was unable to write a final exam - i have deferred it until later on in next semester and currently have an "incomplete" on my transcript. Do you think this would affect me negatively with regards to decision of admission? Would you suggest that I contact the school to tell them about the circumstances?

I dont see why it would be a serious issue. If your defering the exam and writing in Jan/feb it would prolly work out. Ask someone in the program for their advice first though.

 

[OptomHope]

I dont see why it would be a serious issue. If your defering the exam and writing in Jan/feb it would prolly work out. Ask someone in the program for their advice first though.

Yeah, i'm deferring until february... i heard somewhere that if the adcom wants to know the reason why it is incompletely they will ask us/the professor. I don't know anyone else that's currently in the program but do you think it's a bad idea if I email the admissions office to tell them about the circumstances? or best to just leave it?

 

[outsidechance]

Yeah, i'm deferring until february... i heard somewhere that if the adcom wants to know the reason why it is incompletely they will ask us/the professor. I don't know anyone else that's currently in the program but do you think it's a bad idea if I email the admissions office to tell them about the circumstances? or best to just leave it?

I wouldnt tell them unless you absolutely have to. Theres no need to draw attention to something unless you have to. When do you have to send in your next transcript? if you just need to send the last one in at the end of the winter term you could leave it as the course grade should be updated by then. However, If you go to waterloo and they can see your transcript before its updated or you have to submit a transcript after this past fall term you should prolly bring it up cause they will see it and you should explain your situation.

Just my disclaimer here lol. I am not an optom student so thats just my advice.

 

[quackquack]

I don't think most optom students would have any idea regarding this issue (I asked some of them just now myself and noone was really in the same situation). But I agree with the above about not drawing attention to it... what's important is that they will see the mark in the final transcript.

 

[OptomHope]

I don't think most optom students would have any idea regarding this issue (I asked some of them just now myself and noone was really in the same situation). But I agree with the above about not drawing attention to it... what's important is that they will see the mark in the final transcript.

Well, i'm not sure about that since i am a UW student. from my understanding they will receive the transcript with fall 2010 marks on it, and as of now there is an INC on it. It will most likely be updated by the end of february but i think that will be too late and they will have already have made their admissions decisions/started at least . I would assume that if the rest of my application is good then it wont be too much of a big deal to them? and if they really wanted to know the reason they would find out by asking the prof but i want to err on the side of caution... i just really don't know what to do. Thanks for your inputs though

 

[quackquack]

Oh ok, I read the below posts wrong, I thought you deferred it to January, and because they don't review until February (the deadline for Fall transcripts is end of Jan so it would make no sense for them to look before this date), I thought it would be fine for you. lol I was UW student too and from what I remember, you probably won't get to write it til April!

If it bothers you enough, maybe you can talk to Marie; I'm sure she'll be considerate of your situation, or at least be aware of it. I mean these people work at UW too - they certainly know what INC means, sickness being one of them. INC doesn't even carry a numerical value that can hurt your GPA, especially if it's legit. I wouldn't tell you the same thing if it was for any other marking (DNW/NMR... which IS a fail..forgot the exact number, 32 or something). Good luck!

 

[OptomHope]

Oh ok, I read the below posts wrong, I thought you deferred it to January, and because they don't review until February (the deadline for Fall transcripts is end of Jan so it would make no sense for them to look before this date), I thought it would be fine for you. lol I was UW student too and from what I remember, you probably won't get to write it til April!

If it bothers you enough, maybe you can talk to Marie; I'm sure she'll be considerate of your situation, or at least be aware of it. I mean these people work at UW too - they certainly know what INC means, sickness being one of them. INC doesn't even carry a numerical value that can hurt your GPA, especially if it's legit. I wouldn't tell you the same thing if it was for any other marking (DNW/NMR... which IS a fail..forgot the exact number, 32 or something). Good luck!

That's a good way of looking at it - the fact that the administrators work at UW and know what an INC is, that makes me feel better and I think I will definitely contact marie just to make sure. My prof was nice enough to let me write in february, so at least its not april!
Thanks for all of your help

 

[ratatat]

Hey everyone, we now have a forum for Canadian Optometry schools:

http://premed101.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=57

 

[Miru]

I think I must have screwed up one of the interview questions lol...because the interviewer just stared at me expecting me to say more, so I panicked and started saying BS. I really suck at communication.

My OAT marks were very good but my GPA is borderline...I've applied to so many other things like dentistry, physiotherapy, medical laboratory science, public health...and to PCO, but I don't want to go to the States. Waterloo Optometry is my top choice, but I definitely HAVE to get in SOMEWHERE starting September 2011...as I've already graduated and kinda wasted this year because I only applied to Waterloo Optometry last year and they rejected me. I am so stressed out lol.

 

[quackquack]

I think I must have screwed up one of the interview questions lol...because the interviewer just stared at me expecting me to say more, so I panicked and started saying BS. I really suck at communication.

My OAT marks were very good but my GPA is borderline...I've applied to so many other things like dentistry, physiotherapy, medical laboratory science, public health...and to PCO, but I don't want to go to the States. Waterloo Optometry is my top choice, but I definitely HAVE to get in SOMEWHERE starting September 2011...as I've already graduated and kinda wasted this year because I only applied to Waterloo Optometry last year and they rejected me. I am so stressed out lol.

What is your GPA if you don't mind me asking? Or you can PM me.

 

[outsidechance]

I think I must have screwed up one of the interview questions lol...because the interviewer just stared at me expecting me to say more, so I panicked and started saying BS. I really suck at communication.

My OAT marks were very good but my GPA is borderline...I've applied to so many other things like dentistry, physiotherapy, medical laboratory science, public health...and to PCO, but I don't want to go to the States. Waterloo Optometry is my top choice, but I definitely HAVE to get in SOMEWHERE starting September 2011...as I've already graduated and kinda wasted this year because I only applied to Waterloo Optometry last year and they rejected me. I am so stressed out lol.

what do you consider a borderline gpa? I bet your gpa was pretty good to get the interview in the first place so thats good news. try not to stress too much. I know its easier to say then actually do. As i stressed out over my OAT scores lol but ive recovered and moved on. I feel im in the same boat as you this year.

 

[crazypal]

Does anyone know where we send our fall transcript? Is it just the Waterloo registrar or somewhere else? I'm so confused lol

 

[Physio101]

Does anyone know where we send our fall transcript? Is it just the Waterloo registrar or somewhere else? I'm so confused lol

Here is what it says in the instructions that were sent along with the application

For non-Waterloo students
You must include photocopies of all transcripts with your application.
Candidates must also arrange for official transcript(s) to be received by the October 6th application deadline.

If granted an interview, then you must arrange with your university for official Fall 2010 term transcripts to be received at the School of Optometry by January 31, 2011.

Only transcripts sent directly by the Registrar of the candidate’s university are acceptable. Applications will not be considered unless current transcripts are available to the Admissions Committee.

Transcripts must be sent to:
School of Optometry
Admissions Office
University of Waterloo
Waterloo, ON
N2L 3G1

 

[crazypal]

Thanks physio101, completely forgot about the email lol