Waterloo!

[JRu]

Hello everyone!
Just wondering if anyone has heard from Waterloo yet??
I heard on the quest site, one can find out the last week of February and it is ...so just curious

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[Slapshot13]

Nope, nothing yet. Anyone?

 

[DaveSch]

Awww, I saw your post title and got excited for a second. Nothing here yet either.

 

[Coralia]

Awww, I saw your post title and got excited for a second. Nothing here yet either.

I have been religiously checking my Quest account for about 2 weeks already! (haha, jk) Just wondering if anyone has heard back from Waterloo yet. As of now, my status is still application. Thanks!

 

[Slapshot13]

You think you've been checking religiously? You have no idea... hahaha

Nothing here! Who knows, maybe snail mail this year?

 

[Coralia]

I hope that's not the case! The waiting game is driving me crazy!! Especially since there really is no set date as to when to expect to hear!

 

[JRu]

It's driving me bananas! Feels like it has been such a long waiting game
I know we "officially" find out March 15th but as per students who were in our position last year, one was supposed to be able to find out on quest if they were accepted the last week of feb! Although at the same time, the status does not change if one is not accepted so I hope it is not that...

 

[DaveSch]

At my interview day they mentioned the admissions committee wasn't even meeting until the first week of March, so I wouldn't get too worried yet. Hopefully we'll hear soon.

 

[kg2009]

Thanks for the info Dave! Hopefully we will find out next week

 

[rte100]

ADMITTED!

Quest updated around 10:40 this morning. Status changed to "admit", and a new column was added called "Accept/Decline". After accepting the offer, the status changed to "Intention to Matriculate" along with the explanation "You have accepted your Offer of Admission.".

Anyways, good luck to the rest of you guys.

 

[CKen]

Admitted!!! Good luck to everyone else!!!

 

[DaveSch]

I'm in too! Congrats to everyone and good luck to those who are still waiting!

 

[Jayopt]

Admitted! Congratulations and good luck everyone!

 

[Slapshot13]

I have also been accepted! Congratulations to those who got admitted. I will see you in the fall

 

[kg2009]

I've been admitted as well! Congrats everyone! Good luck to those who are still waiting!

 

[gtl]

Admitted!!!! Congrats everyone!

 

[optohopeful]

Admitted as well.

Congrats to everyone.

 

[celtic3]

I just checked Quest and I am in! Such a BIG relief! Congratulations to everyone else as well!

 

[UW2013]

Congrats to all of you who have been accepted!

We have started a facebook group for the class of 2014. If you would like, please join so that you can start becoming aquainted with your classmates and other optoms.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=120601610&ref=ts#!/group.php?gid=338093454444&ref=mf

 

[danielallen2008]

Admitted as well!! Congrats to everyone else, see you in the fall!!

 

[physicslover]

Congratulations to you all! I don't know if this question is too intrusive, but feel free to ignore it, if it is. Is there anyone here who was admitted with a less than 3.2 GPA? Or do you all have GPA's over 3.5+? I know the average stats that Waterloo posts up for its applicants but usually all the people that get in have really high stats.

 

[kg2009]

Hey physicslover, I have a 3.9+ average. But i know that thats not required to get in. When I interviewed at Waterloo, a couple of students took us on a tour of the building and then we had a round table discussion where we could ask questions.
One of the optometry students said that when they applied they had a low 80 average, however she was also involved in athletics at her undergrad. So i guess what i am trying to say is that they look at other things than just marks If you do have lower marks you can counter them by being involved in lots of extracurricular activities and show in your interview that you are a real person!

 

[Rusty Ryan]

I was put on a waiting list. My "contingency" number is less than 10. Do I have any chance?

 

[Contingency 10]

I would also like to know whether I still have a change, I'm 10th on the waiting list...is it likely that 10 people will decline??

How many people are put on the contingency list?

My oat was 340, my gpa is 3.7...are most people above this?

 

[Mewcakes]

I have no idea, but if you call the admissions office an ask, they will be able
to give you a pretty educated guess since they know their trends better
than we probably do. They won't think anything off it, so just give them a call! Good luck And congrats on not a rejection!

 

[optohopeful]

I would also like to know whether I still have a change, I'm 10th on the waiting list...is it likely that 10 people will decline??

How many people are put on the contingency list?

My oat was 340, my gpa is 3.7...are most people above this?

Hi there, My gpa is close to yours, about 3.75 but my oat was 400

 

[Contingency 10]

Wow 400 eh, thats pretty high. Did you take it since they adjusted the scoring in May 2009?

If anyone finds out about someone who is not interested in accepting their offer post here, so I can count down...this was my one and only plan for next year

 

[physicslover]

after you get selected for the interview, is it closed filed? Do they still take your stats in account after the interview selection or just base it on your interview?

 

[Contingency 10]

your interview is closed file, so essentially you get an interview based on your GPA. The interview is in November, then they re-open your file in late Feb to review everything, grades, application, interview, OAT for determining acceptance...although I'm hearing that it is mostly based on just GPA and OAT.

 

[rte100]

400 OAT? That's insane. My Reading Comprehension score killed me. 300 RC dragged my OAT score from 390 to 370.

 

[Contingency 10]

did you take the test after may 2009? I got a 340, but it says that my percentile was 89, which I thought was good enough....

 

[rte100]

I took mine in June 2009. The report says I'm in the 98.7 percentile with 370 AA.

 

[Rusty Ryan]

Has anybody been able to get a hold of Marie? I was instructed to call her to give her my contact information in case a spot opens up. I've tried calling a bunch of times in the past two days but its gone to voice mail every single time.

 

[optohopeful]

Wow 400 eh, thats pretty high. Did you take it since they adjusted the scoring in May 2009?

If anyone finds out about someone who is not interested in accepting their offer post here, so I can count down...this was my one and only plan for next year

I took it in september 2009 so yes it was after the adjustment.

 

[Contingency 10]

I have also been calling her all DAY!!! I guess she is getting to many calls or something. I'm going to leave her a message tomorrow if she doesn't answer again.

How did you do on your OAT Rusty Ryan if you don't mind me asking?

 

[Contingency 10]

thats amazing. Did you take kaplan or anything to prepare? Since its looking like my oat score is the reason I am on the waiting list, do you think I should write it again?

 

[Rusty Ryan]

I have also been calling her all DAY!!! I guess she is getting to many calls or something. I'm going to leave her a message tomorrow if she doesn't answer again.

How did you do on your OAT Rusty Ryan if you don't mind me asking?

I got a 390 TS & 370 AA on the new scale. My GPA is probably somewhere in the 3.7 range.

Did you apply to any American schools? I got accepted into a few and while the schools down there have amazing facilities, the cost scares the hell out of me.

 

[rte100]

I don't think you should place so much emphasis on OAT. When I spoke to Marie Amodeo and the admission committee, the impression they left me of OAT's importance was less than I thought.

They said that OAT is the last thing they look at after looking at your GPA, non-academics, and interview.They look at your OAT score *qualitatively* instead of quantitatively. Of course if you have the same credentials as everyone else but your OAT score was lower, then you'd be at a disadvantage. Of all possibilities, that scenario is less likely.

I've spoken to quite a few students at the school, and the impression they gave me was that many have 320 or 330 OAT scores, but they had outstanding non-academic credentials like atheletics, club leadership, etc etc. They told me that everyone in their class had a specialty in some non-academic field, like atheletics, entrepreneurialship, music, etc. Some are professional atheletes and musicians. Basically, you should have something special that not too many other students have. The school really focuses on diversity. They like to know that the students at the school have interests outside of school and outside of optometry.

If you're still insecure about OAT scores, you can try to get ahold of Marie and ask her yourself.

To give you an idea about myself: I've worked in over 5 different industries, in 9 different fortune 500 companies, and on 3 different continents. I've run 2 businesses in the past. I have literally flied around the Earth 10 times. During the interview I did not portray myself as a humanitarian, but as a cold-hearted capitalist pitching business opportunities in Optometry. The key is to be unique from everyone else.

 

[Aletheia]

Accepted!

Are those of you checking quest already UofW students or did you sign up for quest anyway somehow?

 

[kg2009]

Accepted!

Are those of you checking quest already UofW students or did you sign up for quest anyway somehow?

Alethia, I am not already a U of W student. I found out about Quest through other forums on this network. Students said that they received word about their acceptance on there first, so i signed up!

 

[Aletheia]

Thanks kg2009! It might be a good thing I didn't know about Quest until yesterday as I would have been checking constantly.

 

[DaveSch]

Hehe, yep! There were a few of us habitual "quest checkers" I think.

 

[Contingency 10]

Now that I have been wait-listed I am thinking about what to do with my time next year. Here are my options:

1) work for a year (I am being hired at Lens Crafters)

2) do a 5th year at McMaster doing undergrad work and an undergrad thesis

3) Apply for Masters at UofT to work with professors on eye disease

4) Apply for a Masters at McMaster to work with a prof on eye development

I need help making the best choice because next year I really want to make the cut for Waterloo opt. Drawbacks to masters work is that it takes 2 years, and I would want to get into class of 2011 for opt. Another year of undergrad would allow me to get the extra courses like english that I would need to apply to the US, although I'm not certain that I would go even if i got in due to the cost.

Any advice is greatly appreciated!!

 

[kg2009]

If you want to reaply for 2011, I think you should go after a route that involves only one year. I don't know if its the same for optometry, but i know with medicine once you start a masters program you need to finish it before you apply to the program. If you don't finish, it would look bad on your application because it shows that you are not a commited individual.

If you don't have much research experience i would consider doing the research project in a 5th year. This would also add to your application.

Thats just my opinion! Don't give up hope though! You never know, you could still end up getting in!

Good luck!

 

[rte100]

I agree with kg2009.

If you want to get in UW Optometry, option 1 and 2 are most feasible; 3 and 4 are too expensive time-wise. If you have plenty of work experience already, then 2 provides better balance if your finances allow; otherwise 1 is good.

Either way, you could still end up getting in.

 

[WaterlooOptom]

.

 

[optohopeful]

thats amazing. Did you take kaplan or anything to prepare? Since its looking like my oat score is the reason I am on the waiting list, do you think I should write it again?

I think you should retake and you should get a 370 or above just to be on the safe side. As for me, I didn't take kaplan, I only bought the kaplan book that has 2 full sample exams.

Good Luck.

 

[kg2009]

Could anyone give me some info on what the best resources are to use to study for the OAT?

Thanks!

For the OAT i used OAT destroyer and my old class notes/text books.

I found the OAT destroyer very helpful for the sciences part, but it does not prepare you for the reading comprehension. Nor does it give you an idea on the timing of your test, as it doesn't offer any practice tests.
I did like it though, for all of the practice problems (it is all problems based with detailed answers for each in the back of the book).

The other big one that people use is Kaplan. I dont know much about it.

The DAT is very similiar to the OAT so if you found a DAT study guide it may be helpful as well.

If you look around on this forum, there are threads with a lot of OAT information that you may find helpful.

Good luck!

 

[Aletheia]

Is anyone looking for roommates or thinking about that stuff yet? I'm not sure how Waterloo is in terms of housing, so if anyone knows that'd be great.

As for studying, the OAT destroyer was good. Lots of practice, but very overwhelming if you don't know your material in and out *cough* Organic Chem *cough*. I used Exam Krackers MCAT for Orgo which was a good review, but does not cover all the stuff you need to know and doesn't have a ton of practice questions. It's very helpful in getting you to think about the material, though. ExamKrackers also has a study guide on their website if you find that sort of thing helpful--it breaks it down by hours per day and etc. I also used this guy: http://www.freelance-teacher.com/videos.htm . He's got some videos on youtube that are superhelpful if you haven't taken subjects like Orgo in years and years.
The OAT destroyer was exactly like the OAT for Biology, Math and Inorganic Chem. I found ExamKrackers great. After studying it, I just went through the destroyer for reactions ExamKrackers didn't cover and found them in my Orgo text. I thought physics was way more simple on the OAT. That is, don't focus on super complex problems, but make sure you really know the physics behind it, how simple forces work, etc. It's essential. Don't just memorize equations. Hope that helps.

Contingency 10: I found working in science to be great in terms of challenging me and it looked great on my application if you're in a good lab. I also think a master's is a great way to go. In my opinion, both will teach you a lot about yourself. I felt a lot like you in my last year of school and wasn't sure what to do. I'm glad I chose #1. You should do what you enjoy. For me, that was science and I learned a lot about myself. I didn't do #2 because if I didn't get in, a fifth year would have been unless. #3 and #4 seem fine options to me, if you enjoy science and those areas of research. I didn't do it because I wasn't quite sure if it was where I wanted to be for the rest of my life. I wouldn't necessarily stick to stuff related to the eyes in terms of research, unless you absolutely love the lab, prof, etc. I know it's the obvious choice, but I see nothing wrong with working on something you enjoy that's not as related and succeeding in it. I did.

 

[leannejaimie]

Heyy everyone!

Accepted!

Very new this forum but any one know what they are doing or have any suggestions about accommodations for next year?

Looking forward to meeting everyone in the fall