Acceptance Factors (many questions)

[a1bui]

Hi all, I'm almost done with my 2nd year at UCSD and just wanted to plan ahead for next year. Here are my questions (sorry so many):

1. Do the schools look at GPA based on what school you go to? (my gpa is on the lower end of the averages, but I think my school is fairly competitive)

2. Do schools care how many times you take the OAT? (I might take it fall quarter of my 3rd year, so I probably have time to retake in case I want a higher score)

3. How big a factor is community service? (I only have a few hours so far, but they're at random events)

4. Does anyone know what kind of community service I can do thats more optometry oriented? (the only thing I can think of and might do unless suggested otherwise, is help at a hospital...which I think is more med. school oriented)

5. How big a factor is interning, and is it a bigger factor then comm. service? (I plan to intern all next year and senior year, so 2 years total of experience)

6. Extra curricular activities/leadership a factor? (I'm already in my school's pre-opt club, and anime club but should I join more clubs and is something like becoming an officer important?)

7. I heard that after you're granted an interview, all the gpa/oat data isn't important anymore, so does that mean the questions interviewers ask don't pertain to them? (just curious in case I need to come up with some excuses )

8. Pre-reqs or overall more noticed? (well, both my pre-req and overall gpa aren't that great now but I'm way more interested/do better in bio then the pre-req classes, so hopefully I'll get better grades once i get into my upper division bio, and am done with pre-reqs)

9. Where do you interview if you apply out of state, do you have to buy your own ticket there? (sorry, thats a really basic question, but i don't know)

That's all I can come up with. If someone can answer any of the questions that would be great. I only need one well answered response to each question, so the topic doesn't drag. But, if you want to add to other people's comments, that would be good too.

Thanks in advance, I really appreciate it.

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[ppa93]

Hi all, I'm almost done with my 2nd year at UCSD and just wanted to plan ahead for next year. Here are my questions (sorry so many):

1. Do the schools look at GPA based on what school you go to? (my gpa is on the lower end of the averages, but I think my school is fairly competitive)

2. Do schools care how many times you take the OAT? (I might take it fall quarter of my 3rd year, so I probably have time to retake in case I want a higher score)

3. How big a factor is community service? (I only have a few hours so far, but they're at random events)

4. Does anyone know what kind of community service I can do thats more optometry oriented? (the only thing I can think of and might do unless suggested otherwise, is help at a hospital...which I think is more med. school oriented)

5. How big a factor is interning, and is it a bigger factor then comm. service? (I plan to intern all next year and senior year, so 2 years total of experience)

6. Extra curricular activities/leadership a factor? (I'm already in my school's pre-opt club, and anime club but should I join more clubs and is something like becoming an officer important?)

7. I heard that after you're granted an interview, all the gpa/oat data isn't important anymore, so does that mean the questions interviewers ask don't pertain to them? (just curious in case I need to come up with some excuses )

8. Pre-reqs or overall more noticed? (well, both my pre-req and overall gpa aren't that great now but I'm way more interested/do better in bio then the pre-req classes, so hopefully I'll get better grades once i get into my upper division bio, and am done with pre-reqs)

9. Where do you interview if you apply out of state, do you have to buy your own ticket there? (sorry, thats a really basic question, but i don't know)

That's all I can come up with. If someone can answer any of the questions that would be great. I only need one well answered response to each question, so the topic doesn't drag. But, if you want to add to other people's comments, that would be good too.

Thanks in advance, I really appreciate it.

1. They do not look at your GPA based on what school you go to, but it might weigh about 1 or 2%.
2. They dont care about how many times u take the test because only four OAT tests will be shown on ur record.
3. Community service isnt that important but it can make u a bit more competitive. However, Shadowing is very important.
4. dont worry about it
5.Interning is very important. It is a must for most of the schools.
6. Extra cirricular might help abit once again, but no one knows how they deal with it.
7. the questions interviewers ask pertain to them in some schools. PCO will not ask u anything about ur grades or OAT score, but there are other schools that will ask u.
8. Both pre requisite GPA and Overall gpa are important, however, pre requisite GPA might be a bit more important. For example, Overall GPA might be 25% when pre req GPA is 30%
9. OF course u have to buy ur own ticket. Illinois for ICO, Penn for PCO, etc

 

[anchan]

GPA, what makes your school so competitive over the next? also don't forget, there's bound to be some peers from your school who may apply the same Optometry schools as you do, and their GPA may be higher than yours, so you wouldn't really have the "edge" in that situation. I really don't think they care which school you're from, sometimes there is a section of the application which asks you if your transcript reflects your academic performance, and if you have experienced any extenuating circumstances or just feel it doesn't, you can explain all you want in that section. Also, the OAT is a standardized test and if you can score well there then they will be able to gauge your academic performance a bit better. But also, if you've taken the OAT four times and consistently score low on it, that would be a concern and I'm not sure if that would look too great.

For extracurricular activities, it's good to show that you aren't just a bookworm but are involved in different activities or are active in the the community. Also shows that you can multi-task and etc, as for how important it really is......I have no clue, I'm not the one who lets people in, but I would presume, the more the merrier.

For the interviews, sometimes representatives from the school will go to certain states to interview applicants from certain schools. As for who is where and what, I couldn't tell you, I'm a Canadian student, so I had to fly everywhere on my own which cost me a hefty amount, set aside a fair bit of change for those interviews (but I also had to fly all the way across the continent, you might not have to do that).

 

[polkadot]

1. Your alma mater may be considered, although I think your major will carry more weight.
2. It would reflect much better if you did really well the first time you took the OAT rather than a 2nd or 3rd try. I doubt YOU want to take the OAT more than 4 times to mask old scores.
3./4. Community service: I talked a lot at my interviews about a volunteer project I was involved in that provides books for people with reading disabilities, but I don't know that it's critical. I would consider getting more opt exposure (e.g., shadowing) to show that you are really interested in optometry. Another option is volunteering with Lion's, I know someone who reads books to a blind gentleman every week.
5. Not sure what you mean by "interning". If you mean working for an optometrist, then YES, this will help your application A LOT.
6. Leadership/extracurricular activities are of limited importance in that they show something about your character and your ability to multitask.
7. Different schools handle your file differently at interview. For instance, SCCO interviewers only see your essays and you. The hardcopy record is used only for the intial screening process. SUNY reviewed my record during the interview. If there's anything weird or glaring, they most likely will address it.
8. pre-req v. overall gpa? dunno.
9. Interviews: like anchan said, some schools do travel for interviews. For sure, Dr. Johnston from SUNY does a swing through CA to interview candidates. I don't know about any of the others.

Hope that helps.

-p.dot

 

[a1bui]

Thanks for all your reponses, they helped a lot. I suppose I'll wait to the 2nd test time in Feb. so I can have more time to study and do better, so as to not retake so much.

An admissions advisor went to my school and said that the school you attend does make a small difference. For example, a 3.0 from Yale, is quite different then a 3.0 from Cal State "Average". However, I won't count on that and will rely on my OAT more then school comparisons.

I'll also intern/shadow an optometrist for as long as I can (probably 2 years) so I can get more experience. Volunteering...I guess I'll look for the optometry related service to do over the summer, and school weekends.

Once again, thanks for everyone's input.

 

[sco1styear]

Just wanted to add....
I know SCO really wants people to be exposed to different optometry environments and not just one practice. They really want students to understand the full scope of the field. So, I would suggest going and at least shadowing a few times at several different types of practices.
Also, SCO has what is called a "blind" interview. Basically all your interviewer knows about you is your name and your state. It's nice because they have not made any judgements about you before you meet. But, it also means it is important for you to get across any information you really want them to be aware of.
One last pointer: best adivce I got about interviewing: Be knowledgable about the profession and ASK QUESTIONS!

 

[stevec]

I know for a fact that some schools look at your GPA differently depending on your alma mater, but I don't know which if any optometry schools do. It probably varies quite a bit, and I've never heard of a school that publicizes it.

When a med school (MUSC) came to Clemson to talk to the pre-med society, someone asked if they adjusted GPA based on school, and their representative said yes. I don't remember the numbers, but my school (Clemson), along with Furman, and another in SC were considered very competitive, so they curved all GPA from those schools upward quite a bit. (I didn't write it down, but I think it was an additional .2 or .3 plus more for honors and if you are an athlete.) Again, they didn't have this written down ANYWHERE, and the only reason we probably found out was because somebody asked the right person. I was shocked that she belted off exact numbers on how many points specific schools were getting. I imagine if you asked most schools, they would give you a vague answer if they told you anything at all.

I think someone asked the same thing about major, and got a vague answer. I can see how adjusting GPA for major and school would be tough to do properly, so schools would rather not divulge this information.

 

[a1bui]

Thanks again for the extra replies. I'll probably intern for my school's optometrist, as well as volunteer for the Shiley Eye Center which deals with basic eye exams to the most advanced diagnostic tests and sophisticated surgery for all eye problems; that way I'll get lots of exposure. About the interview though, I'm pretty sure I'll know a lot about the field by the time I interview, but what questions should I ask? Questions pertaining to optometry or to the school?

Thanks for the FYI about the GPA being adjusted for some schools. From what I heard, majors don't exactly have a point system to it (though that could be kept secret), but reviewers, being optometrists themselves, prefer the science majors because of the "hardcore" sciences classes...which they probably took themselves and can relate to. As far as schools are concerned, that would be really great if they adjusted to your undergrad; I think my school is pretty competitive in CA so that would be good for applying to the 2 CA optometry schools (which a majority of the applicants come from CA).

Once again, thanks for the comments.

 

[sco1styear]

I don't think it really matters what the questions are but it seemed to me that by asking questions I got my interviewer more involved in the conversation. Think about it, wouldn't you rather be engaged in the convo instead of just sitting there taking notes about someone? I actually ended up asking questions about how my interviewer got interested in optometry...he had started off in another profession so I was curious. I really think it made all the difference because everyone likes to talk about themselves!

 

[od2b77]

I completely agree about asking interviewer questions about themselves. But it has to be genuine, most intellegent people will see right through if you're sweet talking them. This definately helped me with the stern looking interviewer who for the first 20 minutes seemed to dislike me. But when I switched the focus from myself unto him, he opened up, started smiling and got MUCH friendlier. I got accepted few days after my interview.

 

[Rosanna]

Hi a1bui:

1. I agree that UCSD is a top UC school but it’s difficult to use that comparison if you are applying to the two CA schools since a good majority of the application pool will be UC students as well. For example, my class alone consisted of 50-60% UCB alumni, around 6 UCSD alumni, a few others from UCLA and UCSB, ~4 UCD, and myself and two others from UCI. The rest were from out-of-state schools. Therefore, I don’t think they would “adjust” your GPA to any certain degree (IMHO).

4. If you are back in Irvine for the summer, try volunteering at the Blind Children’s Center at Tustin. It’s a great opportunity to work with visually impaired children. I believe the volunteer director is still Tom Bilek. There is also the Braille Institute in Los Angeles.

5. It doesn’t matter the number of clubs you are in but it is important that you show a leadership role in one of them. Anyone can go to a club’s meeting and pay the dues to be on the official roster so you have to take a more active role to show sincere interest.

8. You mention that your GPA is not that good (3.0-3.1?), so be sure to do well in those upper division bio classes. I actually found it easier to get A’s in upper division bio satellite courses and labs, so it can be done. Also, choose your breath classes carefully since it can help boost your overall GPA.

9. Yes, you will most likely need to pay for your own ticket. Some schools may have their admissions director to come interview you if you apply early enough (which you should always do!) such as SUNY. I’ve heard that NEWENCO allows phone interviews if you can’t make the trip, or will offer to have an alumnus in your home state come to interview you. A friend of mine had a phone interview with NEWENCO, but I don’t know of anyone who has been interviewed by an alumnus of a school.

Finally…

If you are looking for a good volunteer experience, I just received in the mail a signup for the Special Olympics that will be occurring in Long Beach on June 10-12. When I volunteered three years ago, I was with a group of SCCO students and doctors who were offering free vision screenings to all the athletes. I believe Dr. Carmen Barnhardt at SCCO may still be the one that organizes student volunteers for that day if you wanted to participate. I had a great time volunteering, and I met a lot of people that shared their school experience with me. Also, you get a free t-shirt and breakfast and lunch! The vision screening was nicely organized (through Lion’s club) and everyone is extremely friendly. I think the vision screening was only on one day, so you will need to check with Dr. Barnhardt.

Even better, if UCSD’s pre-optometry club participates in POPS then the liaison at SCCO can help you signup. If not, just PM me, since the POPS liaison happens to be my good friend from UCI.

Also, this FAQ I made several years ago may help you with any further questions: http://spirit.dos.uci.edu/useeeyes/faq.html

Good luck,

Rosanna

 

[a1bui]

Hmm, thanks for the advice. How does one switch from being asked, to asking though? Like, if there's a moments pause, do you just interupt and ask a question about the interviewer? It would make sense if the interviwer asked "Any questions, comments?", but otherwise when is the opportune time to ask?

I guess, I'd have to do with the flow of the conversation to get some questions in.

 

[ppa93]

Hmm, thanks for the advice. How does one switch from being asked, to asking though? Like, if there's a moments pause, do you just interupt and ask a question about the interviewer? It would make sense if the interviwer asked "Any questions, comments?", but otherwise when is the opportune time to ask?

I guess, I'd have to do with the flow of the conversation to get some questions in.

He will stop asking questions after he is done asking. Then he will ask you what u wanna ask about anything. Something like that

 

[sco1styear]

I think you should try to feel the convo out and determine if there is any point that you can bring up questions without "interupting". But, I think if something comes up in the conversation that you have a question about, that it would be appropriate to bring it up at that point in time. And like said above, there should be time at the end for any additional questions you may have.