Berkeley Applicants!

[sayruhlou]

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WOO HOO!

I just submitted my application to Berkeley, SCO and OSU through optomCAS! I'm sooo excited, but nervous! Who else applied to UCBSO?? AHHHH now for the waiting game....

 

[Mewcakes]

Haha, UCB send my rejection letter so fast, it was ridiculous. 😛 My stats are less than ideal, though, so don't take it as any indication. I still got into SCO ;-)

 

[eyesee123]

How long did it take Berkeley to respond to you? What were your stats if you don't mind me asking?

 

[kkice]

I received an email from Berkeley today saying my application is complete and they will start reviewing.
I am so nervous and excited!!! 😱
The interview will be Feb 5 saturday!!
Good luck to everyone. Let's all meet there! 🙂

 

[Mewcakes]

Ehhhh, I think it might've been a couple weeks? I can't remember that well because I wasn't really counting the days or anything. I applied to satisfy my parents. 😛

Overall GPA: 2.89
Science GPA according to SCO: 2.6something
OAT: 330
Experience: Lots, but less than 5 years.

 

[optometrist2be]

@mewcakes: what month did you apply and did you retake your oat or was that your first score?
for anyone, I'm trying to get an idea of what my odds are. I applied late october and have a 2.98 gpa and a 2.86 sgpa (according to optomcas, i have had to retake a couple classes) and an OAT of 290 AA and 280 TS, but i'm retaking it in January. I have research experience with eye pressures and have worked in retail and lab at lenscrafters for 2.5 years and at an optometrists office for a 1.5 years. Founded the pre-optometry club at my university and have volunteered in pediatrics and the low vision clinic in my city and have shadowed several optometrists in different settings. also my dad has owned optical shops my entire life so i've always had the exposure and interest in the field.
Obviously i'm aiming for the best score i can, but anyone who has an idea of what score i would definitely need on the OAT to give me a competitive score, i'd greatly appreciate it!

 

[Mewcakes]

Submitted Optomcas mid October and took final OAT late November (I scored TS/AA 300 earlier that year). However, I didn't elect to send my application to SCO until late January. So effectively, that's when I applied to SCO, which is where I go now.

You are really going to need to bring that OAT up to or above 300 and hopefully have at least 300s in every science category. What schools do you have in mind?

 

[optometrist2be]

yeah, i know i need to get higher my next time around, the first time i took it the power went out so i had to start over a week later after school had started..stressful!..but i've bought some programs to help me study/learn better for the next take. I'm applying to Pacific (just got an interview!!!), arizona, IUSO, OSU, SCO, PCO, UMSL, UIWSO, and UHCO...so a good majority of them! what was your final take for the OAT score, or was it 300?

 

[Mewcakes]

I had TS/AA 330, but all my scores were 310 and up, 380 in bio. You'll probably get interviews at AZCOPT, and UMSL. Not sure about OSU or IU, do you live in the right state for OSU? The other schools I don't know about because I didn't apply. 😛 Congrats on your upcoming interview, though. Good luck! I have 2 friends that go to PUCO and they love it!

 

[optometrist2be]

yeah, i'm going to try to get at least those scores on my retake to improve my app..but thanks, I'm very excited about it and am glad to hear that everyone you know and that i've heard of love it up there! Thanks for your responses, it's been very helpful!

 

[sayruhlou]

My file is finally complete as well... I just received an email from Berkeley that says the same thing.. they will start reviewing and I should know before Jan. 10 whether or not I got an interview. 🙂

 

[sayruhlou]

Has anybody heard back from UCBSO yet? I've been checking my email like mad, but still haven't heard anything!!

 

[kkice]

Take it easy.
I was also checking my email every 10 minutes, and I was all nervous why I am not hearing anything yet.
Then I was searching sdn from last year, and I found out that people didn't recieve invitations until the last day of the week that Berkeley stated.
This year, Berkeley stated that they will give out invitations no later than the week of Jan 10.
So I am expecting to hear at the end of next week.
Good luck! I hope we both can be there on Feb 5. 🙂

 

[sayruhlou]

Has anybody else on SDN been invited to interview day 2011? I can't wait to meet all of you guys! I'm so excited and nervous for next Saturday! UCBSO is definitely my top choice! For any other past-interviewees, do you guys have any advice on what we should expect from the day?

 

[nbwkobe8]

I got an interview invitation and am pretty excited/nervous for this Saturday!!!

 

[pphm]

I got an interview invitation and am pretty excited/nervous for this Saturday!!!

nbwkobe8, you applied for the 09-10 application cycle, didn't you?

 

[nbwkobe8]

No I didn't. I was thinking about it but decided to take a year off instead.

Are there any Berkeley students or doctors here who have any tips to share about Interview day??