Feedback please - new to pre-optometry

[gable1011]

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So I have a chemistry BA degree, and getting my Biology BS degree currently. I have a 3.39 overall GPA and a 3.2 Science gpa. I have not taken my OAT, but would like to study most of the summer to take the test in August or September. I have also arranged shadowings locally with different optometrists.

So is my gpa good enough for most schools? ( I'm looking at New York, Chicago, and Boston schools mainly)

How hard is the physics portion of the OAT? How many schools should I apply to? and should I wait to submit my application until I have my OAT scores back or just have convidence that I will do well?


Thanks in advance if any of you take the time to answer even some of my questions! THANKS MUCH!!!

 

[curetteopt]

So I have a chemistry BA degree, and getting my Biology BS degree currently. I have a 3.39 overall GPA and a 3.2 Science gpa. I have not taken my OAT, but would like to study most of the summer to take the test in August or September. I have also arranged shadowings locally with different optometrists.

So is my gpa good enough for most schools? ( I'm looking at New York, Chicago, and Boston schools mainly)

How hard is the physics portion of the OAT? How many schools should I apply to? and should I wait to submit my application until I have my OAT scores back or just have convidence that I will do well?


Thanks in advance if any of you take the time to answer even some of my questions! THANKS MUCH!!!

I think you should be good with your GPA. Make sure you study hard and ace the OAT.

 

[Mewcakes]

How hard is the physics portion of the OAT? How many schools should I apply to? and should I wait to submit my application until I have my OAT scores back or just have convidence that I will do well?

Physics boils down to a handful of concepts that you just have to be able to apply in different situations. Think velocity, acceleration, gravity/friction questions. The hard topics are generally Bio and Ochem. Though with a BA in chem and BS in bio, you'll probably be okay. Practice reading long boring articles for RC. RC isn't hard, but for some reason most of us fail to get 400s somehow. You feel like you answered all the questions right, like none of them were particularly hard/tricky. But at the end you get a score of like..370 and you're like "wtf did I get wrong...?"

Apply to the schools you WANT to go to and the schools you wouldn't mind going to if your 1st choice schools fell through.

You said you were going to sit for the OAT in August? You could probably just wait to take it then submit your app. You'll still be pretty early. Even if you put "OAT score to come", the schools likely won't pass decision on your app until the OAT report came in. So either way is probably fine.

 

[kiwi5frog]

So I have a chemistry BA degree, and getting my Biology BS degree currently. I have a 3.39 overall GPA and a 3.2 Science gpa. I have not taken my OAT, but would like to study most of the summer to take the test in August or September. I have also arranged shadowings locally with different optometrists.

So is my gpa good enough for most schools? ( I'm looking at New York, Chicago, and Boston schools mainly)

How hard is the physics portion of the OAT? How many schools should I apply to? and should I wait to submit my application until I have my OAT scores back or just have convidence that I will do well?


Thanks in advance if any of you take the time to answer even some of my questions! THANKS MUCH!!!

Stats look decent. you can compare them to these two sources:

Stats of students accepted via SDN
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=691316

Stats of students accepted via ASCO
http://www.opted.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3344

Waiting is probably good. I think I saw someone here on SDN who posted that they were accepted without the OAT score, but the acceptance was conditional so long as the scored above a certain line for the OAT. I've only seen that once though. and if they were accepted without that score, they must have had an amazing app in every other factor looked at.

Good luck!

 

[gable1011]

Thanks everyone for your great feed back! I really appreciate it!

 

[nc2tarheels]

Physics boils down to a handful of concepts that you just have to be able to apply in different situations. Think velocity, acceleration, gravity/friction questions. The hard topics are generally Bio and Ochem. Though with a BA in chem and BS in bio, you'll probably be okay. Practice reading long boring articles for RC. RC isn't hard, but for some reason most of us fail to get 400s somehow. You feel like you answered all the questions right, like none of them were particularly hard/tricky. But at the end you get a score of like..370 and you're like "wtf did I get wrong...?"

Apply to the schools you WANT to go to and the schools you wouldn't mind going to if your 1st choice schools fell through.

You said you were going to sit for the OAT in August? You could probably just wait to take it then submit your app. You'll still be pretty early. Even if you put "OAT score to come", the schools likely won't pass decision on your app until the OAT report came in. So either way is probably fine.

Yea, because EVERYBODY gets 370's in RC 🙄

 

[Mewcakes]

Well I didn't. I think the highest I achieved was like...350 😛. But that's how it felt. I mean...they asked you 10 questions about crocodiles and you SWEAR you got them right. You even double checked the passage. Yet somehow you still don't get full marks. I swear it's rigged.

 

[gable1011]

Does Boston's school accept a fair percentage of out of state applicants? I can't find a site that lists resident vs non res numbers.

 

[DrSpontaneouz83]

Wow, they still have the RC questions about the crocodiles and Pontoons? I can see why there was a huge mess with NBEO exams...seems questions are hardly shuffled.

As for the OP, your stats sound good to get into Chicago and Boston..but you are going to to have to at least pull a 350 to get into SUNY (considering you have excellent extracurriculars and experience in optometry).

 

[kiwi5frog]

Does Boston's school accept a fair percentage of out of state applicants? I can't find a site that lists resident vs non res numbers.

http://www.opted.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3344

same pdf where ASCO lists the OAT/GPA stats also lists res/non res acceptances

HOWEVER!!!!!!! boston didn't report the nonres/res numbers. just totals. >_<

 

[gable1011]

Thanks for the post, and I saw that Boston was just a total, thats why I thought I would ask to see if anyone knew other wise. But thank you. that link was very helpful in sorting out the schools I wanted to apply to!

Thanks to all again who have replied, everything has been very helpful!

 

[Mewcakes]

Wow, they still have the RC questions about the crocodiles and Pontoons?

Yeah. And the one about suspension bridges and pianos. Those are the few I can remember from the two times I sat for the exam. I never got the same passage twice, though. And I took them 6 mos apart. So they kind of shuffle it, I guess.

 

[319671]

Yeah. And the one about suspension bridges and pianos. Those are the few I can remember from the two times I sat for the exam. I never got the same passage twice, though. And I took them 6 mos apart. So they kind of shuffle it, I guess.

i took it in march, retaking in june. i got fiber optics, pontoons, and crocs