Pre-optometry student looking for advice

[ChemOPTGirl]

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Hi there, new to this site,
I've been looking around for some good advice for applying to optometry school and was always lead back to this website. I have two questions, what would you guys recommend, I plan to apply to optometry school in at least 2 years, should I finish a degree and then apply, or finish the prereqs, apply and finish a degree if I am not accepted? Also, which optometry schools in the US consider interviewing applicants with around an 80% average?
Thanks guys!

 

[EyeCaptain]

You will need to finish your degree regardless. There are a few schools who would possibly admit you without a bachelor's degree, but that's not the norm. If you have most of your prereq's done by the summer of your junior year, you could apply then and start Optometry school right after you finish your degree. You could also wait until you finish your degree, take a gap year and apply that summer after you graduate. Which schools you apply to is completely up to you and depends on your goals, you will need to provide more information if you want advice on that.

 

[ChemOPTGirl]

Thank you for the advice EyeCaptain

 

[BrandNewSpaces]

Hi there, new to this site,
I've been looking around for some good advice for applying to optometry school and was always lead back to this website. I have two questions, what would you guys recommend, I plan to apply to optometry school in at least 2 years, should I finish a degree and then apply, or finish the prereqs, apply and finish a degree if I am not accepted? Also, which optometry schools in the US consider interviewing applicants with around an 80% average?
Thanks guys!

Most schools will require a Bachelor's degree for admission, but that doesn't mean that it has to be completed before you apply. Many students apply for optometry school after their junior/3rd year and acceptance will be made under the condition that you complete your degree. Some schools will accept applicants without Bachelor's degrees, however it is rare, and you must have an extremely outstanding application. It is also common for people to wait until after completing their degree. In this case you could apply while taking some time off to gain more experience, strengthen your applications, work to save up money, etc.

It's not usually required that you complete all your pre-reqs before applying, but your acceptance would once again be conditional on your completion of those courses. However, it may be a good idea to get as many pre-reqs completed before applying/interviewing as possible, so the schools are better able to assess your application.

You should also consider the timing for when you want to take the OAT. That will also depend on when you want to apply (and I think most schools want it taken within 2 years of applying, but I'm not sure about that). If you plan on applying after your junior/3rd year, I would recommend taking it early in the summer before your senior/4th year. This would give you more time to focus on the OAT, provided you are not taking summer classes. And OptomCAS usually open up the application on July 1st, so if you get the OAT over with sooner, you will have more time to focus on your actual application. You want to get your application submitted as early as possible for whichever cycle you apply because optometry schools work off rolling admissions. Another thing that is important to know is that many schools have supplemental applications that must be completed in addition to the OptomCAS application!

You should also try to get some experience shadowing or volunteering with optometrists before you apply, as that is a requirement for many schools!

I hope that all makes sense! I tend to ramble sometimes, so let me know if I said something totally confusing!! You should also check out your school's Pre-Optometry Club if it has one!

 

[ChemOPTGirl]

Most schools will require a Bachelor's degree for admission, but that doesn't mean that it has to be completed before you apply. Many students apply for optometry school after their junior/3rd year and acceptance will be made under the condition that you complete your degree. Some schools will accept applicants without Bachelor's degrees, however it is rare, and you must have an extremely outstanding application. It is also common for people to wait until after completing their degree. In this case you could apply while taking some time off to gain more experience, strengthen your applications, work to save up money, etc.

It's not usually required that you complete all your pre-reqs before applying, but your acceptance would once again be conditional on your completion of those courses. However, it may be a good idea to get as many pre-reqs completed before applying/interviewing as possible, so the schools are better able to assess your application.

You should also consider the timing for when you want to take the OAT. That will also depend on when you want to apply (and I think most schools want it taken within 2 years of applying, but I'm not sure about that). If you plan on applying after your junior/3rd year, I would recommend taking it early in the summer before your senior/4th year. This would give you more time to focus on the OAT, provided you are not taking summer classes. And OptomCAS usually open up the application on July 1st, so if you get the OAT over with sooner, you will have more time to focus on your actual application. You want to get your application submitted as early as possible for whichever cycle you apply because optometry schools work off rolling admissions. Another thing that is important to know is that many schools have supplemental applications that must be completed in addition to the OptomCAS application!

You should also try to get some experience shadowing or volunteering with optometrists before you apply, as that is a requirement for many schools!

I hope that all makes sense! I tend to ramble sometimes, so let me know if I said something totally confusing!! You should also check out your school's Pre-Optometry Club if it has one!

Hi BrandNewSpaces, thanks for the helpful post! I think what I am most confused about in general is the degree thing. Personally, I don't really understand say if I got a degree in biochem (my plan) or a bachelor of science? So, do most students accepted already have a b.sc. or only a degree in whatever they pursued. Sorry this may be a silly question.

I plan to have my prereqs completed in 2 years (so by the end of my junior year) and my degee in Biochem finished the year after. I plan to write the OAT my 3rd year and apply the next summer for Opt. school. How long does an application usually take around? Also, I see you are from Canada, I am as well, I plan to apply to the USA as getting into Waterloo is going to be very very competitive. Have you/will you be applying to Waterloo?

One thing I do not know about US optometry schools, I don't know if you happen to know, but do they recommend or give more preference to students who pursue 5 courses each semester? I will be taking 4 each semester for my next years. I know that Waterloo I believe gives preference or at least likes to see that you are taking 5 each term.

Do many optometrists allow you to shadow a few times? As well, I will be doing lab research in inorganic chem this summer and will be volunteering at a local hospitals Ophthalmology clinic (I'm not sure if that will be beneficial?)

Sorry that was quite a bit of questions! Thanks again for the help! 🙂

 

[ChemOPTGirl]

Also, my understanding is that Optometry schools will start choosing who to interview right as the applications start coming in?

 

[BrandNewSpaces]

A degree in biochemistry would be a Bachelors of Science degree. Biochemistry is your major or specification within the Bachelors of Science. So, when you complete your undergraduate education, you will be receiving a Bachelors of Science in Biochemistry. Unless you are currently in a program which is not actually for a Bachelor's degree, like an associates degree for example.

How long the application takes is really dependent on the individual. The application consists of entering your grades, entering your optometric experiences, as well as other work experience and extra-curriculars. Your letters of recommendation (from optometrists and professors) will also be done through the OptomCAS application. The part of the application that takes the longest is the essay/personal statement. The essay is actually quite short, but it personally took me a while to get it exactly the way I wanted before submitting. In order for your application to be complete, you will also need to arrange to have official transcripts from your school sent to OptomCAS so they can verify your grades and this can take some time because it is done through snail mail. Another component of the application system that takes some time is the supplemental applications that are specific to the schools that you are applying to, and many times those involve writing additional essays. For some people, this process may only take a couple weeks, for others a couple months.

I did not apply to Waterloo, although in hindsight, I feel like I probably should have. It is definitely very competitive, but depending on your stats, that doesn't mean you don't have a shot. If you are applying to Waterloo, keep in mind that their application process is very different and they have many deadlines that you have to keep on top of, including when you need to have written the OAT by! I know Waterloo wants you to have 5 classes every semester, but I'm not sure about the US schools. I don't think 4 classes a semester should be a problem because it is still the course load of a full-time student. There were a couple semesters where I only took 4 classes, and there was one semester where I only had 2 (I had to withdraw from a few courses for medical reasons), and that didn't seem to be a problem at the schools I interviewed at/was accepted to. To be sure, I recommend that you call the schools you are interested in applying to, and ask them whether 4 courses per semester is good, or whether they prefer 5.

In terms of shadowing at a clinic more than once, it really depends on the clinic. The doctors at one of the clinics I worked at were more than happy to let me shadow and volunteer a few times, but at another clinic the doctor only wanted me to shadow for an hour! I think it depends on how busy the clinic is in terms of appointments. I've actually been working a clinic for almost a year now, which has been an amazing experience for me because it is so hands on! The doctors and the rest of the staff teach me so much to prep for optometry school! I think volunteering in an opthalmology clinic will definitely be valuable, but make sure that you do the same with optometrists as well. The reason I say this is that some schools require certain amounts of shadowing with optometrists, and opthalmology clinics do not count towards that. Also keep in mind that some schools require certain amounts of unpaid optometric experience (for example, Pacific requires 30).

And yes, most schools start interviewing as applications come in (rolling admissions), therefore it is best to get your application submitted earlier in the cycle when there are more seats available. I believe Berkley, and perhaps SCCO, don't do interviews until later in the cycle.

I hope that helps! It was probably a lot more information than you needed/wanted lol 🙂

 

[iphonedajius]

Which schools you apply to is completely up to you and depends on your goals, you will need to provide more information if you want advice on that.

 

[ttng99]

Thank you so much for all the helpful answers up there, and since my questions are kind of relating to optometry school admission process, I decided to just ask it here instead of starting a new thread (hopefully that did not violate the rule). I am looking at admission requirement for Optometry program at MCPHS and one of the requirements "Evidence of familiarity with optometry". From my understanding, this means shadowing/volunteering with an optometrist. Now, does this have to be an intensive experience or would shadowing an optometrist for one day make the cut? I am currently working as a full time registered nurse so my schedule is a little bit crazy. Thanks 🙂

 

[mathcod]

Some schools require a minimum of 40 hours of shadowing. I'd assume that's a good standard to judge what would be acceptable, minimally speaking. If you need an exact answer, call MCPHS' admission department.

 

[whymisha]

Hey I am also a Canadian and I feel like I can add some things in here that may help:
For a B.Sc degree I think you're referring to a 3-year general science degree (offered in most places in Canada but not the states). This is totally fine for applying with. I am graduating this May with my 3 year degree B.Sc. and have been accepted to ICO and SUNY (still deciding) for next year.

With regards to Waterloo, you can still get an interview having not taken 5 courses per term (a friend of mine took 4 for one or two terms and has an interview), but judging by their website they seem to strongly prefer you to take 5 courses per term. The American schools did not require this at all, and in fact seemed more impressed by the fact that I have taken 5 throughout my 3 years than anything. I also got an interview at Waterloo, in fact everyone that I know who applied got an interview, strangely enough. I have around an 84% average, if that helps to gauge.

About shadowing hours: None of the schools I applied to (ICO, SUNY, IU, Waterloo) have asked me to submit shadowing hours, and neither ICO nor SUNY asked me how many hours I shadowed during interviews. I shadowed my optometrist 3 times. As long as you fully know what you're getting into with optometry, any amount should be fine. I haven't yet interviewed for Waterloo so I can't say if they will ask for a number of hours or not. Of course, the more experience you can get (ie: shadowing more than one optometrist, different locations, etc.) the better