Retaking OAT/Plz Help

[nicole133]

Hi everyone, I am so sad because of my bad OAT scores. I am even crying while writing this thread. I had my OAT today and struggled with timing. I was shocked seeing 15 paragraphs instead of 10 for RC, I was also frustrated with QR/Physics section which required a lot of calculations. The easiest one was Chemistry (that has always been my strongest subject). I took bunch of Kaplan practice tests (super hard) and ADA test from 2006 which was very easy.

So I wanted to get help from you guys to see what would you recommend in terms of study resources. I know there are many threads on this topic, but I honestly couldn't find any specific answer. I won't give up and I want to find a better way to study. I am planning on retaking my OAT, but the worst part is that I have to wait 90 days in order to retake it. Also, do you think retaking OAT in October is late? I am planning on submitting my application in August but I will let them know that I am going to retake the test. I know my application is very strong, my GPA is not the greatest (~3.2) but still not too bad. I just need to focus on my OAT mostly.

Resources I used for 2 and half months: Kaplan book, Kaplan's practice tests, DAT bootcamp for Gen Chem and of course Youtube haha.
Basically my First Question is (1) Best study resources you used for OAT ? (2) Retaking OAT in October is considered late or I should be fine?
Thank you so much in advance! and whoever is applying this cycle, I want to wish all of you Good luck! and as an advice work on Timing.

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[EB25]

Do not feel discouraged! Better timing comes with more practice therefore keep working at the subjects that you felt rushed on/ not as strong with. I would recommend Chads videos for physics as he breaks down everything not only quantitatively but qualitatively. He also has some practice sets on his website and some exams that helped me as well. I am taking a Crack the OAT course and have been studying since May aggressively so I understand your stress and emotion! As far as retaking your exam in October, I don't see it being that big of a problem as I know some friends in my pre-optometry program who got into this year's upcoming class even with applying as late as February. During the next three months, I would highly advise setting up a solid study schedule if you have not already and use the time to really improve on the sections you truly felt were hard. Reading comprehension itself isn't as bad if you mark questions you know you will be able to answer later in the text, that's been a little trick I have been using that has secured me good scores. I just took a full-length exam and got a 380 RC using that method I have developed from studying for the past two months! Physics is more so practice, so find the equations and trends you have seen or know were on the exam and work problems thoroughly. On my first full-length exam I took on Friday I scored a 310 Overall and 280 science because I have had some atrocious chem teachers at my university so that's where I lack. But keep your head up and if you have any other questions feel free to ask!

 

[nicole133]

Do not feel discouraged! Better timing comes with more practice therefore keep working at the subjects that you felt rushed on/ not as strong with. I would recommend Chads videos for physics as he breaks down everything not only quantitatively but qualitatively. He also has some practice sets on his website and some exams that helped me as well. I am taking a Crack the OAT course and have been studying since May aggressively so I understand your stress and emotion! As far as retaking your exam in October, I don't see it being that big of a problem as I know some friends in my pre-optometry program who got into this year's upcoming class even with applying as late as February. During the next three months, I would highly advise setting up a solid study schedule if you have not already and use the time to really improve on the sections you truly felt were hard. Reading comprehension itself isn't as bad if you mark questions you know you will be able to answer later in the text, that's been a little trick I have been using that has secured me good scores. I just took a full-length exam and got a 380 RC using that method I have developed from studying for the past two months! Physics is more so practice, so find the equations and trends you have seen or know were on the exam and work problems thoroughly. On my first full-length exam I took on Friday I scored a 310 Overall and 280 science because I have had some atrocious chem teachers at my university so that's where I lack. But keep your head up and if you have any other questions feel free to ask!

Thank you SOOO MUCH! I really appreciate your words of encouragement! I promised myself to study harder and do more practice problems. Yesterday I was feeling like a failure, but now I won’t let that failure stop me from achieving my goals. I just need to learn from my mistakes instead of getting discouraged. Thank you once again and good luck! If you are applying to SCCO or Western then we might be in the same class next year haha

 

[j-s]

Hey don't fret! I just took mine yesterday and I studied for a longggg time. I just made a post - click and see if it's helpful for you.

 

[nicole133]

Hey don't fret! I just took mine yesterday and I studied for a longggg time. I just made a post - click and see if it's helpful for you.

Thank you very much ! I just read your post that was very helpful, exactly what I needed! You did so amazing! Congrats to you! I will definitely get the DAT bootcamp. Thanks for the support.

 

[futod2020]

First off, I'm so sorry to hear that the OAT didn't go the way that you had planned. However, I admire the fact that you don't intend on giving up on your goals!

As previously recommended, Chad's videos were SUPER helpful in helping me understand gen chem, o-chem, and especially physics. He simplifies the content in ways that no one else can. I also found his practice questions to be very good in solidifying the content.

As for QR, there's an amazing playlist of ~100 videos by ORGOMAN on YouTube that covers EVERY type of question you'll encounter. The key with QR is to watch these videos multiple times, work out the problems, and to continue practicing the topics you struggle with and/or are frequently seen on the OAT (e.g. probability, quantitative comparison, etc.). The DAT Destroyer problems were extremely similar to the actual OAT.

With RC, I would quickly read through each passage, answer any of the questions that I could easily "search and destroy," and save the harder questions for last.

As for taking the OAT in October...I don't believe this to be too late at all! I know many people who took it around this time and even a bit after who had no trouble getting in. Good for you for even starting this early (I didn't take the OAT until Feb for 2020 admissions heh...but don't do this lol)!

Good luck, and don't give up! You're on the right track to getting in next year