Should I include old low OAT scores on my new application?

[PrettyBrownEyes]

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Please don't be rude..be nice 🙂

Anywhoo,

I took the OAT in February and scored TERRIBLY!!!! I applied extremely late and all of that was evident in my scores. I was dealing with my dad being sick overseas and not being able to go over there and see him really put stress on me. I completely blanked out during the OAT. You would have thought I closed my eyes and randomly picked answers (however I think I would have done better had I done that instead) !

Brace yourself.....my score is probably the lowest you have ever seen!!! AA 250!!!

Worst day of my life! However, I will not get discouraged because I feel that the score did not represent me at ALL! I am reapplying this year actually I'm sending my application off next monday, and I'm wondering if I should include these terrible scores or just act like they don't even exist?!

I am currently studying and scored around a 310 on a practice test so far, but that was just me taking one without studying. I am more determined and focused this time around so don't worry I won't be making those scores again! Also, if any of you guys know what books work best or any studying tips please don't hesitate to let me know!

My current stats are below:

BS Degree in Biological Sciences
Overall GPA: 3.6
Sciecne GPA: 3.52
3 letters of rec- two PhD research professors and one optometrist
100+ hours of shadowing
3 academic organizations
1000+ hours of volunteer work (in a sorority so I did alot of volunteering)
3 research projects with the two PhD professors listed above
Worked on campus as a receptionist in the Dean's Office, Worked on a farm testing herbicides and etc., now working as a teaching assistant in a middle school.

That pretty much sums me up. I'm extremely smart and tend to stay focused but with the stress of my dad and just graduating from undergrad it was alot for me at that time. However, I am good with taking rigorous coursework so please don't say that optometry school would be too much for me because it won't be! 🙂

Thank you in advance for all of your feedback!!!

 

[paasnaas]

Please don't be rude..be nice 🙂

Anywhoo,

I took the OAT in February and scored TERRIBLY!!!! I applied extremely late and all of that was evident in my scores. I was dealing with my dad being sick overseas and not being able to go over there and see him really put stress on me. I completely blanked out during the OAT. You would have thought I closed my eyes and randomly picked answers (however I think I would have done better had I done that instead) !

Brace yourself.....my score is probably the lowest you have ever seen!!! AA 250!!!

Worst day of my life! However, I will not get discouraged because I feel that the score did not represent me at ALL! I am reapplying this year actually I'm sending my application off next monday, and I'm wondering if I should include these terrible scores or just act like they don't even exist?!

I am currently studying and scored around a 310 on a practice test so far, but that was just me taking one without studying. I am more determined and focused this time around so don't worry I won't be making those scores again! Also, if any of you guys know what books work best or any studying tips please don't hesitate to let me know!

My current stats are below:

BS Degree in Biological Sciences
Overall GPA: 3.6
Sciecne GPA: 3.52
3 letters of rec- two PhD research professors and one optometrist
100+ hours of shadowing
3 academic organizations
1000+ hours of volunteer work (in a sorority so I did alot of volunteering)
3 research projects with the two PhD professors listed above
Worked on campus as a receptionist in the Dean's Office, Worked on a farm testing herbicides and etc., now working as a teaching assistant in a middle school.

That pretty much sums me up. I'm extremely smart and tend to stay focused but with the stress of my dad and just graduating from undergrad it was alot for me at that time. However, I am good with taking rigorous coursework so please don't say that optometry school would be too much for me because it won't be! 🙂

Thank you in advance for all of your feedback!!!

Hi there,

I'm really sorry to hear about your dad. As far as your score goes, yes it is low but its not the end of the world. Most, if not all applicants, do better on the 2nd attempts. You have a great GPA and thats a plus but your OAT score is weighed more on your applications than your GPA. The OAT doesn't tell much about an applicant (personality, work ethic, etc.), but it can reflect how well you may do on your board exams, that's why it is really important to do well, but no one said this test will be easy! If you are getting 310's on your practice exams then you are definitely on the right track. You should try to aim to get at least 300. Just keep pushing, studying, and stay positive. What are you using to study for the OAT right now? What are your strengths and weakness' on your OAT?

If you are applying again this cycle, please try not to apply so LATE like you did last time. You should be submitting your applications early (if possible) because it will give you a much greater chance of being offered an interview. When are you planning on taking your OAT again? You should try to apply between now and november, it will give you a better chance. Applying in February is really late and I don't believe it is worth the money especially if you have a low OAT. By February, most schools with have already filled up there class and just trying to add students via wait list.

As far as study materials, I took the kaplan course, I also used, OAT & MATH destroyer & Examkracker books.

If you have any further questions, please ask!

 

[PrettyBrownEyes]

Hi there,

I'm really sorry to hear about your dad. As far as your score goes, yes it is low but its not the end of the world. Most, if not all applicants, do better on the 2nd attempts. You have a great GPA and thats a plus but your OAT score is weighed more on your applications than your GPA. The OAT doesn't tell much about an applicant (personality, work ethic, etc.), but it can reflect how well you may do on your board exams, that's why it is really important to do well, but no one said this test will be easy! If you are getting 310's on your practice exams then you are definitely on the right track. You should try to aim to get at least 300. Just keep pushing, studying, and stay positive. What are you using to study for the OAT right now? What are your strengths and weakness' on your OAT?

If you are applying again this cycle, please try not to apply so LATE like you did last time. You should be submitting your applications early (if possible) because it will give you a much greater chance of being offered an interview. When are you planning on taking your OAT again? You should try to apply between now and november, it will give you a better chance. Applying in February is really late and I don't believe it is worth the money especially if you have a low OAT. By February, most schools with have already filled up there class and just trying to add students via wait list.

As far as study materials, I took the kaplan course, I also used, OAT & MATH destroyer & Examkracker books.

If you have any further questions, please ask!

Thank you so much for replying and understanding! I thought no one was going to respond after awhile .

Yeah I want to shoot for that 300 or higher I just need to stay focused and determined like you said. Right now I am using the Kaplan OAT book, a chemistry book, organic chem book, and a biology praxis book. I worked in the Dean's office of the College of Education and found that the praxis II biology content book was pretty thorough on information solely on biology, which are the same topics on the OAT. However, reading the information doesn't seem to help me. Its like I am studying it but I'm not retaining some of it because Im getting so overwhelmed. I heard about Chad's videos and I am wondering if those even work or will help me better because I am a visual learner. The subjects that I am weak on are definitely physics and organic chem. Reading comp is my strength I scored a 320 on that section alone and I didnt even study for it. Biology is my strength as well but I just blanked out. Chemistry wasn't that bad. I scored a 310 on that, but as you can see my scores on everything else was extremely low!

Oh yeah, I definitely wont wait like last time. I am actually mailing off my optomcas Monday (9/30). Still deciding which schools I am applying to but so far I am looking at UAB, ICO, SCO (since I applied there last time), and also UHCO. I am planning on taking my OAT October 30th. I will push it back to the middle of November if I have to because I want to make sure that this is the last time that I take it and that I do well on it.

Was the kaplan course helpful? I've heard mixed reviews on that but like I said earlier I am a visual learner so it might benefit me more so than others. Did you have a schedule that you went by while studying? How long did you study before you took the OAT? Were the Examcrackers MCAT or OAT? Sorry if Im asking too much lol. Also do you mind discussing your scores and how you handled your weak areas? Only if you dont mind.

Thank you again for responding! Its great to have positive feedback! 🙂

 

[PrettyBrownEyes]

Also, should I include that score on my application and also put the date that I plan to take the other OAT? Or do I just put that I am planning on taking it in October? I don't want to lie about my scores I just don't want them to see it and turn my application down before they even receive my second set of scores.

 

[paasnaas]

Thank you so much for replying and understanding! I thought no one was going to respond after awhile .

Yeah I want to shoot for that 300 or higher I just need to stay focused and determined like you said. Right now I am using the Kaplan OAT book, a chemistry book, organic chem book, and a biology praxis book. I worked in the Dean's office of the College of Education and found that the praxis II biology content book was pretty thorough on information solely on biology, which are the same topics on the OAT. However, reading the information doesn't seem to help me. Its like I am studying it but I'm not retaining some of it because Im getting so overwhelmed. I heard about Chad's videos and I am wondering if those even work or will help me better because I am a visual learner. The subjects that I am weak on are definitely physics and organic chem. Reading comp is my strength I scored a 320 on that section alone and I didnt even study for it. Biology is my strength as well but I just blanked out. Chemistry wasn't that bad. I scored a 310 on that, but as you can see my scores on everything else was extremely low!

Oh yeah, I definitely wont wait like last time. I am actually mailing off my optomcas Monday (9/30). Still deciding which schools I am applying to but so far I am looking at UAB, ICO, SCO (since I applied there last time), and also UHCO. I am planning on taking my OAT October 30th. I will push it back to the middle of November if I have to because I want to make sure that this is the last time that I take it and that I do well on it.

Was the kaplan course helpful? I've heard mixed reviews on that but like I said earlier I am a visual learner so it might benefit me more so than others. Did you have a schedule that you went by while studying? How long did you study before you took the OAT? Were the Examcrackers MCAT or OAT? Sorry if Im asking too much lol. Also do you mind discussing your scores and how you handled your weak areas? Only if you dont mind.

Thank you again for responding! Its great to have positive feedback! 🙂

Also, should I include that score on my application and also put the date that I plan to take the other OAT? Or do I just put that I am planning on taking it in October? I don't want to lie about my scores I just don't want them to see it and turn my application down before they even receive my second set of scores.

The method I used to study that helped me the most is just to practice questions. Reading alone did not help me at all. Even when I had no idea how to answer a particular question, I would look back for the answer, talk out loud, do whatever works for you and try to figure it out. And when you absolutely cannot figure it out, then reach out to people or a professor that can help you. A lot of times when you just memorize your not actually learning, but when you actually immerse yourself doing questions and learn how to solve it, that will naturally help you memorize a particular concept/question. And when you come back to that question you will intuitively be able to respond or approach that question better.

I found the kaplan course helpful but your teacher can play a big role in that. I was very fortunate to have a GREAT teacher that was taught and understood the material very well and was very accessible/approachable. But too bad you can't pick your teachers when you sign up for the kaplan course, i believe you can only pick the time. I also heard mixed reviews for kaplan too but after being done with the course I was not "ready" to take the OAT. I still had to take an few months to study on my own, but it did help though because I like how it was structured & organized and I got to see most of the required material in about 3 months. I would recommend it if you have the time and the money. But I'm sure if you can do well just by studying on your own. I think I took about in total, 6-8 months to study for the OAT (including Kaplan course).

My schedule for studying was pretty simple. I would usually study 2 subjects each day. You can try that if you would like. What is your schedule for studying?

The way I handled my weak area's was to just spend more time on them than other the other subjects I was strong at. I was initially not good with O-chem but I decided to repeat ochem (even though I got a B in it) and that really helped a TON. So you can take/repeat a class to help if you, that could be an option. The hardest subject for me to improve on was reading. I only was able to improve my score by 20 pts (270 to 290) but still I can't tell you how much I tried improving my reading comprehension but still could not get a much better score. But for the other subjects it is much easier to improve because the more practice you do, the better you will become so just practice, practice, practice.

And yes you should absolutely put that score on your application (even if its low), you are NOT supposed to omit any coursework or OAT scores. If you don't put your previous OAT scores, the admission committee's will see that and that will not be good for you.

Here is a summary of my application and other info that you might find useful:

Date OptomCAS was e-submitted: 7/25/2012
Date OptomCAS was Verified and GPAs calculated: 8/08/12
Date OptomCAS was Mailed: 8/09/12
Interview Invitation Extended for (school name): NOVA, Western, NECO, UCBSO, SCO, PCO, ICO, MU, SALUS, UIWRO
Accepted (indicate school attending): Western, MU, SCO, UCBSO (Attending).

Waitlisted at SALUS. I only went to 5 interviews.

OAT (AA, TS) 330, 360
GPA(Science, Overall) 3.14, 3.41

I attended UCSD for undergrad.

Extracurricular:
- Founder & CEO of a Non-Profit Organization
- Bilingual
- Volunteer at hospitals & community centers
- President of club at UCSD
- Member of several clubs at UCSD including Pre-Optometry club
- Research Assistant
- Volunteer After-school Tutor
- Shadowing health care professionals in different fields (pharmacy, dentistry, medicine)
- Student Athlete : I played college soccer
- Musically inclined : I play the piano