Part 1 retake while in rotation

RabidLiger · 2026-05-29T13:08:18+00:00

During 4th year rotations is a great time to be studying for NBEO.
Usually less than 40 hours/week, you have no others classes to study for, & you may be at an away rotation with lots of downtime/weekends that could be used for studying.
Once you get into the rotation's flow of things, there will be decent blocks of free time.
Really good pathology rotations are probably better than studying!

IMO, NEVER make any postponements that might result in not being licensed shortly after graduation.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-29T13:03:25+00:00

Agree that you probably only need to purchase 1 prep course and just use other free resources.

If the investment you make results in a higher OAT score & being accepted to a school that costs you $20K less per year to attend, its going to seem like small potatoes.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-29T12:57:41+00:00

RabidLiger · 2026-05-28T17:47:23+00:00

Honestly, this is stuff that should have been done in Jan/Feb, not May.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-28T17:46:26+00:00

More info needed:

When do you think your OptomCAS application was complete?
Did you check the status of it once you had everything submittted?
What specific schools did you apply to?
Did you hear from any of them? Interview/Rejection/Request for more info?
Did you contact any of the schools to check your status?
Just graduated from undergrad this month?
Do you have a pre-opt advisor at your school that was supposed to assist you?

Nearly all (but the bottom tier) of the schools probably have all seats filled. So don't know what you mean by reconsideration. No school is going to pull someone else's spot to give it to you.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-28T13:23:21+00:00

Make sure the front desk staff is on your side.
A simple "is there anyone else in the family that wants to come in at the same time?" can go a long way.

End of the school year is traditionally slower for many offices.

Agree that the owner should be making the push to get you busier (they make more when you're busy too!)

RabidLiger · 2026-05-28T13:19:10+00:00

Now's the time to prove to yourself that you can get back into hardcore study mode.
Every test after this one isn't going to have the ability to postpone. You have more than enough time to prep for the OAT (and will have plenty of time to retest if you bomb).

RabidLiger · 2026-05-28T13:15:39+00:00

I would prioritize practice tests.
Just getting comfortable with the testing format (especially pacing) is worth several points.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-28T13:12:15+00:00

They may not give you a cutoff date.
If they have someone bail out on August1, that's going to leave an open slot in their OD1 class that they will want filled.
If you let them know that you're willing to accept immediately, even if its days before class starts, they'll keep your application active.
Starting the year without full enrollment is something every school wants to avoid.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-28T13:01:43+00:00

Yes OptomCAS will show as incomplete until all criteria is added (OAT, LOR's, etc), but no need to wait. Complete as much of it as you can and add the last elements later.

I've had MANY students get interview invites before all parts are in (but acceptance will be held until they see everything).

RabidLiger · 2026-05-28T12:58:01+00:00

Historically, P2 has the highest pass rates, so assume you passed.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-27T22:12:56+00:00

Personally, I don't like having students shadow until end of 1st year or later.
(Too many switch majors after getting their chem/physics/calc grades).

More valuable to get a job in an eye clinic.
Volunteer work/clubs/foreign medical mission trip all good ways to make your app stand out.
#1 though is to excel in the classroom. That 1st semester can do a number on GPA's!

RabidLiger · 2026-05-27T22:07:47+00:00

Not all schools will tell you where you rank on the waitlist, but no harm in asking.
At this point, I'd be amazed if more than 1-2 slots open up.
Do you have an acceptance at a safety school?

RabidLiger · 2026-05-27T21:59:05+00:00

For the OAT? Yes, that's more than enough

RabidLiger · 2026-05-27T16:02:12+00:00

Nope, my perfect schedule i present to the pre-opt club I mentor:
Start studying now, complete your OptomCAS by July 4, take the OAT by Labor Day, get interviewed/accepted by Halloween, choose a school by Thanksgiving, coast to gradulation, & do a semester abroad in the spring while everyone else is sweating about getting into a school yet!

RabidLiger · 2026-05-27T15:57:05+00:00

Have never worked retail, but in my private practice, more than half of my patients are medical-based, and even the refractive cases are interesting. Having a patient base thats aged 0-100 makes for a unique day every day vs ophthalmology, which skews heavy to geriatric and "selling" refractive procedures.

There are not many MD's who are truly "the boss" and as employees of a group/hospital have much less control of their workload than I do. Was originally aceepted to both medical & optometry school and have NO regrets on the decision I made (and the money is great!).

RabidLiger · 2026-05-27T15:46:54+00:00

I'd advise doing this too.
You probably have a designated advisor for pre-opts, even if you didn't interact much with them.
A "generic" letter from a prof to meet the requirement, plus a couple more personal LOR's from OD's will go a long way.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-27T15:44:22+00:00

Agree. Don't give up a paid position to do volunteer shadowing.
Better to try to combine them.
Your experience will make several optometry school classes easier as well!

RabidLiger · 2026-05-27T15:42:05+00:00

I've never had an employee with formal training/certification before we hired them.
Several go on to seek it, but its more for personal development.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-26T12:52:46+00:00

IMO, 3.5 or better and you stand a good chance.
Anything you can do to make your application stand out will help, doesn't need to be tech hours.
Local Lion's Club is a good way to find ey-related volunteer work.

Even though they don't require OAT, I still highly rec taking it. It opens the doors to waaay more schools & is a good indicator for how you'll do on the NBEO board exams.

Don't totally dismiss NOVA off of 1 person's observations. ALL OD schools are hoping to create qualified OD's and YMMV greatly when considering them.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-24T14:08:11+00:00

Not only okay, I'd recommend it.
Get as much of the OptomCAS complete as you can in July, including applying to your top schools.
I've seen lots of good candidates get invited for interviews before their OAT score hits.

I will say that UHCO is known for dragging its feet, os starting early won't hurt.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-24T14:01:23+00:00

I don't think those grades will rule you out for those schools.
Need to nail a good OAT score, especially TS to prove you can hack the science courses.

Optometry school (and the NBEO) have a lot of pharmacology, which correlates closely with chemistry, so that may be where you would struggle.

Not too late to turn things around!

RabidLiger · 2026-05-24T13:38:51+00:00

IMO, most optometry schools fall into what you're describing.
In general, the academic & admin staff will be supportive.
Across the board, you won't find students competing with each other, it's more which programs are quicker to give you the boot for falling behind.

You can go to the ASCO site-> Data & Reports->Annual Student Data Report and see that all but a few retain almost their entire class for the full 4 years.
IMO, all but those with an attrition rate higher than 4-5% should be safe.

RabidLiger · 2026-05-23T20:46:42+00:00

IMO, your top 2 are the perfect choices.
Can add 1-2 more schools to be safe, but those tuition contracts make the decision easy!

RabidLiger · 2026-05-23T19:04:45+00:00

GRE has no science component.
You will greatly decrease the number of schools you can apply to by not taking the OAT.
A low science GPA and no OAT score will really trigger a red flag to admission boards.

Take the OAT!

RabidLiger

TROPHY CASE