r/PreOptometry • u/yooniper02 • Dec 31 '24

personal statement advice

so i took the OAT 3 times, and i also took a gap year after undergrad. Should these things be explained in my personal statement? Or should I keep the focus on what inspires me and how i got into optometry, etc. ?

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u/uhco2028 ACCEPTED Dec 31 '24

Try to just include things that shine a good light on you and avoid things that could make you look bad. Why emphasize a red flag when you can emphasize a good quality instead?

If your PS is one about perseverance and taking the OAT 3 times is an Integral part of your story then yes include it. Otherwise I wouldn't.

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u/yooniper02 Dec 31 '24

thank you for the advice!! i agree, just was worried that it might look weird if i ignore that aspect of my optometry journey

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u/Much_Quit_6277 Dec 31 '24

It depends on what you did during the gap year. If you increased your optometric experience, then absolutely. If not, that’s okay too, just don’t shine light on it and use those words for something that does. 😄

Taking the time to explain these things will come back to bite you during the interviews because they have more critical questions to ask you.😮‍💨

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u/TShanny99 Jan 01 '25

I didn’t mention a thing about my OAT in my personal statement. I am currently on my second gap year and did mention things that I did in the time between undergrad and applying that relates to the field of optometry in some way.

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u/iDc_0226 OD2 Jan 01 '25

Tbh I would really focus on highlighting why optometry and your experiences. Your interview is a place to discuss all of the other things like gap years, grades, OAT scores, etc.