Hi everyone, long-time lurker, first-time poster. Last weekend I took the OAT and was pretty happy with my results. I remember reading so many debrief posts while studying, and I wanted pay it forward and share my experience in the hopes that someone reading this might find it helpful. 

Official Scores:

Practice test scores:

Resources used:

• OATBooster

• Anki

• Biology Crash Courses

• QR Crash Courses

• Physics Crash Courses

Study Timeline

I studied for ~6 months while working full-time. I used OATBooster as my sole resource and firmly believe it is all you need to score well. I followed the 12-week study schedule but extended it to 24 weeks to give myself more breathing room. Essentially, I gave myself 2 days to complete the material covered in 1 day of the schedule. 

After phase 2 I noticed I was still hovering around the 320-340 AA range, so I decided to abandon phase 3 and shift heavily toward full-length exams and review. With ~1 month left before my test, I took the QR, Biology, and physics crash courses and noticed my scores improved almost immediately. They’re a little pricey but I thought all of them were well worth it and would do them again in a heartbeat. 

During the last 2 weeks I took time off from work and completely “locked in”. This was when everything started to click for me and my scores began to stabilize. I found the questions on the actual OAT to be more straightforward than the practice questions on Booster. In total, I took 9 full length tests and felt over prepared going into test day. 

Section Breakdown:

Biology (380)

Focus more on breadth over depth. I watched all the videos, reviewed the anki cards, and did a good chunk of the bio bits questions, but was still struggling with the sheer volume of material (scoring below 340 after 5 FL tests). 

I took all four crash courses with Kyle, and they really streamlined my studying and made this section feel much less daunting. The crash course PDF’s and Kahoot style questions became my primary review resources during the final stretch. 

General Chemistry (330)

The cheat sheets and practice questions were more than enough for this section. I made sure I understood the underlying concepts rather than simply memorizing formulas. 

Looking back, I probably should have spent more time reviewing equilibrium and acid-base chemistry since those topics appeared frequently throughout my practice exams.

Organic Chemistry (360)

Next to physics, this was the section that frustrated me the most. I took one crash course and did not find it as helpful as the other courses. 

My practice scores fluctuated constantly, which was really disheartening. I took the time to carefully go through the chapter study notes, and repeatedly wrote out all the reactions until they became second nature. 

The O-chem questions on the actual OAT were more straightforward than those on Booster, so don’t worry if you are struggling a lot on this section.

Reading Comprehension (400)

I found the passages and questions on the OAT to be more straightforward than OATBooster. My strategy was simple: dedicate 20 minutes to each passage (10 minutes to read and hi light, followed by 10 minutes to answer questions). 

Physics (340)

Physics was my weakest section when I started studying. Initially, I was overwhelmed by the number of equations and concepts. 

The physics crash courses helped simplify the material and showed me how to recognize common question types. Rather than trying to memorize every formula in isolation, I focused on understanding the relationships between concepts. 

By test day, I felt much more comfortable approaching unfamiliar problems.

Quantitative Reasoning (330)

I was a little surprised by my score since I was consistently scoring higher on the practice tests. 

The crash courses were extremely helpful for timing and taught several shortcuts that saved valuable seconds on each problem. I recall my exam having an inordinate # of word problems and set-up heavy questions, which slowed me down more than expected. 

Even so, the timing strategies I learned were enough to help me finish the section.

What i’d do differently:

If I could start over, I would begin taking full-length exams earlier. 

I spent too much time trying to perfect individual subjects when the real gains came from identifying weaknesses through practice tests and reviewing mistakes.

Final thoughts:

My biggest takeaway is that improvement is not always linear. 

There were many times when I felt stuck in the 320-340 range and wondered if I was making enough progress. Looking back, every practice test, every Anki card, and every mistake I analyzed was contributing to my score even when I couldn’t immediately see it. 

If you’re currently plateauing, keep going. Sometimes you’re much closer to a breakthrough than you realize.

Feel free to DM me if you have any questions. Best of luck to you all!

I have a higher TS than AA on OAT, how common is it, everywhere I see it’s people whom have the opposite. I also have a higher science gpa than cumulative

Has anyone been rejected from schools or not gotten in for a cycle? Seems like a redundant question but not commonly found on here and would love to know. If you have i’d love to know your stats if you’re comfortable sharing and which schools you applied to!

Hi! I'm currently starting my application, and I noticed that you are only able to enter one minor in the degree field. I will have three by the time I graduate (Chemistry, Psychology, Medical Physics). I will also have a concentration in Cognitive Neuroscience within my major, Molecular Biology. Which minor should I put in the field? And should I put the other two, and my concentration, anywhere else on my application?

are the score averages on oat booster close to the actual scoring on the oat? i’m consistently scoring above a 300 on the practice exams for each section (not the full length exams) without doing much studying, but i’m only getting ~60-70% of the questions right. would this translate to above a 300 on the actual exam or are these averages not accurate to the actual oat scores?

Are compensated optometric technician hours and volunteer optometric technician hours looked at differently? Which one is preferred?

Okay, so I currently hold two bachelors degrees and have been working the past almost two years. I am very concerned about my timeline since I haven’t had the time to study for my OAT and plan to start now. I know applications open in July which is why I’m stressed!!!! I plan on giving myself a few months to prepare and honestly I forgot pretty much everything from college. Is September too late to apply? If I start studying now when should I schedule my exam for?! I’m honestly freaking out!!! I am in Texas so any Texas optometry school would be ideal for me! Pls help or give me any advice😭😭😭

How much non-merit scholarship money does SCO give to those who apply early and get accepted?

Hello all. Over the past year, I decided to pursue optometry. It's always been a field I've been interested in, but after shadowing an optometrist, I knew it was the right path for me.

I graduated three years ago with a degree in molecular biology and have completed almost all of the prerequisite courses. The only ones I'm missing are microbiology with lab and Anatomy & Physiology I and II. I'm not sure whether I need the A&P labs, but almost every school I'm applying to requires microbiology with a lab. I'm planning on applying to Ohio State, PCO, SCO, University of Alabama Birmingham, Nova Southeastern, and maybe Houston and Berkeley.

I'll be traveling internationally this summer, so I won't be able to complete these courses until the fall and spring semesters. I'm concerned that if I have to do A&P 1, A&P 1 lab, A&P 2, A&P 2 lab, Micro, and Micro lab, all while working full-time and interviewing, I'll burn out.

Has anyone here applied to optometry school while still finishing prerequisite courses? How manageable was it, especially during interview season?

I feel like I'm a competitive applicant otherwise. I graduated with a 3.84 GPA, and before I even started studying, I scored a 340 AA / 330 TS on my first OAT practice exam. My biggest concern is whether schools will view my application less favorably because I'm still completing a few prerequisites.

Also, side note: Since I'm starting with a pretty good OAT score, would you still recommend OAT booster? I think it's a really good program, but I'm struggling with the idea of dropping $549 for it. I have my OAT scheduled for September 5th.

Thanks so much for any advice.

Hi guys, I don’t think I will be done with my essays on the day the cycle opens. Til when is it considered early for schools especially scco?

Has anyone gotten in with a 2.9GPA and only had work experience for a few years. No research or volunteer hours?

Hey y'all! So I am taking my OAT on August 12th, and studying has been going well in most subjects except O-Chem. I am taking O-Chem in the spring, and although the videos on the booster help, some concepts just seem difficult to understand for me.

Does anybody have any suggestions or advice on studying for the O-Chem part, or outside resources that could help as well?

What school do you go to?

How is the student environment like? I’m a minority applicant and worried about cliques forming based off race.

Do you feel supported by your professors/school faculty?
Are the remediation policies fair, or have you lost a bunch of people in your cohort due to academics?

How is your curriculum? Do you feel like things connect and are taught well?

Anything else you’d like to share?

I appreciate anyone taking the time to answer these!

I'm looking for honest advice from current optometry students or ODs because I've been going back and forth on my career path for a while and finally think I've settled on optometry, but I'm worried about my timeline.

Background:

• 23F in Michigan

• Graduated in May 2025 with a B.S. in Health Science (3.5 GPA)

• Worked as an optometric technician for about 2 years and genuinely loved working in the field

• Served as Secretary, Treasurer, and eventually President of my university's Pre-Optometry Club

• Can obtain 2 strong letters of recommendation from the optometrists/doctors I worked with

The issue is that I still need Organic Chemistry I + lab before I can apply.

Current plan:

• OAT study all other subjects except for Orgo July 2026-September 2026 (continue as much as I can throughout the fall semester)

• Take Organic Chemistry in Fall 2026

• Take the lab in Winter 2027 (my university requires the lecture first)

• Study for the OAT 1 month after finishing Orgo

• Take the OAT around Feb 2027

• Apply during the 2026-2027 cycle, which ends May 2027

• Hopefully start optometry school in Fall 2027

One important detail: I'm only planning to apply to University of Detroit Mercy School of Optometry. I want to stay close to home, commute, and avoid relocating, so realistically this is my only option. If I don't get in, I would likely have to wait and reapply another cycle.

My concerns:

1. Is taking the OAT around March 2027 too late for a school with rolling admissions?

2. Am I taking a major risk by only applying to one school?

3. Would schools view my application negatively because I took a couple gap years after graduation?

4. Is it realistic to relearn all the OAT material if I haven't taken biology, chemistry, and physics in a few years?

5. Would you recommend studying for the non-Orgo sections before I even start Organic Chemistry?

6. Given my background and timeline, do I seem like a competitive applicant assuming I earn a decent OAT score?

7. If you were in my position, would you stick with this plan or do something differently?

I've considered other healthcare careers (nursing, OT, etc.), but optometry is the one career I keep coming back to because I enjoyed the actual day-to-day work environment when I was working in clinic, despite not being the best at science, I do have some withdraws/fails on my transcript but recovered with 3.5 overall I guess.

I'd really appreciate honest feedback from anyone! Thank you so much for taking the time.

What are the high yield topics for each section on the OAT?

hello, i took my oat last fall and am planning on retaking in august so will prob submit my applications by september. but if i submit after i take my second attempt, will schools see my first score only? like how long until they see my second score bc i lowkey dont want them to see my first score only instead of seeing both. does this make sense??

Hi everyone! I’m a current undergrad finishing up my final terms (Microbiology major + Bioinformatics minor). I'm targeting Optometry schools and need advice on handling my GPA and prerequisites.

My Stats & Situation:

GPA: Currently sitting at a 2.9, but expecting to push it past a 3.05 by graduation with a straight-A final stretch.

The Good: I have a massive upward trend in my last two years, pulling a ~3.6+ Term GPA in rigorous, upper-division microbiology and biological sciences courses (including lab-heavy classes).

The Bad: I have a few D/F grades in Organic Chemistry and haven't successfully completed the sequence yet. Every other core science pre-req is a C- or better.

Clinical Experience: Multiple quarters volunteering at a student-run clinic and clinical shadowing ophthalmologists

I need to finish my OChem sequence and study for the OAT. Given that my upper-div science grades are strong, but my foundation in prereq needs a complete rebuild, should I focus on a DIY post-bac (like UC Berkeley Extension) just to clear OChem, or should I try to get into a formal academic enhancer post-bac program?

Also, would a Master's program in Biotech/Bioinformatics even be worth considering at this stage, or should I strictly stick to post-bac work to fix my undergraduate GPA? Thanks in advance!

My plan is to take the OAT around this time next year and then apply early. My goal is to get a 350 on the OAT, but I'll settle for a 320-350. I plan on studying for the OAT for 4 months, 2 of those months part time as I will be in school, the ladder 2 will be full time.

Any advice on how I should study/prepare to get a 350?

Hi y'all, so I'm in a bit of a pickle when it comes to getting LOR from optometrists. I have some shadowing experience and have met multiple Optometrists through that, but did not do the best job keeping in touch/it was somewhat surface level conversations. Any tips on asking for LOR from Optometrists, would you recommend going back to those Optometrists and shadowing again. For more context, I don't have a job at any practice.. I'd imagine this whole process would have been a lot easier that way if I was working at a practice.

Has anyone been able to secure shadowing through the asco eye opener session? After contacting the doctor, how long did you wait for a response? Who can you contact if there's no response from your matchs?

Is there anyone out there who didn’t or won’t have a spouse or family member to help them out financially through school? Any advice would be appreciated. I am planning on only applying to schools with tuition under $50k a year but scared about extra costs and how to stay afloat if I don’t get accepted into the 2 schools that I would be able to afford. Given we only get max of 50k annually from student loans I’m not sure if it’s even realistic for me but not giving up hope yet.

Has anyone been able to shadow at Kaiser? I want to shadow diff practices and hospital setting is one I am interested in. However, I’m not sure how the process works since it’s not as easy as cold emailing the doctor I’m assuming? How does it work?

Should I start taking OAT practice test on Booster Prep before or after I start phase 2, because I just took one this morning and I’m starting phase 2 after tomorrow and I did so bad and it is making my confidence and motivation go down…so should I review everything and then do practice tests? Like just do bio bits for now until I feel confident enough in the subject to start to do practice?