Give me your advice on my unlucky undergrad situation:

[Dolphinitely96]

Hey Guys,

I am an UPCOMING senior at my university, yet I am 20 years old. I am young for my class rank. My situation is tricky so try to keep up. In highschool I did a cohort program that allowed 20 selected students to graduate not only with our HS diploma , but out associates degree as well. So my first year at college I was considered at JUNIOR at the age of 18.

All credits transferred, and my gpa from the program was a 3.4. This meant that I started at a gpa of 0 at my actua university. That being said, my current gpa is a 2.4... Mind you that is ONLY biology courses. Including organic chemistry, I would've graduated this past ear (2016) but my gpa wasn't high enough to apply for grad school so I picked up a minor in neuroscience to buy me some A's, some time, and some breaths. As far as organizations or involvement , I am not a competitive applicant at all because I'm involved in nothing because all of my time is dedicated to my major .

(Note :while others will spend a semester taking biology courses AND their general studies courses , I can ONLY take biology courses due to the fact that I finished my gen Ed in HS , I'm taking 4 bio courses per semester compared to everyone else's 2)

I'm shadowing an optometrist this summer and really love people, the job, and the income . This is my dream career.

But like I said , I'm not a competitive applicant and I fear that my gpa will initially scar my application because my story is COMPLICATED .

I am almost positive that I will never be accepted into optometry school .

Any and all thoughts or advice on my current situation would REALLY be appreciated .

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[optsuker]

This meant that I started at a gpa of 0 at my actua university.

Why is this?
Traditionally, all college level credits are calculated into your regular GPA regardless of where/when they were taken.

My advice: Kick ass on the OAT & add an explanation of the GPA situation. It's humans on the admission boards, not computers, so they'll take it under advisement.
But you'll need to explain it better than you did here, because it sounds like you're making excuses for a low GPA because you took college courses in high school (which many students do).

 

[Digitalized]

I read your post a few times, and I'm still not sure exactly what you mean, so like the previous poster said you'll need to clarify a few things with the admissions office. You did basic courses in high school and so your GPA now is mainly based on sciences? Or was it starting with the 0 GPA (which doesn't seem to make sense if credits were transferring)? Why did your GPA get lowered? I'm really trying to help out here or at least trying to direct you to the right place. Did you do well in your basic science classes? Don't feel like you can't get into any of the schools, but you honestly should talk to some admissions offices directly, as I don't know that anyone here has a similar enough experience to really be helpful. A 2.4 is generally lower than the average of what is accepted, but I certainly wouldn't say that it's impossible, especially if you genuinely have a bizarre college path. I'd also recommend talking with your advisor at your current school. With all of this, the best course of action is to try to talk this out with people at your selected schools. Also, since you're still so young, you might want to consider a post bacc.

 

[Console]

I did a similar program; graduated with diploma and AA at 17 and recently graduated with a Bachelors at 19, attending Optometry School this fall. Mind you, I did not have not a SINGLE extracurricular during my 2 years at university, didn't make the effort. I did however, mention the extracurriculars that I participated in my junior and senior years of high school, because technically.. I was in college, fair game.

When I started university, I was considered a Junior and my GPA also reset to 0.00. For those final two years I took all science courses ~ 15 or 16 courses total all with labs, and a single philosophy course (biomedical ethics).. ended with a 3.55 GPA at the university, 3.76 GPA when averaged with the courses I took during the high school program. The application will ask for all college courses you have ever taken, and optometry schools will look at that GPA. They will also look at your senior year GPA (most recent GPA will give them an idea of how you are doing now)

My OAT scores were average, nothing special.

Test:OAT/ADA/Kap2/Kap1
QR: 350/350/330/330
RC: 350/340/340/340
Bio: 270 (gross)/310/320/320 (I hadn't taken a single Anatomy/Physiology class yet and a significant portion was from this single subject)
GC: 300/340/310/270
OC: 350/330/320/300
Phys: 310/310/280/270
TS: 310/330/320/290
AA: 320/330/320/310

My advice to you:

• End your senior year with a bang, really try your hardest, don't mess around. At this point, it is ok to be selfish and put yourself first before others.
• If there is a pre-optometry club, JOIN IT! Don't have time? MAKE time. I cannot stress this enough. Deans from respective colleges often come to pre-optometry clubs of other schools and WILL remember your face if they see you at the interview. My only regret during college was not joining pre-optometry, even if it didn't have an impact on my application. The socialization aspect was something I missed out on.
• Practice your interview questions, see if an advisor or someone will do a mock-interview. I see there are three things that will make or break their decision. Ranked in order of importance of what I believe: Your Interview, Your OAT, and then your GPA. If you can get at least two of those under your belt, you should be fine.
• If you have time, study and take the OAT, get a great score and your overall GPA really won't matter (as long as it's at least a 3.0?)
• Apply early if possible, applications just opened. The longer you wait, the harder it is to get in. Spots begin filling up and towards the end it just gets harder. You can apply and also take the OAT later if needed.
• Last but not least, do not be afraid to take more time, a year off to study, etc. If you do decide to take another year, then use it efficiently. Do not rush if you do not feel prepared and do not feel discouraged; after all, you are already ahead of the game.

If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.