Waterloo Sept 2022 Entrance Application

[eyesuck]

Hello,

I would like to know more from the people who have already gone through or are currently going through the Waterloo Optometry Admissions process. I recently wrote my OAT (390 AA) and graduated from my undergraduate degree (UBC) last Spring (2020) but did not decide upon Optometry until July. By that time, I had already missed the Sept 2021 application deadline! Anyhow, what are some things I should prepare ahead of time or prepare for prior to my application process starting mid-July of 2021? Currently, I am aiming to complete any missing prereqs prior to my application and also looking to shadow an Optometrist.

Any advice or discussion would be stellar! It would be nice to hear from my fellow Canadians who are in the same boat as I am. With regards to other aspects of my application, I believe I should be fairly competitive with multiple research awards, 16 months of academic research CO-OP, and an Honors Thesis? I would like to clarify that I am by no means trying to show off my application; I am genuinely curious about my chances and what I should prepare for in the time leading up to my application! I'm mostly worried because my application is sorely lacking any sort of Vision or Optometry experience, whereas others have had months and years of this on their applications.

Thanks

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[g.ace]

As of right now the academic aspect of your application looks great! You have a strong OAT score and if you have a strong overall GPA, you should have fairly good chances. Having a variety of different extracurriculars (even if they're not optometry related) also helps as it shows you are a well-rounded student who can balance a lot of responsibilities. During these next months try to get exposure to more than one clinical environment (I know it's hard during COVID), perhaps you can do like one day a week or something depending on your city's guidelines? Many applicants have a decent amount of shadowing/volunteer/work hours at a clinic, so maybe you can compete with that by having a greater variety. Also form a connection with a current optometrist so that they can write you a strong recommendation letter down the road. Hope that helps