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  • The Ohio State University College Of Optometry
  • Optometry School
  • Columbus, OH
Individual Feedback 1 21 Responses
Overall Experience

How did the interview impress you?

Response # Responders
Positively 19
Negatively 1
No change 1

What was the stress level of the interview?

Response Avg # Responders
4.10 21

0 = low, 10 = high

How you think you did?

Response Avg # Responders
8.24 21

0 = low, 10 = high

How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?

Response Avg # Responders
9.00 21

0 = low, 10 = high

Was this interview in-person or virtual?

Response # Responders
In Person 1
Virtual 1

Questions

How long was the interview?

Response # Responders
5 minutes 0
10 minutes 0
15 minutes 1
20 minutes 2
25 minutes 0
30 minutes 8
35 minutes 0
40 minutes 1
45 minutes 7
50 minutes 1
55 minutes 1
60+ minutes 0

Where did the interview take place?

Response # Responders
At the school 19
At a regional location 0
At another location 1

What was the style of the interview?

Response # Responders
One-on-one 8
In a group 13

What type of interview was it?

Response # Responders
Open file 21
Closed file 0

How many people interviewed you?

Response Average # Responders
2.81 21

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 1)?

"Tell me about a time you had in interaction with someone with a different perspective than you?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What made you choose the schools you applied to? How did you study for the OAT? Explain the discrepancy between course grade and OAT grade. Are you interested in any specialties?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why optometry? Where do you see optometry in 5 years?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What grades did you get in your classes this past semester?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Describe a time you made a poor decision." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why did you decide to pursue optometry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell us about a poor decision you have made and what did you learn from it." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Basics. Why Ohio State? Why Optometry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Your GPA is a little low, but your OAT scores are great. Which do you think most accurately represents your academic abilities, and why?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"How did you first become interested in optometry and what have you been doing to pursue that career path?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your strengths/weaknesses?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your strength/weaknesses?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why optometry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why do you want to go into optometry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is a mistake you've made and how did you fix it?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 2)?

"Tell me about a time you faced a challenge, what you learned from it, how it helped you?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell me about a time you had an experience with someone with a different background or perspective from you. Tell me about a time you made a mistake and what you learned. (non-academic)." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Describe a time you faced a challenge, and how you overcame it." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What other schools did you apply to/interview at?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why Ohio State?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell me how you became involved in some of your extracurricular activities? (For me it was theater)" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What personal attributes will help you in your career as an optometrist?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why OSU?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What classes did you take this semester?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why was your Physics OAT score much lower than expected? (Grades in college were way above average, but was the lowest scored section on the OAT)" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What do you like about the day-to-day setting of an optometric practice?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why optometry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What could you contribute to Ohio State?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why optometry vs. another health field?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell me about your Optometry shadowing experiences? Elaborate?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why not dentistry, MD etc?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are you biggest strengths/weaknesses?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Name one of your strengths" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

What is one of the specific questions they asked you (question 3)?

"How you did you study for the OAT? What other schools did you apply to and why?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What do you like most and least about optometry? (excluding insurance and billing) What was your experience like as an opt tech?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"How did you study for the OAT? What is something you'd like us to know, that's not on paper?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is a challenge that you have faced and how did you overcome it?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why are you a good fit for our school?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What made you decide to go into optometry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What did you learn from having a part-time job in which you deal with the public?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your best qualities as a student? How would you prepare for the tough course load? " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"How did you choose which schools to apply to?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your strengths and weaknesses?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why are you seeking to specialize in Low Vision?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What could you contribute to the school?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why Ohio State?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why optometry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

What was the most interesting question?

"Tell me about a time you had an experience with someone with a different background or perspective from you." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What would you love most about practice, and what would you like least (not counting insurance or billing)?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is your glasses prescription?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Why are you a good fit for our school?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What impresses you both positively and negatively about a career in optometry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"All the questions they asked about my personal life and interests were pretty interesting." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Is there any part of the practice that your Optometrist does not like?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"None." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What was a poor decision you made and what did you learn from it?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"something about why I would like optometrist's day-to-day life" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What public school district do you live in? " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is the most difficult thing that has happened to you in your life? How did you get through it?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell me more about your majors?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What specialty are you interested in?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"none" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Did the Topscore program reflect the actual OAT?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

What was the most difficult question?

"Tell me about a time you had in interaction with someone with a different perspective than you?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What do you think you bring to OSU/optometry?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Question in diversity and an interaction with someone who was different than you" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Identify one of these words (on a leadership development handout) and explain how you feel you exemplify that quality as a leader." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell me about leadership qualities that you have exemplified during one of your volunteer experiences" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell about a time you made a mistake and how you worked to correct it." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell us about a poor decision you have made and what did you learn from it." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Name a time when you made a poor decision?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your strengths and weaknesses?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is something that you have been improving on?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What are your weaknesses?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"They were all pretty easy. " More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What was a poor decision you've made in your life?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Your OAT scores are shocking. Usually we expect gpa and test scores to be similar. What happened? (I knew this would be asked and never figured out how to explain myself)" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is the most difficult thing that has happened to you in your life? How did you get through it?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Tell me about some recent Optometric legislation in Ohio." More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What is your biggest flaw?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"What was a mistake you made and how did you correct it?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

"Could you explain a current optometry/political issue in your state?" More from this Member | Report Response | I was asked this question too

How did you prepare for the interview?

"Practice with questions from SDN" More from this Member | Report Response

"SDN" More from this Member | Report Response

"I mock interviewed with a friend, reviewed questions and answers on SDN" More from this Member | Report Response

"SDN forums, researching the school thoroughly online, reading over my personal statement" More from this Member | Report Response

"Went over potential interview questions that were posted online and made sure I could answer any difficult question that would be asked." More from this Member | Report Response

"Looked up questions online and prepared what I might say. I also researched the school extensively." More from this Member | Report Response

"SDN forums, writing out possible questions" More from this Member | Report Response

"Interview feedback from SDN" More from this Member | Report Response

"Student Doctor Network and previous interviews" More from this Member | Report Response

"I just looked over the Interview Feedback information on the SDN and made up potential questions they can ask. I typed them up with potential answers. I didn't memorize them, but it really helped that I kind of new what I was going to say. " More from this Member | Report Response

"SDN, mock-interview with roommate and parents" More from this Member | Report Response

"SDN, OSU website, and previous interviews." More from this Member | Report Response

"Read previous questions asked on this website and thought about responses. " More from this Member | Report Response

"interview feedback page. familiarized myself with common interview questions" More from this Member | Report Response

"I thought a lot about why I was a good candidate for the school. I prepared answers to difficult questions that I knew would be asked about weaknesses in my application." More from this Member | Report Response

"Talked to people at the EYE house during my stay. " More from this Member | Report Response

"SDN, practice with professional adults." More from this Member | Report Response

"Looked over application, relaxed." More from this Member | Report Response

"Browsed the forums" More from this Member | Report Response

"SDN. I had my wife ask me mock interview questions and we'd discuss my answers." More from this Member | Report Response

What impressed you positively?

"Welcoming, facilities, faculty accomplishments, students were very social-able and down to earth." More from this Member | Report Response

"The interviewers were really kind and experienced so it made the interview flow very naturally. Throughout our time they would say positive things about my answers. They also gave me so much time to talk and answered my questions fully." More from this Member | Report Response

"I absolutely loved my interviewers. They made me feel really comfortable and tried to help me relax." More from this Member | Report Response

"The school is building a new clinic and classroom building" More from this Member | Report Response

"The friendliness of the faculty and staff, the quality of their clinic, and the fact that the optometry school is located on Ohio State's main campus." More from this Member | Report Response

"The admissions committee was so professional yet so nice and down to earth." More from this Member | Report Response

"Everyone that I met through the interview process was very nice and accommodating. The interview was very personal and low stress." More from this Member | Report Response

"The friendliness of the staff, as well as OSU campus." More from this Member | Report Response

"I loved, loved, loved the large campus. I love that it is a small program within such a really big school." More from this Member | Report Response

"The clinics and research centers are spacious. They have a Masters program, which most students can complete within 4-5 years." More from this Member | Report Response

"I have interviewed at 5 schools, and OSU has THE friendliest staff of any of them." More from this Member | Report Response

"The professionalism and commitment to excellence is very evident at OSU. They are really going to prepare you well and send you out as a leader in the field upon completion of your studies. " More from this Member | Report Response

"I really liked the area. I loved the social scene, the school pride" More from this Member | Report Response

"Interviewing Drs. were very conversational. Although my performance determined the direction of my life, I was able to remain calm and collected by the warm atmosphere. The new lecture hall is very nice." More from this Member | Report Response

"I was picked up from the airport by a current student, attended an actual class, ate lunch with the student, stayed at the EYE house which is an optometry fraternity, so many people were very helpful." More from this Member | Report Response

"Excellent faculty, friendly students and great strategic location in a medical school mecca." More from this Member | Report Response

"They told me very soon after I got accepted" More from this Member | Report Response

"The business management curriculum" More from this Member | Report Response

"My favorite part was that I met tons of students and faculty. Everybody was more than willing to help me out and were so friendly. I even got to play fusball in the student lounge with some 3rd year students." More from this Member | Report Response

What impressed you negatively?

"Length of interview day" More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing!" More from this Member | Report Response

"The interview was set up to feel a bit intimidating- I was seated at the top of a huge "O" shaped table, with two faculty on each side, so that I had to turn in my chair to directly face each person. In addition, I spent a lot of time waiting around (almost 2 hours total) while the other applicants were interviewed. For a large portion of that waiting time, there were no student ambassadors or anyone to chat with, it just felt very awkward." More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing" More from this Member | Report Response

"Business of OSU campus in general" More from this Member | Report Response

"The surprising heat of the day made the campus tour a little uncomfortable, but that was the only drawback of the day." More from this Member | Report Response

"Facilities could use some remodeling." More from this Member | Report Response

"The run-down facilities" More from this Member | Report Response

"The facilities are not as nice as other schools, but this really isn't something that bothers me." More from this Member | Report Response

"None." More from this Member | Report Response

"Student parking is problem, and also we didn't get to see much on our tour." More from this Member | Report Response

"I had a great experience and really don't have anything negative to say about the institution." More from this Member | Report Response

"I didn't feel I learned that much about the school while i was there. They showed a video about the business management program and that was all they really told us. The tour wasn't as thorough as some of the other interviews. " More from this Member | Report Response

"I think the school needs some more remodeling. Also, the interview was extremely casual and I was disappointed that I couldn't showcase more of my knowledge. I did not feel confident afterwards when I was told ''based on your gpa, we'll be putting you on hold... this is a good thing! you aren't rejected'' Yea. " More from this Member | Report Response

"I wish they fed us lunch like most other places, because you can really get to know the students at the school and find out so much information by just eating with some optometry students." More from this Member | Report Response

"There was no heat the day I interviewed (cold in February!) but it did little to curb my enthusiasm of being there." More from this Member | Report Response

"They gave some guy a scholarship with his acceptance, but not me." More from this Member | Report Response

"The school is kinda run down. They just expanded, but the new part is mainly used for research." More from this Member | Report Response

"The facilities are older, but they're full of ''tradition'' which kind of makes it fun." More from this Member | Report Response

What did you wish you had known ahead of time?

"Interview day went from 8:30 to 5pm" More from this Member | Report Response

"Craft alternate stories so you can diversify the settings once you already use one in a previous question." More from this Member | Report Response

"That there would be a lot of downtime during the day when we were just waiting, although the interview day itself was very drawn out. I arrived at 8:15 and didn't leave until almost 3:00." More from this Member | Report Response

"How laid back the interview would be" More from this Member | Report Response

"Interview would be last" More from this Member | Report Response

"I wish I had thought of more questions to ask the second year student that led the campus tour in the afternoon. I also wish I had known that there really is no reason to be nervous; the interview process is not as scary as I expected." More from this Member | Report Response

"That they would ask me questions about what was said in my letters of recommendation. (i.e. One of your writers said such and such, how did you deal with that?)" More from this Member | Report Response

"That the interview is not that formal. The first half was simply conversational. Don't Worry!" More from this Member | Report Response

"I was well prepared." More from this Member | Report Response

"That the interview would be very casual, and also that we would be having a fancy buffet lunch at the FACULTY lounge-that was a bit intimidating." More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing additional, I did my homework and was ready. " More from this Member | Report Response

"It was colder than I would have expected in November." More from this Member | Report Response

"The interview was more based on ''likability'' factor rather than knowledge of the profession. I assume that the admissions committee has determined who they are looking for and after reading personal statements/applications they already know your interest and I think they were just trying to see if you can present yourself professionally, confidently, and believable as a future optometrist." More from this Member | Report Response

"Apply earlier, felt that the rolling admissions process was very advantageous to earlier applicants." More from this Member | Report Response

"Nothing" More from this Member | Report Response

What are your general comments?

"It was a really positive and convincing experience. Because of the interview day, it is my top choice currently." More from this Member | Report Response

"They asked me a bunch of things specific to my application!" More from this Member | Report Response

"The faculty and student ambassadors were all very kind, the resources of the school are great, but I did not like how the interview was set up to feel very intimidating with the layout." More from this Member | Report Response

"Loved the school. Not so sure about how busy the campus is though." More from this Member | Report Response

"Overall the interview process was very enjoyable. It was nice to be on campus and get to talk to staff, students, and professors." More from this Member | Report Response

"I was the only person interviewing that day and I was accepted 5-10 minutes after the interview. Be forewarned, the tours and lunch occurred before the actual interview." More from this Member | Report Response

"Mrs. Sally Haltom is such a sweetheart!" More from this Member | Report Response

"I loved this school. " More from this Member | Report Response

"This school is awesome. I'm hoping to get off the "no decision" list sometime in April." More from this Member | Report Response

"The response time they said should be within a week or so after your interview. " More from this Member | Report Response

"I went to a Friday interview. Apparently if you go on a Monday they do a ''full'' interview where you sit in on a class, take a tour of the entire campus, etc. I would recommend this b/c I left feeling I didn't really learn a lot about the school" More from this Member | Report Response

"Anyone reading this: APPLY EARLY!!! This is a HUGE advantage. If possible, you should take your OAT by June and turn in your application on the very first day it becomes available. " More from this Member | Report Response

"The interview was relaxed and they even gave me some water to drink during the interview. Also, they give out the nicest pens of all the schools I interviewed at. " More from this Member | Report Response

"Inviting and encouraging." More from this Member | Report Response

"Pretty good. The woman interviewing me was really sweet, and they didn't take up my whole day like some of the other schools." More from this Member | Report Response

"The interview was pretty relaxed. They admissions committee is very friendly and helpful. They make decisions pretty fast." More from this Member | Report Response

"The interveiw was extremely laid back. There were three of us interviewing that day and I enjoyed getting to know the other applicants. I had it arranged to shadow some first year classes in the morning and tour the university. After lunch we all met on the 4th floor of the Starling-Loving building and watched a 20 minute presentation on OSUs optometric business curriculum. Then we rotated through a tour of the facilities, a talk with the financial aid guy, and the actual interview. " More from this Member | Report Response

Tour and Travel

Who was the tour given by?

Response # Responders
Student 12
Faculty member 2
Admissions staff 7
Other 0

How did the tourguide seem?

Response # Responders
Enthusiastic 20
Neutral 1
Discouraging 0

How do you rank the facilities?

Response Avg # Responders
7.15 20

0 = low, 10 = high

What is your in-state status?

Response # Responders
In state 8
Out of state 13

What was your total time spent traveling?

Response # Responders
0-1 hour 5
2-3 hours 6
4-6 hours 7
7+ hours 1

What was your primary mode of travel?

Response # Responders
Airplane 6
Automobile 11
Train or subway 1
Other 1

About how much did you spend on room, food, and travel?

Response # Responders
< $100 8
$101-$200 4
$201-$300 2
$301-$400 1
$401-$500 0
$501+ 0

What airport did you use?

Port Columbus International Airport

Columbus International

Columbus

CMH

Where did you stay?

Response # Responders
At school facility 0
With students at the school 4
Friends or family 2
Hotel 5
Home 2
Other 1

Comments on where you stayed

No responses

General Info

How do you rank this school among other schools to which you've applied?

Response Avg # Responders
8.95 20

0 = low, 10 = high

What is your ranking of this school's location?

Response Avg # Responders
8.00 21

0 = low, 10 = high

What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?

Response Avg # Responders
8.48 21

0 = low, 10 = high

How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?

Response Avg # Responders
8.71 14

0 = low, 10 = high

How is the friendliness of the admissions office?

Response Avg # Responders
9.43 14

0 = low, 10 = high

How eco-friendly are the school's application materials and interview process?

Response Avg # Responders
7.79 14

0 = low, 10 = high

What are your suggestions for the admissions office?

"None. They are so welcoming and so kind." More from this Member | Report Response

"None!" More from this Member | Report Response

"Interview at beginning of day" More from this Member | Report Response

"Not much. They were wonderful." More from this Member | Report Response

"Be more open with students and specific with them as to why they are put in certain categories," More from this Member | Report Response

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