As you may or not know, I am an Optometrist. You will be going through a very similar educational pathway as I did. 2 to 4 years of Undergraduate Studies and then a 4 year graduate program. Some tips from me:
1) Always have a full course load. 5 Courses/semester is nothing compared to the 7 or 8/semester (+labs) that you will be taking in your graduate program. The admission comittee is interested in seeing who is going to be able to manage their time. If you necessary make one of the courses an easy elective (like Pysch 100 or Astronomy 100).
2) Volunteer at least once a week somewhere. It is very important to the admissions comittee. I volunteered at the Hospital playing games with sick children (although you have to go through a lot of hoops to do this). Also, I joined a University comittee (eg. General Faculties council or sports council etc.) Usually these comittee's are once a month for a few hours, and consist of you putting up your hand giving Yeh's to stuff you do not understand.
3) Extra-curricular stuff is very important as well. Sports, clubs etc show a social side of you that is important as well. Also, it gives you an outlet to blow off steam.
4) Find some balance. Go out from time to time with friends. Show up hungover on a Wed morning after Wing night. You need to hone your social skills. Remember, as a Dentist you will be managing staff, dealing with patients and reps all day. They will look for people that can look them in the eye, be friendly and are generally social people. I know for a fact that people with higher GPA's than me DID NOT get in to my program, most likely because of a poor interview. It took me 2 years to find the proper balance. MY first year was way too much partying, my second year was completely opposite (to the point i gave myself an ulcer), and my third year i struck a good balance of study/partying.
5) Seriously give some consideration to moving away for school. This will allow you to break out of your shell and meet people that are not your high school friends. It forces you out of your comfort zone and IMO allows you to mature quicker. Even going to Edmonton or Lethbridge for school will be far enough for you to be out of your element, but close enough to bring a bag of Laundry home for Mom.
6) Most Admission tests have preparation guides. It would be a good idea to pick one up in your 1st year of university. Then as you are going through your courses you will be able to put aside the sections that are important for the test. I wasted a good week trying to track down all the notes and text books i needed for my OAT.
7) While you need a high GPA to get in it is important that you show improvement every year in University. Do not worry if your first year marks are under the minimum requirement as the admissions comittee understands that there is an adjustment period. My first year GPA was 2.94. I was able to improve on that each year of undergrad, which was very important to admissions. Declining marks are a big RED FLAG.
8) For Gods Sake... PARTY !! Enjoy your University experience. Meet chicks, play drinking games, go on road trips, do Keg Stands, have a one-nighter.... Get this stuff out of the way when you are young and responsibilities are minimal. Once you are out in the real world with a Job and a family you can not do these things.
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