OAT vs MCAT 2026: Which Tests Optometry Schools Accept

Can you use the MCAT instead of the OAT for optometry school?

At some schools, yes. ASCO’s Profile of the 2026 Optometry Entering Class counts how many students each school admitted on each test. These schools admitted at least one student on the GRE, MCAT or DAT:

School	GRE	MCAT	DAT
University of Alabama at Birmingham	0	3	0
Arizona College of Optometry	3	2	1
Southern California College of Optometry	0	4	0
Western University	2	0	1
Nova Southeastern University	0	0	1
Chicago College of Optometry	2	2	1
Illinois College of Optometry	1	0	1
Massachusetts College of Pharmacy	1	1	1
New England College of Optometry	2	3	2
University of Detroit Mercy	2	7	1
State University of New York	0	1	0
Pacific University	4	2	2
Pennsylvania College of Optometry	3	3	1
Pennsylvania College, Scholars	0	1	1
Inter American University	19	0	0
University of the Incarnate Word	2	1	0
University of Houston	1	4	0
Rocky Mountain University	8	5	2

No school admitted anyone on the Pharmacy College Admission Test (PCAT). Indiana University lists no exam as required and admitted its 91 students without one; the University of California, Berkeley admitted 16 students without an exam, Pikeville 4, Western University 3 and Chicago College of Optometry 1.

The totals at the top of this page are our own sums of ASCO’s school rows. By the same count, 50 entrants were admitted on the GRE and 15 on the DAT. Ask each school’s admissions office which tests it takes for your year.

OAT vs DAT and the GRE

The DAT is the dental school admission test and the GRE a general graduate school test. ASCO lists both among the tests some optometry schools accept, alongside the MCAT. In the OAT Program’s 2025 Examinee Information Report, 7.9% of the OAT examinees who answered had taken, or planned to take, the MCAT, DAT, Veterinary Aptitude Test, PCAT or Allied Health Professions Admission Test.

DAT guide →MCAT guide →GRE guide →

What the MCAT, DAT and GRE cost

Each test’s own organization sets its fee, and each changes it on its own schedule. The current fee for each test is on its cost page on this site.

MCAT cost →DAT cost →GRE cost →

Scores schools publish for each test

ASCO publishes each school’s average OAT Academic Average and Total Science scores, but not average MCAT, DAT or GRE scores. Its OAT averages leave out students admitted on other tests.

Average OAT scores by school →

Sources: ASCO · OAT Program and 1 more. Checked October 2026.

Rules and fees can change, so check the official site before your test.

Explore