GeneralOctober 8, 20267 min readBy Gerrit van Rensburg

PCAT vs. OAT: Why Pharmacy Dropped Its Admissions Test and Optometry Didn't

Pharmacy and optometry used to require near-identical standardized tests. One was retired in 2024; the other is still required at most schools. Here's what changed and what it means for your prep.

Key Takeaway

Pharmacy and optometry schools once required near-identical standardized tests — the PCAT and OAT — but their paths have diverged sharply. The PCAT (Pharmacy College Admission Test) was retired by Pearson on January 10, 2024, and no PharmD program requires it any more (a few still accept an old self-reported score, but new scores cannot be earned); pharmacy admissions run on GPA, prerequisites, experience, and interviews. The OAT (Optometry Admission Test), by contrast, is accepted by every US optometry school and required by most, scored 200 to 400 per section on a scale centred on 300 (the 2025 Academic Average mean was 307.8); entering-class averages at most schools sit above 320. That split changes how applicants should prepare: a PharmD applicant gains nothing from studying for a defunct test and should redirect that time to GPA and clinical hours, while an OD applicant still needs a real OAT strategy alongside a GPA near the 3.57 national entering-class mean. The lesson for anyone eyeing either path — or deciding between them — is to verify each program's current requirements directly rather than trust outdated guides, since admissions testing in healthcare professional programs has shifted faster than most pre-health advising keeps up with.

Retired Jan 2024

The PCAT is no longer offered; no PharmD program requires a test

Source: AACP / Pearson, 2024

200–400

OAT scale per section, centred on 300; 2025 Academic Average mean 307.8

Source: ADA OAT User's Guide 2026 / ASCO 2023 entering-class profile

3.36

Mean undergraduate GPA of accepted PharmD applicants, 2024–25 cycle

Source: PharmCAS, 2026

3.57

Mean entering-class GPA, US optometry programs, 2025

Source: ASCO

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Same Applicant Pool, Two Different Testing Realities

Pharmacy and optometry draw from an overlapping pool of pre-health students: strong in the sciences, often choosing between the two fields alongside dentistry or medicine. For years, both paths required a dedicated standardized admissions test — the PCAT for pharmacy, the OAT for optometry — built around similar science content. That symmetry no longer exists. One test is gone. The other is as required as ever. Applicants researching either path need to know which rules they're actually operating under, because a lot of guidance online still describes a PCAT that no longer exists.

The PCAT Is Gone

The Pharmacy College Admission Test was retired by Pearson on January 10, 2024, and has not been offered since. The decision capped a long decline: a growing share of PharmD programs had already made the PCAT optional or dropped it outright in the years before retirement, and AACP and Pearson retired it, in their words, "due to current market conditions and the decline in the use of the PCAT". No current PharmD program requires it, and schools generally do not consider an old PCAT score even if an applicant happens to have one on file from before 2024.

What fills the gap is a fully test-free evaluation: cumulative and science (BCP) GPA, completed prerequisite coursework, pharmacy or healthcare experience hours, letters of recommendation, the personal statement, and an interview. See our full breakdown in what a good PCAT score used to mean and in pharmacy school acceptance rates by GPA.

The OAT Is Still Very Much Required

The Optometry Admission Test has not followed the PCAT's path. Every US optometry program accredited by ACOE accepts it and most require a test, though many also accept the MCAT, DAT or GRE instead, and at least one (Indiana University) is test-optional. The OAT scores each section — Biology, General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Reading Comprehension, Physics, and Quantitative Reasoning — on a 200 to 400 scale, and the Academic Average (the mean of all six section scores) is the number programs report. The scale is centred on 300, and the 2025 Academic Average mean was 307.8; entering-class averages at ASCO schools ran from 280 to 360 in 2023, with most schools above 320. For the full picture by program tier, see optometry school acceptance rates by OAT and GPA.

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GPA Carries More Weight on Both Sides — Just Not Equally

Accepted PharmD applicants averaged a 3.36 undergraduate GPA in the 2024–25 PharmCAS cycle, while optometry entering classes run a bit higher, at a 3.57 national mean in 2025. The gap makes sense once you account for the missing test: with no PCAT to offset a weaker transcript, pharmacy programs lean on GPA and prerequisite performance more heavily than they used to, and the applicant pool has adjusted accordingly. Optometry applicants, by contrast, are still building a two-factor profile — GPA and OAT together — so a slightly lower GPA can be offset by a stronger OAT in a way that isn't available to a PharmD applicant anymore.

The practical consequence: if you're a pharmacy applicant with an uneven transcript, there is no test score left to rescue it, and your GPA strategy deserves the attention you might once have spent on PCAT prep. If you're an optometry applicant, GPA still matters just as much, but a strong OAT remains a genuine second lever.

What This Means If You're Deciding Between the Two

A missing admissions test is not a reason to pick pharmacy over optometry, or the reverse — the two fields lead to very different daily work, scope of practice, and long-term economics, which we cover in pharmacy vs. optometry vs. dental careers. What the test difference does change is your prep calendar. A PharmD applicant should spend zero hours on PCAT material — it is simply gone — and redirect that time toward GPA, prerequisite retakes if needed, and accumulating pharmacy or healthcare experience hours. An OD applicant still needs a real OAT study plan built around the same science foundation the PCAT used to cover, alongside building a balanced school list against both GPA and OAT benchmarks.

Either way, verify each program's current requirements directly before you build a prep plan. Admissions testing in healthcare professional programs has moved faster over the past two years than most pre-health advising has caught up with, and a guide written before January 2024 is describing a pharmacy admissions process that no longer exists.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does pharmacy school still require the PCAT?

No. The PCAT was retired by Pearson on January 10, 2024, and is no longer administered. No US PharmD program requires it; AACP notes a few schools still accept an old self-reported score, but no new scores can be earned. Pharmacy schools now evaluate applicants on GPA, completed prerequisites, pharmacy or healthcare experience, letters of recommendation, and interviews.

Do optometry schools still require the OAT?

Mostly, yes. Every US optometry program accepts the OAT and most require a test, though many also accept the MCAT, DAT or GRE instead, and Indiana University is test-optional. It is scored on a 200–400 scale per section, with the Academic Average (the mean of all six section scores) the figure schools report, and it sits alongside GPA as one of the two main quantitative factors in an application.

Why did pharmacy drop its test while optometry kept one?

The PCAT's retirement followed a long decline in use: a growing share of PharmD programs had already dropped the requirement and moved toward holistic review, and AACP and Pearson retired it, in their words, 'due to current market conditions and the decline in the use of the PCAT'. Optometry admissions have not followed the same trajectory: every US optometry school still accepts the OAT and most require a test.

If pharmacy has no test, does GPA matter more for PharmD applicants?

Yes. With no standardized test to balance a weaker transcript, cumulative and science GPA carry more of the quantitative evaluation than they did when the PCAT was still in use. A PharmD applicant with a borderline GPA no longer has a test score to lean on, which makes prerequisite coursework and GPA trend more important, not less.

Is the OAT harder to prepare for than the old PCAT was?

The two tests covered overlapping science content, so OAT prep looks similar to what PCAT prep used to look like — biology, general and organic chemistry, reading comprehension, and quantitative reasoning — except that the OAT adds physics, which the PCAT never tested. The OAT is not inherently harder; it is simply still required, so optometry applicants cannot skip the preparation the way pharmacy applicants now can.

Should I pick pharmacy over optometry because it doesn't require a test?

No — a missing admissions test is not a reason to choose a career. Pharmacy and optometry lead to very different daily work, scopes of practice, and economics, covered in our comparison of pharmacy, optometry, and dental careers. Decide on the profession itself, then let each program's actual requirements — test or no test — shape your prep plan.

Written by Gerrit van Rensburg, Founder of AdmitBase

Analysis based on Official institutional data from ABA 509 disclosures, ADEA, ASCO and AACP reports, and each school's own published class profile. AdmitBase works from published institutional disclosures and each school's own class profile rather than self-reported applicant outcomes. Where a school publishes no figure, the school page says so and labels any estimate as an estimate. How this site is written and sourced.