Most likely commercial optometry recruiters will not care where you have graduated.
For more prestigious practices (hospital, VA, private, OMD), I would assume there would be some weight to where you have graduated, similar to any other job. But again there are other things employers look for in an applicant other than their school, but I wouldn't go as far as to say that it is not looked at and considered. All other things equal, definitely a more recognized school would be more desirable. That's just common sense.
As for your other concerns, I'll share my viewpoint:
-Apparently you have personal reasons for going so something about the location must be important to you to be happy. That's valid.
-There are probably no major pro's to attending MCPHS (versus any other school) out there other than location if that is important to you.
- I would imagine you wouldn't get any answer abot the externship sites, mainly because externship sites are just practices who open their doors to the school to invite students to work there (they pay for malpractice insurance, etc) . I for example could open an externship site at my practice if I called school X and said my office meets the minimum requirements you have listed to operate as an externship site, please send a student to me after you inspect my office. Therefore externship sites will vary for all schools because its electoral. I only want students from Cal or ICO for example.
-Just because laws exist in that state doesn't mean that subject material in question won't be taught. Doctor's can't do ocular injection in a lot of states but that for example is on boards. Your school will have to do what it can do to teach the material because students come from all 50 states, and the school will have to practice that with you in that state in a legal manner. For example, glaucoma management, which is illegal in MA, is an incredibly importan scope of practice in almost every other state - your glaucoma management will just have to be under the supervision of an ophthalmologist while you are at school. Big deal.
Overall, I believe all your questions are moot and there are no specific or good answers to your question I think you'll find. I would aim higher than the new school, but if it is important to you for personal reasons, and I get that, then by all means consider attending.
If I had a super hot girlfriend who lived in that area and I wanted her to be close to me in my professional schooling, I would probably attend even a new school because it fulfills my checklist of being an optometry school (if minimally at best) and I desire a super hot girlfriend in my life. However, if it was like one of those super sketch new schools that only open to get tons of federal aid money and screw students by closing up, and then leaving me with a ton of debt, well OOPS, at least I have a super hot girlfriend. Thats gotta be worth it, right?
