advice on where to go- ICO vs PCO vs SUNY

[OD2be1]

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I'm deciding on attending either PCO or SUNY. If anyone has any pros/cons about either schools, how they made their decision, or any other advice on them, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

 

[saiwahhh]

i cant really give you advice, but i can tell you how i decided..

i was accepted to ico and puco. i am from oregon, and puco is only 40minutes from where i live. during my decision, many different factors came into play.

puco was cheaper when calculating cost of living, was convenient because i wouldnt have to move as far, was comfortable because i am use to climate in oregon, and have all my friends and family here. however, i decided on ico because i felt the facilities were much better, and i felt i would be exposed to more patients, and a variety of diseases having clinic in downtown chicago. also, i felt this would be a great opportunity to step out of my comfort zone, and live somewhere new and exciting while still "young" and not having any significant responsibilities, like a wife or kids..

hope this helped a little..

 

[poliomyelitis]

did u ever make a final decision?? I'v just been accepted to PCO but im havin a difficult time deciding which school to attend. (PCO vs UH, still waiting on ICO status)
I actually liked the main campus/facilities/staff, wasn't too impressed with the clinic at PCO but maybe its because they were renovating it. I also liked how PCO students get to have a early externship opportunity during their late 3rd yr.

 

[Inna k]

I interviewed at ICO, SUNY, and PCO; And found PCO the best fit for me, the curriculum is great, clinic is under renovation which should be finished by the end of the summer. There is nothing about that school I didnt like.

 

[OD2be1]

i narrowed my choices down to PCO and SUNY. I liked ICO but its too far from where I live. I really like the location of SUNY and would like to live in new york city but i like some things about PCO better. any advice on where I should go?

 

[Farmacist2011]

PCO is number 1, SUNY is a very very very close second.

 

[DawgOD]

Wish I could give you some advice.. but these two things should be thought about:

1) Cost
2) Location

At the end of the day, both schools will give you a great education, and will prepare you to do well after school...

I'm pretty sure though SUNY is one of the higher ranked schools though, or a little more difficult to get into.. Don't quote me on that though.

 

[SonyaM]

i narrowed my choices down to PCO and SUNY. I liked ICO but its too far from where I live. I really like the location of SUNY and would like to live in new york city but i like some things about PCO better. any advice on where I should go?

I was in the same boat as you about 2 months ago. I eventually had to sit down and weigh the two and came up with the following: Both have amazing clinic exposure -- PCO starts 6 months earlier, however. SUNY, though, because it is in NYC, sees a wide range of patients that come from all different races, backgrounds, and walks of life. In other words -- a lot of visual problems and disorders to be exposed to.

SUNY is also in the heart of Manhattan -- you can't beat that location. Yes, living in NY is not cheap, but I've heard that a lot of students live in the Queens area right by the subway lines and you can find apartments with decent rent. I didn't like PCO's location, but that's just me. I've lived in northern NJ with NYC practically in my backyard for all my life. I'm just more drawn to NY.

And then this was the one thing that made me decide on SUNY -- the cost of tuition becomes HALF after the first year of living in NY. That's $17,000 a year + cost of living (for years 2, 3, 4) instead of PCO's $33,000 + cost of living for all four years.

Bottom line -- no matter where you go, SUNY and PCO both have excellent programs, so you will get an excellent education. I just found that having less student loans by going to SUNY would be the best option.

 

[DawgOD]

if thats the case, then SUNY it is...

The least amount of debt the better.. One of the pro's for going to SCO.

 

[OD1]

i cant really give you advice, but i can tell you how i decided..

i was accepted to ico and puco. i am from oregon, and puco is only 40minutes from where i live. during my decision, many different factors came into play.

puco was cheaper when calculating cost of living, was convenient because i wouldnt have to move as far, was comfortable because i am use to climate in oregon, and have all my friends and family here. however, i decided on ico because i felt the facilities were much better, and i felt i would be exposed to more patients, and a variety of diseases having clinic in downtown chicago. also, i felt this would be a great opportunity to step out of my comfort zone, and live somewhere new and exciting while still "young" and not having any significant responsibilities, like a wife or kids..

hope this helped a little..

I got accepted at both ICO and PCO. I liked everything abt ICO except one thing abt the curriculum. The students are required to do research in 3rd year. I never took any research course during my undergrad so i am not sure if I will be alright with research or not. Any suggestions? Are students required to carry out an independent research project? OR, do a groups of students work on one research topic? Plz. help!!

 

[hhannah]

I am a 1st year at ICO, and I asked about the 3rd year research project before I came. This is what I heard last year - you can do either a research project or a case study on an interesting clinic patient, and you can work in a group of up to 4. If you choose to do the research, you can think of something you'd like to research and find a faculty member to supervise or you can join ongoing research a faculty member is working on. You have your entire 3rd year to complete it.

Don't let it be something that keeps you from coming to ICO if ICO is where you think you want to be. I haven't done any research before, and honestly I'm not a big research person, but I wanted to come here anyway. They're not going to just dump everyone out there into a research project without any help, don't worry 🙂

 

[ABaverage]

I would agree with choosing the cheaper school/standard of living.

Location wasn't that high on my list, but cost and retention rate were important to me.