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hi guys.. got back from the philadelphia. had my interview at PCO on december 20.th here is the full detailed report
had to be there by 10AM.. PCO is dirrectly north of the airport. take interstate 616/ broad street in a north direction. you will have to pass Temple university / school of medicine/ dentistry. if you do this, then you are in the right track. its a 25 min drive from my hotel. elkins park is in a very rural area, lots of trees and all that. it was 40degrees during my interview. the admissions desk, had secretaries processing various letters, acceptance, rejections or interview invites.
since my hotel is in the heart of downtown philadelphia, there are a lot of one way streets, traffic is a big hassle. took me 1 hr just to get parking for McDonalds breakfast. i stayed over the Hampton Inn hotel, pretty decent hotel BTW.
the interview: yeah that was a blast. It was one on one, nice lady that interviewed me. asked me a lot of personal questions. most of the questions she asked me was from this website. very basic. probably the best interview i had in a very long time. had a smile on my face. she was really interested in my interview. it was 45-50 mins long, it became to a point where it was more like a conversation than an interview. probably the highlight of the day, even though the lake in front of the school was frozen. Brrrrrrr.😱 one of the hardest questions i was asked: what dont you like about Optometry? but i gave a really nice answer based on the Optometry boards in various states. i said what every OD that i talked to said: OD in one state is not equal in other states. Just like dentistry, OD have lots of laws and restrictions. at least that is better than the answer that i gave a few years ago in another institution: oh umm OD sometimes work retail hours in a commercial practice. see the difference... DO YOUR RESEARCH OF THE PROFESSION lol..... 😀
had an exit inteview with an admissions counselor, she got all my credentials. people in PCO are very nice and helpful. there were other people being interviewed, one from Michigan, one from Sarosota, Fl, one from the PA local.
then they give free lunch. they give you a yellow lunch ticket to buy $7.00 worth of food.
after the interview, was financial aid meeting. we talked about what i already know and what you have known since undergrad for financial aid. Master promissary note, tuition, expect to spend 1K-2K worth of equipment and books guys. they offer merit and need based scholarships unlike NSUCO.
the school is kinda small for my taste, i was expecting larger, but their facilities are very large, their eye clinic is huge. school is kinda outdated, but their education is top notch.. and yes, no block exams like i had in Barry University. we had a tour of the campus, the clinic is a few miles from the school, its being renovated but like i said it is huge.
the clinic is organized in "modules"/ students are assigned modules at the beginning of the semester. the school has fewer clinics than most schools but their clinics are twice the size of a normal clinic. the classroom is large too housing 130-150 students.
bookstore is small, but you have to buy the notes pretty much.
afterthought, the school is located in an area that gives me a sour stomach. and yes you will have to be doing a lot of driving if you go there for 4 yrs. its in a rural area. but the education there is top notch, and they have a cirriculum that meets the demands of the new clinically directed NBEO that will be given now around the 3rd year. aside from the school being small, and in a bad location, i really like the school for its reputation, and in my grade book thats where it counts. i wish i could say more about the surrounding area of PCO, but i only stayed in PA for two and a half days. get a rental car guys, works wonders. i payed under $200 for my rental car at budget.
PCO kinda looks outdated, but thats just because they have been there since 1919, so they know the business of Optometry very well. they are updating their clinics, lots of renevations there.
they have a newly built gymnasium there. library is two stories, where they have a CPS class there for case study work. the school teaches classes in basic sciences/ ocular sciences. but there is a big huge freakin emphasis on clinical aspects of optometry here. you learn a skill, and you got to practice it on a patient ASAP. i had my tour done with 2nd year students, again very nice people. PCO is also well known for vision rehabilitation also, one of the few schools that teach vision rehab/ opthalmic lasers. Just by touring the school and reading their brochure puts a smile on my face
.
they do sent a crap load of 4th year students to Bascom palmer eye institute in Miami, Florida. i know this because i talked to 12-14 rotation students.
I will be getting a decision in 3-4 weeks. no matter what they decide for me, i believe my time here was well spent, and well worth it.
overall i give PCO an 93% average rating. aside from the craptastic location, small school, outdated buildings, its a solid education and i believe they provide an excellent education that rivals many schools. the only big thing i dont like about their cirriculum.... they slam 27-30 something credits per semester, which is a tad bit higher than most schools per semester. i know NECO 2nd semester of your second year is around 40 credits. from what i heard from a 4th year student .outch. 😡
other than that, their cirriculum kicks butt. 🙂. love their clinical approach, cant stand being in the classroom all day long.
had to be there by 10AM.. PCO is dirrectly north of the airport. take interstate 616/ broad street in a north direction. you will have to pass Temple university / school of medicine/ dentistry. if you do this, then you are in the right track. its a 25 min drive from my hotel. elkins park is in a very rural area, lots of trees and all that. it was 40degrees during my interview. the admissions desk, had secretaries processing various letters, acceptance, rejections or interview invites.
since my hotel is in the heart of downtown philadelphia, there are a lot of one way streets, traffic is a big hassle. took me 1 hr just to get parking for McDonalds breakfast. i stayed over the Hampton Inn hotel, pretty decent hotel BTW.
the interview: yeah that was a blast. It was one on one, nice lady that interviewed me. asked me a lot of personal questions. most of the questions she asked me was from this website. very basic. probably the best interview i had in a very long time. had a smile on my face. she was really interested in my interview. it was 45-50 mins long, it became to a point where it was more like a conversation than an interview. probably the highlight of the day, even though the lake in front of the school was frozen. Brrrrrrr.😱 one of the hardest questions i was asked: what dont you like about Optometry? but i gave a really nice answer based on the Optometry boards in various states. i said what every OD that i talked to said: OD in one state is not equal in other states. Just like dentistry, OD have lots of laws and restrictions. at least that is better than the answer that i gave a few years ago in another institution: oh umm OD sometimes work retail hours in a commercial practice. see the difference... DO YOUR RESEARCH OF THE PROFESSION lol..... 😀
had an exit inteview with an admissions counselor, she got all my credentials. people in PCO are very nice and helpful. there were other people being interviewed, one from Michigan, one from Sarosota, Fl, one from the PA local.
then they give free lunch. they give you a yellow lunch ticket to buy $7.00 worth of food.
after the interview, was financial aid meeting. we talked about what i already know and what you have known since undergrad for financial aid. Master promissary note, tuition, expect to spend 1K-2K worth of equipment and books guys. they offer merit and need based scholarships unlike NSUCO.
the school is kinda small for my taste, i was expecting larger, but their facilities are very large, their eye clinic is huge. school is kinda outdated, but their education is top notch.. and yes, no block exams like i had in Barry University. we had a tour of the campus, the clinic is a few miles from the school, its being renovated but like i said it is huge.
the clinic is organized in "modules"/ students are assigned modules at the beginning of the semester. the school has fewer clinics than most schools but their clinics are twice the size of a normal clinic. the classroom is large too housing 130-150 students.
bookstore is small, but you have to buy the notes pretty much.
afterthought, the school is located in an area that gives me a sour stomach. and yes you will have to be doing a lot of driving if you go there for 4 yrs. its in a rural area. but the education there is top notch, and they have a cirriculum that meets the demands of the new clinically directed NBEO that will be given now around the 3rd year. aside from the school being small, and in a bad location, i really like the school for its reputation, and in my grade book thats where it counts. i wish i could say more about the surrounding area of PCO, but i only stayed in PA for two and a half days. get a rental car guys, works wonders. i payed under $200 for my rental car at budget.
PCO kinda looks outdated, but thats just because they have been there since 1919, so they know the business of Optometry very well. they are updating their clinics, lots of renevations there.
they have a newly built gymnasium there. library is two stories, where they have a CPS class there for case study work. the school teaches classes in basic sciences/ ocular sciences. but there is a big huge freakin emphasis on clinical aspects of optometry here. you learn a skill, and you got to practice it on a patient ASAP. i had my tour done with 2nd year students, again very nice people. PCO is also well known for vision rehabilitation also, one of the few schools that teach vision rehab/ opthalmic lasers. Just by touring the school and reading their brochure puts a smile on my face
. they do sent a crap load of 4th year students to Bascom palmer eye institute in Miami, Florida. i know this because i talked to 12-14 rotation students.
I will be getting a decision in 3-4 weeks. no matter what they decide for me, i believe my time here was well spent, and well worth it.
overall i give PCO an 93% average rating. aside from the craptastic location, small school, outdated buildings, its a solid education and i believe they provide an excellent education that rivals many schools. the only big thing i dont like about their cirriculum.... they slam 27-30 something credits per semester, which is a tad bit higher than most schools per semester. i know NECO 2nd semester of your second year is around 40 credits. from what i heard from a 4th year student .outch. 😡
other than that, their cirriculum kicks butt. 🙂. love their clinical approach, cant stand being in the classroom all day long.
im so glad this is all over since i got into my top 2. i interviewed in early december and from what i know, PCO's a little behind so this week so they're reviewing people who interviewed there in the beginning of december. i was worried b/c some people got in the day after they interviewed. anyway g'luck to everyone!
