ICO and PUCO

[lalala27]

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Hey I was hoping you guys could help me out. I was hoping to get some insight on those of you who interviewed or decided to attend ICO or Pacific and what stood out most about that certain school and pro/cons of each. Any opinion, even brief would be very much appreciated!!! Thanks so so much.

 

[lalala27]

anyone? any input would be amazing 😀

 

[Loptometriste]

I worked with several optometrists who attended ICO who recommend it. ICO has a great clinical set up on the south side of Chicago with a wide range of pathology. There is a lot to be seen and experience there. Not so sure about the clinical aspect of PUCO.

 

[QueenieCSS]

I didn't apply to ICO so I have no input on their program.

I am a 4th year at PUCO right now and I picked it over the other schools I applied to for a few reasons. I liked the feel I got at the interview day. It was a very happy, friendly, family feel. I know that was a good environment for me. I also liked that they have elective courses and that there are 5 clinics you can rotate through during your time in clinic at the school. And the other main reason I wanted to go there was because of Amigos (PUCO's Student VOSH). They do multiple trips a year and it is very student led which was something I wanted to get involved in.

Let me know if you have specific questions - sometimes that is easier to answer than just a random pro/con.

Oh and con - I am from a city so Forest Grove was a bit small for me. But luckily it kept me from getting distracted when I was supposed to be studying. Portland is like 35 min away but I didn't go as much as I would have liked to. Probably the main con that I can think of.

 

[lalala27]

Queenie,

where are the five clinics? I heard PUCO might be moving to Beaverton? is that happening anytime soon? How is the clinical program, class load, experience youre getting at Pacific?

Thanks so so much!!!

 

[QueenieCSS]

Queenie,

where are the five clinics? I heard PUCO might be moving to Beaverton? is that happening anytime soon? How is the clinical program, class load, experience youre getting at Pacific?

Thanks so so much!!!

There are 5 school clinics. One in Forest Grove, Beaverton, Hillsboro, Cornelius, and downtown Portland. I interned at 4 of the 5 when I was in my 3rd year. It was nice to see how different clinics ran and I also felt like I got different types of patients at the different clinics sometimes (but not all the time).

The plan is to move the optometry school to Hillsboro with the rest of the health professional programs. As of when I was off campus this past May they still haven't broken ground on the building we are moving to. So basically no idea when that will happen. The nice thing about Hillsboro though is that it connects to the Max (the light rail) which is a nice alternative to driving downtown if you want to check out Portland.

The class load is what I imagine is similar to any optometry program. First semester we had 8 classes and 6 labs. I think it came out to 21 or 21.5 credit hours. Nothing is harder than you are used to in undergrad but there is just a lot more to manage. You really need to get good at time management and not putting off studying and assignments. But like I said, pretty sure that is the same no matter where you go 😉

As for clinic, my class if the first class that has 2 half days of clinic a week in our 3rd year. Before that they only did one. This way we get to do one day of primary care and one day of a specialty (we all rotate through contact lens, ocular disease, and pediatrics and vision therapy). I thought this was a great help for my 4th year rotations.

I love the time I have had here. I am glad I picked PUCO over the other schools I applied to. I feel like we are super family oriented, sharing notes and study guides, not cliquey and I like the area a lot. It isn't for everyone but for me it was definitely the right place.

Good luck!

 

[lalala27]

Thanks Queenie!

Can anyone that attends ICO tell me about their experience? Pros/cons about the program?

 

[mathcod]

I'm a 4th year at ICO. I've never really paid much attention to popularity of the optometry schools but I think this school has a good program. Academically speaking, it wasn't very challenging and the facilities are very modern and almost brand new (remodeled 4 years ago). The school does a good job of preparing you for boards exams - they certainly teach everything you need to know and at the level you need to know it. I barely studied for boards and I thought they were cake (>90% pass rate as this school). Lectures themselves are video recorded and uploaded on the net (SUPER CONVENIENT) and all lecture notes are available in electronic form. Clinic and school is at the same location, and if you want to, you can live in the dorms that are literally across the street; I'd wake up 5 min before clinic some days. The cafeteria is also great quality with rotating menus.So in terms of living and schooling, it is definitely very comfortable and high quality.

To me convenience, resources, and quality are key, and it also helps that the faculty and everyone associated with the college are supportive and caring. Definitely not a bad pick.

In terms of cons: my honest opinions are cost of tuition (however, I'll complain about cost practically anywhere) and the weird building temperature sometimes. Seriously, those are my only complaints. My years here were very valuable and comfortable.

 

[csandova]

I will be starting optometry school this fall and interview at ICO, was accepted, and turned them down. My interview day was really great and I really loved that the school and clinic were at the same location so you didn't have to travel anywhere in the snow. ICO is also a great school academically and have an awesome passing rate on the boards. What ultimately was a deciding factor for me was the fact that ICO felt too much like an undergraduate campus. Keep in mind that this may be someone else's pro, but for me it was a con. The fact that they have dorms, that if you lived there you may be sharing a room with someone, that you would have suitmates, plus the on-campus cafeteria, is nearly identical to my undergraduate days. It's not mandatory to live on campus, but in my case I also didn't want to feel left out if a lot of my classmates did live there and I was one of the few oddballs out. Anyway this was my experience with ICO, at the end of the day though I think some major deciding factors should be where you'll be happiest and where the cost of attendance will be the least.

 

[lalala27]

Thanks everyone! i have to make my decision between PUCO and ICO within the next couple of days and your insight was very helpful!

 

[Mocha1988]

hey this is so crazy but i am in the same boat as you! which school are you finally deciding to go to and for what reasons? i need to make a decision in like 4 days!!