Need help on convincing my parents on pursuing optometry.

[Smooth Operater]

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Hello Guys!

I told my parents that there's a chance for me to pursue optometry as career, and I told them how many years of education I will need and how much money I will need to invest as an international student in states to become an optometrist.

And they were like "you don't need another 4 yrs of education and shell out so much tuition just to learn how to check ppl's eye and prescribe eye glasses. And in comparision with Dentists and medical doctors, optometrists receive less patients b/c less people have eyes problems than teeth problems. " And, I believe there statement is pretty sure. So, they advise me to go for Dentistry instead if I am gonna spend that many yrs on education, cuz Dentistry and MD's are more prestigious and earns more $$.

I told them that I don't mind if I earn less than MD's and Dentist,s as long I can earn enough to pay off my loans and have a stable income later on. The reason I choose optometry b/c it requires the least "physical contacts" with patients comparing to MDs and Dentists, yet still allow me to have patient-doctor interaction in my own clinics. The lifestyle of OD is actually less stressful than MDs and Dentrists.

But, in the end, they still try to convince go for Dentist cuz presitgious and $ issue. I don't know what else to tell them what's good about optometry other than I like to study eyes, and optometrists have a better lifestyle.

 

[acurael]

if you're sure you want to be an optometrist, tell them thats what you want to do and not interested in dentistry
ask them if they'll be happier in the end if youre happy with your job or that they can tell everyone that their son/daughter (not sure) is a dentist
Dentistry doesnt appeal to me because youre working in ppl mouths all day, patients hate to come and see you.........optometrists have less stress, and better lifestyle in my opinion
i find eyes way more interesting than teeth.....teeth are gross and boring to me

 

[christie]

And they were like "you don't need another 4 yrs of education and shell out so much tuition just to learn how to check ppl's eye and prescribe eye glasses. And in comparision with Dentists and medical doctors, optometrists receive less patients b/c less people have eyes problems than teeth problems. " And, I believe there statement is pretty sure. So, they advise me to go for Dentistry instead if I am gonna spend that many yrs on education, cuz Dentistry and MD's are more prestigious and earns more $$

Your parents haven't got a clue what an Optometrist does!
"Optometrist's receive less patients b/c less people have eye problems than teeth problems" That is just too funny.

Good Luck!

 

[aphistis]

Your parents haven't got a clue what an Optometrist does!
"Optometrist's receive less patients b/c less people have eye problems than teeth problems" That is just too funny.

Good Luck!

Just in the spirit of good-natured competition, though, that's probably true. 85% of adults have had tooth decay, and that's without accounting for perio disease and other common problems. 😉

To the OP: Good luck on selling your parents on your career choice. Just remember, it's your career, not theirs.

 

[cpw]

do what's going to make YOU happy in work for the rest of your life... not what's going to make your parents happy. 😀

 

[silverandblack]

Hey SO!
Obviously you're doing this for yourself, but coming from a relatively strict family, I can relate to what you're going thru. Your parents are leaning towards professions like dent because that's what society tells them is good... what they are looking for for you is good job security, good money and respect from others... given that, they could definitely gain an appreciation for optometry, they just have to learn what it's all about... and it's upto you to make that happen. There are a bunch of optometry sites on the web that do a pretty good job of explaining what the profession is about so look for those (www.opted.org I THINK??) ... a lot of the schools (like SUNY for example) do a decent job on their website of explaining what optometrists do.... try to learn as much about the profession and the course of study as you can.....this should help in making it clear to both you and your parents why you want to become an optometrist. Keep one thing in mind tho... if you are having trouble explaining why you want to do it, then you likely don't know enough about it yourself... if that's the case, make sure you find out more about it not just for your parents, but for yourself aswell ... it's not for everybody, so try to make an informed decision b4 you commit to it. There are alotta cool ppl on this board who will be willing to help answer your questions so don't hesitate to ask!

Good luck!!! 😎

silverandblack

 

[Tony.]

do what's going to make YOU happy in work for the rest of your life... not what's going to make your parents happy. 😀

very true! there needs to be a time where you should think for yourself, and not let others think for you....

besides, lifes more interesting that way....


just fyi; i've spoken to both optometrists and dentists (extensively) ; i found out that both are happy doing what they do eqaully. It just depends on what your're rather do in life.

 

[Dr.SpongeBobDDS]

You mentioned you don't really want a lot of physical contact with patients - that definitely rules out dentistry. Dentistry is all about spit, blood, and other assorted cooties. That being said, it is the greatest profession in the world. 🙂

 

[spongiebob]

tell them that optometry is what you want to do for the rest of your life and it's what you really like. 🙂 God bless!

 

[Smooth Operater]

Hey guys! Thank you for all the encouragements. That really comforts me. I am still in the process researching more about this field, but I should decide whether I am going for optometry all the way in 2 monthes, cuz that's when I pick my undergraduate major. My parents biggest concern is the future job outlook for optometrist in 2010 when I complete OD degree(if everything goes as plan). They feel that the market will be saturated with optometrists in my future b/c they thinks the admission process for optometry school is easier than med or dentist schools, as long you have good GPA and OCAT scores with some voluteer hours, plus you are willing to pay large sum of $$ to opt school. Maybe myself havn't done enough research yet, there reason seems to make sense to me, but I don't know if it holds true. Hope you guys can help me out here!! Thanks!

 

[rpames]

There is no denying that OD school is less competative than med school. As far as dental school, I did not really look in to it, but I can say that dental schools have an average GPA of 0.07 higher than the OD schools. Take that as just a calculation I figured out.

I can't speak for all OD schools, but ICO is cutting admissions back every year starting next year. I spoke to one prof how said they were cutting it by about 10 a year for a few years. I think that is a good idea since our class was 160 at the begining. We have lost a few and gained a few through out the year. The once we gained were repeating some classes in only one of the quarters.

About the saturation of ODs...well, look in the phone book for DDS/DMD. There are a heck of a lot of them. That can be contributed to the fact that there are sub specialties in dentistry. I'll easy your mind by saying there a sub specialties in optometry too, and they are becoming more numerous. Although I love optometry and can't wait to practice, I also know there are plenty of crappy ODs. We can contribute that to some of the admission standards. So with that said, there may be plenty of ODs were you are from, but there are only a hand full of really good ODs. Being a good OD is where you make your living. Not just being one in the phone book.

Good luck

 

[theoptometrist]

Your pay and respect will be better. Just don't work in a chain office. Most chains are mills....drill, fill and bill kinda places. Optometry is fine but the education is far too expensive....don't make your parents get you an education in optometry unless you can better our profession from day 1. Too many bad opportunities in optometry and I don't want to see anyone get involved in them just to sell glasses and contacts for a big dumb corporation.