optometry schools

[blobs]

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why exactly are some optometry schools more competitive? hard-to-get-into schools dont seem to give any tangible benefit aside from potentially cheaper tuition for in-state people

for med school i guess i can see a prestigeous school giving some advantage is obtaining a residency but for opto... why is everyone crowding into berkeley, for example? is it just the cheap tuition for cal residents?

 

[zyg0te]

There's a lot of reason why some schools are preferred over others, I don't have time to explore them all, but I'll just give you a few of mine.

Some schools have higher pass rates on the NBEO. UCB and SUNY come to mind as those are the ones I am looking at. Although this doesn't necessarily prove causality.

Also location is another huge part. Who would want to go to school where it is below 32 nine months out of the year when they could go where there is nice beach weather half of the year. And many people have family and friends, including spouses and children, that they don't want to be separated from. Since there are only three schools on the left half of the US, I'd imagine those three schools would get a lot of applicants.

Like you said, money is always going to be an issue. I already know I am going to leave optometry school in huge debt so If I have a choice between two very similar schools, I will most likely go with the one that will save me money.

 

[student2008]

Is your question about how are each school different or what advantages do some schools have over others other than location? I had the same question before, but from what I have learned, it seems there isn't really that much difference between school. Most people will choose one based on location only. I am picking berkeley because I went there for undergrad, I love the campus and my bf is in the bay area.

I think all of the schools provide good clinical programs and most also provide research opportunity as well.

 

[r_salis]

Also smaller class size = more competition for seats. SUNY has a 70-ish class size, PCO has a 150-ish class size.

As the PP said, though, as long as you pass the boards and get a diploma you're an OD no matter which school you choose to go to.