optometry v. dental

[33767]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Anyone out there who considered dental school instead of optometry? Are you happy with your choice? My wife will be going to dental school but optometry is what I would prefer to do.

 

[aphistis]

No way, opto sucks! Dental school all the way!!



...OK, sorry. I couldn't resist the bait and doing a little friendly tail-twisting. I have the utmost respect for our colleagues in optometry, and that's all I have to contribute on the matter 😀

 

[r_salis]

Originally posted by aphistis
No way, opto sucks! Dental school all the way!!

...OK, sorry. I couldn't resist the bait and doing a little friendly tail-twisting. I have the utmost respect for our colleagues in optometry, and that's all I have to contribute on the matter 😀

Troll! 😀 Hehehehehehe.

 

[flong]

Dental > opto > medicine > pharm

My opinion: Take it and like it 🙂

 

[r_salis]

Originally posted by flong
Dental > opto > medicine > pharm

My opinion: Take it and like it 🙂

Hmmm, optometry #2 out of 4 choices, 2nd quartile (I think), posted this in the Optometry forum -- therefore I declare you to be... 25% Troll! 😀

(hehehehehehehe)

 

[davemo]

Lance,
I think you'd benefit by shadowing an optometrist(s) and/or dentist(s)....maybe it will give you a few more things to think about.

 

[Zurich5]

I worked at an Optometry school for two years, and will be going to dental school in the fall. I would agree with davemo, shadow with both doctors and see which profession fits your personality best. Opto has a lot less ?gross factor? than dentistry, and you can do very well, financially, with both fields.

 

[yOyOYoo]

I know this sounds stereotypical, but I don't think I could stand looking down into people's stinky mouths and having to drill their teeth to patch cavities. I personally hate going to the dentist, and I don't know a single person who LIKEs their dentist. I don't want to have to see patients that squirm when i'm cleaning their teeth or drilling.

I'd rather look at eyes. yes yes I know there are pathology related to eye sight, but i'm pretty sure I won't be seeing GPC, glaucoma, diseased eyes everyday... or at least I am not as grossed out by such conditions as I am with rotting teeth!!!

 

[r_salis]

Not to be contradictory, but I *love* my dentist.

Originally posted by yOyOYoo
I know this sounds stereotypical, but I don't think I could stand looking down into people's stinky mouths and having to drill their teeth to patch cavities. I personally hate going to the dentist, and I don't know a single person who LIKEs their dentist. I don't want to have to see patients that squirm when i'm cleaning their teeth or drilling.

I'd rather look at eyes. yes yes I know there are pathology related to eye sight, but i'm pretty sure I won't be seeing GPC, glaucoma, diseased eyes everyday... or at least I am not as grossed out by such conditions as I am with rotting teeth!!!

 

[yOyOYoo]

Originally posted by r_salis
Not to be contradictory, but I *love* my dentist.

YOU my friend are a FREAK! hahah jk

 

[cpw]

i like my dentist too! It doesn't hurt that he's a cutie too. 😉

 

[Supernumerary]

I wouldn't do dentistry unless it really appeals to you. Yes, dentists make more money, but there's a lot to be said for enjoying your job. It takes a very specific, quirky type of personality to really enjoy dentistry. A little tinge of OCD helps. 🙂

Dentists spend insane amounts of time and energy worrying about the tiniest little details - details that no one but the dentist himself will ever appreciate. Personally, I can deal with that, but you really need to shadow to find out if you can.

It also seems that optometrists are probably a little lower on the Detested Professions List. Although... attorneys probably rank right above dentists on that list. So maybe that's not an issue for you. 😉

Do what's going to make you happy for the next 30 years. Money alone is probably not gonna cut it.

 

[HighlyFanatic]

werd to what Supernumerary said and lol @ the detail part... my dentist does a damn good job

 

[AT03]

I worked at an Optometry school for two years, and will be going to dental school in the fall. I would agree with davemo, shadow with both doctors and see which profession fits your personality best. Opto has a lot less ?gross factor? than dentistry, and you can do very well, financially, with both fields.

Well said. except for the last part.

I have also exposed myself to both fields. I worked in a dental office for a year and in a number of different optometry offices for several years. (Ex. private office, chain stores and OMD ). Let me tell you something that most people don?t know much about it, and if they do, they are not going to share it with you as it is. First, if you know someone (Ex. Family members, friends, etc) who has an established optometry office and that individual promised you partnership then optometry can be a very rewarding career for you and you will be making 100K or more. In this case, you should not go to dentistry, unless you really want to be a dentist. On the other hand, if you don?t know anyone and you are planning to work for a chain store, save money and use that to open a private practice?good luck my friend. ..Or take my advice and just forget about optometry. I worked for 2 different chain stores for several years. I have to admit that I HATE CHAIN STORES because they don?t treat you like a Dr. I say this for several reasons. First, they over schedule their patients and overwork you. If any of those patients get tired of waiting, the office manager comes after you and blames you. And they tell you directly or indirectly to perform the exam faster. Which means you are not going to have enough time to perform all the IMPORTANT things that they teach you in the optometry schools. It means all day long you?ll be doing refractive correction which is saying ?IS IT ONE OR TWO?THREE or FOUR?.? I hope you can see it?s going to get boring after few years. Second, you will be working most of your weekends and holidays because most shopping centers are open on weekend?s .And because they are chain stores, you will work in several of their stores. For instance, on Mondays and Tuesdays you work in Store 425 in town A, SAT and SUN store 428 in town B, and so on. You might ask why? The answer is very simple, each store has a main Dr. who works in that store for 5 days, and the days that he?s off you?ll cover those shifts. And of course he always has the weekends off. Finally, chain stores don?t pay you enough. You probably thinking ?well, I?m not going to work for a chain store.? That?s really good. But where are you going to work??? Optometrists retire late, so it?s not easy to work for a private office. And the marked is very saturated with new graduates.

This is just a slice of the big picture. There?s more to this. Ex. What about your school tuitions? And what about these new procedures such as Lasik ? I know what you are thinking, you might argue that you will do the post treatment. I've also worked in an OMD office. It is not easy to get a job in an OMD office. Because they use the lasik procedure according to the OD measurments. They always look for someone who has worked in the field for a number of years and is really good. As a side note, the office that i worked for, his OD wants to go back to med school and become an OMD. He's tired of getting paid only between 70 to 80 K ( as he said it ) while the OMD net is over 0.5M.

As for the dentistry, I let you do the research.


I have noting but love and respects for my ODs. They spend four years and $150K in studying eyes and still they can't do some of the most basic procedures b/c of lobbists who get paid 7 figures by the gready OMDs just to put pressure on the members of congress and keep lasik for OMDs. ( lasik is a very simple procedure and OD can do it. If you don't trust me, ask anyone who teaches in an optometry school ). I know there's a talk that ODs might do lasik in the future, I tell you what... you must be kidding me. As long as those lobbyists are in the WA , ODs will be excluded from lasik. In addition, optometrists are keeping losing money and are forced to work to chain stores because of the discounted eye glasses and exams of the stupid chain stores.

 

[speter33]

I shadowed an optometrist. God dam that job seemed boring to me. It's like you do the same thing a 100 times a day and come back next day to do it all over again. Sheesh the movie "ground hocks day" comes to mind.

If you really like the eye I think u should go to medical school and become an opthomologist. Being an optometrist in my opinion is a tiny step up from being a pharmacist. But can't compare to serious doctors like dentists and MDs, whom yes deal with discusting stuff but that's the nature of being a doc

 

[r_salis]

Originally posted by speter33
I shadowed an optometrist. God dam that job seemed boring to me. It's like you do the same thing a 100 times a day and come back next day to do it all over again. Sheesh the movie "ground hocks day" comes to mind.

FYI, it's "Groundhog's Day".

If you really like the eye I think u should go to medical school and become an opthomologist. Being an optometrist in my opinion is a tiny step up from being a pharmacist. But can't compare to serious doctors like dentists and MDs, whom yes deal with discusting stuff but that's the nature of being a doc

 

[Reality check]

I've said it once, said it twice and I'll say it again: Optometry is a waste of a profession. I'll go to my grave believing this. I don't care if you work at a top hospital or clinic with OMD's you'll never earn the respect ophthalmolgists get simply because you are an optometrist. Yea yea....North Carolina Seattle Oklahoma and so forth ...OD's are looked upon as real doctors because of medicine heavily treatment etc...... how many OD's are there from those 3 states and a few others. Chain OD's get no respect regardless how good they are.
If you want to help people with there vision don't settle for second best- go become an MD if you can do it. 70-80G's is the norm out there forget about what the AOA tells you. It's all fabrication and lies. Optometry school applications have been decreasing significantly over the past 3-4 years while med school applications started to increase/on the rise again. I make over 100G's a year helping people but I am not happy. I wanted more out of my education.
Bottom line: aim higher go the distance-suffer a bit more but you'll reap the rewards of your labor at the end. OMD's are more marketable than OD's will ever be. You know who makes tons of money in Optometry majority of the time in big cities?

The opticians and shrewd/ cut throat businessman who hire these poor OD's out of school with over 150G's in loans and give them jobs in their multiple chain empire.

You'll regret Optometry big time. But find out the hard way like thousands of us who did.

 

[cpw]

🙄 here we go again.

 

[r_salis]

Originally posted by Reality check
The opticians and shrewd/ cut throat businessman who hire these poor OD's out of school with over 150G's in loans and give them jobs in their multiple chain empire.

Just curious -- do you work with OMDs or do you work for a "chain empire"? (or both?)

 

[yOyOYoo]

Originally posted by Reality check
I've said it once, said it twice and I'll say it again: Optometry is a waste of a profession. I'll go to my grave believing this. I don't care if you work at a top hospital or clinic with OMD's you'll never earn the respect ophthalmolgists get simply because you are an optometrist. Yea yea....North Carolina Seattle Oklahoma and so forth ...OD's are looked upon as real doctors because of medicine heavily treatment etc...... how many OD's are there from those 3 states and a few others. Chain OD's get no respect regardless how good they are.
If you want to help people with there vision don't settle for second best- go become an MD if you can do it. 70-80G's is the norm out there forget about what the AOA tells you. It's all fabrication and lies. Optometry school applications have been decreasing significantly over the past 3-4 years while med school applications started to increase/on the rise again. I make over 100G's a year helping people but I am not happy. I wanted more out of my education.
Bottom line: aim higher go the distance-suffer a bit more but you'll reap the rewards of your labor at the end. OMD's are more marketable than OD's will ever be. You know who makes tons of money in Optometry majority of the time in big cities?

The opticians and shrewd/ cut throat businessman who hire these poor OD's out of school with over 150G's in loans and give them jobs in their multiple chain empire.

You'll regret Optometry big time. But find out the hard way like thousands of us who did.

Man every post that RC makes just emphasizes how much he truely hates his own profession and line of work.

I always have to stop and think to myself, is optometry the field for me?

 

[Reality check]

"Is Optometry the field for me?" Only you can answer that question. You'll make a decent living but you'll never be rich make lots of money working for others. Even as self employed you'll hit a plateau and then what? Can't compare salaries w/ the surgeons OMD's. Listen, Optometry is an easy lifestyle, decent living and you help people with vision. Whatever that means to you and how you plan to practice Optometry.
It's all about perception. How the public perceives you and how you portray yourself and the profession you practice to the public. Optometrist just don't cut it in my view.
Why do some optometrists call themselves optometric physicians? For example, NJ OD's and few other NorthWest states?
From my understanding, all 17 colleges & universities of Optometry school issue "Doctor of Optometry Degree."
May I ask you why some of our colleagues think so highly of themselves having an OD degree and practice as MD's especially in the academic settings.
It's all a CRY FOR HELP. Low self esteem and they want to feel better about themselves and there so called optometric profession.

Peace out.

 

[lanconn3]

Anyone out there who considered dental school instead of optometry? Are you happy with your choice? My wife will be going to dental school but optometry is what I would prefer to do.

Please email me @ [email protected]

 

[Lost_in_Cali]

hmm....I am considering the same thing, optometry vs. dental. I keep hearing mixed things about both fields, and more recently it's becoming clear and clear that ODs are generally unhappy with what they do. This is very disappointing and frustrating! I am walking down this path, taking the OATs this October, and trying to make a way into the field. But hearing such jarring things is making me second guess my choice to become an OD.

I really want to work with eyes - the eye fascinates me, but at the same time I am not up for the draining years and sacrifice that Medschool requires. My brother is going down the MD path and from that alone, I know I am not up for it - I see what he goes through, and I know that's not the path for me. Medschool is TOUGH, as I am sure everyone here knows. It's easy to say that if Optometry is not appealing then just works towards Opthamology as a default choice. It's not that simple. So now, as I had done a while back, I am reconsidering the dental profession. But at the same time I would hate to become a dentist to regret it later in life, and think of it as a fall back choice that seemed like the financially sound decision at the time.

This is so frustrating!

Hmm...Even though it's good to get a grip with reality before its too late, it would be nice to hear something encouraging about Optometry.

It's really disappointing and discouraging to get such feedback...I had such high hopes for the profession....

 

[JennyW]

hmm....I am considering the same thing, optometry vs. dental. I keep hearing mixed things about both fields, and more recently it's becoming clear and clear that ODs are generally unhappy with what they do. This is very disappointing and frustrating! I am walking down this path, taking the OATs this October, and trying to make a way into the field. But hearing such jarring things is making me second guess my choice to become an OD.

I really want to work with eyes - the eye fascinates me, but at the same time I am not up for the draining years and sacrifice that Medschool requires. My brother is going down the MD path and from that alone, I know I am not up for it - I see what he goes through, and I know that's not the path for me. Medschool is TOUGH, as I am sure everyone here knows. It's easy to say that if Optometry is not appealing then just works towards Opthamology as a default choice. It's not that simple. So now, as I had done a while back, I am reconsidering the dental profession. But at the same time I would hate to become a dentist to regret it later in life, and think of it as a fall back choice that seemed like the financially sound decision at the time.

This is so frustrating!

Hmm...Even though it's good to get a grip with reality before its too late, it would be nice to hear something encouraging about Optometry.

It's really disappointing and discouraging to get such feedback...I had such high hopes for the profession....

Is there something in particular that you are hearing??

Jen

 

[cpw]

i don't know any ODs unhappy with what they do... who are you talking to ?

 

[leviz]

On my road to getting into Optometry school I've shadowed a total of eight optometrists, in varied settings, and none of them are unhappy with what they're doing. I have an uncle who is a dentist, makes 150k+ a year, but is also very stressed out a good deal of the time. I've also known a few MD's with the same problem. Money is not the only factor to consider when it comes to having a good lifestyle, and I'm quite confident that Optometry is the way to go for me.

 

[bobsacamenoh]

I too was worried about pursuing optometry after reading some of the negative posts about the field on this board. However, when I take a step back, it seems that only a very small percentage are actually unhappy with their decision to become an optometrist (could very well be more - I am not sure).

I have observed two ODs and have talked to a number of my personal optometrists over the years. Although my sample is small, I have only come across one optometrist who was "unhappy" with his job. He was working at Kaiser and when I told him that I was considering optometry and dentistry, he told me to go to dental school because " would get paid much more." He seemed to have some sort of inferiority complex as he sounded bitter about how much more OMDs made than him and how they were more "respected." As a male, I could definitely see where he was coming from. Males are generally taught to be competitive and that more is better (maybe this is an American thing too). I am sure that when I become an OD, I will have a few stuggles with this no matter how positive of a thinker I am in the future. I think it's only natural. He also had a sister that was an MD whom he seemed envious of. I wanted to tell him "Yo! Quit your job and go to Med School!"

Talking to one of the "happy" doctors I shadowed helped me make my decision to pursue optometry. She told me that it was hard in the beginning, but that she didn't mind working harder at first since she was doing something that she wanted to do. Also, she pointed out that the salary of an optometrist, although generally not as high as a dentist, was certainly enough to get her the things that she needed and a lot of the things that she wanted.

Another deciding factor for me is that optometry appears to be less stressful than dentistry. Also, as others have said before, most people are not the happiest when they have to see the dentist. Leaving the optometrist's office with a new perscription, however, always seems like a minor miracle to me and puts a smile on my face.

Good Luck!

 

[Richard_Hom]

hmm....Hmm...Even though it's good to get a grip with reality before its too late, it would be nice to hear something encouraging about Optometry....It's really disappointing and discouraging to get such feedback...I had such high hopes for the profession....

Dear Lost_in_Cali;

Choosing a profession or occupation should not be a "one time deal only" but unfortunately, many pressures seem to force us one way or another. In no way can one assuage all of the forces that beset a prospective candidate to any of the professions or occupations.

In my opinion, I have tried many venues of optometry: "commercial", HMO employee, optometrist-owner, optometrist employee, ophthalmology employee, ophthalmology residency employee, US military. I was fortunate that I had a singular focus in what I wanted for me and in each step when that no longer enriched me, I took the unusual step of transitioning to the next level.

If one answers to the external pressures to prevent you from purusing your concept of what that profession is, I believe that in the end, your enjoyment will ebb in 6 months or less.

It is true that many professions can commend much higher salaries than an optometrist. I even had the chance to "ride the Internet bubble" and was able to instantly "double" my salary by working for some very large computer companies. But the pressures there are equally impactful.

In summary, I believe, as some of my fellow posters have mentioned, that money is important and is necessary, but it quickly becomes unsatisfactory if it is the only thing. Of course, the best of all worlds is what we all hope for and I do wish you well in your future endeavors in whatever profession or occupation. Just a reminder, you are still the one who must make the choice. No one else can.

Regards,
Richard_Hom

 

[Smooth Operater]

I am a Canadian who will be attending US optometry school if I can't get in Waterloo. If I study optometry in state, I will be spending around 250K CDN in 4 years of study. 😱 With that amount of money, I can study at med school or dental school, and end up earning more $ to pay back my loan more quickly, and eventually more $ in the bank, plus dentists and med don't need to worry abour job saturation too much. But, I really don't want to go for med and dental cuz I want to have a less stresss and more stable life (and i have no interest in teeth).

That being said, it seems it's tough for many new optometry grad to find a desirable working condition nowdays b/c student loan really hold them back to start up a private practice. One thing that really hold me back to pursue optometry is the inability to pay back that large sum of loan in a short time. I don't really want to spend large part of my life worrying about debt. Plus, I want to purchase a decent house and car on my own after graduated from optometry. That will be another big inverstment. I am still young, so I still have some time explore about this profession, hope the more expereiced ones can enlight me here 🙂

 

[Lost_in_Cali]

Thank you so much for all the feedback! Believe it or not, it has helped. It's always helpful to get a fresh perspective on things. But, as many of you mentioned, ultimately it's my decision to go with a profession that will suit me best and one I will enjoy working in. Thanks again. I will keep you guys posted! 🙂

 

[eyedream82]

i thought this was interesting to know:

"When asked about the factors influencing career choices, a significant number of optometry school applicants indicate that medicine had been their first choice. But exposure to the medical field and to the lives of physicians and their families altered their views, leading them to select optometry as their profession of choice. A close patient-optometrist relationship; work schedule flexibility, particularly for women interested in raising families; increased community respect for the profession, and the personable, painless interaction between patient and optometrist were other factors that swayed talented students away from other health maintenance professions and into optometry." http://www.medical-colleges.net/optometryusa.htm

 

[Blindspot]

Reality Check,

I would like to know why you chose optometry as your field of study. Do you feel like you were given false information? Though I might not make as much as other professions, optometry has its benefits. I guess to me having a life and spending time with my family is worth more than the additional money that I would make, for example, as an M.D. In the process of all of this, I still get to help people. To me, there are more important things than money. Just my two cents.

 

[Smooth Operater]

i thought this was interesting to know:

"A close patient-optometrist relationship; work schedule flexibility, particularly for women interested in raising families; increased community respect for the profession, and the personable, painless interaction between patient and optometrist were other factors that swayed talented students away from other health maintenance professions and into optometry." http://www.medical-colleges.net/optometryusa.htm

Would dentistry offer such perks just like optometry? Is it true that the stress level for dentrist and optometrist is about the same since both have to manage their own private practice? Just wondering, maybe dental students and grads can confirm this.

 

[3rdMolarRoller]

I think the two are very much alike. My buddy is starting OD school in Tenn this fall and him and I always talk.

The only huge business difference I could think of is that dentistry has a much higher overhead than optometery...a BIG plus for you OD folk 🙂

I could be wrong on the overhead since I only have one friend telling me this stuff.