Post-Bacc student considering OD over DO

[someonealways]

Hello,

So I originally got my BS in business several years ago and used it for a while but got very burnt out from the type of business I was in. I decided I wanted to do my post-bacc and apply to medical school (I preferred DO schools to MD schools) and becomes a psychiatrist working in public health. Now I am a year into my post-bacc and honestly, my grades just are not where I want them to be for medical school, it isn't totally out of the question that I could get in somewhere but I would take some luck. In the spring I am starting my Masters in Healthcare Administration, it is for financial aid reasons, I could explain the whole thing but it really isn't relevant. While I have been back in school I have been working as a supervisor at a LensCrafters, while I work mostly with the opticians and just occasionally with the optometrist I have found I actually really enjoy it, it has been a long time since I had a job I liked this much. I wouldn't want to shadow the doctor at my store because I am sure I would end up getting pulled away to help dispense but we are friends and I am sure if I asked nicely he would help me find an OD I could do some shadowing with.

This is a pretty big jump from my original plan. I would love to still be able to work in public health but they don't really have vision programs like they have mental health programs. Everything I read from statistics sources said the job outlook was good and it was a decent salary. I am not looking to become rich, I just want to help people. I have already decided that I am consolidating all my student loans and putting them on IBR, so it will kind of be like a 10% income tax for 25 years to pay for my education. I don't want to live in poverty after all of this hard work though, I want to be able to live a modest life. Everything I read on here says the job outlook is awful, I read somewhere to expect to make 40K out of school. I could make more than that with just my MHA I am getting. While I would love to move I do probably live in one of the better places for the field, I am in South Florida the land of the retirees.

No going to lie about it, optometry is a second choice for me. I want to go to medical school, but with having to work full time while I am taking all of these very demanding science courses I am not happy with my grades. They are not terrible, I know optometry school has standards as well, but they are not as high as medical school. Likely I would end up going to Nova Southeastern since they are the only school in the state and it is always easier to get into schools that you already live in the state, although they are private so maybe it does not matter so much.

Anyway, I have researched, read old threads and talked to a few of my pre-med friends about it. I decided to write this all now because I needed a break from my chem 2 lab report lol . Does anyone have any good advice? Knowlege I might not come across if I don't really know anyone thinking about becoming an optometrist? I can always bug the doctor at work but he does have actual work to do.

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[Flam taps]

Hello,

So I originally got my BS in business several years ago and used it for a while but got very burnt out from the type of business I was in. I decided I wanted to do my post-bacc and apply to medical school (I preferred DO schools to MD schools) and becomes a psychiatrist working in public health. Now I am a year into my post-bacc and honestly, my grades just are not where I want them to be for medical school, it isn't totally out of the question that I could get in somewhere but I would take some luck. In the spring I am starting my Masters in Healthcare Administration, it is for financial aid reasons, I could explain the whole thing but it really isn't relevant. While I have been back in school I have been working as a supervisor at a LensCrafters, while I work mostly with the opticians and just occasionally with the optometrist I have found I actually really enjoy it, it has been a long time since I had a job I liked this much. I wouldn't want to shadow the doctor at my store because I am sure I would end up getting pulled away to help dispense but we are friends and I am sure if I asked nicely he would help me find an OD I could do some shadowing with.

This is a pretty big jump from my original plan. I would love to still be able to work in public health but they don't really have vision programs like they have mental health programs. Everything I read from statistics sources said the job outlook was good and it was a decent salary. I am not looking to become rich, I just want to help people. I have already decided that I am consolidating all my student loans and putting them on IBR, so it will kind of be like a 10% income tax for 25 years to pay for my education. I don't want to live in poverty after all of this hard work though, I want to be able to live a modest life. Everything I read on here says the job outlook is awful, I read somewhere to expect to make 40K out of school. I could make more than that with just my MHA I am getting. While I would love to move I do probably live in one of the better places for the field, I am in South Florida the land of the retirees.

No going to lie about it, optometry is a second choice for me. I want to go to medical school, but with having to work full time while I am taking all of these very demanding science courses I am not happy with my grades. They are not terrible, I know optometry school has standards as well, but they are not as high as medical school. Likely I would end up going to Nova Southeastern since they are the only school in the state and it is always easier to get into schools that you already live in the state, although they are private so maybe it does not matter so much.

Anyway, I have researched, read old threads and talked to a few of my pre-med friends about it. I decided to write this all now because I needed a break from my chem 2 lab report lol . Does anyone have any good advice? Knowlege I might not come across if I don't really know anyone thinking about becoming an optometrist? I can always bug the doctor at work but he does have actual work to do.

hmm you kind of answered your own question, if optometry is just a fall back then DO NOT go into the profession. If you think that pursuing health care professions that do not have the title "MD" or "DO" is an excuse to take it easy just because you couldn't cut it academically, then I would suggest asking yourself whether you're suited for the health care profession in general.

Optometry may be less "competitive" than an MD program but that shouldn't matter. I have worked hard in undergrad and achieved stats that are better than most pre-meds (while working, volunteering, etc.), because I actually like optometry and want to serve others to my best ability, not so I can slack off just because MD school had too high a standard. If you really cared for becoming an MD you wouldn't have given yourself so many excuses not to become one.

 

[poojerrr]

hmm you kind of answered your own question, if optometry is just a fall back then DO NOT go into the profession. If you think that pursuing health care professions that do not have the title "MD" or "DO" is an excuse to take it easy just because you couldn't cut it academically, then I would suggest asking yourself whether you're suited for the health care profession in general.

Optometry may be less "competitive" than an MD program but that shouldn't matter. I have worked hard in undergrad and achieved stats that are better than most pre-meds (while working, volunteering, etc.), because I actually like optometry and want to serve others to my best ability, not so I can slack off just because MD school had too high a standard. If you really cared for becoming an MD you wouldn't have given yourself so many excuses not to become one.

Can you post this in every thread? lol

 

[kh93]

I think if you enjoy your current job so much, stick with it! Optometry school is hard and if you're already giving up on medical school because of bad grades, it doesn't sound like you'd be very successful in optometry school. It's hard work and if you aren't passionate about it, you will struggle a lot more. I've seen first hand the people in my class who didn't take it seriously and are no longer in the program. Why waste the time and money if you already have a job you enjoy?