Too many applicants in 2005 :)

[RLK]

One of the schools that I talked to told me that the applicant pool for fall 2005 was up 25 to 30%. I wonder if it will be up again this year. I'm hoping it goes down. Maybe I'll have a better chance then.

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[scraders]

One of the schools that I talked to told me that the applicant pool for fall 2005 was up 25 to 30%. I wonder if it will be up again this year. I'm hoping it goes down. Maybe I'll have a better chance then.

i have a feeling that the increase in applicants will continue through the next few years. it seems like more and more people are beginning to look into an optometric career. while i was still in undergrad, there wasn't much talk about optometry (usually only medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy) - at least not at uiuc. but now it's a more frequent topic among pre-professional students.

 

[RLK]

i have a feeling that the increase in applicants will continue through the next few years. it seems like more and more people are beginning to look into an optometric career. while i was still in undergrad, there wasn't much talk about optometry (usually only medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy) - at least not at uiuc. but now it's a more frequent topic among pre-professional students.

If I can get my OAT score up 20 to 30 points I'd be fine. I think that's all that's holding me back now. I guess I just have to make it a priority to study at least 2 to 5 hours a week.

 

[rpames]

The increase in applicants is a really good thing. The more applicants, the better the students, in general. I know that sucks for those of year applying this year, but it is really good for the profession. I know a couple years back, ICO accepted a very large number of students with probational conditions. Every year, that seems to have gone, at least recently. I was told next years class has an average entering GPA around a 3.4, and OAT around 340. I'm glad it was lower when I applied, but now that I'm in the clear, I think it is a very good thing.

 

[ODhopeful]

I almost didn't get to go to optometry school because all these extra people were applying. I do think that the competition is good because that means the quality of students will be better and the future of optometry is brighter. I also think more and more people will continue to apply to professional schools due to the fact that the economy is relatively unstable and health professionals tend to have the least chance of losing their jobs. Good luck to people who are applying next year.

 

[JennyW]

The increase in applicants is a really good thing. The more applicants, the better the students, in general. I know that sucks for those of year applying this year, but it is really good for the profession. I'm glad it was lower when I applied, but now that I'm in the clear, I think it is a very good thing.

Isn't that statement a little bit hypocritical?

Jenny

 

[cpw]

Isn't that statement a little bit hypocritical?

Jenny

he's just being honest

 

[RLK]

Isn't that statement a little bit hypocritical?

Jenny

Jenny, which school did you go to? (or are you keeping that private?)

 

[caliente]

One of the schools that I talked to told me that the applicant pool for fall 2005 was up 25 to 30%. I wonder if it will be up again this year. I'm hoping it goes down. Maybe I'll have a better chance then.

It's probably going to remain this way for some time -- the numbers might even rise. Compared to the recent past in Canada, proportionately more young people are enrolled in university degree programs (and thus in a position to consider professional schools like optometry) AND there are more young people overall due to the so-called "echo boom" (the children of baby boomers). Taken together, this has resulted in more people at the undergrad level, and, as a trickle down effect, more people applying to professional and graduate schools. I'll bet this is similar to the scenario down in the States.

Incidently, some traditional "blue collar" jobs pay extremely well. I personally know a young electrician and someone working on the assembly line at one of the major auto plants in Ontario (close to Detroit), with only a high school education, who both earn close to 90k/year. 90k is very good pay in Canada, btw. The guy at the car plant also has fantastic benefits, vacation time, and overtime pay! The downside is that the auto industry has lately been reducing the number of workers and/or been having problems with the unions, so it can be unstable depending on who you are. But, I've been told that being an electrician is actually fairly safe and stable as a job prospect. NOT that I'm suggesting you consider these types of work, but I think it is interesting to note. If I weren't a girl, I would have definitely given "trades" and "blue-collar" work more consideration!!

Back to optometry.....next year might be an anomaly with significantly fewer applicants.....or maybe this year was the anomaly? It's fun playing with stats At least you have "experience" with the application and interview process now! Good luck

 

[RLK]

It's probably going to remain this way for some time -- the numbers might even rise. Compared to the recent past in Canada, proportionately more young people are enrolled in university degree programs (and thus in a position to consider professional schools like optometry) AND there are more young people overall due to the so-called "echo boom" (the children of baby boomers). Taken together, this has resulted in more people at the undergrad level, and, as a trickle down effect, more people applying to professional and graduate schools. I'll bet this is similar to the scenario down in the States.

Incidently, some traditional "blue collar" jobs pay extremely well. I personally know a young electrician and someone working on the assembly line at one of the major auto plants in Ontario (close to Detroit), with only a high school education, who both earn close to 90k/year. 90k is very good pay in Canada, btw. The guy at the car plant also has fantastic benefits, vacation time, and overtime pay! The downside is that the auto industry has lately been reducing the number of workers and/or been having problems with the unions, so it can be unstable depending on who you are. But, I've been told that being an electrician is actually fairly safe and stable as a job prospect. NOT that I'm suggesting you consider these types of work, but I think it is interesting to note. If I weren't a girl, I would have definitely given "trades" and "blue-collar" work more consideration!!

Back to optometry.....next year might be an anomaly with significantly fewer applicants.....or maybe this year was the anomaly? It's fun playing with stats At least you have "experience" with the application and interview process now! Good luck

You can still do some blue-collar work. I worked at a factory one summer and there were some women working there. Forget optometry and go do some hard physical labor!

 

[hflyer]

I'm going to take the OATs in August. We'll see if I'm optometric material. The competition is only going to get worse. Be glad you're applying in 2005 and not 2015.

 

[RLK]

I'm going to take the OATs in August. We'll see if I'm optometric material. The competition is only going to get worse. Be glad you're applying in 2005 and not 2015.

I was looking at some stats today. I noticed that if there's a school in your state, even if that school is private, there's still a better chance of getting accepted there than an out of state school. I'm still amazed at the out of state acceptance in Michigan for 2004. 71 out of state applicants, 2 accepted. That's less than 3%. The state in which I live in accepted over 60% of the in-state applicants, and it's a private school too. I'm sure everyone's seen the stats page I'm talking about: http://www.opted.org/info_profile2.cfm

Anyway have a good night and stay cool.

 

[Eveye]

This is perhaps most relevant for Waterloo, but I speculate that the "double-cohort" in Ontario might have something to do with this. A few years ago, the Ontario government decided to do away with the last year of high school and as a result there were two graduating classes that entered university in the same year. These students are now entering their senior year in university so this might account for a larger number of applicants from Canada. I'm not sure how much this will affect it though.

 

[rpames]

Isn't that statement a little bit hypocritical?

Jenny

Of course it is hypocritical. I think everyone who read it knows it is. But, don't you think it would be a good thing for the profession if the average GPA was higher than many medical schools? That would suck for many of us, but it would help the professions image.

 

[ODhopeful]

You can still do some blue-collar work. I worked at a factory one summer and there were some women working there. Forget optometry and go do some hard physical labor!

I just love women all sweaty and dirty..... LOVE IT!!!!! Also playing with electrical stuff is pretty sexy too...

 

[ODhopeful]

This is perhaps most relevant for Waterloo, but I speculate that the "double-cohort" in Ontario might have something to do with this. A few years ago, the Ontario government decided to do away with the last year of high school and as a result there were two graduating classes that entered university in the same year. These students are now entering their senior year in university so this might account for a larger number of applicants from Canada. I'm not sure how much this will affect it though.

Yeah seriously.. I've always wondered how come there are so many Canadians on the forum.. I mean do all Canadians wanna become optometrists?? or is it such a good profession in Canada that everyone wanna become one?? Like in the states I only know a few people that wanna become optometrist... Just out of my curiosity....

 

[ODhopeful]

Of course it is hypocritical. I think everyone who read it knows it is. But, don't you think it would be a good thing for the profession if the average GPA was higher than many medical schools? That would suck for many of us, but it would help the professions image.

I'm not to try to defend medical school students, but I noticed during my interview that a lot of people interviewing had relatively easy majors such as communications, psychology, or some other degrees that would be considered pretty easy. Most of the people I know in med school have majors in engineering or some sort of natural sciences. All I am saying is that it is harder for a person to do well in a curriculum loaded with chemistry and biology than classes loaded with easier classes. That's probably why the overall GPA for optometry students are higher.... I hope people who read this don't get mad at me, I am just stating the fact..

 

[rpames]

I'm not to try to defend medical school students, but I noticed during my interview that a lot of people interviewing had relatively easy majors such as communications, psychology, or some other degrees that would be considered pretty easy. Most of the people I know in med school have majors in engineering or some sort of natural sciences. All I am saying is that it is harder for a person to do well in a curriculum loaded with chemistry and biology than classes loaded with easier classes. That's probably why the overall GPA for optometry students are higher.... I hope people who read this don't get mad at me, I am just stating the fact..

I don't know if that is completely true. When I was looking into medical school I read a couple books and one of then listed the majors of incoming 1st years. By far the most common majors were biology and chemistry. I can't remember the exact numbers, but there was no question that most of them had the same majors as the OD applicants.

 

[scraders]

this is taken from ico's 2004 entering class profile:

Majors
Biological Sciences 71% (110)
Psychology/Sociology 6% (9)
Health Sciences 5% (8)
Business/Economics 5% (8)
Other 13% (20)
(Chemistry, Classics, Communication, Education, Physics, etc.)

 

[ODhopeful]

I don't know if that is completely true. When I was looking into medical school I read a couple books and one of then listed the majors of incoming 1st years. By far the most common majors were biology and chemistry. I can't remember the exact numbers, but there was no question that most of them had the same majors as the OD applicants.

oops.... my bad...