UAB and PCO???

[UABSO2010]

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UAB and PCO-
Ok, I know that several people don't like both of these schools for several different reasons, but I visited/interviewed at both and liked both of them a lot. I got accepted to both schools earlier in December (as well as NOVA and UMSL, but I've decided against those two), and I'm trying to come to a final decision between UAB and PCO.... Anyone have any advice/pro/cons etc... either way? I'm leaning more towards UAB right now, but still not 100% decided yet. I'm especially concerned that I also get a good background on the business end of being an optometrist as part of my optometry school education - both schools seem to have some classes on the business aspects, but PCO might provide a little more help??? I don't know?
I like UAB's program, high board scores, and birmingham...
I also like PCO's program, business center, and intense clinical experience...
Money isn't a determining factor...they're both pretty even after its all added up!
Thanks for any advice in advance, especially from anyone thats going to either of these schools right now.... I know that pco just got bashed in another thread, so it kind of has me wondering!

 

[jehu]

PCO is by far the best place to get the relevant clinical exposure. I would recommend it to anyone and I would do last semester all over again if I knew how it was going to be. I've formed such a tight bond with the school and my fellow classmates that I know forsure I'm going to be the best practitioner I could ever be. Do your research well, but dont rely on the negativity of one individual who is bitter after finals...its unfortunate there are people out there who cant say anything good...but im very optimistic and I know that this is the best choice I have made in my life
good luck

UAB and PCO-
Ok, I know that several people don't like both of these schools for several different reasons, but I visited/interviewed at both and liked both of them a lot. I got accepted to both schools earlier in December (as well as NOVA and UMSL, but I've decided against those two), and I'm trying to come to a final decision between UAB and PCO.... Anyone have any advice/pro/cons etc... either way? I'm leaning more towards UAB right now, but still not 100% decided yet. I'm especially concerned that I also get a good background on the business end of being an optometrist as part of my optometry school education - both schools seem to have some classes on the business aspects, but PCO might provide a little more help??? I don't know?
I like UAB's program, high board scores, and birmingham...
I also like PCO's program, business center, and intense clinical experience...
Money isn't a determining factor...they're both pretty even after its all added up!
Thanks for any advice in advance, especially from anyone thats going to either of these schools right now.... I know that pco just got bashed in another thread, so it kind of has me wondering!

 

[Ben Chudner]

PCO is by far the best place to get the relevant clinical exposure. I would recommend it to anyone and I would do last semester all over again if I knew how it was going to be. I've formed such a tight bond with the school and my fellow classmates that I know forsure I'm going to be the best practitioner I could ever be. Do your research well, but dont rely on the negativity of one individual who is bitter after finals...its unfortunate there are people out there who cant say anything good...but im very optimistic and I know that this is the best choice I have made in my life
good luck

It is very interesting watching these threads regarding which school is the best. Since I only attended one of the 19 schools, I can only comment on that one, which is true for everyone else here. Interviewing at a school, or even knowing someone at another school does not qualify anyone to answer the kind of questions most incomming first years are asking. I personally know someone that graduated from every school except IAUPR and Univ of Montreal. Even after talking to them about the differences between our schools, I have no idea the true nature of their education. The bottom line is that every school will give you a quality education if you put in the effort.

My advice is to look at other factors other than education. I chose Berkeley because of cost and location. If you were to ask me if it was a good school, of course I would say yes, and I would do it all over again. But that's me. For you, I would look at cost of education, location, if you know other people attending the school, your gut feeling from the interview, cost of living, etc. It is the outside factors that will make or break your experience at optometry school. The education will be there.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[ML1983]

Well i went to interview at PCO, and i loved it. The 2.5 yrs curriculum is awesome, hoepfully we'll get a lot of clinical experience, and PCO has the biggest externship program, so that should help us land spots. Also the clinic looks awesome. So many eye exam rooms and i want to specialize in low vision, and they have an awesome low vision section just for itself. Plus, the new Haftner community centre is gonna be good. It's huge just for PCO students!!

 

[UABopt]

UAB and PCO-
Ok, I know that several people don't like both of these schools for several different reasons, but I visited/interviewed at both and liked both of them a lot. I got accepted to both schools earlier in December (as well as NOVA and UMSL, but I've decided against those two), and I'm trying to come to a final decision between UAB and PCO.... Anyone have any advice/pro/cons etc... either way? I'm leaning more towards UAB right now, but still not 100% decided yet. I'm especially concerned that I also get a good background on the business end of being an optometrist as part of my optometry school education - both schools seem to have some classes on the business aspects, but PCO might provide a little more help??? I don't know?
I like UAB's program, high board scores, and birmingham...
I also like PCO's program, business center, and intense clinical experience...
Money isn't a determining factor...they're both pretty even after its all added up!
Thanks for any advice in advance, especially from anyone thats going to either of these schools right now.... I know that pco just got bashed in another thread, so it kind of has me wondering!

I think you will be happy regardless of the school that you choose. While sometimes I am overwhelmed with the course load, and wonder myself if I made the right choice, I think you would have a little self doubt no mater where you go to school (especially around finals). I think some of the major pros of UAB include a top notch education as far as basic sciences and optometry are concerned, meaningful early clinical exposure, and a small class size of 40 students.

I think the biggest plus really is the small class size. While many of our basic science classes are integrated with dental students, and in one case with medical students, the classes that really count only have 40 students. With only 40 people in each class you get that important 1 on 1 time. Where this counts more than you can imagine is in courses where you learn basic clinical skills. In these courses only ½ the class or about 20 people meet at a time, and there are normally about 3 or 4 professors around to help. This means that there is a professor present for every 5 students.

Then again there are also a few things that could be considered both plusses and minuses. The basic science courses are taught by experts in each field. That is to say that in courses like histology, pathology, pharmacology, microbiology etc etc… you could have as many as 15 or 20 different lecturers from different backgrounds, MD, PhD, Pharm.D. OD, DVM, DDS etc… The person who lectured in the first hour might not even lecture the second hour of that day. I for one really like this system because it means that you will get the most up to date and relevant information in these courses and it exposes you to a variety of perspectives. On the other hand it also means that you will end up with a variety of lecturers some great, some not so great. It also means that sometimes the classes can feel a little disjointed and it is possible to sometimes loose the big picture amongst the details.

The expectation of students at UABSO is high. Your schedule at UABSO will sometimes be slam packed with classes solid from 8 in the morning until 5 at night sometimes even later if you are in an elective class that meets from 5-7pm. Then you get to go home and study. I am sure that the schedules at other schools are also just as rigorous.