Uhco, Scco, Suny, Newenco

[UT-Frank]

These are the schools I'm considering (located within the cities or state that are of appeal): UHCO, SCCO, SUNY, NEWENCO.

Does anyone, who's going there, lives around there, or are currently attending have any pros and cons to those particular schools? I'm currently in Texas right now so that's why UHCO is on that list. Does one program offer anything that another doesn't? The curriculum are basically the same, right? How are the cities in which these schools are located in?

I like UHCO and SCCO because there's a major university right next door to it... and SUNY because I've always wanted to go to New York but I've noticed the school is a school of its own in the middle of the city.

I look forward to everyone's input!

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[cpw]

out of the ones on your list I applied to UHCO and SCCO and got into both.

Pro : COST !! In state tuition is a HUGE bonus!! You'll get a great education at any of these schools. but, I think you'd be hard pressed to pass up in state tuition at a state school to pay 35-40k a year at a private school like SCCO or NEWENCO.

 

[UT-Frank]

Thanks for the reply cpw! Those are the 2 schools I'm strongly considering! If you don't mind, can I ask you what your stats are? I'm currently at a 3.5 here at UT and I'm quite worried about the OAT also. Any recommendations there? Kaplan? Princeton? Self study?

 

[Tony.]

out of the ones on your list I applied to UHCO and SCCO and got into both.

Pro : COST !! In state tuition is a HUGE bonus!! You'll get a great education at any of these schools. but, I think you'd be hard pressed to pass up in state tuition at a state school to pay 35-40k a year at a private school like SCCO or NEWENCO.

cpw, just a little correction.....
I'll be attending NewEnCO this fall and our $ budget is set for about $43,000 so, its a little higher now. just FYI....

(and yes, i'll be in mooocho debt when i finish

but, as you said a big advantage at UHCO is the cost will be cheaper if you're a resident which i think ut-frank is.

 

[cpw]

Thanks for the reply cpw! Those are the 2 schools I'm strongly considering! If you don't mind, can I ask you what your stats are? I'm currently at a 3.5 here at UT and I'm quite worried about the OAT also. Any recommendations there? Kaplan? Princeton? Self study?

actually now that I'm a fourth year.. my stats really don't matter. They were higher than UHCO's average (we'll leave it at that).

A 3.5 at UT is awesome and you should have no problems with that. Shoot for a 330 or higher OAT and you'll be good to go !
Good luck !!

I didn't take any OAT review courses, but I'm pretty disciplined with the studying.. I also didn't have 900 bucks.

 

[sammyiu]

I know next to nothing aout all of the schools that you are looking at buy I am going to plug my school IU School of Optometry. Here are some great things about my school.

1. Bloomington, IN: I know you are thinking "Yeah right, I want to go to school in Indiana, in a corn field." But Bloomington is a great town with lots of opportunity for entertainment and a great night life, classic college town.

2. Indiana University: The Optometry School is affiliated with one of the best universities in the country and the main university has something like 30,000 students so it is huge but the optometry school averages 70 in a class.

3. We have a fantastic clinical program with great clinical faculty.

4. We have a good patient base for interning. I saw 150 patients in the last 10 months working two afternoons a week. And, the patients are interesting, you get both your share of simple myopes and the interesting stuff too.

5. Did I say a great clinical program with great clinical faculty?

Anyway, if you haven't thought at all about Indiana I urge you to at least look at it, maybe apply or visit. Our classrooms, etc may not look as impressive as some places but the people are what makes our school. With your grades and with good OAT scores you wouldn't have a problem with acceptance, you probably won't have a problem wherever you decide to go.

Just a thought

 

[J.opt]

What?s the average class size at your optometry schools?

 

[docwatson]

I would take very serious consideration to cost--and frankly, not much else. Most schools are pretty much the same as far as education. I mean there might be subtle differences but they aren't that significant. Every school has to prepare you for the National Boards so they are the same. However, when you consider graduating with $50,000 worth of debt vs. $150,000 worth of debt, you will be glad if you chose the less expensive school. Optometrists just don't make that much money to justify the extreme debt load that many of the private schools subject us to. It's ridiculous.

Remember: That extra $100,000 in school loans that you have to pay back will effect you when it comes time to purchase or start up a practice or make that decision to pay $50,000 on equipment. Save the money!

WOW!!! (I just wanted to see this face in my post...)

 

[Tony.]

sammyiu,

you sound like a salesperson or something...

I have a friend that went to IU, ..years ago....
he loved it! he was a crazy basketball fan!! you're guy are big on basketball up there.....
the truth is that its all about location. People make decisions sometimes based on where their families are; not just the reputation of the school...

I think it would hard to argue WHICH optometry school is better than the other, b/c ..in reality, they all teach the same things right? an eye is an eye is an eye...

 

[rpames]

I would agree with the cost idea. Texas is a good school so it is not like you would be settling for it. I have some friends who are $50,000+ in debt for undergrad, and are now taking full loans out for OD school. That adds another $175,000 here at ICO. Starting life a quarter million in debt is not my idea of a good time.

 

[r_salis]

What?s the average class size at your optometry schools?

The average class size at SUNY is ~72.

My advice on choosing a school would be:

1. Cost -- you're going to get basically the same education anywhere you go, so choose a school that isn't going to put you massively in debt when you graduate.

2. Location -- choose a place you want to live for the next four years. This is a great opportunity to live someplace completely different (big city, small town, etc.) before you settle down into a career.

3. Vibe -- after you've narrowed your choices down, interview at a couple different schools and get a feeling for the "vibe" at each one. If your stats are decent, you'll get accepted to all of them, so view it as an opportunity to interview *them*. Pay attention to your feelings about the school and the students, and decide if it feels like a place you'd like to be around for the next four years.

 

[cpw]

UHCO's class size is set at 100 for entering first years. But, now that I'm a fourth year.. our class has dropped down to 82.

 

[ATLrepresent]

Wow, it sounds like a lot of students are calling it quits over there at UHCO. Do you think most of the people left because they decided they didn't like optometry or because they failed out? I was wondering what other current optometry students think of these numbers. Are other schools similar? I am starting this fall at SCO. It would be scary not to finish with all the debt adding up. Any thoughts?
-Sara

 

[Tony.]

I would agree with the cost idea. Texas is a good school so it is not like you would be settling for it. I have some friends who are $50,000+ in debt for undergrad, and are now taking full loans out for OD school. That adds another $175,000 here at ICO. Starting life a quarter million in debt is not my idea of a good time.

I have a friend that graduated from UHCO and he is $100,000 in debt (including undergrad). Most people I know take loans for school.....so its not uncommon.
I know when I went to my NewEnCo interview they told us that their graduates dont have a problem paying back their loans.......
(Im pretty sure thats the case for most opt. school grads.)

I have to admit, and this is a bit off the subject....
The most informative Financial Aid session for me was at PCO........
they gave us ALL the facts and figures with regards to $ to make an informative decision about different issues.....

 

[rpames]

I totally agree that taking loans is very common, and there is nothing wrong with that. I'm just saying that if you can take out $100,000 worth of loans and not $200,000, DO IT!

I here way to often from friends that with interest rates so low right now, it is like free money . No matter what the interest rate, you still have to pay it back. We constantly borrow from the future to pay for today, at some point it is going to catch up to us.

As was said earlier, if you can save $100,000 in schooling now...that is $100,000 you will have later.

 

[cpw]

UHCO's class size is set at 100 for entering first years. But, now that I'm a fourth year.. our class has dropped down to 82.

it's a combination of both.. students failing classes and dropping out to do other things (realizing it's not for them). It's not that uncommon at any school.. I'd imagine the numers are similar at other schools (not just UHCO)..especially the ones that start out with larger class sizes.

To clarify... our class started out smaller at 96. So, overall we're down 14.. about half of that was due to people failing pharmacology.

 

[OD2bGreg]

it's a combination of both.. students failing classes and dropping out to do other things (realizing it's not for them). It's not that uncommon at any school.. I'd imagine the numers are similar at other schools (not just UHCO)..especially the ones that start out with larger class sizes.

To clarify... our class started out smaller at 96. So, overall we're down 14.. about half of that was due to people failing pharmacology.

I'm not passing judgement, but WOW that seems like a lot to quit just from failing one class. yikes!

 

[HighlyFanatic]

about half of that was due to people failing pharmacology.

 

[r_salis]

To clarify... our class started out smaller at 96. So, overall we're down 14.. about half of that was due to people failing pharmacology.

Is Pharm 2nd year?

Of our original 75, we were down 3 after 2nd quarter due to (primarily) our Optometry methods/theory class.

 

[Tony.]

To clarify... our class started out smaller at 96. So, overall we're down 14.. about half of that was due to people failing pharmacology.

is this pharmacology course the same as the one that Medical Students take? ( in med school?)

 

[cpw]

Is Pharm 2nd year?

Of our original 75, we were down 3 after 2nd quarter due to (primarily) our Optometry methods/theory class.

Pharm is 2nd year both semesters. General pharm is 3rd semester... Ocular Pharm is 4th semester.

Since UH is not attached to a med school it's not a med school affiliated class.. but our prof does teach med students, PAs, etc. Pharm is just a brutal class no matter when you take it.

 

[christie]

We started with ~160+, now we have ~137 students in our class.

 

[sammyiu]

Sorry if I sounded like I was trying to sell my school, but it has been such a great experience. Anyway, my class will graduate with 70 students. I think we started at 75 and had one legitimate drop-out in the first year and that was in the first semester, not sure what her reasoning was. We also had one drop-out this year after summer clinic she decided it wasn't for her.

The other 3 are now in the class below us. These are for various reasons like failing competency in 2nd year but I don't think anybody left after failing a class. That is one thing that the professors and administration is really good about, finding a way for you to stay in the program even if you have to go to a 5 year program and retake a class or two.

 

[cpw]

well that's the way it is at our school too.. the 7 who failed pharm or any other classes are now on the 5 year track. They just get held back a year... but they end up getting more clinic experience than the rest of us. I guess that's one good thing...

 

[rpames]

Yea, more clinical experience and a larger bill!

At ICO if you fail a class you can take a large comprehensive exam (like a final but much worse). If you pass it, the highest grade you can receive is a D. If that doesn't work you can remediate (spelling???) the class, that involves taking the corse again over the summer. There are no lectures, you study on your own and take new tests. That last resort is taking the entire year over. I've been told that if all your other grades are good (A and B) but you just fail one, they will let you move on to the next year and take the class the next year. I don't know if that is true.