Hi, I'm a first year at WesternU and many of my classmates use Macs. The reason why the school recommends a PC is because the M&S software that is downloaded on your laptop at the beginning of the year is required for vision screenings (part of fall curriculum) and many of our labs. The people with Macs just bought a really cheap PC for this purpose & use their Macs for everything else. I myself have a PC so there may be other ways to get around this that I don't know about (you can private message me if you really want me to try to find a classmate who got away with not getting a PC).
For the record, I am LOVING my experience here at WUCO. The professors are incredibly supportive and always willing to help, by e-mail or in person. I love my classmates and everything "janedoe88" has written in response to your post is an exaggeration or a lie. For one, I can't think of a single mean professor!! Our professors are our STRENGTH! They do EVERYTHING in their power to help you not just pass a class, but really learn the material. That one comment "janedoe88" made about professors "purposely" trying to fail students is the biggest lie. Also, our IT department is so nice and fixes any problem with your laptop (although yes, only on PCs). Of course because we're a new program, the curriculum is still being changed, but it improves every year and should be quite settled by next year. Only a few classes are three weeks long, and all the material you learn is a foundation for future courses, so it's not like you would take the three-week course and never use the material again. I personally enjoy the asynchronous schedule and have succeeded in it, as it really helps keep school from feeling repetitive and not having a true finals week is lovely. We do not have a midterm/final every week, but we definitely must study a lot; what else would you expect being in optometry school? There are a few classes where you have to get at least 70% on every exam to pass the entire class, but why should the standard be any lower? We're going to have DOCTOR in our title, and I would like to think being BETTER than average at ALL times is important. I am also confident that WesternU will be accredited by early summer (earliest possible time for a new school).
I am excited that you are coming to WesternU, and I hope you chose it because you truly wanted to come here (apparently unlike "janedoe88")! Every person is different, but I know I belonged at WesternU and am thankful I chose it. Work hard and you'll have a great experience!!
