[luvelyasian]

i'm going to try to be an optometrist but i don't know which route to take:

an undergraduate school that offers a pre-optometry major (but you need to get a 3.2 gpa majoring in Biology your first semester to make it )
and this way you spend three years at the University and if you get the score on the 320, you get into Optometry school a year early
(plus this school isn't known for their science stuff)

the other school would be a four-year school accredited for excellence in science, but i'd just do the regular Biology major..

is it more important to go to the school with a more convienient major? i don't know if I can get a 3.2 gpa -- what number grade would that even be? it sounds hard considering the transition period you have to make when you first start college..

how important is the undergraduate program (pre-optometry vs. biology major) to optometry schools? i've already emailed but no reply

i got into both schools btw and i have no idea which way to go

[smellmemory]

which schools? 3.2 is pretty low if you're shooting for anything related to medical..... most students in college have to try getting at least a 3.5 to even apply to the most selective med schools out there

[rich.paekk]

can you name the schools pplease?

[YellohSwtTart]

yeah, a 3.2 is pretty low to apply to any medical school, but since it's frshman GPA, i guess it's alright. and honestly, if you're used to getting A's in high school, you'll prolly get mostly A's in college, especially freshman year. high school grades are a good predictor of college grades, i think. (unless you go crazy and party all the time)

but no, it doesnt matter whether you major in pre-opt or just bio, but im guessing you'd be getting more exposure to optometry if you were to go into pre-opt program. i think you'll be better off with the pre-opt school, but im no expert.

[luvelyasian]

the school with the pre-optometry program is SUNY Albany and the other school is SUNY StonyBrook

you need a 3.2 your first term in Biology to get into the optometry program-- it doesn't guarantee admission into Optometry school though, i think...

is a 3.2 in the 80's? i think i might be able to get that-- but i'm sooo not sure about the math part ><

[YellohSwtTart]

yeah a 3.2 is in the 80s

[luvelyasian]

yeah a 3.2 is in the 80s

thank yoos i think i'll be drop socializing and job prospects my first semester there just in case

btw if any of you guys are interested in this profession (more competition for me )

but i asked my eye doctor about his job and all and he said now the majority are women and that back when he was in optometry school there was only 2-3 girls in his class.
also said a lot were asian women too.. (then again its the city)

girls can leave for pregnancy or whatnot and be able to pick it right up
but as expected, people don't come frequently, usually once a year for checkups

and he said he wasn't a good student, wasn't good in math (like me) but he 'did what he had to do'

so that's inspiring i think..

except he told me that he treats every patient like there might be something wrong and that i could've left ten minutes earlier LoL that made me go

granted it looks like a pretty boring job... but steady enough i suppose

[smellmemory]

hmm..... i guess the world does need a few more optometrists..... i personally would need to do something with my life that would satisfy my interests.... but to each his/her own

[luvelyasian]

hmm..... i guess the world does need a few more optometrists..... i personally would need to do something with my life that would satisfy my interests.... but to each his/her own

i actually enjoy writing but i don't think i personally can make a living out of it although i know a lot of ppl can

sadly too many need glasses and at younger ages too =/ i got mine in 7th grade and my little sister got it in 5th-- because of computers

[atalamarche10]

Hey, I was wondering, are you majorly interested in Bio or are just taking it to get into optometry school because it's the easiest route?
I dont know if I want to do that..because I hate AP Bio so much..

[luvelyasian]

Hey, I was wondering, are you majorly interested in Bio or are just taking it to get into optometry school because it's the easiest route?
I dont know if I want to do that..because I hate AP Bio so much..

I'm choosing Biology for that reason-- plus it seems easier than other sciences (i enjoyed regular high school biology)

it sucks that you hate it, but you have to take the required courses for optometry school anyway so why not major in biology and just take add-on classes that interest you?

i think majoring in something that you won't make a career out of means you will take extra classes you wouldn't necessarily like anyways.. so choosing a few you like to fill your credits while taking your required job-related major classes seem more convienient.

just a thought

honestly i'm worried about majoring in biology also because i know i won't necessarly 'enjoy' it.. but i hated math but got through the studying to get a decent grade on my math b regents which for me was a HUGE deal

[luvelyasian]

so.. for those of you that want to be optometrists.. would you rather do a regular undergraduate program or try for the 3 year program? sure you could possible get it done a year quicker but it seems like very rigorous work...

which route would you take?

[litoxshortaii]

i'd rather do the 3 year program. my cousin went to a pharmacy school which isnt that great of a school >< compared to others, but bc it focused mainly on pharmacy, she was able to get the education she needed instead of spending more time (or money) than needed by going to a big university with a different major. now she has a great job at 28 making 100k+ a year with her pharmacist husband who makes abt the same too *jealous*. anyway, i think it'd be better to do the pre-opt program.

im also *thinking* of getting into optometry.. does anyone know any other schools that have a pre-optometry program or optometry as a major?

[luvelyasian]

for cuny's c.s.i and city college.. that's all i know

well.. i decided i'll go the four year route-- i think i'd like to dabble in other courses as well like language and english and i think it will be hard to have just classes of interest if i have to cram really hard requirements in 3 years

...plus i guess cuz the school is closer

does your cousin like being a phamarcist? i hear its very competitive.. its more schooling than pharmacy, i believe...?

[c h r i s t i n e]

i want to be an optometrist and i'm going to uc san diego to major in human biology. they don't have a pre-optometry course that i know of, so i decided to stick to biology. i'm going to ask the counselor if they have any classes that will prepare me for optometry grad. school. i don't know... but yeah. i'm shooting to go to berkeley for optometry...

[Eddie]

^
Hey didn't you get into stanford?

[luvelyasian]

ack-- i know the 3 year program makes sense.. but the school's a bit far for me..

does anyone think i'm making a huge mistake by just choosing stonybrook instead of albany?