I wanted to be an optometrist when I was only 10 years old. Why? I had some kind of odd fascination with eyeglasses. I was obsessed with getting a pair of my own. In my situation, having perfect eyesight was a distinct disadvantage, so I had to hatch a plan. After lots of squinting in class, I approached my teacher and lied with conviction, complaining that I couldn’t see the blackboard. This symptom got me first to the school nurse and then finally on to an optometrist for an eye exam where I tried my best Mr. Magoo impression to no avail. I would have to wait two more long years until the gods finally smiled on me when, by some miracle, I acquired enough astigmatism to warrant my first bona fide set of prescription eyeglasses! Along with my love of people and wanting to take care of them, subsequent visits to the optometrist and shadowing, I sealed the deal—optometry was now officially what I wanted to do with my life.
I made first contact with the Southern California College of Optometry when I was in 8th grade. My older sister had a newly minted driver’s license and so I coerced her into driving me all the way from our home in La Mirada to Los Angeles, then SCCO’s home. After a master planning effort to plot out our route with a paper map folded in 8 places (I had such a hard time with that map!), we arrived at SCCO where my sister quickly surmised that I didn’t have an appointment with an admissions advisor. She called me a loser, drove me all the way back home and the next day, phoned to help make the requisite appointment.
I entered high school in the late 1960’s (ouch, that hurt) when young females wanted to be anything but what I’d chosen as my newly dedicated pursuit—a science geek. I wore thick horn-rimmed black eyeglass frames (told you I was serious) and hung around chemistry lab after class. This was at a time when women just did not pursue careers in science and being the tomboy that I was, that was fine with me. This trend continued right through into undergrad, attending many classes where I was the only female--bespectacled or not--in the class. At a recent high school reunion, many of my classmates still remember me as the science geek with the blinders on—many envious of my joy and passion for my future profession.
I graduated from SCCO in 1977. Looking back with 35 years of experience as an optometrist, I am awed to know that I chose this wonderful profession way-back-when and with only my juvenile perspective to inform me. In 1977 when I graduated from optometry school, the profession began a series of major changes to its practice scope: securing the rights to use diagnostic drugs (dilating drops), securing the rights to prescribe therapeutic drugs (huge change!), being recognized as physicians by the federal government and treating glaucoma. In some US states, optometry has made even bigger strides into minor surgery, use of lasers, hospital privileges...etc. If I had the opportunity to go back and make another choice and knowing what I do today about health care and my own hardwiring, I’d make the same choice for optometry--nobody loves this profession more than I do. http://www.ketchum.edu/index.php/about/administration-directory
I grew up with optometry and now it’s your turn to inherit its future. That’s what this blog is about—getting you into optometry and I am just the person to help you achieve this goal. We’re going to talk about the admissions process, how to prepare to take the OAT, how to be a competitive applicant, how to prepare to interview, to name a few. We’re going to talk about SCCO, student life and what it’s like to be an optometric intern. I am just the person to help you because I am very persuasive, motivating and I am completely sold on optometry as the best profession in health care and I speak from experience.
Get ready to dialogue. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and please, chime in on discussions. I want to know what I can help you with.
I have a new cub reporter. Her name is Erin Major, Class of 2020. She’s going to be helping me with the Blog, especially in the area of student life. Erin hails from Colorado Springs, CO. She completed her undergrad degree at University of Colorado, Boulder. Southern California is […]
Another great information exchange on the topic of preparing to take the OAT came together on the SCCO’s Pre-Optometry Facebook Group page, spearheaded by 2nd year student, Michael Goering. I asked him to reproduce it for the Blog and so here it is… My name is Michael Goering and […]
Here’s a post taken from Student Doctor Dot Net where a successful OAT test-taker outlines her strategy of how she prepared before and even on test day. Realize I have no way to validate this information; I am simply reposting what she self-reported in this online forum. As […]
When I chose optometry, a chief appeal was that I would be able run my own business, to be my own boss, and to implement my own vision on how I wanted to serve in this profession. If you have the same objective, then you will LOVE this […]
It’s time to start working on your application for this year’s 2016-17 admissions cycle. To get you started, here’s a terrific article about applying through OptomCAS. The article provides tips on how to get your application completed, and then a detailed “roadmap” as to how your application will move […]
Here’s an article that will provide both entertainment and motivation! It is the latest offering from ASCO’s Blog. The article features current optometry students in every year of their four year programs. I always tell pre-optometry students that they are doing the hard part now, which is all the preparation […]
As Marshall B. Ketchum University evolves into an interprofessional institution, it is preparing both its curriculum and technology for the future of medical education in which technology is especially important to learning and growth for both students and the university. What follows is a press release heralding the […]
Eryn Kraning, Director of Admissions, SCCO
Jane Ann Munroe, OD, Assistant Dean of Admissions, SCCO