First year is over?!

May 18, 2015

It feels like just yesterday that I sat down to write my first post about orientation and the beginning of the school year. Now my first year of optometry school is complete! Even though there were some nights spent studying that felt as though they lasted years, it honestly flew by in the blink of an eye. It feels so strange to think of my classmates and myself as second years! I’m amazed when I reflect on everything I’ve learned this year and all the people I’ve met who’ve positively impacted my first year as an optometry student at Ohio State. I’m so lucky to have had this amazing opportunity to study at such an awesome school.

This past week we took our final course of the year called Keystone. The class allowed us to apply all the basic science knowledge we gained throughout the year to certain clinical cases. We worked in groups to “solve” the cases and present them to faculty members and teach other students the background knowledge behind certain causes for red eye, double vision, blurred vision and visual field losses. I really enjoyed getting to work with a group of my classmates to reinforce just how much we really know about the eye and the body as a whole even after one year.

After taking the Keystone final, we celebrated on Saturday with our White Coat Ceremony at the Ohio Union. This is a day that I think most of my class and I have been looking forward since the very beginning of the year. When I felt as though I couldn’t study any longer, I would look at the countdown to the ceremony I set in my phone and remind myself what all the hard work was for. Putting on that crisp, white coat for the very first time in front of my family and classmates was such an incredible memory and a feeling that I will never forget. I’m so excited to mark this time as a transition from solely didactic coursework into the beginnings of clinical care. I am so proud of my classmates and I for getting to this point in our optometric career—you rock Class of 2018!

As for summer, I am really looking forward to relaxing and having a small break from classes. I’m planning on working in an optometry office, enjoying beautiful weather with friends and to travel a lot. I’m especially excited to be going to the American Optometric Association’s national conference, Optometry’s Meeting, in Seattle with a group of my classmates. Exploring a new city while also getting to network with doctors and sit in on continuing education courses- what more could you ask for?! I’ll let you know how that goes at the end of June!

As for now, thanks for reading along as I navigated my way through the first year of optometry school. Not only was it a year of learning so much about the eye and optics and clinical coursework but even about myself. For any prospective students out there, I hope my posts shed a little bit of light on what it’s like to be in optometry school and that it’s an achievable goal—keep working hard! One fact I know for sure after this year is that it’s definitely worth it. I can’t wait to continue to share my experiences with everyone as I move on to my second year at The Ohio State University College of Optometry. As always… Go Bucks!