Student Life Blogs

12/27/11

Fall is Over!!!

Season’s Greetings to All..

After six finals in seven days, the fall semester has finally come to an end, and I can finally relax and breathe for a few weeks until the spring semester starts. It has been a very long semester, but I battled through. The studying for long hours and practicing technique for long hours has paid off.

Up next in the spring are Anterior and Posterior Segment, Vision Therapy, Contact Lenses, Theory & Methods IV, Ocular Pharmacology, and Clinical Internship. After talking to the third year students, this semester will by far be the most challenging as a student here at SCO. Not to mention we have the added pressure of passing pre-clinic checkouts toward the end of the semester which then deems us ready to see patients all by ourselves.

For now, I can honestly say that I am getting more and more confident with my abilities and technique in the exam room, but for now…. I will worry about that come January 5^th, when the new semester starts. Until then, I am relaxing and enjoying the break. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Until next time, Later~

Posted by Amy Dunbar at 12/27/11

12/22/11

One semester down...many more to go!

Can it really be true...did the completion of my Theory and Methods final exam today really mean my first semester of optometry school has come to a close? You betcha!

I leave in the morning for my old Kentucky home and can't wait to catch up with the Bluegrass state. I've definitely grown as a person these last few months, and I'm excited to share all the budding knowledge I've gained from my first-semester at SCO.

I know time will fly in this short break, so I plan to take full advantage of rest, relaxation, and Christmas cheer. Soon enough, I know I'll be once again knee deep in classes, practicals, and exams.

To SCO, my professors, and the Class of 2015-- thanks for making this such a memorable first-semester.

Cheers to a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Until 2012...Carpe Diem,

Amy

Posted by Amy Dunbar at 12/22/11

12/19/11

Just Keep Swimming!

Finals have arrived and I'm actually almost done! Over a week ago, I wasn't sure how I was going to get everything done before packing up and heading north. Besides practicals, which mostly finished at the end of November, we've taken 6 exams and have just one more tomorrow. As a class, we are able to pick our own exam schedule. In order to avoid having two exams on the same day, we had a Saturday exam. In the past 6 days, we've had 5 exams. Yikes. Needless to say, it will definitely be a much deserved two weeks in Northern Michigan. It's been the kind of week where I keep telling myself, like little lost Nemo, to "Just keeping swimming."

It's weird to think that another semester of optometry school is over (almost!). I'm 3/8 of the way done! Second year has been a blast with learning new skills in lab, as well as finally getting time with patients in the eye center and school screenings. I've gotten to meet a lot of great first years and become more familiar with the 3rd and 4th years. It's also been really fun to meet prospective students and their guests on interview day.

Now it's time to clean my apartment, pack up my sweaters and mittens and get ready to go back to the mitten state! Alright, I need to study a little bit too. Happy Holidays and safe travels to all over the break!

Posted by Amy Dunbar at 12/19/11

12/9/11

Hopefully, I'm done with National Boards!

Hey everyone! Last week I took the final written portion of the National Board Exam (Part 2). I’m so glad it’s over. I studied really hard so all I can do now is keep my fingers crossed until we find out our scores at the end of January!

Now for some GREAT news… I found out yesterday that I PASSED the Clinical skills series of the National Board Exam (Part 3)!!! That’s the exam I had to travel to Charlotte, North Carolina to take back in October. I was pretty confident about that one but it’s still a relief to see that little “P” next to my score on their website haha!! I’m another step closer to being an Optometrist!

I’ve had a busy couple of weeks since Thanksgiving with NBEO and a few Christmas parties already. Also, a group of us 4^th years went to see “The Nutcracker” last weekend at The Orpheum, featuring the Memphis Ballet and the Memphis Symphony. It was amazing! All these years I’ve lived in Tennessee and that was my first time to see a show at the Orpheum, it is beautiful! And this week we had to give a presentation for our Contact Lens rotation based on a patient encounter we have had this semester. It’s always good to learn from your colleagues about their experiences.

I’ve only got 2 more weeks at SCO and then it will be off to my next (and final) rotation outside of our Clinic. I’ll be spending the next 4 months at West Tennessee Eye, here in Memphis. I am looking forward to a change of pace but will also miss everyone at The Eye Center and SCO.

I wish you all Happy Holidays and a great start to the New Year, 2012. THE YEAR I GRADUATE WOOHOO!!!!

Posted by Amy Dunbar at 12/9/11

12/6/11

Oh December...

December is a month many people look forward to all year long. Snow, Christmas songs, and holiday cheer seem to surround us. There's only one problem. FINALS! I seem to have to force myself not to think about all the fun and exciting times break will bring because when I start to, it's so much harder to study! This Friday we have our final in Posterior Segment Disease. A whole 90 pages worth of notes!

Luckily, as this semester's finals near, I'm realizing I have it pretty good. During third year we have a lot less classes than previous years so therefore, less finals! We only have three tests during actual finals week, therefore we actually get out a whole two days earlier than the first and second years. Just another perk I guess you can look forward to!

Unfortunately, with the closing of this semester brings the opening of next that much closer. The semester I have to take Part 1 of national boards. Students have already begun studying! I know it's gonna be a lot of hard work but it's just one more chapter in the life of an optometry student that we all must face. Wish me luck and have a wonderful holiday!

Posted by Amy Dunbar at 12/6/11