Optometry Final Year | The Penultimate Hurdle
21:05
Third year optometry students. You're about to cross over into your final, busiest year of a degree that has, undoubtedly, made you question your career/life choices and wonder why optometry ever appealed to you. Well, congratulations! You're almost there holding the degree certificate to prove that questionable life decision that has led you up to this point. And if you think you won't make it, trust me, you will. It's just one long grind until then!
I say long, but in actual fact, third year will fly by. You'll blink and it'll be over. And it's simultaneously a comforting, dreadful thing. There's just so much going on that the weeks carry on going and before you know it, finals are around the corner and you're stressing about the Big Stuff. From exams to pre-reg positions, you will be emotionally drained come May next year. But, with a few tips, I hope to make your stressful journey towards graduation, well, a little less stressful.
Third year opens with intro week. Timetables are thrown at you which resemble Ancient Runes and take an age to decipher. The term "clinic" fills you with dread because, really, are you even ready to be testing patients? I can already hear your internal screams of "but I know nothing!" You will be told about all the competencies you need to complete by the end of the year, the multitude of places to which you need to travel for placements, you will hear about looming deadlines and dissertation advice and you will hear the word OSCEs thrown around so much you'll want to cry and it won't be long before you've had a complete breakdown - and hey, this is only week one!
My advice: YOU WILL BE FINE. Not advice, but true nonetheless. I had a fully blown panic attack after that intro lecture and I look back and laugh at what the hell I was so worried about.
Actual advice: Take each day as it comes.
OPTOMETRY FINAL YEAR | THE GUIDE
The timetable looks so crammed you need a magnifier to look at it, but you're in clinics for only half the time you think you will be. You'll never be alone in anything during third year; travelling to placements is as easy as abc when you order an Uber and split the fare between your group who, incidentally, will be your lifeline throughout this year. Write up every lecture with each day. You have no idea how much it'll lighten the burden when exams come round and your notes are up to date. And don't panic about your dissertation; your supervisor will guide you through it so ask lots of questions and do what they tell you (even if you don't agree) - they're the ones marking it after all!
THE LECTURES
Binocular Vision
Anterior Eye
PEG
Professional, Occupational Development and Low Vision
THE DISSERTATION
THE CLINICS
THE PRE-REG
I say long, but in actual fact, third year will fly by. You'll blink and it'll be over. And it's simultaneously a comforting, dreadful thing. There's just so much going on that the weeks carry on going and before you know it, finals are around the corner and you're stressing about the Big Stuff. From exams to pre-reg positions, you will be emotionally drained come May next year. But, with a few tips, I hope to make your stressful journey towards graduation, well, a little less stressful.
Third year opens with intro week. Timetables are thrown at you which resemble Ancient Runes and take an age to decipher. The term "clinic" fills you with dread because, really, are you even ready to be testing patients? I can already hear your internal screams of "but I know nothing!" You will be told about all the competencies you need to complete by the end of the year, the multitude of places to which you need to travel for placements, you will hear about looming deadlines and dissertation advice and you will hear the word OSCEs thrown around so much you'll want to cry and it won't be long before you've had a complete breakdown - and hey, this is only week one!
My advice: YOU WILL BE FINE. Not advice, but true nonetheless. I had a fully blown panic attack after that intro lecture and I look back and laugh at what the hell I was so worried about.
Actual advice: Take each day as it comes.
OPTOMETRY FINAL YEAR | THE GUIDE
The timetable looks so crammed you need a magnifier to look at it, but you're in clinics for only half the time you think you will be. You'll never be alone in anything during third year; travelling to placements is as easy as abc when you order an Uber and split the fare between your group who, incidentally, will be your lifeline throughout this year. Write up every lecture with each day. You have no idea how much it'll lighten the burden when exams come round and your notes are up to date. And don't panic about your dissertation; your supervisor will guide you through it so ask lots of questions and do what they tell you (even if you don't agree) - they're the ones marking it after all!
THE LECTURES
Binocular Vision
- Even if you don't attend the lectures, listen to the audio
- MEMORISE THE MODEL Q&As
- Learn the journal articles inside out - don't memorise the journal but read through the abstract, know the aims of the studies conducted, briefly what was being assessed and why, and the results
- You'll be told to learn book chapters for each topic - it's intense and virtually impossible because who's going to memorise a 600 page book on top of everything else this year? Skim read with your lecture notes at hand and simply add additional notes you think are necessary
- UNDERSTAND the content. If you don't understand it, you don't stand a chance in hell. Watch Youtube videos and read Kanski - they help massively. And try to supplement the lectures with your BV clinics - they help more than you know
Anterior Eye
- Go through every lecture and the scenarios that are in them
- Memorise the surgical procedures inside out
- Know which surgery will be used when
- Know signs and symptoms of anterior eye problems as well as their management - make cue cards to help with making a differential diagnosis
- Learn the differential diagnosis for red eye!
PEG
- Memorise literally everything that comes up in lectures - make cue cards because they'll help in the class test at the end of the year and it helps to make overlapping signs and symptoms less confusing
- Pay special attention to glaucoma!!!
- Attend the lectures - you'll be given hints on what will be examined and what won't be
- Memorise the model Q&As! They're guaranteed to come up
- Look at pictures for different diseases/conditions and learn to recognise them!!! They'll come up in both the class test and final exam and you'll have to know what the diagnosis is from studying a picture alone
- Know even the obscure, rare conditions - they're likely to come up as a question to screw you over
Professional, Occupational Development and Low Vision
- Memorise the Q&As!
- Learn the equations that are taught in the first four lectures and how to methodically apply them to real-life scenario Qs
- Thoroughly go through all the driving and occupational lectures as well as the law-related lectures
- Attend the final revision lecture - you'll be given a guaranteed list of topics that the exam will cover and you need to know nothing more or less than that
Drugs
- KNOW ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING
- No joke - know and memorise absolutely everything that comes up in every lecture
THE DISSERTATION
- Meet your supervisor as often as you can and plan out your whole thesis so you have some form of direction
- Email them as often as you need to - don't worry about annoying them, it's their job
- Set yourself a monthly target of how much should be written, then set weekly deadlines for certain paragraphs/words to be written. (I found it helpful to dedicate one day a week to just write while I spent the rest of my days on lectures - that way, I was in my writing headspace for a full day and could keep the flow going)
- Use journals from databases like PubMed, ScienceDirect and for free articles, use Open Athens as a portal to give you access
- If you can only find info on wikipedia, scroll down to the references section and identify the websites they used as sources
- If you can, finish your dissertation as early as possible so you can dedicate the rest of your time to lectures, your dissertation presentation, and OSCEs (I finished mine by Christmas so my final draft was ready in January and it made the biggest difference - push yourself to do the same, it's worth the relief you'll feel)
- The presentation at the end of the year is so much easier than what's in your head! As long as you follow the poster template you'll be given and know what you've written in your thesis, giving a five minute presentation on it is as easy as pie
THE CLINICS
- Don't stress! It's less daunting than you think - use the time to practise and refine all your skills because you'll regret not doing so when pre-reg begins and you feel as rusty as a nail (yes, I am speaking from experience)
- Use your supervisors! As intimidating as they may be, ask ask ask for help - they have invaluable experience
- Don't beat yourself up when things go wrong because they will go wrong and that's okay - you're only human and only a student optom at the bottom of the ladder...some things will only come with time and even when pre-reg comes, you'll realise that, yes, you're still at the bottom of the ladder
- Use every experience as a learning curve - refine your routine for a sight test and contact lens check, and try to practise every clinical test possible (esp in BV clinics). It'll only make your life easier rather than being a novice at using them when clinically necessary
- Get into your good habits now! I'm trying to do away with bad habits now and I wish I'd done it sooner
- Become a pro at recording your shit - that's half of what makes a great optom
THE PRE-REG
- You should have a pre-reg secured at this point, but if you haven't, don't panic. There's still time. Keep applying because stores take students right through until graduation so there's always a chance. For more pre-reg application advice, you can check out my second-year guide
That's pretty much all the advice I can impart to you future third years. This year is all about time management; as long as you keep on top of your lectures and dissertation as well as your clinic records, it'll be smooth sailing. Make the most of the last of your student life! And try to enjoy all that comes with final year - you'll blink and miss it so make every moment and experience count. It's intense and stressful and you'll wonder how you have so much going on in a week alone, but of the three years of optom, it's by far the most enjoyable. Best of luck - I'll see you on the other side, hopefully with your hat in hand and another crazy year to share with you all ;)
0 comments