Please find information below on preparing for optometry, podiatry, and pharmacy school at Colorado College.
Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry. |
American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy. |
American Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine. |
Whether you’ve already decided to go to optometry school or are still thinking about it, it’s important to take the necessary prerequisite courses. While every school’s requirements vary, you can expect basic STEM courses to be required, including:
Information shared here taken from the ASCO's Optometry Admission Test (OAT) page. For more detailed information we encourage you to visit this site, as well as the OAT Candidate Guide.
The OAT is a comprehensive exam that enables optometry education programs to assess the knowledge and preparedness of program applicants. OAT test results are accepted by all optometry schools in the U.S. and Canada. The four-part test is administered year-round by Prometric Test Centers in the U.S. and its territories, including Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, as well as Canada. The Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) is the governing body for the OAT. The test is implemented by the Department of Testing Services (DTS), which is a shared service of the American Dental Association. For complete information on all aspects of the OAT, refer to the OAT Candidate Guide.
Information shared here taken from the ASCO's Become an OD page.
Before you apply to optometry school, you’ll need to take a standardized test. The most common optometry school exam is the OAT—the Optometry Admission Test—and it tests natural sciences, physics, reading comprehension, and quantitative reasoning. While all schools and colleges will accept the OAT, there are other options for standardized tests:
Information shared here taken from the ASCO's Become an OD page.
Applying to optometry school is one of the biggest, most important steps in your path to becoming a Doctor of Optometry. With 24 schools and colleges of optometry in the United States, finding the right one for you depends on a number of factors. Important considerations when looking at schools:
Think about if you want to be in a big or small city, in a warm climate or a cooler climate, or north, south, east or west. You can see where the 23 schools and colleges of optometry are located here.
While your time in optometry school will focus on primary care, if there is a certain area of optometry you want to emphasize, talk to your admissions counselors about it to see if their school or college of optometry could help support that focus. Otherwise, you can start to pursue these special modalities during a residency. Also, some schools offer concurrent programs, like a Master of Science, a Master of Business Administration, and a master’s degree in public health.
Information shared here taken from the ASCO's Become an OD page.
From grants to financial aid, as you think about financing optometry school, there are options to help you. When the time comes to start applying for scholarships, grants and financial aid, it’s important to talk to your admissions counselor about what’s available.
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Information shared here taken from the AACPM's Admissions page.
To enter a podiatric medical school, one must first complete a minimum of three years or 90 semester hours of college credit at an accredited institution. Over 97% of the students who enter podiatric medical school have a bachelor’s degree. Many have also completed some graduate study.
Actual minimum semester credit hour requirements for all of the schools and colleges of podiatric medicine include the following prerequisites all science courses require a lab.
| Biology | 8 semester hours |
| Chemistry (General or Inorganic) | 8 semester hours |
| Organic Chemistry | 8 semester hours |
| Physics | 8 semester hours |
| English | 6 semester hours |
The science courses you take should be those designed for health professional students (pre-medical students), and MUST include laboratory experience. Courses for non-science majors are not accepted.
Information shared here taken from the AACPM's Admissions page.
AACPMAS begins processing admission applications the first Wednesday in August each year for Fall admission the following year. Deadline Dates are as follows: For priority consideration, March 1st of each year for the upcoming Fall admission. The final application deadline date is June 30th of each year for Fall admission of the same year.
Other admission requirements include letters of recommendation which are to be sent directly to the podiatric medical schools, as well as personal interviews.
Please note which colleges will accept electronic letters of recommendation (E-LOR) from letter services for the 2024 application cycle:
| School | Accepting E-LORs |
|---|---|
| AZCPM | Interfolio or Virtual Evals |
| BUSPM | Interfolio |
| DMU-CPMS | Interfolio or Virtual Evals |
| KSUCPM | Interfolio or Virtual Evals |
| LECOM-SOPM | Interfolio or Virtual Evals |
| NYCPM | Interfolio or Virtual Evals |
| SCPM | Interfolio or Virtual Evals |
| SMU-CPM | Interfolio |
| TUSPM | Interfolio or Virtual Evals |
| UTRGV-SOPM | Interfolio or Virtual Evals |
| WUCPM | Interfolio or Virtual Evals |
Traditionally the MCAT has been the only standardized test required for admissions to the podiatric medical schools. MCAT exams taken more than three (3) years prior to application are NOT ACCEPTABLE.
To register for the MCAT and for the dates and test site locations, visit www.aamc.org/students/mcat.
COLLEGES OF PODIATRIC MEDICINE
Acceptable Standardized Tests
| School | Standardized Tests Accepted During the AACPMAS Cycle | Last MCAT Test Date Prior to Fall Start Date |
|---|---|---|
| AZCPM | MCAT | March |
| BUSPM | MCAT | May |
| DMU-CPMS | MCAT | June |
| KSUCPM | MCAT | June |
| LECOM | MCAT | June |
| NYCPM | MCAT | June |
| SCPM | MCAT | June |
| SMU-CPM | MCAT | June |
| TUSPM | MCAT | June |
| UTRGV-SOPM | MCAT | June |
| WUCPM | MCAT | June |
Information shared here taken from the AACPM's Financial Aid page.
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As designated by the associations: AAMC, AACOM, ADEA, AAVMC, AACPM, ASCO, AACP
*NOTE: Course requirements vary for each program and profession. Please check the course listing on the school's website.
Biology - 2 intro course requirement - translates to 3 courses at Colorado College:
Chemistry - 5-course requirement
Physics: 2-course requirement
Math: 2-course requirement
English: 2-course requirement
Courses Highly Recommended by Med, Dental, Vet, etc. Schools
Information shared here taken from the AACP's Future Pharmacy Students page.
Pharmacists are medication experts who enhance patient care and promote wellness. You will use your professional knowledge as a pharmacist to prepare and dispense prescriptions, ensure medicines and doses are correct, prevent harmful drug interactions, and counsel patients on the safe and appropriate use of their medications. As a pharmacist, you will have unique and specialized expertise about the composition of medicines, including their chemical, biological, and physical properties, as well as their manufacture and use. Other health care professionals will rely on you to select and administer medications that offer the best results and quality of life for a particular patient. As a pharmacist you may prepare personalized medications, participate in patient rounds at the hospital, reduce the spread of infections, conduct research or clinical trials, or focus on a specific patient population or disease state (e.g., diabetes, heart disease, asthma, HIV, and pain management). Be a pharmacist and help people live better, healthier lives!
Information shared here taken from the PharmCAS homepage. We also encourage you to take a look at the AACP's Admissions page.
Information shared here taken from the AACP's Financial Aid and Scholarships page. We encourage you to take a look at this page for more detailed information, including some suggested scholarship and loan programs.
Your college financial aid office is often the best source of information about loan, grant and scholarship programs. How much your education will cost depends on where you enroll, distance to your hometown and the extent to which public dollars are used to support the pharmacy institution. Every dollar you spend on your education is a dollar well invested. The return in direct salary benefits and other less tangible gains will be far less than your initial investment.
Pharmacy colleges and schools may offer financial assistance, or administer funds provided by local or state pharmaceutical associations, practicing pharmacists, drug manufacturers and wholesalers, memorial funds and foundations, alumni associations, local chapters of pharmaceutical organizations and fraternities, as well as general university funds allocated for this purpose. Contact the college or school of pharmacy of your choice for information. Pre-professional students may be eligible to receive similar assistance from the community colleges or universities they plan to attend before entering professional schools.
AACP does not administer any financial assistance programs directly to students.
Additional information can be found on the Financial Literacy page.
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