MSCHE/ACOE Self Study

When prospective students visit the College prior to making application, they are welcomed by the vice president of student affairs and introduced to 2 or 3 faculty members of the Admissions Committee. In an informal setting, prospective students are offered one-on-one counseling sessions by a faculty member and also provided with the opportunity to converse with other prospective students who are visiting on the same day. These prospective students also meet with the director of financial aid and are provided a tour of the college by a current SUNY Optometry student or faculty member. During on-campus interview days, students who have applied to the professional OD program meet more formally with three members of the Admissions Committee. The purpose of the interview is to assess the candidate’s motivation for entering the profession of optometry; knowledge of the profession; interpersonal & leadership skills; and, of course, academic preparation & maturity. In conjunction with the interview, the candidates are addressed by the vice president for student affairs, given a tour of the clinical facilities by a current SUNY Optometry student or faculty member, and are taken to lunch by current OD students. The overall goal is to portray the College as a challenging and stimulating academic and clinical environment that is highly supportive of its student population. A goal is to increase the yield from 55 to 60%. The Orientation Survey administered to the Class of 2013 (N = 71) found that 90%, 83%, and 89% of students gave above average ratings to the College web site, recruitment literature and Student Handbook, respectively. 6.6.1 The program publishes information on policies and procedures on academic and professional standards, grading, attendance, disciplinary conduct, retention, dismissal and reinstatement, non-discrimination policy, due process, transfer, academic calendar, tuition, fees, refund policy, honors, scholarship and awards, and other related matters. Detailed policies and procedures on academic and professional standards, grading, attendance, disciplinary conduct, retention, dismissal and reinstatement, non-discrimination policy, due process, transfer, academic calendar, tuition, fees, refund policy, honors, scholarship and awards, and other related matters regarding the professional program are published on pages 18-27 and 54-64 of the online College Catalog http://www.sunyopt.edu/images/College_Catalog.pdf. Transfer into the professional program is discussed on page 22. Related policies can also be found on pages 40-47 of the online Student Handbook (http://www.sunyopt.edu/current/PDF/StudentHandbook.pdf (Appendix E-8). The Graduate Policy Document publishes policies and procedures for the graduate program (pages 4-7 at http://www.sunyopt.edu/research/docs/POLICYDOC.pdf or Appendix B-13). Equivalent policies and procedures for the residency program are published in the Manual of Procedures for Residency Programs (Appendix B- 18b: in particular, pages 27-28).

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