Middle States Commission on Higher Education

14

State University of New York State College of Optometry

guidelines, standards and policy. (2.10.1) These appointments are reviewed and renewed biannually.

Externship sites are monitored using a number of mechanisms. As mentioned above, there is an initial review process. Students are required to log each patient encounter, including demographic, diagnostic and treatment information, using a Meditrek system. The system provides summary data for each site and the adjunct faculty at the site that is reviewed by the director of externship programs. At the conclusion of a rotation, students complete a detailed evaluation of the site and the adjunct faculty that is reviewed by the director of externships and made available to third ‐ year students to assist in their site selection. Additionally, site visits are conducted by the director. Decisions to modify retain or discontinue externships sites are made on an ongoing basis by the director of externships in consultation with the dean. The director compares student experiences and education both within and across sites for consistency and quality. (2.10.2) The externship sites are provided with a detailed Externship Manual that includes a history of the program, goals and objectives, grading guidelines, instructions for the use of Meditrek, extern and clinical instructor responsibilities and assorted program policies and forms. (2.10.3) In addition to above stated detail, the Middle States members of the team report that while no undergraduate programs are provided, graduate and professional programs in clinical optometry (O.D. degree) and research in vision sciences (M.S./Ph.D. degrees [there are currently 11 Ph.D. students]) and residency and continuing education programs are offered. These are well ‐ designed and fully meet the institution’s mission. The optometry residency programs are accredited and the continuing education programs are approved through specialty review processes. Residency programs result in a Certificate of Completion. The institution follows good practices in the area of assessment and continuous quality improvement in all curricular matters. The curricula are competency based and include expected outcomes for graduating students in all areas including attributes, knowledge, skills and ethical values. The Ph.D. program has undergone some improvements but needs to better articulate expected outcomes with respect to skills and attributes and provide these expectations to students and faculty in a coordinated written fashion. Middle States Review: The institution meets Standard 11, 13 and 14.

Transfer policies and credit are contained in Admissions Policies and Procedures and are published for students in the Student Handbook for OD students and in the Graduate Policy Document for graduate students.

International experiences are in place and plans for their expansion is underway. The oversight for all externship experiences is commendable, and this includes the international externships for which all local standards and oversight measures apply.

There are annual assessments of the impact of all of these activities on the ability of the College to sustain its commitment to the quality of its core mission. Indeed these activities enhance the College.

Strengths, significant accomplishments, significant progress, or exemplary/innovative practices

• The College has implemented a curricular change, which is designed to increase clinical integration in the first years of the curriculum. • The College provides students with a large and diverse patient population. • In addition to the jointly identified strengths, the Middle States team would like to commend the College for its quality assurance at externship sites. • In addition to the jointly identified strengths, the Middle States team would like to commend the College for its well ‐ established system of student evaluation that measures the achievement of learning objectives using multiple measures and provides feedback to the students.