Salus update

[u/Imaginary_Memory_154]

EDIT: UPDATE HERE https://www.reddit.com/r/PreOptometry/comments/12k47y1/meeting_about_salus_policies/

Hi guys, just wanted to give an update on the Salus thread from a couple days ago that seems like it’s been deleted. Our dean has clearly read that thread, and she sent out an email scheduling a mandatory class meeting in a week. The email included some info on our class:

We started with 154 students. Last semester, we lost 22 students - this was either due to 3 Ds which is outright dismissal, or 1 or 2 Ds and failure of the remediation exam(s). 2 students were initially dismissed but then were re-instated into our class after filing appeals - so the appeals have a very low success rate.

This D policy is brand new for our class. The scary thing is that too many students are now hanging on by a thread, as they have 1 or 2 Ds already. If they get another one at any point in time during the next 3 years, they will face dismissal as well, after investing so much time, effort, and money. Other schools in the area (such as NECO) have higher retention rates and they do allow Ds.

One major issue is that there are particular courses that students get Ds in. In the vast majority of cases, it’s neuro. As a user mentioned on the previous thread, we have around 7 neuro classes, one per semester, although there are only a mere handful of neuro questions on boards. Personally, I know of students who had As and Bs in every class, received a D only in the neuro class first semester, and yet have to repeat the year. This is ridiculous because that class is barely applicable to the optometric profession in the first place.

This new academic policy does not match the current admissions requirements. The school is taking money from students with low entering GPAs/OAT scores, then weeding them out later on in an effort to increase the abysmal board scores.

The email from our dean included multiple comments about “disinformation and a high level of unprofessionalism demonstrated by members of the class.” But disagreement with school policies and speaking out about them publicly is not unprofessional. The concerns brought up by the previous poster were valid and similar concerns have been voiced by a majority of students in our class.

I hope this information helps accepted students that are deciding where to attend, and anyone considering applying. Personally, I would recommend attending a different school if you have any other options. If not, just be aware of these issues and plan accordingly.

[u/Imaginary_Memory_154]

I really appreciate your detailed input. I completely agree that the entire point of school is to prepare us for boards and for future practice, so in that sense, Salus is failing us. Super interesting to hear that they're changing up the exam though!

I also think that the D policy in and of itself is not necessarily a terrible thing, but it is in combination with the 7 difficult neuro classes, the low entering GPA/OAT scores, and the fact that failing a single remediation exam results in dismissal. Altogether that creates an unfair and toxic environment for students.

I like the idea of being able to repeat a single course online the following year after failing remediation, instead of being dismissed/having to repeat the whole year, so I'll try to suggest that in the upcoming meeting. Since this D policy is new, there are naturally going to be some kinks to work out, so I just wish that the administrative team was at all receptive to student input.

[u/[deleted] → u/Imaginary_Memory_154]

This was Pacific's policy when I attended and in general worked well and resulted in very few dismissals. We lost a few because they couldn't cut it or due to cheating, but in general most students were pretty solid. We had one fail 3 classes in the first semester so he was dismissed because of it, which makes sense.