What I have learned during my fourth year, while rotating with students from other optometry schools, is that ICO is one of the few schools that has a break week in between quarters. Break week even occurs during fourth year. While this may not seem like a lot while you are a student at ICO, especially if you have a mid-week clinic shift at the IEI, it is a perk. Many other schools only have a long weekend between their quarter breaks.
Graduate school is very demanding and can definitely be very stressful. So, I highly recommend taking advantage of these break weeks, even if you only have part of the week free. Traveling during this time has been a big goal of mine. Since I am not sure if I will have much time available to travel following school, I’ve tried my hardest to save up for trips during our time off. This has been a great way to unwind and explore!
Whether it is traveling the world, heading home, or even just taking the time to explore Chicago while you’re in the city, definitely try to make the most out of break week. There are many ways to find cheap, affordable options for travel. Just budget well, do some research and shop around. You never know when you will have pre-scheduled time off again, and at ICO, we are lucky to have that!
