Business & Tech

Navigating The Job Market

The Vision of Cara Wolfish: How Recent Job Market Woes Affect Optometrists

Cara Wolfish is a careful study. She attacks everything with a fastidious and keen eye, never one to plunge into an undertaking without perfecting the dive first. Wolfish, 28, graduated from Boston University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in biology.

“I gave myself three months to find a job before resorting to a move back home with my parents,” Wolfish said. “I was fortunate to find a job relatively quickly through a friend who was graduating from Harvard Medical School.”

Wolfish worked as a research lab technician in the neurology, immunology, and genetics department at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. There she studied the genetics of diseases like multiple sclerosis and diabetes. She was also involved in research at MIT.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

“It was actually while doing MS research that I learned of an optometrist’s role in preventative health,” Wolfish said. “Very often, your eyes can indicate that something is wrong with another organ in your body. Optometrists can assist in diagnosing these issues early by looking at the vessels in the back of the eye or following up on a simple complaint of eye irritation, pain, or double vision. Optometrists play a major role in co-managing systemic diseases, thyroid conditions, cardiovascular disease, tumors and more.”

Wolfish worked at Brigham and Women’s Hospital for nearly three years before deciding to apply to professional school in optometry.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

“I couldn’t be a lab technician forever, I missed having human contact—I essentially worked with robotic machinery—and I didn’t know what else to do with a bachelor’s in biology. So, I moved back home to New York to save money while I applied to school,” she explained. “[And there] I did some administrative work in downtown Manhattan to pass the time and make ends meet.”

Wolfish worked as an office assistant for a community outreach organization. “They joked about how overqualified I was,” she laughed, “having gone from sequencing DNA to printing and stapling hundreds of copies of a weekly mailing. The CEO agreed to let me work there out of pity, knowing I’d only be there for a few months. He made it clear that he would never let me work in such a position long-term—for my own benefit.”

Wolfish enrolled at the Pennsylvania College of Optometry in August 2007. Optometry is a four-year, post-baccalaureate program, with an additional one-year residency option for specialties like pediatrics, low vision, ocular disease, and contact lenses.

“I knew I would have to take out loans, and perhaps sell a kidney,” she admitted, “but I thought it would be worth the investment in the long run.”

Wolfish is now in the middle of an eighteen-month-long process of clinical rotations. She currently interns at the Naval Submarine Base Health Clinic in Groton, CT. While she has not officially applied to jobs in her field yet, the selection process for clinical rotations sees similar gameplay.

“I make phone calls and send resumes,” she explained. “I have to make sure it’s a good match on both ends, even if the rotations are each only three months long. I network with ODs from various states. I attend national and local conferences, like those hosted by the American Academy of Optometry and the American Optometric Association. Every now and then my school will have a ‘meet-and-greet’ with area doctors, pharmaceutical reps, and contact lens vendors.”

The job market for students graduating optometry school is, as with other professions, unaccommodating.

“When I was applying to school, US News & World Report ranked optometry the second-best profession in the nation,” said Wolfish. “Baby boomers were expected to retire by the time I’d graduate; there was an increased need for eye care. But the economy isn’t what it was in 2006. Fewer doctors are retiring, fewer established practices are hiring, and graduates don’t have enough capital to start their own practice.”

Many of her peers have taken work at large chain optical outfits to avoid unemployment. “They swore they’d never work there, because they wouldn’t have the time to devote to their patients,” Wolfish explained, “but those large chains are providing opportunities in both position and pay in many states.”

Some students avoid facing the murky job market by enrolling in residency programs. “They learn a specialization,” said Wolfish, “and that gives them a slight edge in the market upon completion.”

So, what can be done to improve the job market? “Prayer?” Wolfish offered, laughing.

“I have 13 months of clinical rotations left before graduating,” she continued, “and I hope to continue meeting doctors along the way. Perhaps one, with whom I may mesh particularly well, will offer me a position.”

Of course, it doesn’t hurt to have three months of experience on an active naval base. Wolfish’s typical patient load offers her more diversity than your average rotation.

“I’m getting quite skilled at managing acute emergencies, ocular infections, given the living and working conditions on a submarine,” she said, and smirked, “and removing foreign bodies [shards of steel, copper, and ash] from the eye. Roger that!”


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here