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This is a cooperative program between Gannon University and the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO). This accelerated program is designed to assist young men and women who wish to enter the profession of optometry.

Following three years of pre-optometry studies at Gannon, students in the program will be evaluated and will make application to the PCO and pursue the four years of the optometry curriculum at PCO. At the end of the first year of study at PCO, upon application to Gannon, students in the program will receive a bachelor’s degree (in Health Sciences or other degree programs for which requirements have been met) from Gannon. The degree of Doctorate of Optometry will be awarded to students who complete the four year course of study at PCO. One quarter of the student’s final year of study will be spent in “clerkships” (institutional settings) and “preceptorships” (office settings) in Northwest Pennsylvania.

Admission Requirements for
Incoming Gannon Students

• Completion of four years of science courses at the high school level. Three of these science courses must be Biology, Chemistry, and Physics
• No grade lower than a “C” in high school science courses
• Completion of four years of math courses at the high school level with no grade lower than a “C”
• Minimum SAT score of 1050 (out of Math and Critical Reading), or ACT score of 23 or higher
• Minimum cumulative high school GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale
• Class rank in the top 25 percent

Continuation Requirements at PCO

• Satisfactory completion of required courses of study at Gannon University
• Nomination by the Joint Pennsylvania College of Optometry-Gannon University Selection Committee. Student candidates qualified for entrance into the first professional year of optometry shall be presented to the Pennsylvania College of Optometry for admission