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Optometry Outcomes & Career Options
Outcomes & Career Options
Optometrists provide essential vision care, diagnosing and managing eye conditions while prescribing glasses or contact lenses. They examine patients to detect vision problems, eye diseases, and issues related to depth perception, color vision, and eye coordination. While most work in general practice, some specialize in pediatric or geriatric eye care, low vision rehabilitation, contact lenses, or vision therapy. Others focus on occupational vision safety or research. In addition to clinical practice, optometrists may teach, conduct research, consult, or serve on health advisory committees.
Educational Qualifications
Licensed optometrists must have a Doctor of Optometry degree from an accredited optometric college/university and pass the state board examination. This degree required a minimum of 6 to 7 years of higher education consisting of a 3/2-year professional degree program preceded by 4 years of pre-optometric study at La Sierra University. Those wishing to advance in a specialized field may study for a masters or Ph.D. degree in visual science, physiological optics, neurophysiology, public health, health administration, health information and communication, or health education. Career officers in the Armed Forces may work toward advances degrees and do vision research.
Job Outlook
9% Job Market Growth
$131,860 Median Salary
The median annual wage for optometrists was $131,860 in May 2023. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $64,980, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $204,100.
In May 2023, the median annual wages for optometrists in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:
- Outpatient care centers $182,200
- Offices of physicians $143,440
- Offices of optometrists $125,140
Partial information in this page was retrieved from Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Optometrists, at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/optometrists.htm (visited April 17, 2024).
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