Doctors of optometry provide over half of all primary vision care in this country. Although they are not medical doctors, they are trained and licensed to examine the eyes, diagnose problems, and prescribe treatment.

Because there are several areas of specialization, optometry provides career flexibility, such as pediatrics, geriatrics, occupational vision, and low or partial vision.

With favorable working conditions, regular hours, a minimum of emergency calls, and many career options, optometry offers great freedom in choosing a location to live and practice.

Optometry is one of the top income-earning medical professions. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median income of all optometrists $114,000. Those in private practice may earn more.

The career outlook for optometry is good. The need for optometric care is expected to increase because the U.S. population is growing older and vision problems become more prevalent with age.

Advances in diagnosing and treating vision problems, together with an increasing awareness of vision care needs at every age, give optometry a solid future. There are currently more than 34,000 practicing optometrists and the need for new practitioners will grow between 18% and 26% by 2012.

Optometrists can choose from the following types of practice:

• Solo Practice—An optometrist working in his or her own office. More than half of practicing optometrists are in solo practices, making them both care providers and business people.
  
• Group Practice—Two or more optometrists working in the same office. In a group practice, the optometrists often specialize in areas such as contact lenses, children’s vision, or low vision.
  
• Interdisciplinary Practice—A practice with other health professionals, such as dentists or physicians. Optometrists can also practice in HMOs or in prepaid group practices.
  
• The Armed Forces and Veterans Administration—Optometrists provide approximately 70% of the eye care services needed by the U.S. Air Force, Army, Navy, and other service-related organizations. Doctors of optometry are commissioned as captains in the Air Force and Army and as lieutenants in the Navy. Optometrists also serve in Veterans Administration Medical Centers and outpatient clinics.
  
• U.S. Public Health Service—The U.S. Public Health Service provides medical care in rural areas of the nation and to Native Americans.
  
• Teaching—Preparing students to become vision care practitioners in clinics, hospitals, and universities.
  
• Research—Private research by optometrists at universities or other similar settings. A graduate degree in a related field such as physiology or psychology is helpful or required.

The optometry professional program is four years. Although a specific college major is not required, the majority of students who enter optometry school have completed an undergraduate degree in the sciences, such as biology, chemistry, mathematics, or physics. Requirements for admission to most schools of optometry include courses in English, mathematics, physics, chemistry, and biology. A few schools require or recommend courses in psychology, history, sociology, speech, and business.

Does optometry sound like a field you’d be interested in learning more about? The website of the American Optometric Association—www.aoa.org—has helpful information about eye problems and about a career in optometry. Click on “Eye Conditions and Concerns and again on “Ask the Optometrist.”

Article courtesy of www.careersandcolleges.com