From Optician to Optometrist?

[britopt]

Hi there - have any Opticians out there gone back to school and retrained as Optometrists? What were the challenges (money of course ;-)) Did your experience as an Optician stand you in good stead? Good idea or bad idea? Any comments or advice would be really welcome - thanks!

[Aarlan]

It may in fact be a good idea, but each persons situation is different.

Check this link, since it had a very similar query:
http://www.optiboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17158

Remember that you need a 4 year undergrad degree, (which must include a list of specific courses, most of which are similar, but can differ from institution to institution), and take the OAT (a knowledge based aptitude test for Optometry). Once you have done these, you apply and if you did very well on both (Average GPA 3.25-3.5 and OAT range 316-350 depending on the school), you're essentially in. Then it's 4 years of Opt school.

If you have a 4 year college degree with all of the prereqs (with a good GPA) you just need the OAT and an interview! If you have little or no college, then that's the first place to start.

What is your specific situation? What prompted you to consider Optometry?

AA