Healthcare

How to become an Optometric Assistant

From no experience: every step, how long it takes, and the credential it earns.

Time to get there

2–6 months

Typical pay

$34k–$44k

Starting from

No experience

Pay is an estimate of typical US entry-level pay for this role and varies by state, employer and shift. The timeline assumes you are starting from no experience and includes any licence or programme legally required — not just course length.

The route

1. 1

   2–6 weeks

   Apply to an optometry practice

   Most hire without experience and train in-house; a customer-service record helps more than a course.

2. 2

   2–4 months

   Learn pretesting and the equipment

   Autorefractor, visual fields, tonometry — you run these before the doctor sees the patient.

3. 3

   3–6 months

   Take on insurance and optical duties

   Vision-plan billing is the part practices struggle to staff.

4. 4

   Certify if you want to progress

   The CPO credential is optional but it is how you move up, or across to opticianry.

   ◆ CPO (ABO)

5. ✓

   Destination

   Optometric Assistant

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