Optometrists or doctors of optometry are medical professionals whose primary role is to examine patients’ eye and diagnose problems with vision such as myopia and hyperopia.
They also test for eye diseases such as cataracts and glaucoma and once a diagnosis has been made prescribe suitable medication, spectacles or contact lenses.
Optometrists sometimes also provide preoperative and postoperative care to patients who have had eye surgery.
It is also usual for optometrists to refer patients to other appropriate health practitioners once they diagnose that their patient’s eye illness is caused by other underlying diseases such as hypertension and diabetes.
Typical Optometrist Salary Range
The optometrist salary range can therefore, because of these factors, be very wide.
However the salaries generally range from $80,000 to $150,000 annually.
Typically in the US optometrist earn an average of $100,000 per year.
In addition to their basic salaries they also earn large bonuses, dependent on their skill and experience.
This effectively increases their salaries substantially. In addition like most employees they are also entitled to pension, social security and disability benefits.
Thus an optometrist salary can potentially be in the range of $150,000+ annually.
Your School Affects Your Optometrist Salary
There are several optometry schools available to those interested in becoming optometrists where you must successfully complete a four year degree program.
However you must ensure that your school of choice is accredited.
Entry into optometry schools is very competitive and many require that you have, at a minimum three years of pre-optometry study and it is not uncommon for optometry students to have a bachelors or higher degree.
Requirements for entry into a school of optometry may include courses in Chemistry, Biology, Physics Mathematics and English.
Some optometry schools may, in addition to the aforementioned, require courses in Psychology, Business, Sociology and History.
All applicants for the doctor of optometry degree must take the Optometry Admission Test (OAT) which tests the students’ academic aptitude as well as scientific understanding.
After graduating from an accredited school of optometry it is mandatory for optometrists to become licensed.
Licence applicants must sit and pass both a written and clinical exam.
Continuing education credits is a requirement for licence renewal which is done every one to three years.
Many optometrists are self-employed but those employed (and salaried) are often found in other optometrists’ offices, physician’s offices, health care and optical franchises.
Optometry is generally a high paying occupation but many factors determine what an optometrist salary is.
These factors include the level of skill, years of experience, practice type and location.
Make sure to take all these factors into consideration when looking for potential optometry jobs, because a little bit of additional education can significantly increase your starting optometrist salary.
