Studying in Australia
Currently there are three Optometry Schools in Australia where you can achieve the required education to practice Optometry in New Zealand and Australia. In 2010, Flinders University in South Australia will become the fourth.
Flinders University
Flinders University will introduce a new course in optometry, increasing overseas interest and potentially reducing the flow of local students interstate.
The course will involve five years of study with the first intake of students in 2010.
While details are yet to be finalised in consultation with optometry practitioners and the national accreditation body, Flinders optometry course will be introduced as a specialisation in Vision Science within a three-year Bachelor of Medical Science, to be followed by a two-year Master of Optometry.
Flinders newly-appointed Executive Dean of Health Sciences, Professor Michael Kidd, said the new course would further enhance the University’s existing strength in teaching medicine and nursing, and would also draw on Flinders advanced eye and vision research capability.
“Flinders School of Medicine and Faculty of Health Sciences are highly regarded teaching institutions and a degree in Vision Science and a Master of Optometry will further consolidate the University’s leadership in health sciences education,” Professor Kidd said today.
“Flinders aims to be the first choice for health professional courses in South Australia,” he said.
Flinders initiative will help overcome a shortage of optometrists in the city and, with a particular focus on rural and remote health, offers a potential boost for the treatment of serious eye problems in indigenous communities.
The University has strong teaching and research activities throughout SA and the Northern Territory with its Rural Clinical School, NT Rural Clinical School, Centre for Remote Health, NT Clinical School and Greater Green Triangle University Department of Rural Health.
Professor Kidd said Flinders regional teaching model, which includes long term placements of medical students in local communities, could be applied to the optometry courses.
Flinders is also exploring possible links and partnerships with optical lens and frame manufacturers in South Australia.
Find out more here:
http://www.studyadelaide.com/Article/NewsDetail.aspx?id=29
University of New South Wales
In New South Wales, the only program for optometrists is conducted by the School of Optometry and Vision Science at the University of New South Wales.
Graduates of the program, which extends for five years, are admitted to the combined degree of Bachelor of Optometry Bachelor of Science. They are eligible for registration as optometrists under the various Acts of Parliament which control the profession in the Australian States and Territories and New Zealand.
Optometrists' advice is sought by people with vision and eye-care problems and by public and industrial organisations seeking to improve the community's ocular health and visual welfare.
Find out more here:
http://www.optom.unsw.edu.au/
The University of Melbourne
Optometry: transitioning to the Melbourne Model
As the University moves to the Melbourne Model, the current undergraduate optometry degree (the Bachelor of Optometry) is being replaced by a new postgraduate degree which will begin in 2011.
A major assessment of optometry training, including an extensive review of educational models worldwide, has been undertaken. The Doctor of Optometry will be of four years duration and will consist of a combination of on-campus teaching and clinical placements, with the clinical component commencing in year 1 and gradually increasing to full-time in the final year. Opportunities will exist for clinical related research to be conducted as a required component of the degree.
The timeline for change is:
2009 |
final intake into the 1st year of the Bachelor of Optometry (BOptom) |
2010 |
no 1st year intake into the Bachelor of Optometry (BOptom) |
2011 |
first intake into the Doctor of Optometry |
2013 |
final graduating year of the Bachelor of Optometry (BOptom) |
2014 |
first graduating year of the Doctor of Optometry |
Limited opportunities for entry into the later years (2nd and 3rd year) of the Bachelor of Optometry may be available in 2010 and 2011 (for February entry), subject to availability of places. Students may apply for later year entry to the Bachelor of Optometry providing they have completed study equivalent to the first year or first and second year of the Bachelor of Optometry course and achieved strong results in this study. Local students will need to apply for transfer. International students will need to apply for admission and will be assessed for credit and later year entry. For advice about later year entry, please contact the Science Student Centre .
What are some of the benefits of the new postgraduate degree?
- Students entering the OD have previously completed an undergraduate degree, allowing the teaching in the OD to be delivered at a more sophisticated level and allow for the development of more advanced clinical skills.
- Early clinical experience will be a feature of the program. Later years will focus on developing advanced clinical skills with a strong emphasis on evidence-based practice.
- Broad clinical experience will be achieved by providing an unparalleled range of rural and metropolitan placements and international externship opportunities.
- The proposed Doctor of Optometry will qualify you to practise as a therapeutically endorsed Optometrist in Australia, and to register to practise in several overseas countries. Accreditation in other countries, including North America, is being planned.
- The proposed Doctor of Optometry is currently the only one of its kind in the southern hemisphere. The Doctor of Optometry (OD) is an internationally recognised qualification and is the gold standard for optometry education.
Find out more here:
http://www.optometry.unimelb.edu.au/
Find out the latest updates on the Melbourne model here: http://www.optometry.unimelb.edu.au/courses/OD.html
Queensland University of Technology
The School of Optometry offers a dual undergraduate and postgraduate program leading to eligibility to practise as an optometrist. The School also has strong Masters and Doctoral research programs. Our Optometry dual degree is subject to accreditation by the Optometry Council of Australia and New Zealand.
Much of QUT's undergraduate optometry training takes place in a purpose-built Optometry Clinic within the QUT Health Clinics building in the Kelvin Grove Urban Village. This real-world training gives students the opportunity to work with a broad range of people. Clinical training is supported by our School staff, as well as clinical teachers who are optometrists in practice. Work-related learning, through clinical placements in a wide range of environments, occurs in the later years of the course.
The School and the professional association, Optometrists Association Australia (OAA), have an ongoing relationship, with many staff participating in continuing professional education for optometrists, as well as other activities of the profession. Our students can become student members of the OAA, helping them to build links with their future colleagues.
Find out more here:
http://www.hlth.qut.edu.au/opt/