Becoming a optician to improve ones resume?

[Browneyes05]

I have decided to take the ABO exam to become a certified optician in hopes of improving my application for optometry school. I have talked to a few opticians about the exam but I was hoping to get some advice from anyone who has taken it in the past few years.
I wanted to know what steps were taken to prepare for the exam. If there were any books or online resources that helped ? Also the length of time it took to master the information that was being tested.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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[irisiris]

I had the same thought as you when I first started working as an optometric tech.
I wanted to either get certified as a tech or optician to pad my resume for applications and even bought this book optician co-workers recommended:

http://www.amazon.com/Optician-Trai...7919&sr=8-1&keywords=optician+training+manual

I asked a few schools about whether or not it was more strategic to go through the necessary steps to become certified and they all answered in the negative. They said having work experience in the field would suffice, not necessarily having these kind of additional certifications. Heck, I even have friends who are in optom school who only shadowed here and there, so I didn't bother going through the hassle of being certified in the end.

I would suggest asking the schools you are considering if it would help you to be certified. I don't know the specifics of your stats/resume so maybe for your specific circumstances it would be beneficial. It might also be helpful in finding an optician's job if you live in a saturated city and don't already have one.

Either way I ended up reading the training manual just to be more knowledgable on optician work. It made me more helpful at work and more knowledge in the industry you want to enter never hurts. I see the optometrist I work for even help adjust his patients glasses from time to time. I respect that he's not "above" optician's duties and is hands on in his practice. That is the type of practice owner I'd like to be too.

Also one of my friends in optom school says in clinic at her school it comes in handy to know a thing or two about adjusting/dispensing.

If you do decide to take the test, you definitely won't find it challenging. Just go through a manual like the one I linked and you'll be fine. If you can master the pre-req science courses and the OAT, this test is a piece of cake.

Best of luck.

 

[epalacios]

I was a licensed dispensing optician with over five years in the industry before going into optometry school. Actually, it was being an optician that motivated me to go back to school for optometry!
The state I was licensed in required 3 years of apprenticeship (or Associates degree in opticianry), plus ABO and NCLE certifications and state practical exam for licensure.
The American Board of Opticianry administers the National Opticianry Competency Exam (the "ABO exam") which covers the broad range of duties required for spectacle dispensing. This includes basic optical principles, fitting and dispensing spectacles, standards and regulations, and compliance. To prepare for the exam, I used books from the National Academy of Opticianry, www.nao.org, they have a basic opticians tutorial package where you can get a bundle and save $$$. It includes sample questions and answers, too.
The NCLE exam covers contact lens fitting, and is a bit more challenging. I got my prep books from the Contact Lens Society of America at http://clsa.info/
I think the biggest benefits to me as an optician turned optometrist has to do with the aspect of regular patient encounters. I am very competent in the optical side of the business, and earned an easy A in first year ophthalmic optics! Plus, once I get to clinic, the optical side will be pretty easy. The money is good too, and I work part time during the school year, and full time over breaks.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[purdue2017]

I have decided to take the ABO exam to become a certified optician in hopes of improving my application for optometry school. I have talked to a few opticians about the exam but I was hoping to get some advice from anyone who has taken it in the past few years.
I wanted to know what steps were taken to prepare for the exam. If there were any books or online resources that helped ? Also the length of time it took to master the information that was being tested.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hi did you end up taking the ABO exam? If so, how was it? I am also taking the ABO exam in a couple of months to become a certified optician to improve my application for optometry school. I am currently following the sample study guide format that abo-ncle has on their website and I purchased the Optician Training Manual on Amazon, I feel like that book has made me more confident!