average starting salaries for optometrist???

[trojan1]

What can one expect to realistically make after graduating f/ optometry school? I've heard that some start out at ~80K and make over $130K after five yrs of practice. Does anyone start out making over 6 figures? Just want to get a feel of the earning potential to pay down student loans!

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[TravisP]

If your in it for the money, dentistry and md's make alot more.

 

[Tom_Stickel]

Trojan,
Here's an informative article. Key point, IMHO, is that 1/3 of new ODs are making less than they expected, 1/3 about what they expected.

http://www.optometric.com/article.aspx?article=71053

Keep in mind when looking at income data for optometrists that new graduates make less than ones who've been out longer. Also, the ODs who make the most own their own practices, which is not feasible for many people just out of school

Tom Stickel

 

[HOLLYWOOD]

If you work for someone you'll start at about 80,000. If you continue to work for someone in 5years you'll make ~90,000. YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND I CAN ALWAY'S HIRE A NEW GRAD. FOR LESS MONEY. HMO'S ARE PAYING ME LESS NOT MORE.

 

[jefguth]

what are the HMO's paying?

 

[HOLLYWOOD]

what are the HMO's paying?

Depending on what state you are in they pay from $30 to$55.

 

[jefguth]

WOW! thats even worse than public insurance in Canada. The lowest reimbursement (Ontario) is ~$40, some provinces pay over $100. For those who are not covered, the fee is typically $70-90.

What do people typically pay out of pocket in the US?

 

[jb4teen]

Here is an interesting article on the salary potential of an OD.

http://www.revoptom.com/archive/FEATURES/ro0300f6.htm

 

[cpw]

that article adresses one fundamental point... to get the $$ in optometry you've gotta do the same thing you have to do in business anywhere... WORK HARD !! No one's standing at the exit to OD school saying "congratulations.. here's your 150k a year". This doctor was in the right place at the right time.. and worked his ass off.

 

[JG777]

i would think starting optometrists make $50,000- 60,000 w/ private practices.

 

[h6ppygirl]

i would think starting optometrists make $50,000- 60,000 w/ private practices.

Yeah I would say that is about right. My cousin is an private optometrist and started off with 60,000. Now, after 6 years, she makes around 120,000 or little bit more.

 

[hoosier1]

Wow 120,000? Is she working part-time or full time? I thought people with 6 digit salaries have to own their own clinic.

 

[JG777]

Wow 120,000? Is she working part-time or full time? I thought people with 6 digit salaries have to own their own clinic.

not necessarily... sometimes if u work 2-3 part time jobs, you can make about 100,000+ total. but i would think that will come after a few years if you stay with that practice. it all just depends who you work for, where you work.

 

[girlscallmepogi]

Why do optometrists start off in the 50-60s their first year of private practice?

 

[rpames]

Most often if you are going into a private practice, you will be working toward partnership or purchase. During your first couple years, you are mostly only seeing patients that actually belong to the senior doctor. That mean they would have made that money if you were there or not. So those first couple years, you are actually a drain on the office. That 50-60k that you are taking home is coming right out of the senior doc's pocket. So until you start to establish your own patient base and start bringing in NEW patients, be glad that the senior doc is letting you see his/her patients.

 

[cunikki]

Most often if you are going into a private practice, you will be working toward partnership or purchase. During your first couple years, you are mostly only seeing patients that actually belong to the senior doctor. That mean they would have made that money if you were there or not. So those first couple years, you are actually a drain on the office. That 50-60k that you are taking home is coming right out of the senior doc's pocket. So until you start to establish your own patient base and start bringing in NEW patients, be glad that the senior doc is letting you see his/her patients.

That is interesting but im not sure its a valid point. I still think 50k is a bit low to start out in a city/suburb area.. but I think it just depends on the area. As far as being a drain; how could that be? I would assume you would probably only get hired if the dr had enough patients to require another od. if this is the case; it allows the practice to see possibly twice as many patients without twice the salary of a more experienced od. if the practice really had so few patients that the original od could have seen them all if you were there or not; they really shouldnt be hiring anyone... but i cant really imagine why an od would decide to pay someone to join his practice if he can fully handle the patient load and would end up giving up half his patients and sitting around all day? that just doesnt make sense.

 

[rpames]

I would imagine it would be very rare that an OD would be able to fill twice the patient load the instant a new OD comes on board. Odds are that s/he may be able to increase the pt. load by alittle, but by 2X!?! If you are able to increase the net income of the office enough to cover your salary and benifits the first year you are there...then you are doing a great job.

Could someone with more experience than me shed some light on this subject.

 

[jjmcentee@hotma]

I did a lot of research on this, this is what I came up with
The department of labor has salary stats for OD's, highest states, lowest states, ect.
The published average by the optometric press is 95k
of the ones that I know.
210k (ownes his own practice, workaholic)
58k (owns his own low vision office, but a little bit too pragmatic)
125k (works 40hrs in pearle vision center
95k (works 4 days a week for that workaholic I mentioned earlier)
78k (starting salary at a regional chain in my state)
90k (works at a pearle vision about 37 hours a week)

So I think 80-85k is a fair average, OD's i've met go to a fast pace chain to get the experience (2-3yrs) then try to get into a lease situation or go work for a private practice, then eventually when your confident, open your own.

 

[girlscallmepogi]

Most often if you are going into a private practice, you will be working toward partnership or purchase. During your first couple years, you are mostly only seeing patients that actually belong to the senior doctor. That mean they would have made that money if you were there or not. So those first couple years, you are actually a drain on the office. That 50-60k that you are taking home is coming right out of the senior doc's pocket. So until you start to establish your own patient base and start bringing in NEW patients, be glad that the senior doc is letting you see his/her patients.

Well what about doctors who open up their own private practice?

 

[Tom_Stickel]

Rpames and cunikki,

I think it's a valid point that a doctor might not cover their salary in the first year. And girlscallmepogi, if you want to start your own practice, you need to take out big loans, often over 100K, to get started. It takes a while to see enough patients to break even, and you're surviving on borrowed money until then.

For my part, it took about a year for me to start positively adding to the bottom line after I was hired.

I can see other reasons why a starting doctor would get paid only $50-60K.

1. You have no real experience. You have clinic rotations, but it's a lot different once you actually have to make the decisions. As a recent grad, there are no references your hiring doc can call to see how you handle patients, whether it takes you 1.5 hours to do an eye exam, whether you can really fit a gas perm contact, etc. When you consider this, you see the hiring doc is spending a lot money on an unknown quantity.

2. The hiring doc doesn't really know you, and from interviews they can't tell that much about you. You might interview well but then not get along with staff, have different ideas about when to refer patients and who to refer to, etc. In other words, you might be a great doc with great clinic skills but just not fit in. The hiring doc is again taking a risk.

3. Speaking of risk, I'm a recent graduate, but I've already been associated with a practice in which an employee embezzled tens of thousands of dollars. At another, a married doctor started an affair with an employee which actually affected how they interacted in the clinic. Again, the hiring doc has no idea if you have a drug, drinking, gambling, or any other personal problem that will affect your performance, and again, there are no references to check.

Ideally, the hiring doc will start at a lower salary and agree to increase the pay once you've been around long enough to pull your weight in clinic fees and once the hiring doc has decided you're a good fit.

Commercial places can pay more at the beginning because if you develop a crack habit and run off to Venezuela with the optician, they will just hire another optometrist and optician with no real dent to their bottom line, as it's usually not hard for them to find another doc and plug them into their system. If that type of disaster happens at at a private practice, it's a much bigger problem.

jjmcentee, what type of geographic area are you in? Urban areas tend to have higher salaries than rural ones. Those numbers you gave seem to square pretty well with the urban area I'm in and the people I know.

Tom Stickel
Indiana U. 2001

 

[rpames]

Thanks Tom. I went to a speaker who is an OD and a consultant for OD practices. He said that it usually takes a loan of $150k to start a practice cold. I believe that is enough to open it and support you a little. He also pointed out that there is nothing wrong with working part time for someone or place as you build up your practice.

The longer one waits to open a private office, the more money one loses in potential earining as being ones own boss.

 

[JennyW]

Rpames and cunikki,

I can see other reasons why a starting doctor would get paid only $50-60K.

1. You have no real experience. You have clinic rotations, but it's a lot different once you actually have to make the decisions. As a recent grad, there are no references your hiring doc can call to see how you handle patients, whether it takes you 1.5 hours to do an eye exam, whether you can really fit a gas perm contact, etc. When you consider this, you see the hiring doc is spending a lot money on an unknown quantity.

2. The hiring doc doesn't really know you, and from interviews they can't tell that much about you. You might interview well but then not get along with staff, have different ideas about when to refer patients and who to refer to, etc. In other words, you might be a great doc with great clinic skills but just not fit in. The hiring doc is again taking a risk.

3. Speaking of risk, I'm a recent graduate, but I've already been associated with a practice in which an employee embezzled tens of thousands of dollars. At another, a married doctor started an affair with an employee which actually affected how they interacted in the clinic. Again, the hiring doc has no idea if you have a drug, drinking, gambling, or any other personal problem that will affect your performance, and again, there are no references to check.

Ideally, the hiring doc will start at a lower salary and agree to increase the pay once you've been around long enough to pull your weight in clinic fees and once the hiring doc has decided you're a good fit.

Commercial places can pay more at the beginning because if you develop a crack habit and run off to Venezuela with the optician, they will just hire another optometrist and optician with no real dent to their bottom line, as it's usually not hard for them to find another doc and plug them into their system. If that type of disaster happens at at a private practice, it's a much bigger problem.

jjmcentee, what type of geographic area are you in? Urban areas tend to have higher salaries than rural ones. Those numbers you gave seem to square pretty well with the urban area I'm in and the people I know.

Tom Stickel
Indiana U. 2001

I do not agree with some of the sentiments here.

There is no real risk for a doctor if the hiring of a new graduate is done correctly. A new graduate should be brought in for two or three days a week for about 3 months. That is plenty of time to decide if the doctor has adequate clinical skills, and whether the person gets along well with staff and with patients. If after 3 months it's not working out, then the young doctor can be terminated with negligible damage to the office. If after three months, things are going well, the new doctor should be paid as an employee (not an independant contractor, which is something so many ODs illegally do) with full benefits and vacation time for 1-2 years. After 2 years, serious discussions of partnership should be initiated assuming things are going well.

There is no reason that the new doctor should not be busy right away. They should see all new patients, and all emergency cases. If the new doctor is not busy enough, patients should be directed from the older doc to the younger one so as to keep the young doctor busy and free up the older doctor. This allows the same patient flow through the office, but more time off for the older doctor. It's a win/win situation. The new doctor gets time to develop skills, see lots of patients and the older doctor gets more time off to promote the practice or do whatever. Every effort should be made to book the young doctor BEFORE the older one.

Jenny

 

[KaBlamO]

Well what about doctors who open up their own private practice?

interesting screen name choice. LOL!