Working for an optometrist over the summer

[eye lovethe eye]

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I am about to finish my first year of undergrad and I am currently looking for a job this summer when I get back home. I am really interested in optometry and have been for a lot of years now. There is an optometrist in my town that I would love to work for. I don't care if I get minimum wage or anything, I would love to get some experience. The thing is, I'm not sure about how to go about asking for a job, if I should ask for a job at all. I was thinking about shadowing them when I first get home and then inquiring about working there, but I have no clue if this would be a good idea.

If anyone has any advice, I would really appreciate it! Thanks!

 

[jc328]

I was in similar position as you, and an optometrist I talked to gave me the following comment:

First of all, they might not have the need for a new staff. Second, it seems you don't have prior experience working in an optometry practice, it will cost them time to train you. And third, you are only going to work for short term, which means they will have to invest the same time to train you and still need to go through the hassle of hiring a new staff in a few month. Based on those reasons, it's probably not in their best interest to hire you. Also, a front desk job is a lot different from what optometrist's job, it's more beneficial to shadow a few optometrist at different settings to get an idea of this this field rather than work as a clerk at one office.

Ask for a volunteer position might be easier because you are likely perceived as an extra helping hand and they don't need to invest as much in you. You might have more time obserbing the optometrist rather than doing filing work too.

 

[eye lovethe eye]

Thank you for the advice! The thing I forgot to mention is that in the fall I will hopefully be starting at a new school (I'm transferring) in which I will be commuting from home, so I would be able to keep working even when school starts. Regardless, I will definitely look into shadowing first and then possibly volunteering. I guess my ultimate goal would be to work at a doctor's office instead of working at a food place or something. Not that that is bad, I guess I've just always dreamed of working in a doctor's office, even if I was only an assistant. But I suppose that is only wishful thinking for now so I will continue to just look into volunteering. Thanks!

 

[CarpeDeom]

Hey, I think it is a great idea to do some shadowing however, sometimes it is essential to make money. I understand this. I was in a position during undergrad that required me to make money, but also I knew that i wanted to gain some experience working in my field of interest. I applied for a position at an optometrist's office and started as a receptionist. Over time I moved up to technician, and currently I am an optician. The company i work for paid for me to get my ABO certification, not necessary in the state of PA, but good to have and a nice preface to optometry school optics courses. I am certainly grateful for my experience through my work which really sealed the deal for me and my choice in pursuing a career in optometry. I understand that not everyone needs to make money during undergrad, and for those individuals shadowing is a great alternative to working in an office which will include many other things other than what an O.D. does--however it may give you a unique perspective as to what your future employees, colleagues, and fellow staff may be doing. Which I think can be a very useful resource for as a future boss, or colleague. Another issue is that not all places will be willing to work with you on hours throughout the school year, as your studies should probably be coming first. I have been lucky to have a place work with me throughout the years and really set me off to have a firm basis in the optical side of optometry for optometry school. I would also recommend to shadow other settings of optometry other than the one that your work in, as I did, just to get an idea of the future spots and niches you could someday fulfill as an O.D.
All-in-all, for me, working in an optical with a supportive O.D. and staff has been a great stepping stone for me for optometry school and I would recommend the experience to anyone considering a career in optometry.

 

[eye lovethe eye]

Thanks, Carpe! It sounds like you worked for a really awesome O.D.! I definitely need to work while I'm in college so I will try to get a job working with an optometrist or just shadow and try to balance another job with that. I'll definitely start looking and see what I can find. Thanks!

 

[Icansee]

I too would encourage you to ask the optometrist that you are interested in if they wouldn't mind having you work rather than volunteer. If they are opposed to having you work, you could always ask them to let you volunteer and then get a side job like you said earlier.

When I first looked for a shadowing experience, I too was just finishing my first year of undergrad and had NO experience whatsoever in the field, let alone the medical field, so I wasn't too sure what I would find as far as a job for the summer. I also knew I needed to make money that summer and could not do a volunteer position even if I had the opportunity. I also was very opposed to working in retail or food services as per my first job experience the summer before . I didn't have any optometrists that I knew so I had no where to start as far as asking for open positions, so I decided to grab the Yellowbook and call all the optometrists in my area. I came up with a list of about ten optometrists, and it seemed like each one I called, they either weren't interested, or would only offer me a few hours of shadowing a week. I was about to give up hope but decided to make one more call, and I am so glad I did.

The last call I made (which was optometrist office #10) the person that answered the phone actually was about to go off to optometry school and was excited that I called because I was following in her same footsteps. She happily passed my information along to the head optometrist of the practice and the rest is history. I worked there for two summers and one winter break (my school has a little over a month long winter break).

I gained so much invaluable experience that I would not trade for anything. I would say, even if the optometrist you have in mind does not decide to pay you, you should search around as much as you can to find one that will and then use volunteering + a side job as your second option.

 

[spilanthes]

I hope it's ok for me to add a question here, as it is related, and may help the original poster too:

Does anyone have advice on how to create a resume for work--any type--at an Optometrist's or optical shop, when I have no actual experience at such places? I am sticking together whatever experience I have in retail, inventory, data entry, customer service, and reception. It feels very awkward. Example resumes on the internet are for people with actual experience in specific opto-related jobs, so I'm not finding them helpful.

Thanks for any advice.