A solid math and science background in high school is required for a career as a pediatric optometrist, which is followed by an undergraduate degree in a science field, a doctoral degree from an accredited school of optometry, and at least one year of post-doctoral work in pediatric optometry. To become a pediatric optometrist, you must complete eight or nine years of post-high school study and clinical work. In most jurisdictions, licensure is also required, and it typically occurs after completion of optometry school and prior to specialization study.
A person who wishes to pursue a career as a pediatric optometrist should begin her studies in high school. Any general science, math, or biology courses will be beneficial. After obtaining a high school diploma or a graduate equivalency diploma (GED), an individual must seek out accredited colleges that offer pre-optometry programs or courses. Most schools of optometry require courses in English, physics, math, chemistry, and biology later on, so it’s usually best for a student to major in a science field as an undergraduate. The minimum requirement for admission to an optometry school is three years of study, so most people aim for a bachelor’s degree.
A person who wants to become a pediatric optometrist should start looking for accredited optometry schools after completing at least three years of college coursework. Only about a third of applicants are accepted into these schools, indicating that competition is fierce. This is partly due to the fact that there are fewer schools of optometry than other academic institutions — in the United States, for example, only 19 colleges were accredited by the American Optometric Association’s Council on Optometric Education in 2007. Students must take and pass the Optometry Admissions Test, a competency exam that tests both general academic and scientific knowledge, as part of their school search.
If accepted into an optometry school, the next step toward becoming a pediatric optometrist is to complete four years of formal optometry training. Students take courses in vision science, optics, pharmacology, systematic diseases, and biochemistry during this time. Clinical work is done in the last one or two years of the optometry program, allowing students to practice skills hands-on under supervision.
An optometrist must follow her jurisdiction’s licensure guidelines after graduating from optometry school. In the United States, for example, the candidate must apply for licensure with the candidate’s State Board of Optometry. This necessitates taking and passing multiple optometry and applicable regulations examinations.
Any optometrist who wants to specialize must complete a post-graduate program, fellowship, or internship in his or her chosen field of optometry. Because pediatric optometry is considered a specialty field, anyone interested in becoming a pediatric optometrist must complete post-doctoral training. A minimum of one to three years of specialization study is required. After completing this work, which includes clinical studies and case study submission, the optometrist is eligible to sit for additional pediatric optometry examinations in order to become board certified in the specialty.