Melbourne School of Health Sciences (Optometry)
Currently Enrolled Students:
Future Student Enquiries:
- Further information: Optometry and Vision Sciences
- Email: Optometry Enquiry
Masters (Extended)Year: 2019 Delivered: On Campus (Parkville)
Allison McKendrick
Michael Pianta
Melbourne School of Health Sciences (Optometry)
Currently Enrolled Students:
Future Student Enquiries:
Award title | Doctor of Optometry |
---|---|
Year & campus | 2019 — Parkville |
CRICOS code | 072811B |
Fees information | Subject EFTSL, level, discipline and census date |
Study level & type | Graduate Coursework |
AQF level | 9 |
Credit points | 400 credit points |
Duration | 48 months full-time |
Optometry is the occupation of measuring eyesight, prescribing corrective lenses, and detecting and managing eye disease. It is a professional allied health discipline based on the optical, visual, and biomedical sciences. An optometrist's role is to solve their patients' visual problems.
The Doctor of Optometry is a 4-year full-time program that offers intensive training in the clinical discipline of optometry. The course covers the basic and applied optical, visual, and biomedical sciences that underpin optometry, and delivers a comprehensive clinical training that commences in the first year of the study. During the course, students will have the opportunity to undertake a research project, in an area relevant to the discipline, and will be given the opportunity to undertake clinical training at metropolitan, rural and overseas sites as part of their final year of study.
Completion of the Doctor of Optometry satisfies the legislative requirements that permit students to register as optometrists in all states and territories of Australia and in New Zealand. The qualification also affords the opportunity, either with or without further study and examination, to register to practice in other countries around the world.
1. In order to be considered for entry, applicants must have completed
2. In ranking applications, the Selection Committee will consider:
3. The Selection Committee may seek further information to clarify any aspect of an application in accordance with the Academic Board rules on the use of selection instruments.
4. Applicants are required to satisfy the university’s English language requirements for graduate courses. For those applicants seeking to meet these requirements by one of the standard tests approved by the Academic Board, performance band 6.5 is required.
Note:
Successful applicants with relevant prior study or professional practice may be granted up to 200 points of advanced standing towards the Doctor of Optometry as follows:
100 points of advanced standing will normally be granted to applicants with an undergraduate degree with a major in optometry or vision science, or equivalent;
200 points of advanced standing will normally be granted to applicants who are registered as an optometrist with the Optometry Board of Australia and have at least three years of documented clinical practice as a registered optometrist within the last ten years.
Graduate Degree Packages for School Leavers
The University of Melbourne offers Graduate Degree Packages to high achieving school leavers, allowing them to secure places (Commonwealth Supported places for domestic students or International fee places) in the Doctor of Optometry provided that they meet certain requirements.
For a Commonwealth Supported Place or International Fee Place, the applicant must:
— in Australia; or
— outside Australia and be an Australian citizen;
Applicants eligible for entry via an Graduate Degree Package will not be required to complete the GAMSAT.
Applicants should refer to the University handbook for the additional entry requirements for the undergraduate degrees in the Graduate Degree Package.
For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.
It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability
It is a requirement of the course that students will perform clinical procedures on their peers, and have clinical procedures performed on them by their peers.
All students in the Doctor of Optometry (OD) course must possess the intellectual, ethical, physical and emotional capabilities required to participate in the full curriculum and to achieve the levels of competence at graduation required by the Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences and the Australia Health Practitioner Registration Agency.
A student with a disability may be asked to provide independent medical or other clinical assessments of the disability and its possible impact on the ability of the student to successfully complete the course, before being accepted into the course. This statement would be treated in confidence with only those on the admissions committee and Disability Liaison having access to the document. (Deliberate misinformation about the student’s ability to successfully complete the course will be regarded as unprofessional practice and treated as such.)
While the Department of Optometry and Vision Sciences will make reasonable adjustments to minimise the impact of a disability, all students must be able to participate in the program in an independent manner. It is not reasonable for students to use an intermediary as an adjustment to compensate for a disability impacting on any of the five categories listed below. In the clinical environment there is a primary duty of care to the patients, and the needs of students cannot compromise this. It is expected that all students will be able to participate fully in all classroom based learning activities and to successfully fulfil the clinical assessment and self-study requirements of the course. The presence of a disability will not automatically entitle the student to preferential treatment in clinical place allocation.
A candidate for the OD must have abilities and skills in the following five categories:
Upon completion of the Doctor of Optometry you can submit an application to register and practice as an optometrist in all states and territories of Australia and in New Zealand.
This course prepares students to meet the registration requirements of the Optometry Board of Australia. More information on this official body can be found at the following website - http://www.optometryboard.gov.au/
Knowledge: Graduates of the Doctor of Optometry course will have:
Skills: Graduates of the Doctor of Optometry course will have:
Application of knowledge and skills: Graduates of the Doctor of Optometry course will demonstrate the application of knowledge and skills:
Specific graduate attributes have been carefully defined, developed and mapped to every component of the course, as listed below.
On completion of the Doctor of Optometry students should:
1. Optometric Knowledge & Skills. Students must be able to demonstrate the application of clinical knowledge to patient care. At the end of the internship year they should be able to:
a. select, justify, and interpret appropriate clinical tests with attention to benefits, harm and costs.
b. Demonstrate clinical competence through the number of patients seen, techniques performed and feedback provided.
c. demonstrate knowledge of the ethical, moral and legal foundations of optometric care.
d. recognize the social determinants of vision disorders and disease, and the influence of physical, social and cultural environments.
2. Patient Care. Students must be able to provide patient care than is compassionate, appropriate and effective. At the end of the internship year they should be able to:
a. perform a targeted, accurate and timely clinical examination based on the patient’s condition.
b. interpret data and use clinical reasoning skills to derive a differential diagnosis and develop a clinical management plan.
c. collaborate with other health professionals to ensure patient safety and to enhance the quality of care.
d. recognise and work within the limits of their competence and scope of practice.
3. Life-long learning and Improvement. Students must be able to appraise and assimilate scientific evidence, and continuously improve patient care based on critical reflection and life-long learning. At the end of the internship year they should be able to:
a. demonstrate an ability to identify strengths and weaknesses in knowledge and skills, and seek opportunities to address those deficits.
b. demonstrate the ability to give and receive constructive, formative feedback.
c. demonstrate an ability to plan and monitor self-directed learning, taking into account the relative merit of learning activities..
d. critically appraise scientific evidence and translate research findings into practice
4. Interpersonal and Communication Skills. Students must be able to demonstrate interpersonal and communication skills that result in effective information exchange with patients, patients’ families and professional associates. At the end of the internship year they should be able to:
a. communicate effectively with patients and families across a broad range of socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds.
b. demonstrate sensitivity in the care of patients by treating them as an individual.
c. communicate perceptively in difficult situations.
d. demonstrate the ability to communicate inter-professionally and intra-professionally
5. Professionalism. Students must demonstrate adherence to ethical principles, and a commitment to carrying out professional responsibilities in the best interest of the patient and the community. At the end of the internship year they should be able to:
a. apply principles of autonomy, beneficence, and justice, and work to resolve ethical dilemmas as they arise in clinical practice.
b. demonstrate honesty, integrity, respect, reliability, responsibility and confidentiality in all professional interactions.
c. demonstrate empathy, compassion and self-care.
d. show commitment to the prevention of vision disorders, eye injury and eye disease, and the promotion of health and wellbeing within the community.
Students must complete 400 credit points over the 4-year program. These 400 points of credit are accumulated from a compulsory series of six core subjects totalling 100 points per year.
Doctor of Optometry 1st year (100 points): Covers the basic vision sciences and pre-clinical optometry training.
Doctor of Optometry 2nd year (100 points): Covers the applied clinical vision sciences and clinical optometry training, as well as research in vision and optometry.
Doctor of Optometry 3rd year (100 points): Covers further applied clinical vision sciences and clinical optometry training, as well as clinical optometry practice.
Doctor of Optometry 4th year (100 points): Covers advanced clinical optometry practice
Compulsory subjects:
Code | Name | Study period | Credit Points |
---|---|---|---|
OPTO90027 | Integrated Ophthalmic Sciences | Year Long (On Campus - Parkville) |
75 |
OPTO90024 | Preclinical Optometry | Year Long (On Campus - Parkville) |
25 |
Subject by invitation only:
Code | Name | Study period | Credit Points |
---|---|---|---|
OPTO90029 | Preclinical Optometry Refresher | Year Long (On Campus - Parkville) |
12.5 |
Compulsory subjects:
Code | Name | Study period | Credit Points |
---|---|---|---|
OPTO90023 | Applied Clinical Training | Year Long (On Campus - Parkville) |
75 |
OPTO90025 | Research Studies in Vision and Optometry | Year Long (On Campus - Parkville) |
25 |
Compulsory subject:
Code | Name | Study period | Credit Points |
---|---|---|---|
OPTO90026 | Clinical Optometry Practice | Year Long (On Campus - Parkville) |
100 |
Compulsory subject:
Code | Name | Study period | Credit Points |
---|---|---|---|
OPTO90028 | Optometry Internship | Year Long (On Campus - Parkville) |
100 |
On completion, students may wish to apply for entry into a research higher degree program.
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Within the course, students will attend placements at clinical sites both within Melbourne, rural Victoria, interstate and overseas. Students are expected to bear the costs involved in these placements.
Students are required to conform to prescribed dress and conduct requirements when assigned to all clinical duties with patients.
Students will be required to attend and participate in the OD student conference. The student conference will be delivered in a traditional conference format over 2-3 days in the Semester 2 mid-semester break.
*Doctor of Optometry students will be required to have a current CPR certificate prior to entering clinic in third year.
Additional Costs:
Please note that the purchase of some equipment will be necessary for various compulsory subjects within this course. Students will continue to use the equipment during the remainder of the course and after graduation.
All students undertaking a placement in a hospital, clinic or other health or community environment are required to satisfy a number of requirements, including:
Please refer to the Student Placements webpage for detailed information regarding compliance requirements.
Please note that the purchase of some equipment will be necessary for various compulsory subjects within this course. Students will continue to use the equipment during the remainder of the course and after graduation.
Last updated: 31 October 2023