Students take on Optoversity challenge

A total of 95 optometry undergraduates from across 12 UK universities have come together to take part in Optoversity challenge to raise funds for Vision Care for Homeless People (VCHP).

The annual cross-university challenge, which is now in its ninth year, took place online on Sunday (16 February).

Since it was launched by Out of the Box Optics, the challenge has raised £42,000 for VCHP, with organisers confirming they are on track to reach £50,000 this year.

Both first and second-year optometry undergraduates took part in the competition, which included quizzes designed to test their optical knowledge, as well as a mock Objective Structured Clinical Examination session, in which two students volunteered to take part in an assessment front of their peers. One station was run by sponsor Thea, and another by Specsavers.

The final part of the challenge, which will be completed by third year undergraduates, takes place on Saturday (22 February). Teams from the University of the West of England Bristol, the University of Plymouth and Cardiff University will meet in Bristol at an Optical Express eye clinic, while teams from Aston University, the University of Bradford, City University of London, and Huddersfield University will meet in an Optegra Eye Hospital in Manchester. During the in-person event, sessions will be led by Out of the Box Optics, Hoya, VCHP, Specsavers and Thea.

Specsavers’ senior engagement manager, Philippa Simkiss, said:“We are passionate about encouraging young optometrists to become future clinical leaders and improving access to care for people experiencing homelessness.

“We look forward to welcoming the two top scoring students to our annual clinical conference with complimentary tickets and a whole day of professional development and networking.”

Thea professional education lead, Dr Navneet Gupta, added: “Not only do we look forward to supporting students with their ongoing optometry education, something that is at the core of Thea’s ethos, we also look forward to helping VCHP look after the sight of those who need it most but are unable to access the right services.

“This year’s event promises to be bigger and more exciting than ever, with team activities and OSCE training delivered by Thea’s education team.”

Optoversity challenge 2025 was supported by a range of companies, including: the AOP, Ambri Eyewear, Bondeye Student Optical, College of Optometrists, FODO, Frost Optical, HEINE, Hoya, Keeler, Menicon, Mondottica, Norville, Optegra, Optelec, Optical Express, Scope, SpaMedica, Specsavers, Thea, Tokai, Topcon, Wolf Eyewear, and 101 Optometry.