Students and pre regs

Umamah stands beside the purple sign for the Aston University School of Optometry

A to optometry

A launchpad for diverse career pathways

Umamah Shazad, third year optometry student and AOP student representative for Aston University, told OT about her journey into the profession

Students and pre-regs

Today 3 mins

Two students carry cardboard boxes filled with small items and furnishings into an apartment, they are laughing and happy

AOP student reps 2026: “It takes time to adjust to university life, and that’s normal”

Students and pre-regs

27 Aug 5 min read

Eliza smiles whilst sitting in a testing room

Eliza Jane McCall: “It definitely wasn’t easy, but it was a lot simpler than I thought”

Students and pre-regs

19 Aug

A young woman leans her head back to instil eye drops

IACLE partners with WCO and Alcon dry eye initiative

Students and pre-regs

17 Aug

An illustration in tones of blue in which a woman stands in front of a crossroads that points in many directions. Her posture indicates confusion

A Level results day: “Failing wasn’t the end of my story”

Students and pre-regs

11 Aug 7 min read

Head and shoulders images of three pre-reg contributors smiling on a pink background

Pre-reg focus

Preparing for the next stage: reflections from a year of pre-reg practice

Students and pre-regs

07 Aug 9 min read

Professor Shehzad Naroo with an ophthalmoscope

A personal history of Aston University optometry department in 12 objects

Students and pre-regs

06 Aug 9 min read

A man watches a live feed of a professional giving a presentation

First Optometry Education Conference welcomes 150 attendees

Students and pre-regs

03 Aug

David Hewlett (on left) and Professor Sir Nishan Canagarajah

University of Leicester officially launches optometry degree

Students and pre-regs

23 Jul 2

An optometrist wearing an NHS lanyard, Zak Saleem, examines a patient’s eyes using a slit lamp microscope in a clinical setting

Pre-reg focus

“The hospital setting has provided exposure to a diverse range of encounters and cases”

Students and pre-regs

22 Jul 1 mins

Lucie is practising with a slit lamp at university, her eye against the viewfinders while she controls it with a joystick and adjusts with her other hand

A to optometry

Inspired after an insight into emergency eye care

Students and pre-regs

17 Jul 1 mins

A redhaired woman in professional attire holds a pen and stands, smiling, beside a whiteboard

SPOKE secures funding for careers outreach initiative

Students and pre-regs

14 Jul

Claire Gorman, Claire Wright, Debbie Chatten-Smith, Dean Dunning, Leanne Smewing at the University of Plymouth in hard hats and high vis coats

ABDO partners with the University of Plymouth to launch new DO apprenticeship

Students and pre-regs

01 Jul

Older female teacher oversees two students using a slit lamp

Scheme for Registration supervision updated to reflect CLiP changes

Students and pre-regs

29 Jun

A male and female student studying at a desk together, both look intently at their notebooks, one is making notes

Student registration renewal deadline approaches

Students and pre-regs

25 Jun

Three people stand on stage in formal attire. In the centre, Catherine holds a certificate for the EFYE Team award

Award win for University of Manchester optometry induction experience

Students and pre-regs

17 Jun 5 min read

A young woman in an optician’s shop smiles as she reaches toward a wall display of glasses frames, while another woman stands slightly out of focus nearby, watching. Bright overhead lighting and a clean, modern interior create a welcoming retail environment

Pre-reg focus

Looking ahead to the OSCEs as a pre-reg optometrist

Students and pre-regs

05 Jun 2 mins

Komal takes a selfie from a high angle of the clinic room in practice. She wears a long sleeve black blouse with a patterned white skirt. Behind her is the Snellen chart and testing equipment

A to optometry

Patients at the heart

Students and pre-regs

22 May 3 mins

An optometrist wearing an NHS lanyard, Zak Saleem, examines a patient’s eyes using a slit lamp microscope in a clinical setting

Pre-reg focus

“I am finding this stage both rewarding and challenging”

Students and pre-regs

15 May 2 mins

Deepali Poojara sitting at a desk smiling at the camera

Deepali Poojara: “You never know who’s going to come through the door”

Students and pre-regs

13 May

AOP student reps for 2025-2026 standing in a group in the AOP offices

AOP opens student rep applications

Students and pre-regs

22 Apr

A street-side view of the outside of Manchester’s optometry building. The building has a geometric white design on the surface, highlighting the windows. A glass fronted section is in the centre

Optometry Education Conference to bring optometrists, researchers, and educators together

Students and pre-regs

17 Apr

Heer is photographed in a clinical setting holding up a tool and smiling

A to optometry

Being a calming voice for patients

Students and pre-regs

11 Apr 5 min read 5 mins

Young female optometrist smiling as she looks through a slit lamp microscope to examine a male patient’s eyes in a softly lit clinic room, with a blurred owl picture on the wall in the background

Pre-reg focus

Adapting to technology as an optometry pre-reg

Students and pre-regs

31 Mar 4 mins

Sam is photographed in a university office, holding her textbook Introduction to Visual Optics, up to the camera and grinning behind it

Visual optics textbook receives excellence award

Students and pre-regs

26 Mar

Young female optometrist performs an eye exam on a female patient inside an optometry practice

Seven insights on CLiP from the College of Optometrists

Students and pre-regs

25 Mar 11 min read

An optometrist wearing an NHS lanyard, Zak Saleem, examines a patient’s eyes using a slit lamp microscope in a clinical setting, with a blue light shining into the patient’s eye as she rests her chin on the support

Pre-reg focus

“Pre-reg has highlighted how much learning happens on the job”

Students and pre-regs

04 Mar 2 mins

Young woman measuring glass on eyewear for a senior patient looking at camera

More than 500 optometry students set to start CLiP placements in 2026

Students and pre-regs

05 Feb

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Watch OT’s Skills Guides

Farah Topia pictures looking to camera with the title Seven tips for record keeping

Skills Guide

Seven record keeping tips

In this OT skills guide video, the AOP’s Farah Topia shares advice on record keeping

migraines

Skills Guide

Managing the patient with migraines

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to managing patients with migraines

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sight test

Skills Guide

History and symptoms: sight test

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to taking history and symptoms at the start of a sight test

contact lenses

Skills Guide

History and symptoms for contact lenses

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to taking history and symptoms for contact lenses

headaches

Skills Guide

Headaches: red flag symptoms

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to the sinister symptoms to watch out for in patients with headaches

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OTSG DE3 a

Skills Guide

Dry eye: therapeutic management

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to the therapeutic management of dry eye

OTSG DE2 a

Skills Guide

Dry eye: investigative techniques

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to a range of techniques that can be used in practice for investigating dry eye

OTSG DE1 a

Skills Guide

Dry eye: history and symptoms

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to taking a history and symptoms for dry eye patients

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Skills Guide

Assessing the fit of a rigid gas permeable contact lens

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to assessing the fit of a rigid gas permeable contact lens

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Skills Guide

Assessing the fit of a soft contact lens

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to assessing the fit of a soft contact lens

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Skills Guide

Grading the fit of a rigid gas permeable contact lens

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to grading the fit of a rigid gas permeable contact lens

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Skills Guide

Using a topographer for contact lens fitting

This OT skills guide will introduce viewers to corneal topography

LD3

Skills Guide

Domiciliary eye care: legal aspects

This OT skills guide explores the legal aspects of domiciliary eye care

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CC1

Skills Guide

Domiciliary eye care: communication challenges

This OT skills guide will share insight on communication during a domiciliary sight test

2

BB2

Skills Guide

Domiciliary eye care: dealing with a bedbound patient

This OT skills guide will share insight on how to adapt to patients who are bedbound during a domiciliary sight test

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A woman smiles while wearing solar eclipse glasses

Moorfields Eye Hospital surgeon gives tips on staying safe during the solar eclipse

Patients

10 Aug 1

Harper poses outside of a hospital

An optometrist saved my life

“We will always be grateful that Charlotte recognised the signs when she did”

Patients

26 Jun 5 min read 1

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“I knew straightaway that this was something that needed to be seen urgently”

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Professor Shehzad Naroo with an ophthalmoscope

A personal history of Aston University optometry department in 12 objects

Students and pre-regs

06 Aug 9 min read

David Hewlett (on left) and Professor Sir Nishan Canagarajah

University of Leicester officially launches optometry degree

Students and pre-regs

23 Jul 2

An illustration in tones of blue in which a woman stands in front of a crossroads that points in many directions. Her posture indicates confusion

A Level results day: “Failing wasn’t the end of my story”

Students and pre-regs

11 Aug 7 min read

Older female teacher oversees two students using a slit lamp

Scheme for Registration supervision updated to reflect CLiP changes

Students and pre-regs

29 Jun

Lucie is practising with a slit lamp at university, her eye against the viewfinders while she controls it with a joystick and adjusts with her other hand

A to optometry

Inspired after an insight into emergency eye care

Students and pre-regs

17 Jul 1 mins

Chosen for you

Kevin Thompson

Obituary: Kevin Thompson

AOP

03 Sep

GOC reception area

GOC publishes the results of its 2026 registrant workforce and perceptions survey

Government and regulation

03 Sep 2

A boy is dressed as Lord Krishna for Janmashtami celebrations

Janmashtami 2026: “One of the most meaningful days in our family calendar”

Practitioner stories

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Winner of best overall talk at the British Congress of Optometry and Vision Science, Claire Nollett

Eight insights from BCOVS

Research

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100% Optical

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Registration opens for 100% Optical 2027

AOP

10 Sep