Where can optometry take you? Academia

Optometrist Ravi Ladani is a lecturer at City St George’s, University of London. He has worked as an academic for over a decade, initially as a visiting clinical tutor and progressing to lecturer three and a half years ago.

His days are varied, which is something he values from his choice in career path.

Ladani will arrive on campus around 8.30am, initially starting the day in his office. There may be emails, followed by a burst of teaching, a departmental meeting, lecture prep, a flurry of admin, and perhaps more teaching.

“It’s a nice day because it’s varied,” Ladani told OT. “I’m not stuck in front of a screen all day.”

The optometrist primarily teaches contact lenses. His module is his students’ first real encounter with this mode of vision correction – he focuses on the back to basics of fitting soft and rigid lenses.

Ladani identifies that it is the people – his colleagues and his students – around him that bring satisfaction to his career. “There’s a lot of enjoyment from not just teaching but interacting with people who have a similar mindset. Everyone’s staying ahead; everyone’s helpful,” he said.

Ladani believes that “there are a lot of optometrists who would enjoy teaching, but they don’t see themselves in that role,” he said. “I wouldn’t have thought I’d find my calling in teaching” – but he has.

A path he never planned

Ladani’s journey into academia was not deliberate. After qualifying, he became a resident optometrist at the practice where he completed his pre-reg placement. Two years later, he found himself craving something new. He stepped into a role that saw him provide pre-reg supervision and training – an experience that quietly stirred his interest in teaching.

A conversation with a friend already working in education helped open the door. Ladani asked to be kept informed if any opportunities arose, and when a vacancy for a visiting clinical tutor occurred he applied.

He identifies that the option to become a visiting clinical tutor as an entry level route allows you to get a feel for and a taste of what the role may involve.

“It lets you get a feel for the environment, and a taste of what the job involves. It helps you decide if it’s for you,” he said.

The rewards

The day-to-day interaction is the aspect Ladani enjoys most about academia.

“Something we all do naturally as optometrists is build rapport with patients. I like to have a laugh and a joke – I am their lecturer, but I am also an optometrist, and I am like them.”

Still, he acknowledges the inevitable flicker of self-doubt that comes with academic life. “There’s an imposter-syndrome part of it. Traditionally, you think of academics as people who’ve been researching for so long and have all this knowledge. And then I come in from the High Street, having worked my way up.”

Ladani admits that he still feels nerves at the start of each lecture. “Give it 30 seconds to a minute and it goes – you’re talking about stuff you know, and everyone there wants to learn.”

He recalled the one piece of early advice that has stayed with him is: “They won’t ask you a question you don’t know the answer to.”

For Ladani, the highlight is seeing students progress – the shift from uncertainty to confidence, the point where the theory finally clicks in the clinic. “Watching where they start and where they finish is the most satisfying bit,” he said.