Become an Optical Assistant

What Optical Assistants Do

Discover the wide range of opportunities available in optical assisting as you determine whether this fun and in-demand career is right for you.

The Amazing Eye

Take a tour of the parts of the eye, and find out how they work together to create the miracle of vision. This lesson will give you a big head start on the path to becoming an optical assistant.

Common Eye Problems

Common eye problems cause millions of people to need glasses, contact lenses, vision therapy, or low vision aids. You'll also learn about common eye disorders and receive important tips on protecting the eyesight.

Other Eye Conditions and Terms

Explore eye conditions like color-blindness, having a "lazy eye", and what it means to be legally blind.

Front Office Skills for Success

Take a look at front office optical assisting—a great career if you're a "people" person and a multi-tasker. Learn about becoming a goodwill ambassador, triage, and the ins and outs of scheduling patients efficiently.

Back Office Basics

Check out back office assisting if you're looking to perform hands-on patient care. Learn about taking a patient's medical history, the tests used to gather vision data, and two specialty areas in back office assisting: contact lens fitting and surgical assisting.

The Prescription

Gain the power to understand the language of optical prescriptions! Learn how those numbers and symbols on an eye doctor's prescription translate into just the right lenses for a patient.

Glasses: Function and Fashion

Learn the insider secrets of eyeglass styling so you can pick frame styles that make most people look attractive and feel confident.

All About Contact Lenses

Contact lenses help correct vision. Learn how optical assistants fit contact lenses and educate patients about using them correctly.

Essential Customer Service Skills

Look at the best ways to make people feel welcome, respected, and well treated at every step of their visit to a doctor's office or retail store. You'll also get great tips for smoothing the waters if problems arise.

Specialties: Something for Everyone!

Take a look at three of the most interesting optical assisting specialties: low vision clinics, vision therapy, and refractive surgery.

Certification and Licensing

Learn how certification puts you in line for promotions and management positions as you take a look at the different types of certification you can achieve in the optical assisting field.