Best degree programs for Ophthalmic Medical Technicians, ranked by enrollment
3 college programs and 33 schools train Ophthalmic Medical Technicians. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $45,570 median wage, 71,010 U.S. jobs. Federal data.
3 college programs at 33 schools train ophthalmic medical technicians, graduating 370 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Optometric Technician/Assistant. The job pays a median of $45,570 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About ophthalmic medical technicians
Assist ophthalmologists by performing ophthalmic clinical functions. May administer eye exams, administer eye medications, and instruct the patient in care and use of corrective lenses.
Fields of study that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.
3 degree programs that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Optometric Technician/Assistantmain feeder CIP 51.1802 | 196 | 53.0% | 14 | $32,524 | $11,688 |
| 2 | Ophthalmic Technician/Technologistmain feeder CIP 51.1803 | 172 | 46.5% | 19 | $32,524 | $11,688 |
| 3 | Orthoptics/Orthoptistmain feeder CIP 51.1804 | 2 | 0.5% | 2 | $32,524 | $11,688 |
Top 33 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
What ophthalmic medical technicians earn
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
Top-paying states
Top-paying metro areas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Where the jobs are, state by state
Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.
| State | Median pay | Jobs | Concentration | Schools | Graduates / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | $43,640 | 6,540 | 1.02× | 5 | 83 |
| Oklahomalimited | $37,920 | 980 | 1.25× | 2 | 42 |
| North Carolinamoderate | $45,150 | 1,630 | 0.72× | 3 | 26 |
| Illinoislimited | $47,100 | 3,250 | 1.17× | 2 | 15 |
| Floridalimited | $46,830 | 7,020 | 1.55× | 2 | 13 |
| Michiganlimited | $46,750 | 1,800 | 0.90× | 1 | 13 |
| Oregonlimited | $50,020 | 1,060 | 1.18× | 1 | 13 |
| New Jerseylimited | $49,050 | 4,150 | 2.12× | 1 | 12 |
| Wisconsinlimited | $56,420 | 1,260 | 0.94× | 2 | 10 |
| Georgialimited | $39,150 | 2,570 | 1.15× | 1 | 7 |
| Louisianalimited | $38,750 | 890 | 1.01× | 1 | 7 |
| Minnesotamoderate | $63,080 | 720 | 0.53× | 3 | 6 |
| Tennesseelimited | $38,890 | 1,760 | 1.18× | 1 | 6 |
| Californialimited | $54,490 | 2,500 | 0.30× | 1 | 5 |
| Arizonalimited | $47,040 | 1,630 | 1.10× | 1 | 3 |
| Ohiolimited | $40,350 | 2,510 | 0.99× | 1 | 1 |
Skills and tools
From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.
What they do day to day
- Take and document patients' medical histories.
- Conduct tonometry or tonography tests to measure intraocular pressure.
- Operate ophthalmic equipment, such as autorefractors, phoropters, tomographs, or retinoscopes.
- Take anatomical or functional ocular measurements of the eye or surrounding tissue, such as axial length measurements.
- Measure visual acuity, including near, distance, pinhole, or dynamic visual acuity, using appropriate tests.
- Measure and record lens power, using lensometers.
- Administer topical ophthalmic or oral medications.
- Conduct visual field tests to measure field of vision.
Skills
- Active Listening3.6
- Speaking3.3
- Reading Comprehension3.1
- Writing3.1
- Monitoring3.0
- Critical Thinking3.0
- Active Learning3.0
- Learning Strategies2.6
Knowledge areas
- Customer and Personal Service4.3
- Medicine and Dentistry4.2
- English Language4.0
- Mathematics3.3
- Administrative2.9
- Education and Training2.8
Abilities
- Near Vision3.9
- Oral Comprehension3.9
- Oral Expression3.9
- Speech Clarity3.6
- Problem Sensitivity3.4
- Written Expression3.4
Core activities
- Performing for or Working Directly with the Public4.5
- Getting Information4.5
- Assisting and Caring for Others4.5
- Documenting/Recording Information4.3
- Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge4.1
- Working with Computers4.1
Tools and technology
hotmarks an O*NET hot technologyHow to get in
How to become a Ophthalmic Medical Technician
Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0- Typical entry education
- Postsecondary nondegree award
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 3 majors mapped to Ophthalmic Medical Technicians3 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 51.1802Optometric Technician/Assistant
- 51.1803Ophthalmic Technician/Technologist
- 51.1804Orthoptics/Orthoptist
Related careers
Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.
Common questions
What degree do you need to become an Ophthalmic Medical Technician?+
Postsecondary nondegree award is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Optometric Technician/Assistant, which awarded 196 degrees in 2024-25, 53.0% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming an Ophthalmic Medical Technician?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 3 programs to this occupation. The largest are Ophthalmic and Optometric Support Services and Allied Professions. Together they graduate about 370 people a year.
How much do ophthalmic medical technicians earn?+
The median is $45,570 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $35,700 at the 10th percentile to $61,940 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for ophthalmic medical technicians growing?+
BLS projects a +19.8% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, much faster than average, with roughly 12,500 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
33 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 3 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do ophthalmic medical technicians work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Ophthalmic Assistant, Certified Ophthalmic Technician (COT), Certified Ophthalmic Surgical Assistant, Ophthalmic Tech (Ophthalmic Technician) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 29-2057.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024-25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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