Individuals interested in a career as an orientation and mobility specialist can pursue an undergraduate degree in special education or rehabilitation. Upon graduation, students generally pursue postgraduate education in the form of stand-alone certificate programs or a master's degree in an area such as special education.
A stand-alone orientation and mobility certification program requires the completion of 27 credit hours at universities, such as Texas Tech. The course curriculum is delivered through a combination of classroom-based and web-based study. Students also complete an internship through the program, which provides them with the ability to apply and develop newly learned skills and techniques.
Courses in the program include an introduction to educational research, human development and education, exceptional youth and children, the anatomy and physiology of the visual system, basic and intermediate orientation and mobility training and advanced training for the multi-handicapped and blind.
In most states, graduates must generally obtain a license to practice through a state agency or through the Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals.