Madison Area Technical College in Wisconsin has an optometric technician program where students may earn a technical diploma either in the classroom or online. People already employed in the optometric field may find online classes fit better into their schedule. This is part-time, four-semester training. New students for online classes are taken every August and January. The classroom program, however, can be finished in as little as nine months. New students are only admitted in August for this program and it is full time.
At the Indiana University School of Optometry in Bloomington, students can earn an associate degree in two years to become a qualified optometric technician. Students that have not had any college courses may need to complete nontechnical courses before or after the technical courses. At IU a student may also become qualified as a laboratory optician by taking courses such as lens surfacing and fabrication. Students are given hands-on experience working with optometrists at clinics in Bloomington or at its clinics in Indianapolis and Guanajuato, Mexico.
Washington's Spokane Community College's Vision Care Technology prepares students to become an optometrist's assistant and incorporates technology advances into the curriculum as well as computerized eye testing. A graduate is ready to assists specialists in optometry, ophthalmology, and opticianry. They will be able to pretest vision, manufacture and dispense contact lenses and glasses and assist in surgery. The college boasts that it is "the only program in the western United States where all sectors of the optometry industry come to recruit new staff because of its national reputation for developing top professionals."
The Des Moines Area Community College Optometric/Ophthalmic Technician Program prepares students to pass the national exam to assist practitioners providing a full range of eye care and surgeries. At the end of this program, students will undergo criminal background checks before receiving their degrees. This program is for those who want to work in optical dispensaries or laboratories; medical and optical equipment businesses; lens, frame or contact lens companies; pharmaceutical companies; research laboratories or as teachers.