What are the best ophthalmic technician qualifications and training to get ahead?

What is the best training for becoming an ophthalmic technician? What types of ongoing training or certifications are necessary to be an effective ophthalmic technician?

What do non-traditional career paths look like?

HOW DO YOU GET THE TRAINING FOR OPHTHALMIC TECHNICIAN, LASIK TECHNICIAN? THANKS

hi! charisse toale here! eye industry recruiter at imatters, and ophthalmic technician myself! ok there are really great ways to increase your knowledge from community college programs to super duper programs like georgetown university, we have on our website josef, who is a professor at georgetown, and give us great tips to improve your career. but my suggestions,,, we love the atpo/jcahpo crew, great education and there are ways to study at home, on the job (that's what i did) or do the formal programs (like our favorite, georgetown) and get cracking in our career biz. i have been here for 25 years and can certainly tell you its the best!

Awesome field to get into if you like working with people. In my experience, becoming a Certified Ophthalmic Assistant is a great place to start. Many practices will only hire COA's with experience. I'm not sure about formal training because I started out as a medical assistant and I was trained on the job for ophthalmic assisting:) I do know that there are practices out there that will train the right person with a home study course. I would call around, you might be able to find an office willing to do this and you will have a nice income while you learn and a job already in place:) Good luck!