Optical Manager

In this online course, you will gain a comprehensive understanding of how to become an optician and prepare for the Basic American Board of Opticianry (ABO) exams. This includes the NOCE (National Opticianry Competency Exam) and the CLRE (Contact Lens Registry Exam), required by many states to work as opticians or as a stepping-stone to career advancement.

You will learn how to read prescriptions for glasses and contact lenses, become familiar with the equipment opticians use, and understand eye...

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12 Months / 322 Course Hrs
Open Enrollment
Offered in partnership with your preferred school

Butler Community College

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Course code: GES175

What you will learn

  • Learn how to understand and assign prescriptions to customers
  • Understand the different corrective eye care solutions available for patients
  • Master the mathematical formulas that opticians need to know
  • Learn how to read prescriptions for glasses and contact lenses
  • Prepare for the NOCE and CLRE
  • Learn advanced formatting, drawing tools, create and manage tables, and work with column layouts
  • Create, edit, format, and print Microsoft Word documents
  • Learn how to add comments, footnotes and endnotes, and a table of contents
  • Create, modify, and format Excel worksheets, perform calculations, and print Excel workbooks
  • Learn to use advanced Excel formulas, work with lists, work with illustrations and charts, and use advanced formatting techniques
  • Learn to work with pivot tables, audit worksheets, work with data tools, protect documents for collaboration with others, and work with macros
  • Perform fundamental analysis of accounts, financial documents, and reports
  • Perform essential bookkeeping duties and tasks
  • Apply basic accounting principles (accrual method, depreciation, and so on) to bookkeeping practices
  • Understand fundamental accounting concepts and how QuickBooks works to support these concepts

How you will benefit

  • Be qualified to obtain an entry-level position as an optician in a retail or medical setting (note that some states require ABO certification)
  • Be prepared to take the ABO exam, if you have a high school degree or GED
  • Knowledge about ocular anatomy, eye diseases and conditions, frame styling and adjustment, eyewear selection, glasses lens, and contact lens selection, prescriptions, and the equipment and mathematical formulas used in opticianry
  • Gain confidence in your ability to use QuickBooks to perform bookkeeping tasks for any company
  • Use basic, intermediate, and advanced features of QuickBooks Online proficiently
  • Prepare for the QBCU Exam

How the course is taught

  • Self-paced, online course
  • 12 Months to complete
  • Open enrollment, begin anytime
  • 322 course hours
  1. Optician Certification Training
    1. What is an Optician?
    2. The Parts of the Eye
    3. Simple Math and Algebra Concepts for Opticians
    4. Light, Prentice's Rule and Abbe Values
    5. Ophthalmic Lens Design
    6. Refractive Errors
    7. The Spectacle or Glasses Prescription
    8. Lens Materials and Treatments
    9. Effective Power and Compensated Power Calculations
    10. All About Frames
    11. Frame Adjustment Basics and Dispensing
    12. Lensometry, Measurement Devices, and Multifocal Lens Considerations
    13. Prisms and Decentration
    14. Keratometry and Corneal Topography
    15. Laws, Regulations, and Guidelines
    16. Contact Lens Prefitting
    17. Ocular Pathology and Systemic Conditions That Affect the Eyes
    18. Slit Lamp Biomicroscopy
    19. Soft Contact Lenses
    20. Rigid Gas Permeable Contact Lenses
    21. Hybrid and Scleral Contact Lenses
    22. Contact Lens-Related Conditions and Pathology
    23. Preparing for the NOCE and CLRE Exams
    24. Preparing for Your Career
  2. Professional Bookkeeping with QuickBooks Online
    1. Introduction to Bookkeeping
    2. Accounting Basics
    3. Getting Started With QuickBooks Online
    4. The Chart of Accounts
    5. Centers and Lists
    6. Bank Accounts
    7. Recording Expenses and Paying Bills
    8. Credit Cards and Loans
    9. Sales Receipts
    10. Invoices, Estimates, and Customizing Sales Forms
    11. Billable Expenses and Customer Credits
    12. Sales Taxes and Reports
    13. Midterm Exam
    14. Product and Service Items
    15. Managing Inventory
    16. Managing Projects and Sales
    17. Progress Invoicing, Late Fees, and Bad Debts
    18. Payroll
    19. Fixed Assets and Loans
    20. Business Entities and Owner Transactions
    21. Banking Rules, Receipts, and Budgets
    22. Adjusting and Reviewing the Books
    23. Starting a Bookkeeping Business
    24. Your Career Roadmap: The Job Search and Future Opportunities (Optional Lesson)
    25. Communication and Organization (Optional Lesson)
  3. Microsoft Essentials
    1. Introduction to Microsoft Word
      1. Getting to Know Word 2019
      2. Typing and Navigating Word 2019
      3. File Management
      4. Editing Text in Word
      5. Working with Multiple Documents
      6. Text Formatting
      7. Printing Your Documents
      8. Using Margins, Tabs, and Page Numbering
      9. Paragraph Formatting
      10. Writing & Language Tools
      11. Symbols, Special Characters, & Custom Language Tools
      12. Polishing Up Your Word Documents
      13. Final Exam
    2. Introduction to Microsoft Excel
      1. Getting to Know Excel
      2. Creating a Worksheet
      3. Formatting, Analysis, and Data-Entry Tools
      4. Relative, Absolute, Mixed, and Circular References
      5. 3-Dimensional Workbooks
      6. Sorting, Subtotaling, and Filtering
      7. Charting Basics
      8. Advanced Charting Techniques
      9. Intro to Excel’s Statistical Functions
      10. Financial Functions
      11. Worksheet Automation
      12. Logical Functions and Formatting Tricks
      13. Final Exam
    3. Intermediate Microsoft Excel
      1. Excel Charts and graphs
      2. More Excel Charts
      3. AutoFilter and Sorting
      4. Goal Seeking
      5. PivotTables
      6. Advanced PivotTables
      7. Solver
      8. Sparklines
      9. Macros
      10. Introduction to Functions
      11. Math/Trig Functions
      12. VLOOKUP, INDEX, and MATCH Functions
      13. Final Exam

Dr. Beverly Smith

Dr. Beverly Smith is a Doctor of Optometry and has been in private practice for more than 24 years. She also holds a Master of Business Administration and founded a consulting firm that helps new practitioners start and manage their own eye care practices. Throughout her career, Smith has taught many future opticians, certified paraoptometrics, and fellow optometrists. Her work has been published in the professional journals New O.D. and Women in Optometry.

Wade Lindenberger

Wade Lindenberger is a CPA with over 20 years of financial accounting and management experience in public accounting and the private industry. He is currently Director of Finance and Administration for New Children's Museum. Before his current position, he worked as the National Finance and Accounting Service Line Leader for Premier Alliance Group, a national professional services firm. Wade was also Director of the Finance and Accounting service line for the San Diego office of a global, publicly held professional services firm.

Before becoming a consultant, Wade was Divisional Controller for one of the world's leading health and fitness club chains and has been an Internal Audit Manager and Divisional Controller for a Fortune 500 global energy project management company. He began his career with Coopers & Lybrand, a predecessor to PricewaterhouseCoopers, one of the "Big Four" CPA firms. He has previously served as an instructor at Coopers & Lybrand and the University of California at San Diego for the Extension Course. He is currently an adjunct professor at the University of San Diego School of Business. He is also a member of the American Institute of Certified Bookkeepers' Advisory Board.

Instructor Interaction: The instructor looks forward to interacting with learners in the online moderated discussion area to share their expertise and answer any questions you may have on the course content.

Prerequisites:

There are no prerequisites to take this course.

Certification Requirements:

A high school diploma or GED is required to take the ABO exam.

After successfully completing this course, you will possess the knowledge required to pass the American Board of Opticianry (ABO) and National Contact Lens Examiners (NCLE) Basic certification exams, Opticianry Certification Exam (NOCE), and Contact Lens Registry Exam (CLRE). However, you should also research your state's requirements before pursuing a career as an optician. While some states only require a high school diploma or GED and passing score on the ABO exam to fulfill licensing requirements, others have their optician licensing exams. Additionally, some states may require that opticians complete an apprenticeship program or degree program to become licensed.

DISCLAIMER: This optician certification training course does not meet state requirements for students intending to work in North Carolina, New York, and South Carolina. Check the requirements in your state before enrolling.

Requirements:

Hardware Requirements:

  • This course can only be taken on a PC. Macs and Chromebooks are not compatible.

Software Requirements:

  • PC: Windows 10 or later.
  • Browser: The latest version of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox are preferred. Microsoft Edge is also compatible.
  • QuickBooks Online (Free 1-year subscription and practice site included in enrollment.) An additional subscription or software purchase for QuickBooks Online is not required to complete this course. However, please note that this course is only suitable for the QuickBooks Online version.
  • Microsoft Office 365, 2021, or 2019 (not included in enrollment). While you can use an older version of Microsoft Office, if you do, there will be some differences between your version and what you see in the course.
  • Adobe Acrobat Reader.
  • Software must be installed and fully operational before the course begins.

Other:

  • Email capabilities and access to a personal email account.

Instructional Material Requirements:

The instructional materials required for this course are included in enrollment. The following materials will be shipped to you approximately 7-10 business days after enrollment in the Optician Certification Training portion of the program:

  • System for Ophthalmic Dispensing
  • The Optician Training Manual
  • All About Your Eyes

The following materials will be shipped to you approximately 7-10 business days after enrollment in the Professional Bookkeeping with QuickBooks Online portion of the program:

  • Bookkeeping for Dummies
  • QuickBooks Online software
    • Your enrollment in this course includes a free 1-year full subscription to QuickBooks Online. You will learn how to access and activate this subscription in the Lesson 2 assignment. Manuals are included as downloadable PDFs throughout the course.

About Certification: American Board of Opticianry & National Contact Lens Examiners

 The American Board of Opticianry & National Contact Lens Examiners (ABO-NCLE) is the world's largest organization for opticians and eye care professionals. The board works to recognize the excellence of opticians and ophthalmic dispensers in the industry who have a certain set of skills and knowledge. To be certified by the ABO-NCLE, professionals must meet a set of criteria, including a comprehensive test that is internationally recognized to reflect current practices. ABO-NCLE certification is recognized by eye care patients and employers alike as a standard of excellence.

Yes, you will be prepared to take the American Board of Opticianry (ABO) and National Contact Lens Examiners (NCLE) Basic certification exams - Opticianry Certification Exam (NOCE) and Contact Lens Registry Exam (CLRE). Upon completion of this course, you'll be prepared to begin a career as an optician. Exam voucher not included.

You will also be prepared for the Intuit QuickBooks Certified User (QBCU) exam and receive a voucher for this exam.

Optical managers are professionals who oversee the everyday operations of an optometrist's office. You would most likely have a mix of administrative and eye care duties that you would perform every day in this position. For example, you would maintain all the responsibilities of an optician, such as the managerial duties, including hiring and training other office staff, managing inventory, maintaining patient records, processing billing statements and insurance claims, adjusting and repairing eyeglasses, and other similar tasks.

According to salary.com, optical managers earn an average salary of $23 per hour, equating to $47,840 per year. Additionally, Glassdoor.com uses self-reported salaries of optical managers and reports a nationwide annual average wage of $49,722.

To be a good optical manager, you will need to multitask as your workday will include a mix of management and optician duties. You must have good communication skills and be flexible with the ability to inspire and motivate others. You will be responsible for working with customers and helping resolve any complaints, so you need to remain calm in a potentially stressful situation. You will also need to be objective, detail-oriented, data-minded, and results-driven. Finally, you will need to be dependable and possess the ability to delegate tasks to others on your team.

The first step to becoming an optical manager is becoming an optician. You'll then need to gain some experience in an optometrist's office before you can advance into an optical manager role.

By taking this course, you will learn how to read prescriptions for glasses and contact lenses, become familiar with the equipment opticians use, and gain an understanding of eye anatomy and eye diseases. You will also learn various office responsibilities within an optometrist's office, including bookkeeping, tracking inventory and sales, and maintaining customer records (including payments and prescriptions).

After completing this course, you will be fully prepared to begin a career as an optician and have the skills and knowledge to advance as an optical manager in this popular and exciting medical field.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that the median salary for opticians is $38,530, with top professionals in this field making over $60,000 per year.

This course is open enrollment, so you can register and start the course as soon as you are ready. Access to your course can take 24-48 business hours.

This course is self-paced and open enrollment, so you can start when you want and finish at your own pace. When you register, you'll receive eighteen (18) months to complete the course.

The time allotted for course completion has been calculated based on the number of course hours. However, if you are unable to complete the course, contact the student advising team to see what options you may have available to work out a suitable completion date. Please note that an extension fee may be charged.

Our courses are designed to accommodate various learning preferences. Depending on the course structure, you may get different forms of support. Self-paced courses are designed to be user-friendly and independent, minimizing the need for external support. In courses with instructors, our direct platform support feature includes opportunities for questions, discussions, and remediation, with email and phone support available for select courses. Our student advising team is available to guide you on program requirements and administrative requests, but they do not provide assistance with course content. Our goal is to provide you with the necessary support for success, whether it's through self-paced exploration, direct communication, or guidance from our advising team.

Upon successful completion of the course, you will be awarded a Certificate of Completion.

This course will provide you with the skills you need to obtain an entry-level position in most cases. Potential students should always do research on the job market in their area before registering.

This course is non-credit, so it does not qualify for federal aid, FAFSA and Pell Grant. In some states, vocational rehab or workforce development boards will pay for qualified students to take our courses. Additionally, some students may qualify for financial assistance when they enroll, if they meet certain requirements. Financing is available from select schools. Learn more about financial assistance.

If you have questions that are not answered on our website, representatives are available via LIVE chat. You can also call us at 1-877-221-5151 during regular business hours to have your questions promptly answered. If you are visiting us during non-business hours, please send us a question using the "Contact Us" form.