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Alamo Colleges DistrictCareer Explorer

Opticians, Dispensing

Part of Health Science, in the Therapeutic Services pathway.

Job zone 3: medium preparationO*NET 29-2081.00

What the work is

Design, measure, fit, and adapt lenses and frames for client according to written optical prescription or specification. Assist client with inserting, removing, and caring for contact lenses. Assist client with selecting frames. Measure customer for size of eyeglasses and coordinate frames with facial and eye measurements and optical prescription. Prepare work order for optical laboratory containing instructions for grinding and mounting lenses in frames. Verify exactness of finished lens spectacles. Adjust frame and lens position to fit client. May shape or reshape frames. Includes contact lens opticians.

On a typical day

  • Measure clients' bridge and eye size, temple length, vertex distance, pupillary distance, and optical centers of eyes, using measuring devices.
  • Verify that finished lenses are ground to specifications.
  • Prepare work orders and instructions for grinding lenses and fabricating eyeglasses.
  • Assist clients in selecting frames according to style and color, and ensure that frames are coordinated with facial and eye measurements and optical prescriptions.
  • Maintain records of customer prescriptions, work orders, and payments.
  • Perform administrative duties, such as tracking inventory and sales, submitting patient insurance information, and performing simple bookkeeping.

What it pays

$38,090
Median pay per year, San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX metro
New workers start near $32,100
Experienced workers reach $52,810
  1. $32k10th
  2. $35k25th
  3. $38kMedian
  4. $45k75th
  5. $53k90th
Wage percentiles: 10th $32,100, 25th $35,360, Median $38,090, 75th $45,310, 90th $52,810

About 600 people do this job in the San Antonio area.

Job outlook

Alamo region (Bexar and 12 surrounding counties), Texas Workforce Commission projection 2024 to 2034. U.S. figures from the BLS for comparison.

+11.0%

employment change in the Alamo region, 682 to 757 jobs · U.S. +3%

66

openings a year in the Alamo region, from growth and people leaving · U.S. 6,800

682

employed in the Alamo region in 2024 · U.S. 79,900

Typical entry education: High school diploma or equivalent · Training: Long-term on-the-job training

Skills this career uses

The skills O*NET rates most important for the job, with how much of each the work needs on a 1 to 7 scale.

  1. Speaking4.0
  2. Active Listening4.0
  3. Reading Comprehension3.9
  4. Critical Thinking3.9
  5. Service Orientation3.5
  6. Writing3.3
  7. Coordination3.1
  8. Social Perceptiveness3.0

Education people in this job have

Share of workers by highest education, from O*NET surveys. It shows what others did, not what you must do.

  1. High school or less46%
  2. Certificate25%
  3. Some college4%
  4. Associate degree25%

Job zone 3, medium preparation: Training, an associate degree, or a few years of related experience.

Alamo programs that lead here

  • St. Philip's
  1. Vision Care Technology

    Degree · Health & Biosciences

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