Optometry

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Total Degrees
Awarded in 2020

1,666

declining 4.64%

Median In-State
Public Tuition

$10,215

growing 3.33%

Median Out-of-State
Private Tuition

$32,370

declining 0.0154%

Average Wage

$77,002

growing 2.27%

People in Workforce

4.49M

growing 4.83%

Average Employee Age

42.9

growing 0.0388%

About

The locations with the highest concentration of Optometry degree recipients are Boston, MA, Chicago, IL, and Memphis, TN. The locations with a relatively high number of Optometry degree recipients are Pikeville, KY, Forest Grove, OR, and Pomona, CA. The most common degree awarded to students studying Optometry is a professional doctorate.

Health Optometry

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Optometry and the types of students that study this field. Salus University awards the most degrees in Optometry in the US, but Illinois College of Optometry and Southern College of Optometry have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Optometry.

Tuition costs for Optometry majors are, on average, $10,215 for in-state public colleges, and $32,370 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Optometry programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (14 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above (1,127 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Optometry

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Optometry, is Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above (1,127 completions).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Optometry programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$10,215

Median In-State Public

$32,370

Median Out of State Private

Salus University has the most Optometry degree recipients, with 149 degrees awarded in 2020.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Optometry.

Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

Out of all institutions that offer Optometry programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Illinois College of Optometry has the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Optometry, with 100%.

Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Optometry

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Optometry by year.

Growth in Awarded Degrees

Counties with the Fastest Growing Number of Degrees Awarded

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest growth in degrees awarded for Optometry.

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Health graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

The average salary for Health majors is $77,002 and the most common occupations are Registered nurses, Pharmacists, and Nurse practitioners & nurse midwives.

The industry that employs the most Health majors is General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Computer & peripheral equipment manufacturing.

Wages

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

$77,002

Average Wage in Workforce

± $786

2.27%

1 Year Growth

± 1.42%

The average salary for Health majors is $77,002 and the most common occupations are Registered nurses, Pharmacists, and Nurse practitioners & nurse midwives.

This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Health majors.

Highest Paying Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

Highest Paying Pumas

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Health majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Health majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

Occupations

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

The most common occupations Health majors, by number of employees, are Registered nurses, Pharmacists, and Nurse practitioners & nurse midwives.

Most Specialized

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Health majors working as Nurse anesthetists, Nurse practitioners & nurse midwives, and Audiologists.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

The highest paid occupations by median income for Health majors are Surgeons, Physicians, and Chief executives & legislators.

Occupations by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

4.49M

2019 Workforce

± 51,234

4.83%

1 Year Growth

± 1.56%

The number of Health graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 4.83%, from 4.28M in 2018 to 4.49M in 2019.

The largest single share of Health graduates go on to work as Registered nurses (37.7%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Health by share of the total number of graduates.

Industries

Most Common

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

The most common industries that employ Health majors, by number of employees, are General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, Outpatient care centers, and Offices of physicians.

Highest Paid

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

The highest paying industries of Health majors, by average wage, are Computer & peripheral equipment manufacturing, Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing, and Glass & glass product manufacturing.

Industries by Share

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

4.49M

2019 Workforce

± 51,234

4.83%

1 Year Growth

± 1.56%

The number of Health graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 4.83%, from 4.28M in 2018 to 4.49M in 2019.

The industry which employs the most Health graduates by share is General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, followed by Outpatient care centers. This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Health.

Specialty Locations

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

PUMAS with a relatively high number of Health majors

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Health majors.

Diversity

Demographic information for those who earn a degree in Health in the United States.

The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Health is 42.9.

The most common degree type these workers hold is a Professional Doctorate. Female employees are more likely to hold Health degrees, and White students are the most common race/ethnicty group awarded degrees in Health (841 students).

Workforce Age

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

42.9

Average Age in 2019

± 0.153 Years

0.0388%

1 Year Change

± 0.508%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Health. The most common ages of employees with this major are 31 and 33 years old, which represent 3.03% and 2.99% of the population, respectively.

Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Optometry are Professional Doctorate and Post-Masters Certificate.

Workforce Degrees

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

The most common degree types held by the working population in Health are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Professional degree.

Sex Imbalance for Common Institutions

Female (70.6%)

Most Common Sex with a Degree in this Field

This chart shows the granted degrees by sex at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Optometry.

Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

White
841 degrees awarded
Asian
468 degrees awarded
Non-resident Alien
114 degrees awarded

This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Optometry for each race & ethnicity. White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

Race & Ethnicity by Sex

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Sex Combination

White Female
552 degrees awarded
Asian Female
348 degrees awarded
White Male
289 degrees awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by sex for each race & ethnicity of Professional Doctorate recipients in Optometry. White Female students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and sex.

Global Diversity

The closest comparable data for the 6 Digit Course Optometry is from the 2 Digit Course Health.

Most Common Countries of Origin

Philippines
208,517 degree recipients
India
81,039 degree recipients
Mexico
36,315 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

Philippines
5.27 times more than expected
Zimbabwe
4.21 times more than expected
Tanzania
3.75 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Philippines that hold Health degrees (5.27 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is Philippines (208,517 degree recipients).

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Optometry field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Optometry majors need many skills, but most especially Active Listening. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Optometry majors need more than the average amount of Operation and Control, Troubleshooting, and Science.

These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Optometry majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Operation and Control is very distinctive for majors, but the Active Listening, Critical Thinking, and Reading Comprehension are the three most important skills for people in the field.