Scouting, Volume 78, Number 3, March-April 1990 Page: 7
58, E1-E12, [52] p. : ill. (some col.) ; 28 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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thick as Coke bottles and young peo-
ple who wore them were teased and
ridiculed are gone forever," says Ray.
"Today, many people are as inclined
to wear glasses to make a fashion
statement as they are for medical
reasons."
More than 80,000 persons cur-
rently hold jobs either as dispensing
opticians or ophthalmic laboratory
technicians. Dispensing opticians fill
eyeglass prescriptions written by op-
tometrists and ophthalmologists,
measure and fit patients for glasses,
and advise them on frames, tints,
and shapes.
Ophthalmic laboratory techni-
cians grind lenses and actually con-
struct glasses. Between now and the
turn of the century, tens of thou-
sands of additional jobs are expected
to be created in this field.
America's 50,000-plus dispensing
opticians work in retail optical
stores, ophthalmologists' and op-
tometrists' offices, and hospital eye
clinics. After gaining experience,
many are able to open their own re-
tail optical shops. Starting salaries
range from $18,000 to $23,000 per
year, while experienced dispensing
opticians who operate their own
shops earn an average of $34,000
annually, and many earn far more.
Most opticians learn their skills on
the job in settings ranging from small
shops to large optometric compa-
nies. The training process may last
up to four years and usually includes
instruction in optical mathematics,
optical physics, and the use of preci-
sion measuring instruments and
other devices, as well as sales and
office management.
To be accepted for on-the-job
training, applicants need a high
school diploma. They also need to be
proficient in such subjects as phys-
ics, algebra, geometry, and mechan-
ical drawing.
The two-year associate degree pro-
gram offered in optical fabricating
and dispensing by some 20 commu-
nity colleges across the country pro-
vides another avenue into the optical
profession, and graduates of these
programs are in especially high de-
mand.
The nation's more than 30,000
ophthalmic laboratory technicians,
meanwhile, perform the vital task of
actually fabricating eyeglasses in
settings ranging from laboratories to
doctors' offices to retail outlets. Also
known as manufacturing opticians
or optical mechanics, they cut, grind,
and finish prescription lenses to the
eye doctor's specifications, then as-
semble them in frames selected by
the customer.
Starting salaries for ophthalmic
laboratory technicians average about
1
v
TL..
Optician Don Thompson checks the distance between customer Tammy Brown's eyes.
A quality control employee checks the accuracy of an eyeglass lens prescription.
$18,500 per year, and experienced
technicians can expect to earn up to
$28,000 annually, and sometimes
even more.
Several education and training
options are available for students in-
terested in this field, but most tech-
nicians still learn their skills during
about three years of informal on-the-
job experience in a small to medium-
size laboratory.
Many optical goods companies
also offer formal apprenticeships in
optical technology, which are con-
sidered an excellent method of prep-
aration. Most apprenticeships range
in length from three to four years, but
students with superior ability may
complete them in less time. Various
community colleges offer two-year
associate degree programs in optic
technology, and shorter-term pro-
grams are available at numerous
vocational/technical institutes and
trade schools.
"Optics is basically all mathemat-
ics," says Ray, "but most of the pro-
cedures are computerized today and
you don't have to be a mathematical
genius to work in this field."
Employment of ophthalmic labo-
ratory technicians is expected to in-
crease faster than the average for all
occupations through the year 2000,
but the number of new openings is
likely to be more limited than that for
dispensing opticians because much
work once done manually is now
done by computer.
For more information about optical
careers write: Opticians Association
of America, 1250 Connecticut Ave.
N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036, or
National Association of Manufactur-
ing Opticians, 13140 Coit Rd., Dal-
las, Tex. 75240. H
E7
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Boy Scouts of America. Scouting, Volume 78, Number 3, March-April 1990, periodical, March 1990; Irving, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth353651/m1/37/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Boy Scouts of America National Scouting Museum.