Orthoptist

Orthoptists diagnose and treat defects in eye movement, problems with how the eyes work together and problems with how the eyes interact with the brain. They work with every age group including, babies, children, adults and the elderly. Their work with children generally involves vision screening and the correction of misaligned or lazy eyes. Orthoptists’ work with adults is usually around eye muscle or nerve weakness because of brain injury, stroke, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, or similar.

Orthoptists usually work in a hospital but can also work in schools or community healthcare. They work as part of a multi-disciplinary care team including doctors, nurses, health visitors and other allied healthcare professionals.

As an orthoptist working for the NHS, you will be paid on the Agenda for Change (AFC) pay system, typically starting on band 5, with salaries currently ranging from £31,049 to £37,796. Upon completion of the preceptorship programme, you can apply for a specialist clinical role at Band 6, paying between £38,682 and £46,580. Experienced orthoptists who reach Band 7 can expect to be paid between £47,810 and £54,710. Salaries for head orthoptists can reach up to £105,337 (Band 8d). You will also receive a generous pension and 35 days holiday per year (including bank holidays).

The entry requirements for an orthoptist undergraduate degree course are generally five GCSEs (grades 9 - 4), including English language, maths and science, or equivalent, and two or three A levels, including one science.

Orthoptist is a title that is protected by law. This means that to work as an orthoptist, you will need to have completed an undergraduate or postgraduate degree in orthoptics, which has been approved by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). Currently, three universities offer undergraduate courses in orthoptics: Glasgow Caledonian University, the University of Liverpool and the University of Sheffield.

All pre-registration orthoptic students on an eligible undergraduate or postgraduate course in England could receive non-repayable funding support of at least £6,000 per year to help fund your studies. For more details, see the NHS Learning Support Fund.

If you already have a 2:2 undergraduate degree or above in a relevant subject, you could apply to study a pre-registration Masters course in orthoptics. It is a full-time, two-year course, which offers an accelerated route to registration as an orthoptist.

If you are interested in applying to study orthoptics at university, you can visit the British and Irish Orthoptic Society website to arrange a work shadowing opportunity.

To find local education and training opportunities that could lead to a career as an orthoptist, visit our partner website >log on | move on>.

What is an orthoptist?

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Want to know what it's like to work as an orthoptist in the NHS? Watch the orthoptist video in How Did You Get That Job?