international doctors of optometry

How can an international doctor of optometry practice in the United States?

As passage of the NBEO is required for licensure, any foreign optometrist who wants to practice in the US needs to pass NBEO to become licensed. You can’t just sign up for NBEO exams on your own – you need to be sponsored. For students in US schools of optometry, they get permission from their school to take NBEO. Foreign students either need to get a US school to or a state board to sponsor them. From what we understand, the latter is rare and to get a school to sponsor a person, that person may need to participate in an Advanced Standing program, which is where they might get ‘credit’ for some courses and experience previously completed, but still need join a cohort maybe 2 years in, for example, and graduate from that US-based program.

The web site of the Association of Schools and Colleges of Optometry (ASCO) includes the following FAQ on its web page. “As a graduate of an international program, how do I become eligible to practice in the United States?”  The website addresses the options for an internationally trained individual to become eligible to practice in the United States. The link to this page is: https://optometriceducation.org/future-students/resources/frequently-asked-questions/



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