Optician: Order, Dispense, Repair Eyeglasses.
(Female, Age 42) from Eastpointe, NY
This is a REAL-LIFE job profile written by a Female aged 42 who works as a Optician: Order, Dispense, Repair Eyeglasses. in Eastpointe, NY. We have removed all names and personal information in order to protect privacy. This professional kindly spent a bit of their time to complete one of our job profile surveys so that prospective job seekers like you could read their insights. Please excuse any punctuation or grammatical errors in this profile.
At a Glance
Current Job
Basic data on your current job
| Job Title | Optician: Order, Dispense, Repair Eyeglasses. |
|---|---|
| Salary | $23,000 |
| Other Compensation | None Set |
| Hours/Week | |
| Company Size | (not answered) |
| Location | Eastpointe, NY |
| Years Experience | 8 years |
Career Ratings
Opinions on your CAREER overall (i.e. not just your current job)
| Years in Career | 0 |
|---|---|
| Education | (not answered) |
| Income Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Interest Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Work-Life Rating | 0 / 10 |
| Fulfilment Rating | 0 / 10 |
Current job Q&A
Describe the type of organization you work for.
Independent Optometrist Office, owned by the Doctor. Company employees approximately 10 employees. In practice over 25 years.
Describe your job role and responsibilities.
Optican: Work with patients to select and measure for eyeglasses. Order eyeglasses via phone or internet. Dispense and adjust eyeglasses. Edge lenses and assemble eyeglasses. Oversee all aspects of Optical department, clean, stock, and merchandise. Assist with Scheduling exam appointments and insurance billing.
Please list an additional benefits (beyond compensation) that you receive.
3 weeks paid vacation, 1/2 health insurance paid, and 401k
Do you feel you are under/over or well/fairly compensated at your current position?
Under compensated
Does your job entail you working with others on a daily basis? Is this something you like/dislike about your job? Please explain.
Work with patients and other staff daily. I’m not sure I like it. Sometimes it is ok, but I would like to be alone more.
Do you work collaboratively with supervisors/managers?
Yes
Do you work collaboratively with your co-workers?
Yes
Describe your work location (e.g., office, home, theatre, in the field) and what you like/dislike about working in it.
Very nice medical office. Nicely decorated and family friendly environment.
Please rate each of the following aspects of your current job on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the highest/best):
Income: 3
Benefits: 5
Hours: 4
Co-Workers: 2
Supervisors: 1
Job Title: 8
Level of Responsibility: 6
The Actual Work: 7
A day in the life of…
Please describe a typical workday for you in your current job:
| 5am to 6am | |
| 6am to 7am | |
| 7am to 8am | n/a |
| 8am to 9am | Drive to work |
| 9am to 10am | Straighten Optical area, frame boards, counters,etc. Check in eyeglasses and verify are correct, enter relevant data and notify patients to pick up. Assist patients in between as needed to place orders or pick up orders. Assist receptionsist with phones and scheduleing appointments. |
| 10am to 11am | Constantly multitasking, Continue checking in eyeglass orders, assisting patients with orders, dispenses adjustment of eyeglasses and repairs. Met with frame representatives to purchase stock, package and return stock. |
| 11am to 12pm | Usually done with check ins by now. Finish processing yesterdays patient eyeglass and lens orders by computer. While doing all computer/paper work stop as needed to work with patients. |
| 12pm to 1pm | Continue with above work. Break 1/2 hour. Check inter office emails from management for additional work. Also continue assisting receptionist as needed with phones. |
| 1pm to 2pm | Find time between working with patients, to work in lab to cut (edge) lenses into frames. Bill insurances via computer and maintain department stock, cleanliness and ticket merchandise. and Also try to place orders to main lab as soon as finished with patients, often evening orders will be done next day, if unable to get time between patients. |
| 2pm to 3pm | Continuation of above duties, First priority is always to assist patients in the office, with placing orders, picking up orders and repairs and adjustment. |
| 3pm to 4pm | Continuation of above duties. It can take over an hour with one patient who would like to order. First discuss prescription needs, help select appropriate frame, sometimes multiple pairs. Measure for fitting requirements, discuss lens options and pricing. Add up total charge and enter order in computer, collect payment. Orders will need to be called in to lab later, faxed or entered through insurance company on line sites. Often done later. |
| 4pm to 5pm | Continuation of above duties. Follow up with patients with postcards of phone calls. Insure delivery of pending orders are on time or notify patients of delay in necessary. |
| 5pm to 6pm | Continuation of above duties. First priority is always to assist patients in the office, with placing orders, picking up orders and repairs and adjustment. |
| 6pm to 7pm | Continuation of above duties. Multitask all day! Enter dispensed orders in computer. Straighten up department. |
| 7pm to 8pm | Drive home |
| 8pm to 9pm | n/a |
| 9pm to 10pm | n/a |
| 10pm to 11pm | n/a |
| 11pm to 12am | n/a |
Table of Contents
How you got your job
How did you get your current job?
Cold Call, sent out resumes to all Optical offices in my area.
What was the application process?
Faxed resume and filled out paper application
Did you have to interview for your current job? If yes, what did the interview process entail?
Interviewed first with Office manager. Called back for second interview with Doctor and Owner.
If you can remember, what questions were you asked during the interview?
Mostly questions about how much experience I have and what skills
Do you feel your employer properly prepared you for your job? Explain.
Yes, very good training.
Was there training for your current position? If yes, what did it entail?
On hands training. Also studied for Certification test, with assistance of previous manager. Became Certified Optician. Unfortunately the state I live in doesn’t require certification to be employed as an Optician. If it did, they would have to pay better.
Do you feel your educational background prepared you for your job? Explain.
Somewhat. Need to have at least some education. But formal education is not necessary.
If applicable, do you feel your internship experience helped you prepare for your job?
n/a
If someone wanted to go about getting a job similar to yours, what would you recommend for him or her to do?
Can go to community college, some have an Optician program, but not necessary, because most Private practices want experience. You can get that at many “big box” chains, that will pay you instead of you paying a school. Apply at a Eyeglass chain store, Most will higher with no experience and train. Study for the American Board of Opticianry Certification. After a few years of experience and with a certification you should be able to get into a private office, if you desire.
What skills do you think a person should have if they want to pursue a position like yours?
Must have great social skills to work with patients. Must have good mathematics skills to work with Optics. Need to be able to multitask and have a lot of patience.
Do you feel that you need a certain level of education or training to be successful in your job?
Yes, Training is critical, This would be a great field to have apprentices, I feel that little can be learned textbook style, it really needs to be hands on.
What advice would you give to someone who was about to start work in your position/ line of work?
Try to get started in a Optical Chain that will train with out experience. Study Optical Theory on your own, or go to College if you can afford too. Get ABO Certified.
Long-term career plans
Is your current employment part of your overall career plan? Why or why not?
Don’t know. Probally, because I don’t know what else to do.
What are your current career goals?
Would like to seek employment in Northern area of state and relocate to a more remote area, but employment is scarce in that area.
Is there anything else you would like to share about your career?
You have to have strong people skills to work in this field. It is very trying and often frustrating work.
Prior work history
Please list your most recent jobs prior to this current job:
| Title | Length | Salary | Description | |
| Prior Job 1 | Optican/Dispenser | 3 months | 26000 | Assist patients with ordering eyeglasses and dispense and repair. |
| Prior Job 2 | Assitant Manager/Optican | 8 years | 26000 | Oversee Optical department and Assist patients |
Educational background
Please list your educational background:
High School GPA:3
| GPA | School | Degree | |
| College (Undergraduate) or Technical/Vocational |
3.5 | Macomb Community College | Associate of Arts |
| Graduate or Professional (Masters or Doctorate) |
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