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Job & Career ConneCTion Home   Occupation Profile May 22, 2013  
 
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OPTICIANS, DISPENSING
 
Occupation Description:
 
  Design, measure, fit, and adapt lenses and frames for client according to written optical prescription or specification. Assist client with selecting frames. Measure customer for size of eyeglasses and coordinate frames with facial and eye measurements and optical prescription. Prepare work order for optical laboratory containing instructions for grinding and mounting lenses in frames. Verify exactness of finished lens spectacles. Adjust frame and lens position to fit client. May shape or reshape frames. Include contact lens opticians.
 
Career Video:
 
  Video Icon   View a brief introduction to Opticians, Dispensing
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Typical Tasks:
 
 
  • Measure clients' bridge and eye size, temple length, vertex distance, pupillary distance, and optical centers of eyes, using measuring devices.
  • Verify that finished lenses are ground to specifications.
  • Prepare work orders and instructions for grinding lenses and fabricating eyeglasses.
  • Assist clients in selecting frames according to style and color, and ensure that frames are coordinated with facial and eye measurements and optical prescriptions.
  • Maintain records of customer prescriptions, work orders, and payments.
  • Perform administrative duties such as tracking inventory and sales, submitting patient insurance information, and performing simple bookkeeping.
  • Recommend specific lenses, lens coatings, and frames to suit client needs.
 
Skills:
 
 
  • Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times..
  • Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively..
  • Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people..
  • Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents..
  • Mathematics - Using mathematics to solve problems..
  • Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems..
  • Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience..
 
Knowledge:
 
 
  • Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction..
  • Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems..
  • English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar..
  • Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications..
  • Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology..
  • Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources..
  • Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods..
 
Search for Jobs on Connecticut's Labor Exchange (CTJOBcentral):
 
  Search for Opticians, Dispensing Jobs
  (Please note that some searches may not produce any results.)
Education & Training:
 
  Long-term on-the-job training (more than 12 months)
 
      View Related Programs on Connecticut's Education & Training ConneCTion site
 
License Authority for Optician:  (License details)
 
  Department of Public Health
Health Care Systems Branch
Practitioner Licensing & Investigations Section
410 Capitol Avenue
P.O.Box 340308
Hartford, CT   006134 -00308
(860) 509-7603
email: olpc.dph@po.state.ct.us
www.dph.state.ct.us/licensure/licensure.htm

 
License Authority for Optician Apprentice:  (License details)
 
  Department of Public Health
Health Care Systems Branch
Practitioner Licensing & Investigations Section
410 Capitol Avenue
P.O.Box 340308
Hartford, CT   006134 -00308
(860) 509-7603
email: olpc.dph@po.state.ct.us
www.dph.state.ct.us/licensure/licensure.htm

 
Wage Information:
 
 
Region Average Annual Average Hourly Entry Level (hourly) Mid-Range  (hourly)
Statewide Units $46,275.00 $22.25 $14.44 $16.17 - $27.22
Bridgeport/Stamford $38,292.00 $18.41 $13.34 $14.94 - $22.07
Danbury $53,336.00 $25.64 $17.63 $20.87 - $28.14
Hartford $51,127.00 $24.58 $14.86 $16.80 - $29.81
New Haven $54,166.00 $26.04 $17.27 $18.54 - $30.15
New London/Norwich $41,037.00 $19.73 $12.11 $11.94 - $25.93
Springfield, MA $43,975.00 $21.14 $13.72 $14.95 - $26.24
Waterbury $46,579.00 $22.39 $12.93 $14.89 - $27.70
Worcester, MA $47,288.00 $22.73 $16.58 $17.78 - $27.25
Torrington $33,298.00 $16.01 $10.08 $10.87 - $20.43
      
Select a town to see its region Not sure which Region applies to you?
    

 
Occupation Outlook:
 
 
Region Employment Average Annual Growth Rate Average Annual Job Openings
2010 2020
State of Connecticut 710 770 0.7% 19
 
 
Chart of Growth Rate and Annual Openings   Employment in this occupation is expected to grow about as fast as average, but the number of annual openings will offer limited job opportunities.
Key:
  N/A = Not Applicable, ***** = Over $60.00 per hour, ##### = Over $124,821
 
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