Orthoptics Bsc 2021

Original post by a.s12

hi
im thinking of applying for Orthoptics at uni and i wanted to know whether if anyone on here has done it because they're arent really a lot of resources for research. I want to know whether if it is hard to get a place on the course as only 3 unis in the UK do it. i would also like to know about how the course is and is it mainly placement based or more exam based?
Thanks in advance

Hi there,

I’m a qualified Orthoptist - I graduated 4 years ago so things are likely to have changed since I was at university. The course is a mixture of placement and exams. You’ll have practical exams as well as written exams, essays, posters, dissertation etc.
Liverpool and Sheffield currently do block placements but Glasgow Caledonian differs in that they do a mixture of daily placements and blocks.

With everything going on with the COVID-19 pandemic, the course is likely to change slightly due to placements not being possible just now.

In terms of what is covered on the course, each course varies slightly so best way to see what is taught is to look at the course pages for each university as they usually include a breakdown of what is covered in the three/four years.

There’s so much I could talk about so if there’s anything in specific you want to know, just let me know :smile:

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 3

Original post by a.s12

hi
im thinking of applying for Orthoptics at uni and i wanted to know whether if anyone on here has done it because they're arent really a lot of resources for research. I want to know whether if it is hard to get a place on the course as only 3 unis in the UK do it. i would also like to know about how the course is and is it mainly placement based or more exam based?
Thanks in advance

Hi !

I'm Alisha, a current Orthoptics student at the University of Sheffield. Yes you are right there are only 3 Uni's to offer orthoptics so the number of places available are much lower than those for other courses, although Orthoptics is a really niche subject area and not many people are aware of the course so there isn't necessarily a really high demand like courses such as medicine and nursing. Currently there is a shortage of Orthoptists so the government has introduced a funding scheme for Orthoptics students and other Allied health students you can find more information here :https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-learning-support-fund . Like with all courses the admissions tutors are looking for individuals passionate about Orthoptics hence why all 3 universities have each applicant to undergo an interview (given the other requirements are met such as grades etc). The course is really balanced between placements and exams/lecturing. At Sheffield we have 3 placements in each year , for 1st year this is a 1 week, 2 week then 4 week to ease us in but after it is all 4 week placements. During our placements we have learning objectives to meet and are assessed as we go along, except our first placement, this really helps you to learn and get a feel for the job after you graduate. We also do have written exams in different modules surround visual science, optics and anatomy in 1st year , these modules change for 2nd and 3rd year but some remain the same. We also have a practical exam called an OSCE in University to assess our clinical skills. Hope this helps, if you have any more questions I have an 'Ask me anything thread found here : https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/sho...ght=orthoptics. Here you can post questions or message me via Unibuddy's and I would love to help out.

Alisha
1st Year
BMedSci Orthoptics

Reply 4

Hassan142

Hi, I'm a second year orthoptist at uni of Liverpool. Has a mixture of practical and written exams. Should really look into it since the government are supporting and encouraging students to take up this course, providing significant grants at the moment.

(edited 3 years ago)

Reply 5

a.s12

OP

11

Original post by Hassan142

Hi, I'm a second year orthoptist at uni of Liverpool. Quite easy to get it actually as many came in through clearing last year. Has a mixture of practical and written exams. Should really look into it since the government are supporting and encouraging students to take up this course, providing significant grants at the moment.

thanks for your reply. May i ask what made you go into orthoptics as most people mainly choose optom and how are you finding the course at liverpool

Reply 6

a.s12

OP

11

Original post by theytookmyuke

Hi there,

I’m a qualified Orthoptist - I graduated 4 years ago so things are likely to have changed since I was at university. The course is a mixture of placement and exams. You’ll have practical exams as well as written exams, essays, posters, dissertation etc.
Liverpool and Sheffield currently do block placements but Glasgow Caledonian differs in that they do a mixture of daily placements and blocks.

With everything going on with the COVID-19 pandemic, the course is likely to change slightly due to placements not being possible just now.

In terms of what is covered on the course, each course varies slightly so best way to see what is taught is to look at the course pages for each university as they usually include a breakdown of what is covered in the three/four years.

There’s so much I could talk about so if there’s anything in specific you want to know, just let me know :smile:

Thanks for your reply,
what uni did you study at and what made you go into orthoptics rather than optom?

Reply 7

Hassan142

Original post by a.s12

thanks for your reply. May i ask what made you go into orthoptics as most people mainly choose optom and how are you finding the course at

liverpool

Hi, I wanted a more science/biology based course like orthoptics rather than a maths and physics based course like optom. Although we do get taught optom in our course in order for you to know the basics and vice versa. I couldn't see myself prescribing glasses all day, sounds too boring whereas in orthoptics, every appointment is completely different. I must say the course is getting interesting however 1st year is mainly the basics and doesn't lead to the overall degree

Reply 8

a.s12

OP

11

Original post by Hassan142

Hi, I wanted a more science/biology based course like orthoptics rather than a maths and physics based course like optom. Although we do get taught optom in our course in order for you to know the basics and vice versa. I couldn't see myself prescribing glasses all day, sounds too boring whereas in orthoptics, every appointment is completely different. I must say the course is getting interesting however 1st year is mainly the basics and doesn't lead to the overall degree

Ohh that’s good ! What building do you study in bc I know liv uni quite well as my sister did her degree there recently aha and is the degree weighted at 40% second year and then 70% third ?

Reply 9

Hassan142

Original post by a.s12

Ohh that’s good ! What building do you study in bc I know liv uni quite well as my sister did her degree there recently aha and is the degree weighted at 40% second year and then 70% third ?

We are in quite a few, Thompson Yates Building being the main for practicals, then Life Sciences building, Cedar House, Brodie Tower, Sherrington building and Mathematical Sciences for lectures, seminars and tutorials. Also, I'm not sure about the weightings at the moment.

Reply 10

2k19GCSES

8

What other courses are you guys applying for?

Reply 11

M.FA

7

How’s studying Orthoptics? Are the modules hard?

Reply 12

Original post by M.FA

How’s studying Orthoptics? Are the modules hard?

Hi M.FA,

I have just finished my first year of Orthoptics. I personally found the modules really interesting and definitely challenging as they cover so many new areas of visual science that I had never explored prior to starting the course! There is a large variety of topics covered by the modules for example we had in first year : Anatomy and Physiology which was quite similar to A level biology with some extra bits and in more detail we then moved to Ocular anatomy and physiology for second term which is just specific to the eyes and the visual system rather than including other aspects of the body like in first term. We also have Strabismus, which I would say is the main module, here you learn everything to do with the eyes including squints, tests for eye disorders and different eye conditions, the module is very biology based but is unique to orthoptics and I found this really interesting as most aspects of this module I had never learnt before. We also have a module in Optics which is very physics based, in first year we learn the theory behind optics in a non visual context and then in 2nd year we will then apply the optics we learnt to the eyes. The other modules are Interpersonal skills and participation and society, these are more sociology based and more focused on communication with patients and the ethics of being an orthoptist. We also have clinical skills sessions in the practical room which is where we practice testing on peers, effectively we put to practice what we learn in strabismus to help prepare us for clinical placement which is really helpful and I always enjoy clinical skills. I hope this has given you a bit more of an insight into Orthoptics, let me know if you have anymore questions and I would love to help.

Alisha
2nd Year
BMedSci Orthoptics

Reply 13

Karl Orthoptics

1

Hi, I was just wondering how clinical placements work, financially speaking. I realise some placements are up to 4 weeks long and that you have to pay up front for travel and accommodation and claims this back later. What kind of up front costs are we talking to cover these placements? I imagine if you had to get a hotel room for 4 weeks this could be hugely expensive and I can't see a student loan coming close to supporting that kind of expense ontop of everything else. Any clarity on this would be much appreciated.

Reply 14

Karl Orthoptics

1

Original post by Hassan142

Hi, I'm a second year orthoptist at uni of Liverpool. Has a mixture of practical and written exams. Should really look into it since the government are supporting and encouraging students to take up this course, providing significant grants at the moment.

Hi, I was just wondering how clinical placements work, financially speaking. I realise some placements are up to 4 weeks long and that you have to pay up front for travel and accommodation and claims this back later. What kind of up front costs are we talking to cover these placements? I imagine if you had to get a hotel room for 4 weeks this could be hugely expensive and I can't see a student loan coming close to supporting that kind of expense ontop of everything else. Any clarity on this would be much appreciated.

Reply 15

Original post by Karl Orthoptics

Hi, I was just wondering how clinical placements work, financially speaking. I realise some placements are up to 4 weeks long and that you have to pay up front for travel and accommodation and claims this back later. What kind of up front costs are we talking to cover these placements? I imagine if you had to get a hotel room for 4 weeks this could be hugely expensive and I can't see a student loan coming close to supporting that kind of expense ontop of everything else. Any clarity on this would be much appreciated.

Hi Karl Orthoptics!

I am a current Orthoptics student at the University of Sheffield. So the placement costs are fully reimbursed for travel and accommodation by the learning support fund. The current funding means we receive up to £55 per night for private accommodation and alternatively hospital accommodation we receive up to £25 per night. Hospital accommodation is significantly cheaper and most of the hospitals visited for placement will have the option available so if you are worried about the costs it's the best option. You are right it can be a lot of money up front if you are spending the max £55 per night on accommodation! But you have to remember it does all get reimbursed in the end, my recommendation is to open a good student bank account. I have one with Santander and it has a £1500 interest free overdraft for my duration of uni so this works really well if I don't have any money to use up front and can just replace when the money is reimbursed. Most other student banks offer good overdrafts too so I would recommend having a look around but Santander was one of the highest I saw (also get a free 4 year rail card which can take some money of the train fares to travel there). If students are really struggling to finance placement the university does have financial support services available and they may be able to help with the placement cost! Another quick thing to add you may already know but the Learning support fund are now issuing £5000-6000 a year grants for Orthoptics students starting/ continuing from 2020 therefore this is a good pool of money to use for placements. More info on this here : https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/nhs-learning-support-fund , make sure to apply if you already haven't!

Let me know if there is anything else I can help with :smile:

Alisha
2nd Year
BMedSci Orthoptics

Reply 16

dion_zx

7

Hi I’m selling my book - The human eye structure and function by Clyde W. Oyster, would be useful for orthoptics students if anyone is interested just give me a message!

Reply 17

Original post by dion_zx

Hi I’m selling my book - The human eye structure and function by Clyde W. Oyster, would be useful for orthoptics students if anyone is interested just give me a message!

Hi !

Just to let you know the core text books used on the Orthoptics course are 'Diagnosis and management of ocular motility disorders by Ansons and Davis' and also 'Clinical Orthoptics by Fiona Rowe'. These are really the only books we require for the majority of the course, that given this book you have suggested may be good for first year anatomy. Any books required by Orthoptics students at the University of Sheffield are provide free of charge on loan from the library so there isn't any requirement to buy books unless you want a personal copy to keep at all times.

Alisha
2nd Year
BMedSci Orthoptics

Reply 18

hekopc

6

Original post by University of Sheffield Students

Hi !

Just to let you know the core text books used on the Orthoptics course are 'Diagnosis and management of ocular motility disorders by Ansons and Davis' and also 'Clinical Orthoptics by Fiona Rowe'. These are really the only books we require for the majority of the course, that given this book you have suggested may be good for first year anatomy. Any books required by Orthoptics students at the University of Sheffield are provide free of charge on loan from the library so there isn't any requirement to buy books unless you want a personal copy to keep at all times.

Alisha
2nd Year
BMedSci Orthoptics

HI, few questions?
-are orthoptics respected? as in do they stay in the shadow of a doctor? don't get me wrong, I mean this in the best way possible... I am one of those people who don't like being told what to do all the time which is why nursing wasn't as appealing to me, my aunt is a nurse and she told me nurses do most of the job but doctors take the all the credit. I just don't want to be a "nurse" of ophthalmologist.
-how hard is the interview process to get into the uni?
-how easy is it to find the job after graduating?
-is orthoptics as a degree looked down upon since Sheffield and Liverpool has medicine?

Reply 19