These professionals go through three years of basic university education based on their specific field. During the following pre-registration period, they undergo about a year of training, following which they are to attempt to clear the qualifying exam.

After qualifying, these trainees can choose their particular area of specialization, and then obtain specific training to suit the needs of their practice. They can choose to specialize in contact lenses, eye treatment, and low vision detection etc.

Aside from their formal education and training, many of these qualified professionals, especially those who run their own private practice, are required to supervise the functioning of their offices and eye-care centers. They have to pay attention to details such as hiring efficient and dependable staff, making the right investments in equipment, and keeping up with technological developments in the field of eye-care.

A typical visit to an optometrist's office, involves having to take a vision exam to check vision acuity, after which it can be determined whether or not you have defective vision that must be corrected with lenses. After the extent of the defect has been determined, and Hyperopic or Myopic tendencies are identified, the optometrist will proceed to provide you with a variety of lenses in order to settle on whichever suits your vision the best.

Other factors relating to vision, including vision coordinates, vision depth, color viewing and recognition, and ability to focus, are also checked during a typical eye check-up. The Optometrist may also perform additional checks for eye-ailments, including glaucoma. Other health conditions like hypertension or high blood pressure, diabetes etc., can also adversely affect your vision, other serious diseases such as cancer can have an overall degenerating effect on the eyes. Your optometrist can suggest therapy options to improve your eyesight under such conditions, where surgery might not be an option.

Ophthalmologists and Optometrists are essentially different as professionals, although ultimately they both deal with vision related issues. One notable difference between the two, is that Ophthalmologists are qualified to perform surgery if and when necessary, aside from treating eye diseases, while an Optometrist is technically a general practitioner, who is entitled to diagnose problems and prescribe remedies, but does not perform therapy or surgery on a large scale.

Optometry is an immense and growing field, as more and more efficient professionals are trained, and begin practice. With abrupt and rapid changes in the lifestyles of the population, and less than healthy diets, together with excessive strain on the eyes due to over-exposure to television and computer screens as well as harmful sunrays etc., the demand for effective optometric treatment is also on the rise. To make sure that your eyes stay healthy, and your vision, perfect, remember to visit your Optometrist at regular intervals to have your eyes checked for problems.