Author Archives: Antonia Chitty

Careers in Eyecare   →  Articles by: Antonia Chitty
Categories Careers in eyecare, For students Posted on Author Antonia Chitty

Careers Award for ABDO

For the second year running, the Association of British Dispensing Opticians (ABDO) has won an award for its Careers in Eyecare campaign from Youth Employment UK. ABDO is the winner of the Creating Opportunity #YouthFriendlyEmployer Award. The award was presented on 7 December by the Minister for Employment, Mims Davies MP, in an online ceremony, at the Youth Employment UK Youth Friendly Employer Awards. Laura-Jane RawlingsMims Davies MP Laura-Jane Rawlings CEO of Youth Employment commented, “ABDO has provided opportunities for…

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Categories Apprenticeships, Careers in eyecare, Optical assistant Posted on Author Antonia Chitty

Is an apprenticeship right for me?

Are you considering an apprenticeship? In this post the team from Woodspeen Training outline everything you need to know. What is an apprenticeship? An apprenticeship is a training course within a vocational setting.  What this means is that you get to ‘earn while you learn’.  An apprenticeship placement means you are doing the job whilst you are formally learning all about what that job entails, hopefully leading to a qualification at the end of the course. “The online learning is…

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Categories Day in the life, Low vision optician Posted on Author Antonia Chitty

Day in the life … low vision optician Josh

Josh Smith works as a low vision optician. Read on to find out about his day. What do you start with every day? I start every day by reviewing my patient list for the morning and afternoon clinics. This allows me to get an idea of what to expect from each appointment. I also catch up with the ECLO to see if there are any new admissions within the hospital that require any support during their stay. What do you…

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Categories Optometrist Posted on Author Antonia Chitty

From optical assistant to optometry student

Vanessa Vieira is an optometry student and part time optical assistant. Read on to hear about her job and her ambitions to become an optometrist. I did a year of A levels before switching to a BTEC Level 3 extended diploma in Applied Sciences (medical), and I’m now an optometry student.  At weekends I work as an optical assistant at Specsavers. What do you like most about your job? I enjoy the training sessions every Saturday. This enables me to…

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Photo by Julia M Cameron from Pexels
Categories Apprenticeships, Education, Optical assistant, Study online Posted on Author Antonia Chitty

Tips for success with online study

Thomas Gluyas is an apprentice optical assistant, training with Woodspeen. Read on for his tips for successful online learning while you are an apprentice. Make sure your computer is charged, you don’t want to drop out halfway through a lesson.Make sure you’ve always got a glass of water with you so you don’t get dehydrated.Choose somewhere quiet where you are comfortable for your lesson. You will learn more in an environment where you are not distracted.Try not to treat it…

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Categories Day in the life, Dispensing optician, Optometrist, Students Posted on Author Antonia Chitty

Day in the life … DO and optometry student Luke

Luke works in practice as a dispensing optician (DO) in an opticians practice, dispensing spectacles and pre-testing patients before their eye examination. He is also studying to become an optometrist on block release. Read on to find out more about his day. What do you start with every day? I wake up at 6:30am, go for a short run and then come home and eat breakfast, the most important meal of the day! I watch the news on TV before getting…

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Categories Careers in eyecare, For students Posted on Author Antonia Chitty

Careers in Eyecare – a year in review

What a year it’s been for Careers in Eyecare working with Youth Employment UK. Having started our journey at the start of 2020, we’ve managed to achieve a lot to help young people and old to understand the great career options in the world of eyecare and eyewear, winning Youth Employment UK’s Best Newcomer award for 2020 along the way. Careers in Eyecare is a campaign initiated by the Association of British Dispensing Opticians, but right from the start the…

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Categories Apprenticeships, For students Posted on Author Antonia Chitty

Is an apprenticeship for your business?

The National Apprenticeship Scheme has been in place since 2009, and apprenticeships have a long tradition in the United Kingdom, but some employers in the optical industry have yet to embrace them. Read on to hear how optical apprenticeships can benefit you, your staff and your business. Mandy Boucher is a tutor on the level 2 optical assistant apprenticeship and says, “This is a way to empower learners to engage through hands-on learning.” As a dispensing optician (DO) with more…

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Categories For students, STEM Posted on Author Antonia Chitty

What’s it like to be a STEM Ambassador?

Firstly, I will point out that I am new to being a STEM Ambassador. I took the plunge a couple of months back and went through the process as outlined on their website. STEM offers great support and guidance, including training materials that take you through the application process. They even handle the DBS for you. My motivation was really as an extension of the Careers in Eyecare work that ABDO has engaged with. Becoming an Ambassador seemed like a…

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