Ophthalmic Medical Technicians
SOC 29-2057 · 2024-2034
Assist ophthalmologists by performing ophthalmic clinical functions. May administer eye exams, administer eye medications, and instruct the patient in care and use of corrective lenses.
How the U.S. Department of Labor describes this work. Published in English only.
The job this trains for
- Typical pay in California
- $56,015per year
- Projected openings
- 4,340
- Projected change
- +33.3%
- Usually needs
- Postsecondary non-degree award
Bright Outlook — a U.S. Department of Labor designation
Rapid Growth
The Department's own designation, made from its national projections. It is not this project's assessment and it is not California's: every other figure on this page comes from California's projection, which can point the other way and for some occupations does.
Skills this work uses most
O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupation database, rates how important each of these is to this work, and they are listed in that order, most important first. The ratings themselves are not shown, because the data carries the number without the scale it was measured on. The names are as published, in English.
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
- Service Orientation
- Social Perceptiveness
Pay by region
| Region | Typical pay in California | Projected openings |
|---|---|---|
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma MSA (Sonoma County) | $104,197 | 60 |
| San Rafael MD (Marin County) | $67,231 | 50 |
| Oakland-Fremont-Berkeley MD (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties) | $56,723 | 430 |
| San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD (San Francisco and San Mateo Counties) | $56,723 | 270 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD (Los Angeles County) | $54,046 | 1,090 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA (San Benito and Santa Clara Counties) | $50,691 | 600 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA (Riverside and San Bernardino Counties) | $49,715 | 660 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura MSA (Ventura County) | $48,298 | 80 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville MSA (Santa Cruz County) | $48,103 | 90 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom MSA (El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, and Yolo Counties) | $47,086 | 350 |
| Fresno MSA (Fresno and Madera Counties) | $46,470 | 150 |
| North Valley-Northern Mountains Region (Colusa, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Plumas, Sierra, Siskiyou, Tehama, and Trinity Counties) | $44,477 | 50 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA (San Diego County) | $43,501 | 510 |
| Bakersfield-Delano MSA (Kern County) | $40,820 | 160 |
| Modesto MSA (Stanislaus County) | Not reported | 80 |
Similar work
O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupation database, names these as occupations involving work similar to this one — its own reading of the job, not a grouping by code. They keep O*NET's order, and only those California publishes a projection for are shown.
| The job this trains for | Typical pay in California | Projected openings | Projected change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health Technologists and Technicians, All Other | $62,080 | 22,750 | +14.3% |
| Medical Assistants | $50,918 | 175,850 | +22.7% |
| Cardiovascular Technologists and Technicians | $80,358 | 4,280 | +15.5% |
| Surgical Technologists | $83,586 | 8,420 | +11.6% |
| Healthcare Support Workers, All Other | $50,374 | 32,750 | +7.1% |
| Radiologic Technologists and Technicians | $124,654 | 15,070 | +16.7% |
Leads to — 1
Eye Care Technician (Optometric Assistant)
Mountain View - Los Altos Adult School · Mountain View · $603