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ATAR for Optometry – every course in Australia

There are 7 schools of optometry in Australia. These in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, the Australian Capital Territory, South Australia, and Western Australia. The ATAR required depends on the pathway you take to become an optometrist. Depending on the pathway you take, it can take a minimum of 3.5 years to 7 years to become a registered optometrist.

ATAR for optometry – undergraduate entry

The following table shows the ATARs that were required to enter each undergraduate course at the beginning of 2023:
ATAR for optometry 2023
Please note that this is a rough guide only for future years as it changes from year to year depending on the applications each university receives. There are also changes from year to year on whether UCAT ANZ or an interview is required. For entry since 2018, UCAT ANZ has not been a requirement for any undergraduate optometry course. Requirements other than an ATAR, such as a personal statement may be required for entry into some courses, so be sure to check with each university.
Some universities may have a policy of “assumed knowledge” instead of pre-requisite subjects. For example, they will assume that you have the knowledge of 4 high school semesters of subjects such as Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry or English. Please note that other universities have pre-requisite subjects you need to have completed prior to entering their optometry programs.
Some universities may offer pathways to transfer into their optometry course from another one of their Bachelor degrees or from a Bachelor degree at a different university. There may also be specific pathways for students who wish to practice in rural and remote regions across Australia, and places for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander students.
The University of Melbourne has a Chancellor’s Scholars Program for applicants who achieve an ATAR of 99.90 or better, or at least 90.00 for Indigenous students. They also have a guaranteed entry pathway into graduate degrees which applies to optometry for some students. The standard entry pathway involves completing an undergraduate degree in Biomedicine or Science, and entry into the 4 year Doctor of Optometry from these programs is competitive. Please look closely at the information on The University of Melbourne’s website regarding the various pathways.
Prior to starting clinical placements, requirements may include:
  • Immunizations
  • Completion of a First Aid course including CPR
  • A working with vulnerable people check
  • A police check

Postgraduate entry into optometry

There is a postgraduate pathway that available at the University of Melbourne and The University of Western Australia. They require an undergraduate degree with specific pre-requisite subjects and list courses which meet these requirements on their respective websites.
Graduate entry optometry 2023
Prior to starting clinical placements, requirements may include:
  • Immunizations
  • Completion of a First Aid course including CPR
  • A working with vulnerable people check
  • A police check

Pathways to becoming an optometrist

Following is an infographic which provides an overview of the pathways to becoming qualified as an optometrist in Australia. For simplicity, it does not include the possibility of transferring into optometry from another course. For more detailed pathways information, go to our become an optometrist page.
optometry pathway

Current list of approved programs of study to become an optometrist

The information presented in this article was correct at the time of publishing. Please check with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency for an up to date list of approved programs of study to become an optometrist in Australia.
If you would like to find courses to become an optometrist:
2. In Profession select Optometrist
3. In Country make the appropriate selection – for example, Australia
4. In Qualification Type do two searches. Firstly, select General and then secondly select General, Endorsement
5. Click Search

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Disclaimer

This information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal circumstances. My Health Career accepts no responsibility for ensuring that you enrol in a course that is right for you. Please do your own research to ensure that you enrol in the correct course, especially if you are considering an undergraduate biomedicine, health science or biomedical science degree as a pathway to a postgraduate course. This may include speaking with optometrists, a careers advisor, guidance officer, career development practitioner, representatives of Optometry Australia, and admissions officers from the university or universities you are looking at applying to.