Southern College of Optometry Campuses

The Southern College of Optometry, located in Memphis, Tennessee, offers a comprehensive Doctor of Optometry (OD) program designed to prepare students for careers in eye care. The curriculum emphasizes both foundational sciences and clinical practice, ensuring graduates are well-equipped to diagnose, treat, and manage ocular diseases and visual disorders. The program spans four years, integrating classroom learning with hands-on clinical experience at the college's on-campus clinic and external rotations.

• Year 1: Basic Biomedical Sciences - Courses include General Anatomy, Histology, and Embryology, focusing on the structure of the human body with emphasis on the visual system; Biochemistry, covering molecular biology and metabolic pathways relevant to ocular health; Physiology, exploring organ systems and their functions, particularly vision-related processes like phototransduction and ocular blood flow.
• Year 2: Vision Sciences - Optometric Theory introduces principles of refraction and visual optics; Ocular Pharmacology delves into drugs affecting the eye, including anti-glaucoma agents and anti-inflammatories; Microbiology and Immunology address infectious diseases of the eye and immune responses in ocular tissues; Neuro-Ophthalmology examines the neural pathways of vision and related disorders.
• Year 3: Clinical Optometry - Primary Care Optometry teaches patient examination techniques, including refraction, slit-lamp biomicroscopy, and tonometry; Binocular Vision and Ocular Motility covers strabismus, amblyopia, and vision therapy; Contact Lens Practice instructs on fitting and management of soft, rigid, and specialty lenses; Pediatric and Geriatric Optometry focuses on age-specific eye care needs.
• Year 4: Advanced Clinical Rotations - Students engage in full-time externships in diverse settings, such as private practices, hospitals, and Veterans Affairs clinics, applying skills in areas like Low Vision Rehabilitation for patients with visual impairments; Ocular Disease Management for conditions including diabetes-related retinopathy and macular degeneration; Public Health Optometry, addressing community eye health initiatives and epidemiology of vision loss.

Additionally, the college offers residency programs in specialties like Cornea and Contact Lenses, Pediatric Optometry, and Vision Therapy, providing post-graduate training. Elective courses may include Advanced Ocular Imaging Techniques using OCT and fundus photography, Practice Management for business aspects of optometry, and Research Methods for those pursuing academic careers. The curriculum is accredited by the Accreditation Council on Optometric Education (ACOE) and incorporates interprofessional education with other health disciplines. Students benefit from state-of-the-art facilities, including simulation labs and a extensive patient care center serving over 40,000 visits annually. This rigorous program fosters clinical proficiency, ethical practice, and lifelong learning, with graduates achieving high pass rates on the National Board of Examiners in Optometry exams. Overall, the education at Southern College of Optometry equips optometrists to meet the growing demand for primary eye care in the United States, emphasizing evidence-based practice and patient-centered care.