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2023 Best Value Optometry Schools

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

21 Colleges
$33,120 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$88,635 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Optometry School for You

In 2020-2021, 1,822 people earned a degree or certificate in optometry, making the major the #23 most popular in the United States.

It's not easy to decide which healthcare program to enroll in when you have so many options available. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Healthcare Degree Search has created the Best Value Optometry Schools to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 21 schools in the United States to see which programs offered the best value experiences for optometry students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

2023 Best Value Optometry Schools in the United States

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Optometry Colleges.

Top 10 Best Optometry Schools

#1

Ferris State University

Big Rapids, MI

Our analysis found Ferris State University to be the best value school for optometry students who want to pursue a degree in the United States. Ferris is a fairly large public school located in the distant town of Big Rapids.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Ferris are $13,188 per year.

Full Optometry at Ferris State University Report

The excellent programs at Northeastern State University helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best optometry schools in the United States. NSU is a medium-sized public school located in the town of Tahlequah.

NSU undergraduate students pay an average of $15,755 in tuition and fees each year.

Read More…

#3

Salus University

Elkins Park, PA

Out of the 21 schools in the United States that were part of this year’s ranking, Salus University landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the large suburb of Elkins Park, Salus University is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Optometry at Salus University Report

#4

University of Pikeville

Pikeville, KY
$22,650 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Pikeville. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Optometry Schools list. UPIKE is a small private not-for-profit school located in the remote town of Pikeville.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UPIKE are $22,650 per year.

Read More…

#5

University of Houston

Houston, TX

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Houston. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Value Optometry Schools list. UH is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Houston.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state undergraduate student at UH are $21,891 a year.

UH also claimed a spot on our Best Optometry Schools list. It’s in the top 20% of all schools in this category.

Read full report on Optometry at University of Houston

$33,100 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #6, University of the Incarnate Word did quite well on this year’s best value schools for optometry students. UIW is a medium-sized private not-for-profit school located in the large city of San Antonio.

UIW undergraduate students pay an average of $33,100 in tuition and fees each year.

Read full report on Optometry at University of the Incarnate Word

$20,400 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #7, University of Alabama at Birmingham did quite well on this year’s best value schools for optometry students. UAB is a fairly large public school located in the midsize city of Birmingham.

Out-of-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UAB are $20,400 per year.

Full Optometry at University of Alabama at Birmingham Report

SUNY College of Optometry ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Optometry Schools list. Located in the city of New York, SUNY Optometry is a public school with a fairly small student population.

Read full report on Optometry at SUNY College of Optometry

Indiana University - Bloomington ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Optometry Schools list. IU Bloomington is a very large public school located in the city of Bloomington.

IU Bloomington undergraduate students pay an average of $38,352 in tuition and fees each year.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, IU Bloomington also is in the top 5% of our Best Optometry Schools ranking.

Read full report on Optometry at Indiana University - Bloomington

#10

Pacific University

Forest Grove, OR

Pacific University came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Optometry Schools ranking. Pacific is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large suburb of Forest Grove.

Pacific undergraduate students pay an average of $50,070 in tuition and fees each year.

In addition to its great value ranking, Pacific is in the top 5% of all schools on our Best Optometry Schools list.

Full Optometry at Pacific University Report

Optometry by Region

View the Best Value Optometry Schools for a specific region near you.

Region
Southeast
New England
Rocky Mountains
Plains States
Middle Atlantic
Far Western US
Southwest
Great Lakes

One of 30 majors within the healthcare area of study, optometry has other similar majors worth exploring.

Optometry Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Optometry 1,822

Majors Similar to Optometry

Related Major Annual Graduates
Nursing 322,592
Health & Medical Administrative Services 89,359
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services 84,492
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 84,274
Allied Health Professions 82,308

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 21 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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