Akadēmiskais centrsDegree to be achieved: Professional Master Degree in Clinical Optometry, qualification “Optometrist”
Duration of studies: Full-time (2 or 3 years) or Part-time (2.5 or 4 years)
Type of studies: Full-time or Part-time
Amount of credits: 80 credit points/120 ECTS or 120 credit points/180 ECTS
European Qualifications Framework (EQF) level: Level 7
International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) level: Level 7
Language of instruction: English
Accreditation: the program is accredited until 02.02.2029.
Director of the Programme: Assoc. prof. Aiga Švede
Tuition fee
EU/EEA/Swiss citizens and their family members; Long Term Resident EU - 6000 EUR per Year
Other сountry citizens - 6000 EUR per Year
Please note that the tuition fee may change in 2025.
The Professional Master’s study programme “Clinical Optometry” offers multidisciplinary studies based on visual science and contemporary primary vision care. Upon successful completion of the studies, students will be awarded a Professional Master Degree in Clinical Optometry and the qualification of “Optometrist”, in accordance with the established Latvian Professional Standard for Optometrists.
The study programme offers the opportunity to expand their knowledge and optometric skills in the field of clinical optometry. In addition, students gain academic knowledge and skills in vision science, which allows them to enrol in the next study level – doctoral programme.
2-year programme
The syllabus consists of professional (clinical) and scientific (experimental) subjects related to the evaluation, research and understanding of the human visual system. The programme includes practical training, medicine and physiology of vision, and courses in the natural sciences and psychology.
The study programme (120 ECTS) contains compulsory (part A), optional (part B), and practical courses. The practical training (internship) accounts for 39 ECTS. Part A includes specialisation courses: eye diseases and pharmacotherapy, low vision, contact correction, visual perception, as well as the Qualification examination and Master’s thesis. Part B contains clinical and experimental courses in optometry. The Qualification examination consists of a theoretical knowledge test in optometry and a practical examination in the evaluation of the patient's visual function and vision correction. Defence of the Master’s thesis and Qualification examination are the final stages of the Professional Master’s study programme aiming to evaluate students’ research skills, as well as theoretical and practical knowledge, and their correspondence to the requirements of qualification in optometry.
More information about study programme and Study plan
3-year programme or +OptoBasic programme
The study programme (180 ECTS) contains compulsory (part A), optional (part B), free choice part (part C), and practical courses. The syllabus consists of professional (clinical) and scientific (experimental) subjects related to the evaluation, research, and understanding of the human visual system. In the first year, students get basic knowledge, which are necessary for an understanding of vision processes, their evaluation and correction possibilities: optics, general and ocular anatomy, cell biology, microbiology, neurophysiology, general pathology and pharmacology, as well as vision development and ageing. In the following years, the students develop and improve their practical and theoretical knowledge and skills in vision examination and correction, including disorders of binocular vision, contact lens correction, low vision, and ocular diseases. The optional courses allows deeper inside into paediatric optometry, vision training, refractive surgery, and other important fields of vision science.
More information about study programme and Study plan
ERASMUS+ exchange possibilities
UL full-time students, regardless of their citizenship, have the opportunity to apply for the ERASMUS + exchange program for studies or/and traineeship.
More information:
ERASMUS + study mobility
ERASMUS + traineeship moblity
Admission requirements (2-year study programme)
1. Bachelor degree in Optometry*
2. English language proficiency.
3. All grades must be passing (at least 4 on a 10-point scale).
*Complies with the requirements of the Latvian Professional Standard for Optometrists
Admission requirements (3-year study programme)
1. First or second cycle higher education* in healthcare field, or first cycle higher education* in life sciences, chemistry or physics, medical engineering.
2. The average grade in study courses must be 60% of the maximum.
3. All grades must be passing (at least 4 in a 10 point grading system).
4. English language proficiency.
5. Pass of entrance examination
*Bachelor’s degree or a diploma proving equivalent level of education
As a part of the admission process applicants will be asked to participate in an online interview.
Autumn Intake (application start: 19 Nov 2024; studies start in Sept 2025)
Full-time
Full-time (+OptoBasic)
Contact person for more information
Director of the Programme
Assoc. prof. Aiga Švede
E-mail: Aiga.Svede@lu.lv
The Faculty of Science and Technology
1 Jelgavas Street, Riga
Coordinator of the Programme
opto.metodike@lu.lv