Dispensing optician vs dispensing optician apprentice

The differences between dispensing opticians and dispensing optician apprentices can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a dispensing optician apprentice has an average salary of $48,535, which is higher than the $45,679 average annual salary of a dispensing optician.

The top three skills for a dispensing optician include patients, patient care and customer service. The most important skills for a dispensing optician apprentice are customer service, , and .

Dispensing optician vs dispensing optician apprentice overview

	Dispensing Optician	Dispensing Optician Apprentice
Yearly salary	$45,679	$48,535
Hourly rate	$21.96	$23.33
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	4,434	9,965
Job satisfaction	5	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 32%	High School Diploma, 23%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	-	-

Dispensing optician vs dispensing optician apprentice salary

Dispensing opticians and dispensing optician apprentices have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Dispensing Optician	Dispensing Optician Apprentice
Average salary	$45,679	$48,535
Salary range	Between $33,000 And $62,000	Between $24,000 And $97,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between dispensing optician and dispensing optician apprentice education

There are a few differences between a dispensing optician and a dispensing optician apprentice in terms of educational background:

	Dispensing Optician	Dispensing Optician Apprentice
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 32%	High School Diploma, 23%
Most common major	Business	Electrical Engineering
Most common college	University of Minnesota - Twin Cities	University of Pennsylvania

Dispensing optician vs dispensing optician apprentice demographics

Here are the differences between dispensing opticians' and dispensing optician apprentices' demographics:

	Dispensing Optician	Dispensing Optician Apprentice
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 33.4% Female, 66.6%	Male, 57.9% Female, 42.1%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.6% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 19.1% Asian, 9.2% White, 61.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4%	Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 15.1% Asian, 8.1% White, 69.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	13%	13%

Differences between dispensing optician and dispensing optician apprentice duties and responsibilities

Dispensing optician example responsibilities.

Communicate information and provide customer service to patients, families and visitors.
Fax Rx to proper lab.
Scan documents and abide by all HIPAA regulations.
Read and understand the different refractive errors as well as the Rx.
Work with VSP and eye med insurances, and all relate duties.
Order verification, working with insurance companies including VSP, NBN, and DSHS.

Dispensing optician apprentice example responsibilities.

Follow HIPPA policies for disclosing patient information.
Work with multiple optometrists to solve patient issues including inaccurate optical measurements, lens adaptations, and overall patient satisfaction.
File insurance for orders including medicare and medicaid.

Dispensing optician vs dispensing optician apprentice skills

Common dispensing optician skills

Patients, 44%
Patient Care, 15%
Customer Service, 8%
Insurance Eligibility, 3%
Appointment Scheduling, 3%
Eye Exams, 2%

Common dispensing optician apprentice skills

Customer Service, 100%

Dispensing Optician vs. similar jobs

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Dispensing Optician
Dispensing Optician vs Dispensing Optician Apprentice

Updated January 8, 2025

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