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Optical technician vs dispensing optician apprentice

The differences between optical technicians 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 $36,908 average annual salary of an optical technician.

The top three skills for an optical technician include patients, chrome and dexterity. The most important skills for a dispensing optician apprentice are customer service, , and .

Optical technician vs dispensing optician apprentice overview

Optical TechnicianDispensing Optician Apprentice
Yearly salary$36,908$48,535
Hourly rate$17.74$23.33
Growth rate4%4%
Number of jobs29,8669,965
Job satisfaction--
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 32%High School Diploma, 23%
Average age4444
Years of experience--

Optical technician vs dispensing optician apprentice salary

Optical technicians and dispensing optician apprentices have different pay scales, as shown below.

Optical TechnicianDispensing Optician Apprentice
Average salary$36,908$48,535
Salary rangeBetween $25,000 And $54,000Between $24,000 And $97,000
Highest paying CityHayward, CA-
Highest paying stateAlaska-
Best paying companyAMETEK-
Best paying industryTechnology-

Differences between optical technician and dispensing optician apprentice education

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

Optical TechnicianDispensing Optician Apprentice
Most common degreeAssociate Degree, 32%High School Diploma, 23%
Most common majorBusinessElectrical Engineering
Most common collegeUniversity of Minnesota - Twin CitiesUniversity of Pennsylvania

Optical technician vs dispensing optician apprentice demographics

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

Optical TechnicianDispensing Optician Apprentice
Average age4444
Gender ratioMale, 36.8% Female, 63.2%Male, 57.9% Female, 42.1%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 5.5% Unknown, 3.8% Hispanic or Latino, 18.9% Asian, 9.1% White, 62.3% 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 Percentage13%13%

Differences between optical technician and dispensing optician apprentice duties and responsibilities

Optical technician example responsibilities.

  • Manage high-end optical for private optometry office.
  • Manage payroll to correspond with allot labor allowance.
  • Maintain coating quality using adhesion testing and spectrophotometers, and manage coating hues and reflectance adjustments.
  • Develop and dispense RX eyewear.
  • Train associates to acquire and retain ABO certificate.
  • Generate (cut) prescription RX into lens blanks.
  • Show more

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.

Optical technician vs dispensing optician apprentice skills

Common optical technician skills
  • Patients, 86%
  • Chrome, 9%
  • Dexterity, 1%
  • CNC, 0%
  • Math, 0%
  • Optical Components, 0%
Common dispensing optician apprentice skills
  • Customer Service, 100%

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