About placement and externship

All Bachelor of Optometry students must undertake experience in community-based practices during their final year of study.

Placements and externships allow students to gain experience beyond the University clinic, under supervision from practicing optometrists and allows them to develop a broader view of optometry.

• Students attend two one-week placements and one three-week externship. The three-week externship can be broken into two smaller time lengths with two different practices when necessary.
• Placements and externships take place through New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific.
• Placements run from early March to early June.
  
• Externships occur from early June through to mid July.  

We rely on our fantastic optometrist mentor partners to host students for placements and externships.

We are always looking for more practices. In return we invite optometrist mentors to become Honorary Teaching Fellows, which offers the following:

• Full access to the extensive resources that the University of Auckland library offers, including all of its electronic resources
• Use of the title 'Honorary Teaching Fellow' affiliated with the School of Optometry and Vision Science at the University of  Auckland
• Preferential and cost-reduced access to Continuing Professional Development events within the School of Optometry and Vision Science
• Use of the following phrase on your website and similar, should you wish it: “Our practice provides teaching services for the University of Auckland's School of Optometry and Vision Science for their Bachelor of Optometry degree”

Gini Parslow (Virginia)     
Practicum Placement Coordinator    
Phone: +64 9 923 9054     
Email: v.parslow@auckland.ac.nz       

Geraint Phillips        
Clinic Director    
Phone: +64 9 923 6503     
Email: g.phillips@auckland.ac.nz