A view of the campus at Rocky Mountain University, which is accepting optometry students for its May 2023 session.

  
PROVO, Utah—Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions (RMU), an accredited exclusive graduate health care education institution, will start its Doctor of Optometry program next summer and is now accepting optometry student applications for the 2023 cohort. The University described the program as, “An advanced modern medical curriculum combined with flexible interactive in-person and online courses” that will “prepare students to provide exceptional eye health care while helping to meet workforce demands.” Rocky Mountain University (RMU) has received preliminary accreditation for its new Doctor of Optometry program and is accepting students for May 2023. RMU's program is the first in Utah and the Intermountain West.

“RMU’s Doctor of Optometry program is the newest optometry program in the United States,” said Dr. Adam Hickenbotham, founding dean of the College of Optometry. “Optometrists are America’s primary eye health care providers who are on the frontline of eye and vision care. As such, RMU has designed an innovative, advanced and student-focused program with in-person, hands-on clinical training to help our optometry graduates provide outstanding health care.”

By receiving preliminary accreditation from the Accreditation Council on Optometric Education (ACOE), RMU’s College of Optometry is authorized to move forward with the Doctor of Optometry program beginning in May 2023. Students may begin to apply. ACOE, recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Council on Higher Education accreditation, ensures programs have met the Council’s standards of educational effectiveness and show a demonstrated commitment to quality assessment and improvement.

“For the past 24 years, Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions has been advancing knowledge and advancing health care as an accredited exclusive graduate health care education institution,” said Dr. Richard P. Nielsen, founding president and CEO of RMU. “Our new College of Optometry is another significant RMU milestone that will develop the next generation of optometrists in our high-tech facilities using modern medical curriculum by the nation’s renowned optometric faculty. RMU is honored to expand the availability of optometry education for students across the nation.”