International Students

Berkeley Optometry accepts applications from international students that meet all admission requirements. However, we do not offer “Advanced Standing” for foreign-trained optometrists, ophthalmologists, or opticians. Licensing regulations in the United States generally require licensees to be graduates of US schools or colleges of optometry.  Berkeley Optometry offers neither a certificate program nor an accelerated program for graduates of foreign optometry programs.

UC Berkeley Requirements for International Students

Click on the button below for UC Berkeley specific requirements for international applications. Please Note: the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) examination may be required.

Third Party Verification

International applicants applying to an optometry program in the United States are strongly encouraged to have all their academic transcripts/records verified by a third-party agency, such as World Education Services, early in their admission preparation process. Verified transcripts provide U.S. grade equivalencies for Admission Officers’ review and provides useful background information for Advisors to help facilitate an advising session.

For Canadian Students: OptomCAS only requires a foreign evaluation from foreign schools or French-Canadian schools that issue their transcripts in French. French-Canadian schools would need to be reported as a foreign school on the application. If a Canadian school issues English transcripts – no matter the grading system – the applicant is only required to submit their official transcript directly to OptomCAS.

Need More Information?

If you have further questions about applying to our program, please visit our Ask An Advisor page.