For admission to the Doctor of Optometry program, you must have:
The following courses must be completed at an accredited institution, with a grade of C or higher, by the time you enter the IU School of Optometry.
All course requirements are considered absolute minimums, which must be met or exceeded. A maximum of 60 credit hours may be taken at a junior college. Up to 10 credits of AP/CLEP coursework is accepted. None of the specified courses may be taken on a pass/fail basis. All science courses must be in-person and only three other courses may be taken online.
Subject Area | Minimum Semesters or Quarters Required | Comparable IU Courses |
Biology/Zoology | Biology/Zoology courses must be taken in-person | |
Introductory, w/lab | One Semester / | BIOL-L 112 and L 113 |
Advanced (animal or developmental, 200+ level) | One Semester / | |
Microbiology w/lab | One Semester / | BIOL-M 250/M 315 or M 380/M 315 |
Chemistry | Chemistry courses must be taken in-person | |
General/Inorganic, w/lab | Two Semesters / | |
Organic (lab recommended. C 342 also recommended) | One Semester / | CHEM-C 341 |
Biochemistry | One Semester / | CHEM-C 383, 483 (484 for Biochem majors) or BIOL-M 350 (for Microbiology majors only) |
Mathematics (one course) | One Semester / | Any course or courses fulfilling IU Math Modeling Requirements3 |
Physics—General | Two Semesters / | PHYS-P 201 and P 202 |
Statistical Techniques | One Semester / | STAT-S 300, or S303; PSY-K 300 or K 310; SPEA-K 300; ECON-E 370; MATH-K 310; SPH-Q381 |
Psychology—Introductory | One Semester / | PSY-P 101 or 106 |
Writing Skills | ||
English Composition4 | One Semester / | ENG-W 131 or W 132 |
Additional intensive writing course5 | One Semester / | Intensive Writing Requirement |
Subject Area | Comparable IU Courses |
Advanced Biology | Biology courses must be taken in-person. |
Vertebrate or Human Anatomy with lab/Histology | ANAT-A 225 or A 464 |
Human Physiology with lab | PHSL-P 225 |
Subject Area | Comparable IU Courses |
Anatomy & Physiology of the Eye | TOPT-V 201 Must be taken in-person |
Cell Biology | BIOL-L 312 Must be taken in-person |
Neuroscience | PSY-P 337 or PSY-P 346 |
Sensation and Perception | PSY-P 329 |
Sensory Processes | PSY-P 349 |
Immunology | BIOL-L 321 Must be taken in-person |
Genetics | BIOL-L 311 Must be taken in-person |
Intro Business Administration | BUS-X 100 |
Small Business Management | BUS-W 300 (P: BUS-A 200) |
Medical Terminology | CLAS-C 209 |
Ethics | PHIL-P 140 |
Independent Research | 490 series |
Introduction to Anatomy & Physiology | MSCI-M115 |
| Mathematics for Business and Public Affairs (3 cr.) | MATH-B 110 |
| The Mathematics of Decision and Beauty (3 cr.) | MATH-M 106 |
| Introduction to Calculus with Applications (3 cr.) | MATH-J 113 |
| Finite Mathematics (3 cr.) | MATH-M 118 |
| Honors Finite Mathematics (3 cr.) | MATH-S 118 |
| Finite Mathematics with Applications: Finite Mathematics for the Social and Biological Sciences (3 cr.) | MATH-V 118 |
| Finite Mathematics with Applications: Finite Math in Action (3 cr.) | MATH-V 118 |
| Finite Mathematics with Applications: Finite and Consumer Math (3 cr.) | MATH-V 118 |
| Brief Survey of Calculus I (3 cr.) | MATH-M 119 |
| Applied Brief Calculus I: Applied Brief Calculus I for the Life Sciences (3 cr.) | MATH-V 119 |
| Calculus I (4 cr.) | MATH-M 211 |
| Honors Calculus I (3 cr.) | MATH-S 211 |
For questions about IU School of Optometry residency programs, or about scheduling a site visit, contact:
