A new optometry course based in the West Country aimed at attracting men to the profession is rumoured to be starting up.
The course is believed to have been devised by the Peninsula Medical School (PMS), a collaboration between Plymouth University and the Exeter Medical School. Industry sources suggested to Optician that the new optometry course would be structured around a practical, work-based syllabus and had been developed as a result of the shortage of optometrists in the West Country. This would make the course attractive to local students and the likelihood is that graduates would be in high demand from employers.
A source suggested details of the course could be released with the publication of the new prospectus. The 2011 prospectus doesn't contain any mention of an optometry course but optometry is included in the list of areas of interest when requesting a prospectus from the University of Plymouth website.
A spokeswoman for the University of Plymouth said an optometry course 'wasn't something we had been notified about'. A spokesman for the PMS said it had 'no plans to start an optometry course'. He said the school was looking to focus on the courses it currently offered.