University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) has received pre-accreditation approval from the Accreditation Council on Optometric Education (ACOE) for a new School of Optometry on its Novi campus.
It will be only the 25th school of optometry in the U.S. and the second in Michigan. Applications will be accepted starting in December for the first class that begins in fall 2025. UDM opened the Detroit Mercy Eye Institute on that campus and began accepting patients in April.
UDM developed the school to meet a growing need for optometrists in Michigan and the United States.
Currently, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects that employment for this field will grow 9 percent from 2023 to 2033. This rate of growth is faster than average for all occupations and is based on factors, such as an aging population requiring more vision care services, increasing awareness of eye health, and the need to replace optometrists who retire or leave the workforce.
UDM says faculty, staff, and university leadership have worked together to identify programs and services for the new school to meet community needs. The development of the School of Optometry and Eye Institute represent “an important step to expand the university’s health care footprint and provide much-needed vision care for the Michigan community and beyond.
Both entities support UDM’s Jesuit and Mercy mission to produce highly skilled, ethical, and culturally sensitive eye care practitioners, according to UDM.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that the median salary in 2023 for optometrists was nearly $132,000 a year. In addition, the BLS projects that there will be approximately 2,200 openings for optometrists each year for the next decade or more.
The faculty and administration of the Detroit Mercy School of Optometry includes:
- Maryke Neilberg, dean
- Sulman Hans, executive associate dean and associate professor
- Naureen Haroon, assistant dean of academic administration and assistant professor
- Robert Onofre, assistant dean of clinic administration and assistant professor
- Pablo De Gracia, director of research and associate professor
To learn more about the Detroit Mercy School of Optometry, visit optometry.udmercy.edu.
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