Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry & Vision Science

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Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry & Vision Science

OD and PhD programs at the University of California, Berkeley

01/16/2026

Full-Time Faculty Position Available: Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor in Vision Research

Application Deadline: January 23, 2026 (all application materials must be received by that date).

To learn more and to apply, visit: https://optometry.berkeley.edu/about-us/jobs/

01/14/2026

Registration closes on January 14th, 2026 at 11:59 PM for Berkeley Practicum 2026!

Berkeley Practicum is a three-day virtual Continuing Education (CE) event taking place January 17–19, 2026, and offering up to 12 hours of COPE-accredited CE.

This year’s Karen Walker-Brandreth Lecture will be delivered by D**g Feng Chen, MD, PhD: “Thinking Glaucoma Through the Lens of Neuroinflammation.”

Learn more and register at: https://optometry.berkeley.edu/continuing-education/berkeley-practicum/

01/10/2026

New paper in Vision Research: A collaboration between the Levi Lab (UC Berkeley) and the Verghese Lab (Smith-Kettlewell Research Institute) found a strong link between fusional vergence and both coarse and fine stereopsis across the visual field, supporting the idea that compromised binocular interaction underlies both stereopsis and vergence deficits.

Congratulations to the full research team: Preeti Verghese, Adrien Chopin, Ângela Gomes-Tomaz, Noelia G. Alcalde, and Dennis M. Levi.

Learn More: https://vision.berkeley.edu/posts/new-paper-in-vision-research

01/07/2026

The Spring 2026 Oxyopia lecture schedule has been posted to our website.

Oxyopia is a seminar series featuring lectures on basic, clinical, and applied research in vision. Unless otherwise noted, these lectures take place on Mondays 11:10 am to 12:30 pm in 489 Minor Hall. The lectures are free and open to the public.

Learn More: https://vision.berkeley.edu/events/oxyopia/

12/09/2025

The Scholarship and Awards Committee has announced the recipients for the Professional Student Support Fund (PSSF) awards for the 2025-2026 academic year – 148 students received a $1,200 award for their spring tuition and fees! In total, we were able to award $177,600.

These awards, available to continuing students, are made possible through the generosity of faculty and alumni of the school.

Thank you to the Scholarships and Awards Committee, led by Dr. Vikki Yu, as well as to the donors who contributed to these scholarship funds. Congratulations to our 2025-26 awardees!

Learn More: https://optometry.berkeley.edu/2025-26-pssf-awards/

12/04/2025

Registration is now open for the 37th Annual Berkeley Practicum – taking place on January 17–19, 2026.

Berkeley Practicum is a three-day virtual Continuing Education (CE) event offering up to 12 hours of COPE-accredited CE.

This year’s Karen Walker-Brandreth Lecture will be delivered by D**g Feng Chen, MD, PhD: “Thinking Glaucoma Through the Lens of Neuroinflammation.”

Learn more and register today at: https://optometry.berkeley.edu/continuing-education/berkeley-practicum/

11/26/2025

Full-Time Faculty Position Available:
Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor in Vision Research

Our goal is to recruit an outstanding colleague with strong interests in ocular disease, ocular biology, and therapeutics, or a related research area relevant to the eye or vision. The application deadline is December 31st, 2025, and all application materials must be received by that date.

To learn more and to apply, visit optometry.berkeley.edu/jobs

11/25/2025

At the 2025 Academy Meeting in Boston, Berkeley Optometry Hall of Fame member Donald O. Mutti, OD, PhD, FAAO received this year’s Charles F. Prentice Medal and Lecture Award.

The Charles F. Prentice Medal is the Academy’s top award at the annual meeting, presented to an individual who has made a significant contribution to the advancement of knowledge through research in the visual sciences. Congratulations to Dr. Mutti!

Learn More: https://optometry.berkeley.edu/dr-mutti-receives-prentice-award/

Photo courtesy of the American Academy of Optometry, 2025.

11/17/2025

This semester, Assistant Director of the Vision Science & Residency Programs Alex Marquez organized a peaceful yoga session on the Faculty Glade. The relaxing hour of stretching and mindfulness was expertly led by third-year optometry student Jillian Fahey.

It was a perfect opportunity for students to decompress and focus on well-being. A huge thank you to Jillian for leading the class and to everyone who came out to participate!

Learn More: https://vision.berkeley.edu/posts/yoga-on-faculty-glade/

11/15/2025

Vision Science PhD student Emily L. Ward is first author on a new open-access review in Molecular Neurodegeneration: “Modeling neurodegeneration in the retina and strategies for developing pan-neurodegenerative therapies.”

The paper positions the retina as a powerful model for investigating the mechanisms of neurodegeneration and advancing therapies that could apply across diseases such as glaucoma, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s.

Berkeley co-authors include Karthik Shekhar (Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering; Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute) and John G. Flanagan (Optometry & Vision Science).

Congratulations to Emily and the full research team!

Learn More: https://vision.berkeley.edu/posts/new-paper-in-molecular-neurodegeneration/

11/13/2025

On the weekend of October 18th, 31 students, postdocs, faculty, and staff from the Berkley Vision Science community gathered at Saratoga Springs for the annual fall retreat, featuring seminars on current research alongside team-building activities and social events.

Congratulations to students Tejas Kothapalli, winner of the Eye for Design award; Jocelyn Tao, recipient of the 20/20 Communication award; and Emily Ward, honored with the 2024 Outstanding GSI award.

Learn More: https://vision.berkeley.edu/posts/vs-retreat-2025/

11/11/2025

We are proud to share that Vision Science PhD student Leah Johnston was named one of two winners of the Optica Young Investigator Award at this year’s Fall Vision Meeting, alongside Joseph Emerson.

Leah’s talk, “Profound perceptual fading of stabilized flicker cannot be accounted for by RGC desensitization,” explored why stabilized flickering images fade from view even though retinal ganglion cells continue firing – an insight made possible through her co-supervision with retinal electrophysiologist Dr. Teresa Puthussery.

Congratulations to Leah on this well-deserved recognition!

Learn More: https://vision.berkeley.edu/posts/optica-young-investigator-award-2/

Address

300 Minor Hall
Berkeley, CA
94720

Telephone

+15106422020

Website

http://optometry.berkeley.edu/

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