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Victoria South Australia Awards

ANNUAL OV/SA AWARDS

The annual Optometry Victoria South Australia (OV/SA) Awards recognise members who go above and beyond for their patients, their peers, and their profession across all stages of their career.

Nominations are accepted annually for three categories: The Rising Star, Optometrist of the Year and Life Member Awards.

The Rising Star Award, is given to an optometrist in the first ten years of their career who has displayed excellence in innovation, academic publishing, community outreach, or otherwise distinguished themselves.

The Optometrist of the Year Award, recognises a member who, particularly in the last year, has made an outstanding contribution to the optometry profession through innovation, initiative, or exceptional demonstrated care.

The Life Member Award, is given to a member who has demonstrated passion and commitment over the course of a distinguished career. While formerly given only to members who had unbroken member records, the criteria was has been refreshed to accommodate different career paths.

Read about the 2024 OV/SA Award finalists here and winners here.

The 2025 OV/SA Awards are open for nominations from 4 June 2025 until 21 July 2025. These awards will be announced a special presentation ceremony at the Adelaide Interactive Conference to be held on 31 October – 1 November 2025.

ANNUAL OV/SA LOOK LOCAL SCHOLARSHIP

The OV/SA Looking Outward on Optometric Knowledge (LOOK) Local Scholarship was established in 2024 to facilitate Australian-based study tours for an OV/SA financial member. The Scholarship is intended to directly improve eye health of local communities throughout Victoria and South Australia.

The successful applicant will receive funds to investigate innovative advancements in the practice of optometry (including in clinical practice, patient management, eye health and disease diagnosis, or technology) which could be readily implemented in the applicant’s local area. These optometric advancements will not yet be widely or readily available in the applicant’s community. The key intent is to bring these learnings back to the recipient’s community to share with colleagues and our wider membership.

Read about the inaugural 2024 winner here.

Applications are open for the 2025 LOOK Local Scholarship have closed.

ANNUAL STUDENT ACADEMIC AWARDS

The Student Academic Awards are presented to final year Victorian and South Australian university students. Each year, one prize is awarded to a student from Deakin University, one to a Flinders University student and one to a University of Melbourne student.

For more information contact Optometry Victoria South Australia.

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Acknowledgement of Country

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