Optometry MOptom General Optical Council Approval Process

The University of Leicester continues to work positively and constructively with the General Optical Council (GOC) towards securing full approval for the course. We are pleased to report that as of 7th July 2026, the Leicester School of Optometry received Stage 3 approval (Permission to recruit (i.e., enrol) students) from the General Optical Council. We are therefore officially allowed to take students for teaching in September 2026. The qualification does not get full GOC approval until a decision is made at Stage 5 of the approval process (i.e., Stage 5 is the final stage of the process and takes place in the academic year in which the first cohort of students reach their final year of study). Following this, as with all UK Optometry teaching programmes, the course would then continue to be subject to periodic review and re-approval in line with GOC timescales. 

Please note, this is the standard procedure for any new MOptom degree in the UK. Whilst we are working constructively with the GOC to ensure that we meet the requirements to achieve relevant approvals at each stage, which is ongoing for each year until our first cohort graduates, there is a possibility that approval may not be provided despite our best efforts. In this situation your progress will be paused pending GOC approval of the relevant stage. In cases where full approval is not granted by the GOC, you would graduate with the relevant exit award (although this would not be registerable with the GOC). It should be noted that students may be eligible to enrol with other Optometry programmes to complete their studies.

If you have any questions about this, please contact the Optometry team [email protected].