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Summer Research Program

We are proud to offer NECO’s Summer Research Training Program – run every year since 1999. It is among the longest-run NEI-funded optometry training programs across the nation.

Designed for optometry students eager to dive into the world of innovative research, NECO’s summer research program, offers a unique opportunity to gain hands-on research experience. Work closely with seasoned researchers and build expertise in areas like experimental design, data collection and analysis, and manuscript preparation. Enjoy a rich schedule of workshops and lectures, culminating in a final research symposium, where you can showcase your findings.

Many past participants have gone on to present their work at national and international conferences and have become co-authors of peer-reviewed publications, making this program a rewarding opportunity. A stipend is provided for qualified applicants.

Student TestimonialsProjects & PublicationsContact Us

Testimonials

  • Mentor

    I liked that I could have some control in how I could design experiments. But when I needed guidance, I could rely on my mentor to push me in the right direction.

  • Vision Science Research

    I learned a lot about vision science and human research this summer.

  • Seminars

    One of the reasons that I chose this program was because of how it's structured with weekly seminars and final presentations.

Projects & Publications

  1. “The Role of Fundus Photography in Retinal Evaluation of Patients with History of Stroke.”
    Alapika Jatkar, OD2027. Mentor: Dr. Elena Biffi
  2. “Spectral effects and time-of-day interactions on ocular growth rates and corneal curvature in chicks.”
    Sarah Krull, OD2027. Mentor: Drs. Deb Nickla & Chris Taylor
  3. “Differences in Scanning Behavior at Intersections – A Naturalistic Driving Study”
    Jina Yi, OD2027 (From Berkeley Optometry). Mentor: Dr. Alex Bowers
  4. “Screening and home-based monitoring of refractive error using smartphones.”
    Loveth Aleburu, OD2027. Mentor: Dr. Gang Luo
  5. “AR Visual Function Limits Imposed by the Retinal Image Quality”
    Serena Beri, OD2027. Mentors: Drs. Peter Bex & Fuensanta Vera-Diaz
  6. “Reading, Accommodation, and Eye Movements in Young Children”
    Jonathan Hernandez, OD2027. Mentor: Dr. Kristen Kerber
  7. “Can classification images reveal differences in contrast polarity processing between emmetropes and myopes?”
    Anya Kopyra, OD2027. Mentor: Dr. Chris Taylor

  1. Skerswetat J, Ross NC, Idman-Rait C, Sun K, Wynn O, Bex PJ. Visual Performance of People with Albinism Assessed with Generalizable and Adaptive AIM and FInD Methods. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2024 Sep 3;65(11):34. doi: 10.1167/iovs.65.11.34. PubMed PMID: 39312223.
  2. Tabernero J, Kallamata E, Velonias G, Vera-Diaz FA. Individualized modeling for the peripheral optics of the human myopic eye. Biomed Opt Express. 2023 Jun 1;14(6):2726-2735. doi: 10.1364/BOE.489792. eCollection 2023 Jun 1. PubMed PMID: 37342699; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10278608
  3. Biffi E, Turple Z, Chung J, Biffi A. Retinal biomarkers of Cerebral Small Vessel Disease: A systematic review. PLoS One. 2022;(4):e0266974. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0266974. eCollection 2022. PubMed PMID: 35421194; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC9009626.
  4. Nickla DL, Rucker F, Taylor CP, SarfareS, Chen W, Elin-Calcador J, Wang X. Effects of morning and evening exposures to blue light of varying illuminance on ocular growth rates and ocular rhythms in chicks. Exp Eye Res. 2022 Apr;217:108963. doi: 10.1016/j.exer.2022.108963. Epub 2022 Jan 29. PubMed PMID: 35093392; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8957570.
  5. Luo G, Lee CY, Shivshanker P, Cheng W, Wang J, Marusic S, Raghuram A, Jiang Y, Liu R. Preliminary Evaluation of a Smartphone App for Refractive Error Measurement. Transl Vis Sci Technol. 2022 Feb 1;11(2):40. doi: 10.1167/tvst.11.2.40. PubMed PMID: 35703567; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8899852.
  6. McCormack GL, Kulowski KA. Image Size and the Range of Clear and Single Binocular Vision in 3D Displays. Optom Vis Sci. 2021 Aug 1;98(8):947-958. doi: 10.1097/OPX.0000000000001745. PubMed PMID: 34460455; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8409099.
  7. Savage SW, Zhang L, Swan G, Bowers AR. The effects of age on the contributions of head and eye movements to scanning behavior at interactions. Transp Res Part F Traffic Psychol Behav 2020 Aug;73:128-142. doi: 10.1016/j.trf.2020.06.015. Epub 2020 Jul 13. PubMed PMID: 32742187; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7394287.
  8. Zhang CT, Bowers AR, Savage SW. The Effects of Age, Distraction, and Simulated Central Vision Impairment on Hazard Detection in a Driving Simulator. Optom Vis Sci. 2020 Apr;97(4):239-248-. doi: 10.1097/OPX.0000000000001501. PubMed PMID: 32304533; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7172002.

Contact Us

For more information about the program contact:

Thanasis Panorgias, PhD
Director of Graduate Studies
Associate Professor of Vision Science

Learn more about us.