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We are practitioners of the healing arts defining the standard for excellence in optometric education and vision care.
Our D.O. medical school is nationally ranked and recognized for a reputation of excellence in rural medicine and family healthcare. UPIKE’s osteopathy program gives you a clear path to success in the medical field.
Explore our online undergraduate and graduate programs and learn more about earning your degree at UPIKE.
Located in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, the Kentucky College of Optometry (KYCO) is the only college of optometry in Kentucky. Become part of a community of medical professionals providing vision care to those who need it most, and learn in an environment built with the future of optometry in mind. At KYCO, faculty, staff and administration embrace the expanded scope of optometric practice in Kentucky with unique clinical experiences and a challenging curriculum. KYCO students are afforded an abundance of rewarding clinical opportunities serving patients in need.
All equipment, textbooks and technology are provided at no additional cost to students.
Students serve patients from the blindest region in the U.S. in community clinics and hospitals.
Practice with new and advanced equipment and technology in KYCO’s innovative 103,000 square foot facility.
The University of Pikeville honored the academic achievements of more than 270 graduates at the associate, baccalaureate and master’s degree levels in its first-ever virtual commencement on May 2. Sixty-One Doctor of Optometry degree recipients from the inaugural graduating class of UPIKE’s Kentucky College of Optometry (KYCO) joined 123 Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine degree recipients from the Kentucky College of Osteopathic […]
The University of Pikeville will honor the academic achievements of students in the College of Arts and Sciences, Coleman College of Business, College of Nursing and Human Services, and Patton College of Education in a virtual commencement ceremony. Graduates from the Kentucky College of Osteopathic Medicine (KYCOM) and the inaugural graduates from Kentucky College of […]
The University of Pikeville – Kentucky College of Optometry (KYCO) recently celebrated Department Chair of Clinical Affairs and Professor of Optometry Renee Reeder O.D., FAAO, FBCLA, FSLS, FIACLE, for being named the 2020 International Association of Contact Lens Educator (IACLE) of the Year. IACLE raises the standard of contact lens education and promotes the safe […]
The University of Pikeville – Kentucky College of Optometry (KYCO) student, Maivys Hernandez, began to grow her passion for optometry during her undergraduate years at Florida International University. Hernandez was intrigued by being a part of the inaugural class of 2020 and admired the extended scope of practice of bringing a “Vision of Hope” to […]
During the fall of 2019, the University of Pikeville – Kentucky College of Optometry’s (KYCO) pediatric optometrists and second-year optometry students visited 11 Pike County schools and provided screenings to more than 750 pediatric patients from the first, third and fifth-grade classes. These screenings assess how well pediatric patients can read from the eye chart […]
Since childhood, North Carolina native Sara Hoyek was intrigued by optometry and recognized it as a career she would want to pursue. Today, she will be a part of the first graduating class at the University of Pikeville-Kentucky College of Optometry (KYCO) in May 2020. Hoyek desires to impact lives in a direct and meaningful […]
Dr. Josephine Owoeye, UPIKE-Kentucky College of Optometry, selected to participate in prestigious program The Presidential Leadership Scholars (PLS) program announced that Josephine Owoeye, O.D., assistant dean for student and professional development at the University of Pikeville – Kentucky College of Optometry, has been selected as one of the 60 Scholars chosen for the program’s sixth annual […]
Sha’Mia Stinson is part of the University of Pikeville-Kentucky College of Optometry (KYCO) Class of 2020. She’s pursuing a career in optometry to help people have a better quality of life. Stinson chose KYCO because she is very family-oriented, and KYCO is the closest optometry school to her family in South Carolina. She also loves […]
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