Optometry students from across Europe will gather for research project finale
CooperVision is pleased to announce that its annual FORCE (Future Ocular Research Creativity Event) competition final will take place on Saturday 17 September at the CooperVision Centre of Innovation in Budapest, Hungary.
FORCE is a competition run annually by CooperVision, pitching students from universities and colleges across Europe against one another. Each finalist conducts a six-to-eight-week contact lens or anterior eye-related research project and presents their findings to a panel of judges in the hope of becoming the 2022 CooperVision FORCE Student of the Year.
The competition aims to inspire students to strive for excellence in their research projects and develop their knowledge base to benefit their future careers.
Winners of this year’s FORCE competition will present their papers at the British Contact Lens Association’s (BCLA) Clinical Conference & Exhibition in June 2023 (Manchester, UK).
Students from Italy, Iberia, UK&I, Poland, Bulgaria, Benelux, DACH (Deutschland, Austria and Switzerland) Hungary and Czech Republic will present their research findings at this year’s final.
For the first time, students, educators and researchers from across the globe can watch live through the most popular social media platforms.
Chair of the judging panel, Professor James Wolffsohn, Head of the School of Optometry at Aston University, UK, will be joined by Elena García Rubio, Director of INOP in Spain and Dr Stefan Bandlitz, Senior Lecturer at Cologne School of Optometry in Germany. In addition, a new panelist joins the panel for 2022, French Ophthalmologist Dr Houda Baïz.
Fabio Carta EMEA Professional Services Manager
Commenting on the upcoming final, CooperVision EMEA Professional Services Manager Fabio Carta said: ‘Last year’s digital format allowed us to explore new fields, but after two years, we are all looking forward to the usual face-to-face event at our Centre of Innovation in Budapest. For the first time, the judging panel welcomes Dr Baïz to help evaluation of the work presented by the students. I also have the great pleasure of presenting an insight into a new and exciting project for eye care students worldwide. I don’t want to spoil the surprise – so save the date and watch the event live via social media on Saturday 17 September.’