Edition 2023

International Optometrist of the Year Award 2023

César Villa Collar, holds a Diploma in Optics from Complutense University of Madrid (UCM) and in Optics and Optometry from the University of Granada. He earned a Master’s in Clinical Optometric Sciences from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (USA) and in Optometry from the European University of Madrid (UEM). He obtained his Doctorate in Optics, Optometry, and Vision from UCM, receiving the Extraordinary Doctorate Award.

He has served as Technical Director of the Novolent comprehensive vision centers; Director of Optometry at the Novovision Ophthalmology Clinic in Madrid; Director of the Department of Optics and Optometry at UEM; and Senior Researcher and Professor of Optometry at UEM.

He belongs to the Vision Research Group at UEM and has published over 150 peer-reviewed articles, with an h-index of 30. He has supervised 19 doctoral theses and served as principal investigator in 19 R&D projects funded by public and private institutions.

Internationally, he is a Fellow of the American Academy of Optometry and the European Academy of Optics and Optometry, and serves as Managing Editor of the Journal of Optometry. He has received numerous awards and distinctions throughout his academic and research career.

Clinically, he specializes in contact lenses and refractive surgery, pioneering overnight orthokeratology in Spain, and is an expert in myopia control.

César Villa Collar

Doctor in Optics, Optometry, and Vision

Professor of Optometry at the European University of Madrid. Researcher in visual quality, contact lenses, and refractive surgery.