'You're suddenly a student again, that's exciting'

Liànne and Janneke are both making a career change. Liànne worked as a secretary but wanted to work more with people. "I changed course and started a training program in healthcare. In the meantime, I came to Pearle as a customer, and they asked me if I wanted to work for them. I thought it would be great, but I was already doing a training program in healthcare. I soon realized that it wasn't for me. So I started as a shop assistant at Pearle and started working in the bbl trainingI used to work in an optician's shop as an assistant to the contact lens specialist, which I was already very drawn to back then. Now everything has fallen into place for me." Janneke also made a switch; she worked in the world of hair and makeup. "I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue doing my job until I retired. When the coating on my sunglasses crumbled, I took them to Vogel Optiek and struck up a conversation with an employee. One thing led to another, and a week later I was spending an entire Saturday shadowing her in the shop. I love that you can truly make a difference in people's lives with optics. I applied and was offered the job in Oss."

A leap into the deep

Both women were nervous about starting the program. Janneke: “You're suddenly a student again. That's exciting and unfamiliar, but also a really fun challenge. It's great to learn new things again. I haven't been to school in twenty years myself. So you have to get your mind back to work and learn how to learn again. We go to school one day a week and have to fit in a lot of home study in addition to our work, our families, horseback riding, and dancing. That took some getting used to at first, but we enjoy it. Development is important for everyone, in every profession. But also on a personal level; last year I got my motorcycle license.”

Learning together: the power of generations

In a mixed-age class, ranging from 18 to 46, they learn more about optics. Liànne: “I really enjoy the mix of ages in the class. Young and old mingle beautifully: the young learn from the old, but the old also learn from the young. Everyone helps each other, has the same goal in mind, and is interested in the profession. The great thing about the work-based learning program is that we work in an optician's shop alongside our studies. This way, you stay up-to-date on the latest developments in the industry and you put the theory you learn at Summa into practice. The variety in the profession is also great. We learn about technology, fashion, giving advice, and many eye-related aspects like taking measurements.”

Janneke adds enthusiastically: "There's always something to do, and it's wonderful when someone can see better again. There used to be only a few frames to choose from. Now there are so many beautiful glasses, it's no longer a 'bad thing' to wear them. They're almost a piece of jewelry. Glasses don't have to be awkward anymore; they're just cool. And working in optics is even cooler."