Vision Science Academy Celebrates 100% Completion Rate as First Vision Horizon Cohort Advances to Level B
113 professionals who enrolled in July 2025 complete Level A of the pioneering interdisciplinary vision science programme; Level B applications open 3 August 2026, alongside new Level A enrolment
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM — 29 July 2026 — Vision Science Academy (VSA) is proud to announce the successful completion of Level A of Vision Horizon, its flagship interdisciplinary vision science training programme, by all 113 participants who enrolled in the programme’s inaugural cohort in July 2025. The achievement marks a 100% completion rate for the cohort, and every candidate has now been formally promoted and invited to continue into Level B.
To every one of the 113 candidates: congratulations. Completing Level A was never going to be easy, and each of you brought real discipline, curiosity, and heart to a demanding, wide-ranging curriculum — often while balancing full-time clinical, academic, or public health responsibilities of your own. A 100% completion rate is not a statistic that happens by chance; it happens because a cohort shows up for itself, week after week. Vision Science Academy could not be prouder to call you its first graduates of Vision Horizon.
Vision Horizon was officially launched by Vision Science Academy to extend professional development in vision science well beyond the traditional bounds of optometry. The programme’s Level A curriculum spans the wider interdisciplinary landscape now understood under the vision sciences banner — including public health, advanced diagnostic and assistive technology, psychophysics, and emerging areas of vision research — equipping candidates with a breadth of knowledge suited to the evolving demands of the field.
None of this would have been possible without the people who believed in Vision Horizon from its very first day. The Academy extends its heartfelt thanks to Dr. Nayla Altom Mohamed Ismail and Dr. Khabab Mohamedsaeed Alfadil Abdelgadir, whose leadership, dedication, and perseverance shaped this initiative and carried it to a successful first cohort.
Dr. Nayla’s leadership, in particular, has been nothing short of commendable. Her enrolment drive for this first cohort was the engine behind Vision Horizon’s early success — but it is her broader commitment to public health that gives the programme its deepest sense of purpose. Dr. Nayla has long dedicated herself to supporting communities in Sudan and the surrounding region affected by conflict and displacement, and she has carried that same dedication directly into Vision Horizon: opening a genuine pathway for vision science professionals in these communities to continue their education and advance their careers, from the very place she truly belongs to and honours. Her work stands as a powerful reminder of what this programme is ultimately for.
The programme was coordinated on behalf of Vision Science Academy by Kristi Sharma, whose dedication to the candidates’ progress and success was central to the cohort’s outstanding completion rate, under the overall supervision of Dr. Abhishek Mandal, Founder and CEO of Vision Science Academy.
“This first cohort has set the standard for everything Vision Horizon aspires to be. Their dedication, even in the face of real and varied challenges, reflects exactly the spirit our profession needs. We could not be prouder to welcome all 110 of them into Level B.”
— Dr. Abhishek Mandal, Founder & CEO, Vision Science Academy
Access remains at the heart of Vision Science Academy’s mission. Vision Horizon is deliberately structured to be affordable and delivered fully online, so that professionals in underserved and conflict-affected regions, including communities across the Middle East and beyond, are able to pursue advanced, career-defining education without interruption. The Academy holds firmly to the belief that neither financial circumstance nor geographic accessibility should stand between a dedicated professional and the opportunity to grow, and will continue to invest in keeping that opportunity open to all.
Looking ahead, Vision Science Academy is now opening two parallel pathways. Registration for Vision Horizon – Level B, open to all candidates who have completed Level A, begins on 3 August 2026. At the same time, the Academy continues to welcome new applications for Vision Horizon – Level A, ensuring that the next cohort of professionals can begin their own journey without delay.
“Watching this cohort grow over the past year has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. They showed up for themselves and for each other, again and again. Level B is going to be an exciting next chapter, and we are just as committed to supporting the new candidates joining Level A.”
— Kristi Sharma, Programme Coordinator, Vision Horizon, Vision Science Academy
About Vision Science Academy
Vision Science Academy (VSA) is an international membership and training organisation for eye health and vision science professionals, based in London, United Kingdom. Through initiatives such as Vision Horizon, VSA is committed to making advanced, interdisciplinary vision science education accessible, affordable, and available to professionals worldwide, regardless of geography or financial circumstance.
Media Contact
Vision Science Academy · London, UK · [info@visionscienceacademy.org]