Dr Marsha Oberholzer is a proud South African that has earned 3 academic degrees from the University of Johannesburg in South Africa. After completing her B.Optom degree, she pursued her Master’s degree in Optometry and thereafter, her PhD in Visual Science which she completed in 2015. After her undergraduate studies, she embarked on a career starting out as an Independent Optometrist, practicing in Johannesburg, South Africa after which she spent 4 years assisting an Ophthalmologist and Refractive Surgeon in his practice. Dr Oberholzer joined the Optometry School of the University of the Free State in South Africa in 2008 as a senior lecturer, lecturing and training undergraduate and postgraduate students in especially the niche fields of Ocular Pathology and Neuro-Optometry. Her teaching background includes the management of the undergraduate Optometry program at this University and involvement in the Professional Board (HPCSA) accreditation and re-curriculation of the undergraduate Optometry programme. During this time, she travelled across the world lecturing and training clinicians in a variety of optometric fields, mostly in the field of Higher Order Aberrations, which was the focus of her PhD Studies. She also served as a Key Opinion Leader for Alcon Laboratories during this time, after which she then permanently joined Alcon as the South African Professional Education and Development Manager in 2019. Her journey with Alcon has given her the opportunity to not only train within the field of contact lenses locally and export markets, but also the opportunity to travel globally, being involved in the extensive training to GEM (Growth and Emerging markets) associates, distributors and Eye Care Professionals. Since September 2023, Marsha has been appointed as the Vision Care Professional Education and Product Training HEAD for GEM at Alcon.

Dr Oberholzer has won multiple awards during her career, under which the most valued are the winner of the “Excellence in teaching and learning” award in the category Junior Lecturer at the UFS in 2011, Alcon AAA and GEM awards as well as the SA Alcon Hero award in 2022. Currently Dr Oberholzer is expanding her horizons with more extensive trainings globally at Alcon. She is also still an affiliated postgraduate lecturer at the University of the Free State where she continues to actively lead Masters and PhD Optometry students in their postgraduate studies.

Even though her first love may be “eyes”, she is also a musician, actively playing the Violin and Viola in Professional Orchestras in South Africa.