Byki Huntjens

Dr. Byki Huntjens is a Senior Lecturer in the Division of Optometry and Visual Sciences within the School of Health Sciences at City, University of London. She joined City University in 2009 as a lecturer and has held several leadership positions including Program Director for the BSc Optometry course (2015-2018) and currently serves as Program Director for the MSc Optometry program. Dr. Huntjens is also the Lead for Teaching Excellence in the School of Health representing optometry and has been recognized for her educational contributions with the Contact Lens Educator of the Year award in 2021.

Her educational background includes a Bachelor of Optometry from Hogeschool Utrecht in the Netherlands, followed by an MSc in Investigative Ophthalmology and Vision Science and a PhD in Optometry from the University of Manchester. She also completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Advanced Practice at City University London.

Dr. Huntjens' research focuses on contact lenses, dry eye, and macular pigment optical density, with particular interests in air pollution effects on dry eye, orthokeratology for myopia control, and ethnic variations in macular pigment spatial distribution. Her work bridges clinical practice with academic research, having launched the dry eye clinic at City University and secured industry funding for orthokeratology lens development. She has supervised multiple PhD and MSc students in these research areas.

Her scholarly output shows consistent contributions to the field of optometry, particularly in contact lens research, myopia control, and ocular surface assessment. Recent publications demonstrate her leadership in evidence-based practice, systematic reviews on myopia interventions, and innovative approaches to contact lens education and fitting protocols.

• Contact Lens Educator of the Year 2021 (International Association of Contact Lens Educators)
• Senior Fellow (SFHEA), Higher Education Academy (2019-present)
• Fellow of the BCLA (FBCLA), British Contact Lens Association (2018-present)
• Fellow of IACLE (FIACLE), International Association of Contact Lens Educators (2016-present)

Dr. Huntjens actively contributes to the professional community as Chair of the British & Irish University & College Contact Lens Educators (BUCCLE) and as an elected Council Member of the British Contact Lens Association (BCLA). She has supervised multiple PhD students including Kristina Mihić (Myopia control using orthokeratology), Irene Ctori (Macular pigment research), and Angharad Hobby (Anti-VEGF therapy effects). Her industry collaboration includes a City University Doctoral Studentship and an industry grant to design an optimal orthokeratology lens for myopia control. Dr. Huntjens also maintains clinical practice through the Primary Care and Contact Lens clinics at City University, connecting her research directly to patient care.