Thank you for your interest in participating in our research!
Your input and participation in our research will feed directly into new product development and contribute to our understanding of eye health. Our past research has helped to develop many of the contact lenses, dry eye therapies and related products which are relied on by consumers around the world.
We conduct a wide variety of studies that require many different types of people including,
- Dry eye
- Myopia progression control (children’s studies)
- Soft contact lenses
- Toric contact Lenses (lenses used for astigmatism)
- Multifocal contact lenses
- Spectacles
You will receive $20 per hour for your time when attending research visits. In most studies, we provide products at no cost to you. In a few, you will be asked to continue with your own products. There will be no charge for any products or examinations conducted as part of the research study.
I am interested in participating in a study, what are the next steps?
STEP 1: Create a participant profile
To be eligible for any research studies at CORE you must create your unique participant profile by completing a registration form. When creating your profile, you will need to provide us with your contact information and complete a short series of questions about your eyes eg do you wear contact lenses. Don’t worry; the form will only take a few minutes to complete, and all information collected is confidential!
STEP 2: We will contact you if you meet the criteria for a study based on your profile
You will get an email with a brief description of a specific study after we have matched your profile to the study criteria. After you have read the study description and decide you would like to participate, call our scheduling team for more information or to book your Screening visit – We call this a Screening visit because we will gather more information to confirm that you are eligible for the study.
STEP 3: You will receive your first study email reminder
After we have scheduled your first Screening visit, we will send you a confirmation email with detailed information about the study, including research objectives, time commitment and what you can expect during the study visits.
STEP 4: Attend a Screening visit
Come to the CORE reception area, which is on the 3rd floor of the School of Optometry and Vision Science at the University of Waterloo. Before any measurements are taken, a member of the study team will provide you with the study specific Information Consent Letter and answer any questions you have. This document explains the study in detail, including the time commitment, products/procedures, payment and the risks of any unwanted side effects. The Screening visit is designed to confirm your eligibility for the study by asking you questions and us assessing your eyes and vision. After your screening visit is complete you will be asked to schedule any remaining study visits.
STEP 5: Attend the remaining study visits
Our studies vary in time commitment. We will work around your schedule as much as we can when booking the study visits. Generally, you will be paid by cheque at the final study visit; however, for larger sums of money processing has to be completed by the University of Waterloo and a cheque will be sent by mail.
Safety: Your safety is our number one priority. All products we use in our research are approved for use by Health Canada. Additionally, all our research studies are reviewed and receive approval from a University of Waterloo Research Ethics Committee. We provide 24/7 emergency on-call in case you experience worrisome symptom s while you are in a study.
I have more questions – who can I reach out to?
If you want to participate but have more questions about research and CORE, please visit our FAQ page or contact the recruitment team directly by email at COREstudies@uwaterloo.ca