OE TRACKER is ARBO's continuing education database; every optometrist who registered for NBEO exams has a number. Providers report attendance to it, many boards accept its transcript and some audit through it, including West Virginia, Louisiana and North Dakota. The subscription, $25 a year or $65 for three, unlocks full course history.
Most optometrists meet OE TRACKER without noticing: a CE provider asks for your number at the door, scans your badge, and the hours appear in an account you may never have opened. That account is run by the Association of Regulatory Boards of Optometry (ARBO), and for a growing number of boards it is where a CE audit starts.
What is OE TRACKER?
ARBO describes OE TRACKER as a system that "captures and stores continuing education attendance data for optometrists," retained in ARBO's database and accessible online "by you and your licensing board." Every optometrist who took the National Board exams in the U.S. has an OE TRACKER number, assigned at NBEO registration. CE providers often ask for it so they can report your attendance directly. If you do not know your number, ARBO and NBEO both have lookups.
The same number shows up on licensing paperwork. Texas, for example, asks applicants for their OE TRACKER number on the application.
Is the paid subscription worth it?
The account exists either way. Paying the subscription, $25 for one year or $65 for three, unlocks:
- Full course history: title, COPE ID (if COPE-approved), category, format, date, instructor, provider and hours.
- A running count of hours earned against the hours required in the current renewal period for each jurisdiction where you are licensed.
- Printable transcripts and certificates, and the ability to submit certificates for missing courses through your account or the mobile app, which ARBO verifies before adding.
Without a subscription you can log in but see only the number of hours by date, without course titles or categories. Some boards and associations pay the subscription for their licensees or members. West Virginia's board, for one, pays active licensees' OE TRACKER fees.
How do boards use it in audits?
ARBO says "many optometric licensing boards use OE TRACKER to audit your CE attendance hours electronically, eliminating the need for you to send in paper certificates," and that many boards accept the signed OE TRACKER transcript as proof of attendance. ARBO also says to ask your own board whether it audits this way, because practice varies:
- West Virginia audits CE through OE TRACKER.
- Louisiana requires CE hours to be reported to OE TRACKER, and does not accept a letter from another state board listing CE hours.
- North Dakota requires CE to be logged in OE TRACKER.
- Kentucky has licensees upload CE certificates to the board's own portal.
- Pennsylvania has licensees certify CE on the renewal application, and a false certification is grounds for discipline.
- Alabama has licensees certify completion at renewal and warns that CE can be audited, with penalties up to suspension for failing to show proof.
Where does OE TRACKER fall short for a multi-state optometrist?
It is only as complete as what providers report. A course whose provider did not report your attendance will be missing until you submit the certificate. It is built around COPE, ARBO's accreditation, so a board-specific course, such as a state jurisprudence course or a mandated topic from a non-COPE provider, may not appear in the way that board's audit needs. And it records attendance, not each board's topic rules: whether a given hour counts as live in Oklahoma, as one of Florida's mandated hours, or as practice management that California will not accept is still a question you answer per state. See CE requirements across states.
Can you prepare for audits in several states at once?
- Give every provider your OE TRACKER number and check after each course that the hours posted.
- Upload certificates for anything missing soon after the course, while you still have them.
- Keep your own certificate folder by state and period anyway, for boards that want paper and for courses outside COPE.
- Match hours to each state's period. One course can fall inside one state's cycle and outside another's.
- Keep the login yours. Your OE TRACKER account, like your NBEO account and board portals, should stay in your own hands. A tracking service should work from transcripts and certificates you share, not from your password.
Does OE TRACKER replace a renewal tracking service?
For CE storage, it is inexpensive and official, and we recommend using it. What it does not do is manage renewal deadlines, late cutoffs, PDMP triggers, controlled substance licenses and DEA registrations across states. Our Annual Renewal & CE Tracking service ($299 per license, per year) uses your OE TRACKER transcript and certificates to check each state's hours, topics and periods, reminds you ahead of each deadline and prepares a CE summary for each renewal. You complete the CE and renew each license yourself. See pricing and keeping several renewals on one calendar.
Common questions
- How do I find my OE TRACKER number?
- It was assigned when you registered for NBEO exams. ARBO's website has an OE TRACKER lookup, and NBEO's site shows it as well.
- Do I have to pay for OE TRACKER?
- No, but without the $25 yearly or $65 three-year subscription you see only hours by date, not course titles, COPE IDs or categories. Some boards and associations pay it for their licensees.
- Will my board accept an OE TRACKER transcript in an audit?
- Many boards accept the signed OE TRACKER transcript as proof of attendance, and some audit through OE TRACKER directly. Others, such as Kentucky, have you upload certificates to their own portal, so ask your board.
- What if a course is missing from OE TRACKER?
- With a paid subscription, submit the certificate through your account or the mobile app. ARBO verifies it before adding the hours.
Need Help with Your Application?
We prepare the optometry licensing process end-to-end — eligibility screening, documents, board follow-ups, and tracking.