Occupational Therapy

An occupational therapist (OT) is a health professional concerned with restoration and maintenance of function following disease or injury. Specifically, occupational therapists are concerned mainly with finer motor control and functioning in daily home activities.

An occupational therapist may work with a variety of patients such as stroke victims, amputees, spinal cord or head injury patients, and developmentally disabled children. The goal of therapy is to reduce limitations, improve self-care skills, maintain function, and prepare for employment. They may work in many settings such as hospitals, schools, nursing homes, private practice, home health, and psychiatric hospitals. 

Occupational therapists are different from physical therapists. Occupational therapy focuses on supporting individuals in their activities of daily living and fine motor skills. On the other hand, physical therapy focuses on rehabilitation of physical function, mobility, and strength. Fine motor control refers to coordinated movement of small muscles in hands, fingers, and wrists to pick up objects, write, draw, use scissors, eat, etc., whereas gross motor skills are the use of muscles for large movements like running, jumping, and walking.

For more information on occupational therapy, the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA): Become an Occupational Therapy Practitioner is your go-to place.

Occupational Therapy Preparation

  • Timeline

  • 1. Obtain a Bachelor’s degree (4+ years) and complete all pre-occupational therapy requirements, including prerequisites, the GRE (if applicable), and experiences
    2. Attend an accredited occupational therapy program which can be a master’s program (MSOT for 2 years) or a doctorate program (OTD for 4 years)
    3. Pass the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT)
    4. Become licensed in the state you wish to practice
    Optional: for students who hold a master’s degree, you can earn a doctorate degree at an accredited doctoral OT program 

    Upon matriculation into a health professional school or program, there are additional steps students must complete in order to obtain licensure or professional certification. These steps vary by field and by program, and may include board examinations, supervised clinical hours, background checks, or other program-specific milestones. Once you are in your graduate program, your graduate program advisor will provide guidance on the post-graduation next steps.

  • Pre-Requisites

  • Prerequisite courses are the academic foundation that most schools require students before beginning occupational therapy school. No matter which major you choose, you will need to fulfill the specific science and non-science prerequisites set by each school. Always review and cross-check the requirements of your major with the prerequisite coursework for your intended Occupational Therapy Program(s) to ensure you are completing both UCD requirements as well as the requirements of the health professional program(s). 

    While HPA has developed a suggested prerequisite chart from a sample of schools, prerequisite coursework and entrance requirements will vary by program, hence it is important to check individual schools' websites to familiarize yourself with their exact prerequisites.

    Program PrerequisitesCourses to Take at UC Davis
    Most schools require: 

    Human Anatomy with Lab

    (EXB 106 & EXB 106L) OR (CHA 101 & CHA 101L)

    Human Physiology with Lab

    (NPB 101 & NPB 101L) OR (NPB 110C & NPB 101L)

    Human Development or Developmental/Lifespan Psychology1

    HDE 100ABC OR PSC 140

    General Psychology 

    PSC 1

    Abnormal Psychology 

    PSC 168

    Statistics

    STA 13 OR STA 100

    Medical Terminology

    Course not offered at UC Davis

    Anthropology/Sociology courses

    Check school for specific requirements 

    Some schools may also require: 
    General BiologyBIO 1 & 2 & 3 AND BIO 1L & 2L
    Physics with labPHY 7ABC
    3-D Art (i.e. ceramics, pottery)ART 5 OR ART 8
    English Composition/ Critical ThinkingCombination of writing-intensive ENL and UWP courses
    Public SpeakingCMN 1
    NeuroanatomyNPB 124

    Prerequisite Chart Footnotes:
    1. Double-check school's websites in order to meet requirements. Some schools will have specific curriculum requirements or unit requirements for the course.
    2. Make sure the course has a curriculum focused on improving writing skills and composition. There may be some gray areas between writing intensive courses versus courses that will fulfill the UC Davis Entry-Level Writing Requirement (ELWR).
    3. Check that the school will accept the course curriculum before taking (Ex: San Jose State University accepts PSC 121 or PSC 135, not NPB 124).

    HPA recommendations:
    1. Complete all prerequisite courses for a letter grade, not P/NP.
    2. Earn a “C” or higher in all prerequisite coursework. Some programs may require no lower than a B in any of your prerequisite courses.
    3. Maintain a minimum undergraduate and science GPA of 3.0 or higher. A competitive GPA will likely be higher for most programs. 

    Please also note that occupational therapy schools do accept community college work in varying degrees, some accept all transferable work, some a certain amount of units, and others accept a very limited amount. If you have any questions about your major, prerequisite courses, or grade/GPA concerns, you are encouraged to make an appointment with one of HPA Staff Advisors.Graduate Record Examination (GRE)

  • Exam

  • The Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) may be required by some occupational therapy programs and it is strongly recommended to be taken prior to applying. You can speak with a HPA Staff Advisor about your specific timeline. Check each individual school’s admissions webpage that you are applying to to see if they require it. 

    Please note: The GRE is not a course-dependent test, meaning there are no specific UCD courses you need to take to prepare. The best way is to give yourself time to study the test by buying test prep books or taking a test prep course.

    To learn more about the standardized exam and preparing for it, please visit HPA’s Application Preparation tab on Standardized Exams and HPA’s Test Prep Events & Resources.

Applying to Occupational Therapy School

  • Choosing Schools

  • There are over 500 occupational therapy schools in the U.S. Check out the Accreditation Council for Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE)’s School Directory for a list of accredited U.S. occupational therapy schools. 

    There are a variety of factors that go into choosing which occupational therapy schools to apply to, including degree awarded, location, environment (i.e. urban), tuition, class size, focus or mission statement, etc. Spend some time researching schools online and create a spreadsheet that tracks the factors most important to you. On average, pre-occupational therapy students apply to 5 to 7 occupational therapy schools. HPA also recommends meeting with an advisor to discuss your school list.

  • Application System

  • Applicants typically apply the year before they matriculate into the occupational therapy school and Occupational Therapy Centralized Application Service (OTCAS) is a centralized application system that is used by most occupational therapy schools. To learn more about OTCAS, visit the OTCAS’s Quick Start Guide and FAQs. Students are encouraged to refer to the OTCAS Applicant Help Center for additional guidance on how to complete their applications. Some schools will have applicants participate in OTCAS  and will also have applicants complete an application through their own internal graduate school applications, while other programs do not use OTCAS at all. HPA recommends for applicants to carefully review the application process of each individual school that they are applying to. 

    The OTCAS opens in mid-July and closes June of the following year; these dates may vary for schools who are not utilizing the OTCAS. While OTCAS closes in June, participating schools of OTCAS may have earlier deadline dates, which are the deadlines applicants should be submitting by. These deadlines may also vary by schools or some may admit students on a rolling basis; please check your individual schools for specific dates. If that is the case for your school of choice, be sure to submit your application early, but only when you are ready. Come see an advisor at Health Professions Advising to review your application.

    Schools and application systems may have specific guidelines about what is considered a completed application, and these components may vary based on the application system and/or individual school. Some examples include but are not limited to submitting the application fee and receiving letters of recommendations and official transcripts. Students are responsible for ensuring their applications are complete, submitted, and verified by the application deadline. 

    To learn more about applications and application timeline, please visit HPA’s Application Preparation tab on Applications and Application Timelines.

  • Personal Statement

  • The prompt and/or character or word count may vary per year. HPA recommends applicants  begin drafting their personal statement in advance of the application opening. It is very common for applicants to write multiple drafts before they finalize their personal statement. To learn more about approaching personal statements, please visit HPA’s Application Preparation tab on Personal Statements.

  • Experiences and Activities

  • Experiences and activities help students learn more about their motivations, interests, and goals, and to explore the field of occupational therapy. What you do with your time helps define who you are in your application. Whatever you choose to do, be sure you are dedicated, passionate about it, and understand your motivation for pursuing it. It is important that you balance your co-curricular activities with your academics to ensure you are maintaining strong academic performance while still engaging meaningfully outside the classroom. 

    A minimum amount of volunteer or observation hours under the supervision of a licensed occupational therapist is required by most schools. Some schools may have specific stipulations regarding the setting of where those hours are conducted and how many minimum hours per licensed occupational therapist. Most schools will ask students to submit proof of volunteer/observations hours as part of their application materials. Please check each school you plan to apply to for their specific requirements on experiences and volunteering/observation.

    To learn more about experiences and various on- and off-campus opportunities, please visit HPA’s Application Preparation tab on Experiences. UC Davis students are also encouraged to subscribe to HPA Today (HPA’s newsletter).

  • Letters of Recommendation

  • Letters of recommendation requirements vary by health professional schools. For many health fields, HPA recommends two lecture-based science instructor recommendations (this excludes research PI), one lecture-based non-science instructor, and additional letters from your co-curricular experiences. This can include a research PI, mentor, volunteer coordinator, professional you shadowed, etc. Your specific school list will determine what letters you may actually need. 

    Most OT programs may require that one of your references is from a licensed occupational therapist.

    To learn more about the etiquettes for letters of recommendation, please visit HPA’s Application Preparation tab on Letters of Recommendations.

  • Supplemental Applications

  • Supplemental applications (or secondaries) may be required for some occupational therapy schools and some may not require it. Students should carefully review the application process of the schools they are applying to. Supplemental/secondary applications may include additional fees and/or essays. To learn more about supplemental applications, please visit HPA’s Application Preparation tab on Applications.

  • Interviews

  • Interviews may be required for some occupational therapy schools and some may not require it. Students should carefully review the application process of the schools they are applying to. To learn more about preparing for interviews, please visit HPA’s Application Preparation tab on Interviews and HPA’s Interview Week.

More questions? Check out the frequently asked questions or schedule an appointment with an advisor.