An occupational therapist degree can be your first step towards a thrilling career! If you're considering pursuing this degree, there are several basic things you need to be aware of, to be sure you're prepared to start off on the proper foot.
To become a fully licensed occupational therapist, a Master's degree in occupational therapy is necessary. In order to pursue this career path, you'll first want to complete your Bachelor's degree in another field, preferably a Bachelor's degree in Occupational Therapy, or a degree in another of the natural sciences. Occupational therapy schools are incredibly competitive, so it is vital that you keep your grades as high as you possibly can during your undergraduate studies.
There are two paths you can follow so that you can earn an occupational therapist degree. The initial way to be accepted into a program is to enter a 4+2 or 4+1 program together with your current undergraduate college. By choosing this path, you will smoothly transition from your 4 year degree program into your Master's studies. Your Master's in occupational therapy can be obtained in a total of 5 or 6 years by entering into one of many plus programs.
Alternatively, if you have already completed your Bachelor's degree, it is possible to apply directly to an occupational therapy program at a school. By choosing to directly enter into https://www.sensoryfitness.org/ , you will probably complete your studies in about two to three more years. Choosing to enter a school's plus program, if one can be acquired, is often the best choice, as a Master's degree can be obtained a little faster, in most cases.
Before you'll be accepted into an occupational therapist degree program, you'll need to fulfill certain prerequisites. This is very important to learn, as you will want to be sure you take these courses during your undergraduate work. The following coursework will undoubtedly be required ahead of being accepted in a Master's program for occupational therapy:
Calculus
Social Sciences
General Psychology
Human Physiology and Anatomy
General Biology
General Physics
Organic Chemistry
Statistics
You'll want to make sure that you obtain good grades in all of these courses, as having low grades could add additional time to completing your degree path.
Once you've been accepted into a degree program for occupational therapy, whether a Bachelor's or Master's, you'll normally spend the initial couple of years in the classroom, doing academic coursework. You will be likely to complete both general education type classes, and also courses specific to the field of occupational therapy.
Before you can be licensed, you'll also need to have six months of supervised clinical work under your belt. This experience often comes in the final year of your education, while you are spending less time in a classroom, and more time doing practical work in local clinics.
If you plan to pursue an occupational therapist degree, what is important that can be done is make sure you prosper in your undergraduate studies, particularly your science related courses. When looking for schools where you could obtain your Master's degree, you will want to also be sure the institution is accredited and that the school offers programs that may allow you to concentrate on any specialty you had in mind.