Confused OT Hopeful

[1Corinthians13]

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Hello, everyone!🙂

I'm new here, and I have to say that I feel a bit funny of the "Student Doctor Network," because I'm still in high school. I apologize for invading, but I have some questions about occupation therapy and who better to ask than a forum of OTs?

I have A LOT of questions. Here's a list- even if you can only answer a few I'd be SOO grateful!

1.) Do OTs get hand-on activity with their patients, or is this mainly the job of OTAs?

2.) What are the best undergraduate degrees for OT hopefuls. I've heard colleges claim that it doesn't matter- is that true?

3.) If you aren't offended by my asking, what was your high school GPA? (I hear OT programs are REALLY competitive.) Did you receive any scholarships?

4.) What was your path towards becoming an OT?

5.) What do you like/dislike about your job?

Thanks, everybody!

~Katie

 

[OTfuture]

I am not an OT yet but:

1) OT's do get a lot of hands on time with their patients

2) Most schools really do not care. However I would think they would like to see a science or social science degree over a completely irrelevant degree. These degrees also most often include most OT pre-reqs as degree requirements. That said I know someone who got into OT school with a degree in English Literature. I'd say pick something you are interested in and know you will do well in.

3) OT schools are competitive but your high school GPA will not factor in in anyway. Your Undergrad GPA is what they will look at.

Good luck! I wish I had known that I wanted to be an OT while I was still in high school, it would have made my journey much shorter. You could also look into combined BA/MOT programs. That way you would start college and have your degree in only 5 years!

 

[Whistle Pig]

👍

Hello, everyone!🙂

I'm new here, and I have to say that I feel a bit funny of the "Student Doctor Network," because I'm still in high school. I apologize for invading, but I have some questions about occupation therapy and who better to ask than a forum of OTs?

I have A LOT of questions. Here's a list- even if you can only answer a few I'd be SOO grateful!

1.) Do OTs get hand-on activity with their patients, or is this mainly the job of OTAs?

2.) What are the best undergraduate degrees for OT hopefuls. I've heard colleges claim that it doesn't matter- is that true?

3.) If you aren't offended by my asking, what was your high school GPA? (I hear OT programs are REALLY competitive.) Did you receive any scholarships?

4.) What was your path towards becoming an OT?

5.) What do you like/dislike about your job?

Thanks, everybody!

~Katie

Great questions Katie and kudos for your early exploration and planning. While there are a number of ways to OT school and beyond, IF you are persuaded this is your calliing, consider entering a pre-OT program that provides "guaranteed" admission upon completion of specific courses and other pre-requisites at specific levels of performance.

In reading this and other forums discussing OT profession, programs, and practice, you will discover this field is becoming increasingly competitive. Earlier planning, performance and pursuit will trump arriving later at the party. Guaranteed. Again, nice going in your consideration and planning. You'll do well in this process.👍

P.S. LOVE your Scripture. That chapter and verse are among THE PATH to happiness, "success", and living a life of great purpose. btw, there are several outstanding PT programs @ genuinely Christian institutions, if that is of any interest.

 

[lizzo76]

I'm confused by the question about high school GPA... was that a typo and you meant undergrad GPA... or are you a high schooler who is looking to move into OT (hence the question about undergrad major)? (Edit.. somehow I overlooked your very obvious comment about being in high school!)

Most of us on here... just about all, I think... are applying to masters in OT programs, having already completed undergrad. High school GPA (I literally can't even remember mine... I graduated in 1995) is completely irrelevant for a masters program. But, if you're still in high school, you can always look for a combined BS/MS OT program, in which you'll end up with your BS and MS after 5 years of study, rather than doing 4 (or more) years of undergrad work and then another 2+ years of OT masters work.

If you're looking for a direct-entry masters OT program, practically speaking, an undergrad major which covers some or all of the OT prereqs is the best way to go. But, from an admissions standpoint, you're probably fine even if you majored in something irrelevant as long as you ultimately took the prereqs and did well in them. I majored in psychology, so that covered almost all of my prereqs (including stats and neuroscience stuff) except for two semesters of A&P and one more psych course (Adult Development.) Had my undergraduate college offered A&P I might have taken it, too, but my college didn't have it. That seems sort of odd, but it was a top-ranked liberal arts college and focused almost exclusively on "theory" over practice... it was not concerned with "vocational" education, and A&P can be said to be vocational. A&P is far too practical and career-related for a high-minded liberal arts college, ha ha.

If you're not concerned about completing all the prereqs during college (will take them later) or you think you can fit them in on top of an unrelated major, I actually think a humanities major can be a good thing. Even med schools and law schools are now giving preference to people with "broader" educations than the traditional pre-med or pre-law routes (as long as those people ultimately got a science education too and did well on the MCAT.) Majors which are writing-intensive can aid one's ability to think critically and analytically, as well as just broadening one's knowledge. My psych major was largely seminar-based and was very writing-intensive, so I feel like I kind of got the best aspects of social science/biology education as well as some of the benefits of humanities education.

 

[gymnastau]

Hello, everyone!🙂

I'm new here, and I have to say that I feel a bit funny of the "Student Doctor Network," because I'm still in high school. I apologize for invading, but I have some questions about occupation therapy and who better to ask than a forum of OTs?

I have A LOT of questions. Here's a list- even if you can only answer a few I'd be SOO grateful!

1.) Do OTs get hand-on activity with their patients, or is this mainly the job of OTAs?

2.) What are the best undergraduate degrees for OT hopefuls. I've heard colleges claim that it doesn't matter- is that true?

3.) If you aren't offended by my asking, what was your high school GPA? (I hear OT programs are REALLY competitive.) Did you receive any scholarships?

4.) What was your path towards becoming an OT?

5.) What do you like/dislike about your job?

Thanks, everybody!

~Katie

Katie, Not sure if you have also read some of the posts on the high school part of the student doctor forum. I'm sure there a lot of students on there as well considering several health fields.

If you are interested in the combined Bachelors/Masters OT programs the program coordinators will surely help give you a profile on the kind of students they admit. Especially since you are still in HS, they are mindful that you have tons of questions like these.

If you aren't looking into a program like that, a lot of colleges offer "pre-health" tracks. I am not exactly sure how they work, I suppose you may pick a major but the advisers help make sure you get the classes you need in order to apply to a program once you graduate.

This is a program near where I am right now that does this. Wish it had been around when I graduated from HS:

http://www5.wittenberg.edu/academics/prehealth.html

http://www5.wittenberg.edu/academics/prehealth/occupationaltherapy.html


One final point, a private pediatric clinic near me does summer camp for their patients. They often have HS students come and help out/observe alongside the OT. You can look up clinics and simply email them to see if you could join in on watching/helping.

I think it is so cool that you are interested in OT and are asking questions at a young age!!!

PS: I graduated in 1996 and have no clue what my GPA is either. 🙂

 

[Whistle Pig]

Good counsel, here Katie.

One word of caution. Wittenberg notes they have a 3-2 program in conjunction w/ Wash U/St.Louis ...the #1 program according to U.S. News. It's in the med school, which is often assessed among the top 3-5 med schools in the country. Wash U. has this similar agreement w/ 25 or so schools, and it carries little weight in terms of getting students advantage in admission. Rather what they are intended to provide is a "guarantee" to receive a B.S. degree after a year of OT school, in addition to one's eventual graduate degree (OTD or MS @ Wash U.). So ...these are nice for marketing for the liberal arts colleges and universities, but they are not at all like going to, let's just say Pitt or Duquesne as a freshman pre-OT major, where there is a guarantee of admission into the grad program pending certain course and performance benchmarks.

Frankly, I'm persuaded that for places like Wittenberg (and many others) to market these pre-health career things IMPLYING more than is there, is phony advertising. The real problem is that most students enrolling in these programs do not have sufficient contact and information from the "2" school of the 3-2 arrangement. Wash U. is very open about this, noting that students from these contracted partners receive little or no preference in admission.

Lastly, generally these 3-2 programs are not majors, as gymnastau notes. There may be an on-campus liaison/advisor (often who know relatively nothing about the specifics beyond pre-reqs.) but beyond that, major areas of study are left to the student's ability to fit in those pre-reqs to the major requirements. That is an upside to these programs, especially if one is not 100% certain of OT.

 

[lizzo76]

This is pretty interesting... is this specifically true of this 3-2 program, or 3-2 programs in general? For instance, my undergrad (liberal arts college) had a 3-2 program in engineering with Dartmouth (and now Columbia and CalTech too), and a 3-3 law program with Columbia, as well as a similar arrangement for architecture. I know several people who took advantage of these, and I always assumed there was a formal arrangement where some preference was given to people from my school (at least assuming everything else was equal) but maybe not. Actually I looked some more on my college's website, and I think that IS the case. For the engineering program, though, the student is not applying to a graduate program - they're entering as advanced students in the undergraduate engineering program.

Good counsel, here Katie.

One word of caution. Wittenberg notes they have a 3-2 program in conjunction w/ Wash U/St.Louis ...the #1 program according to U.S. News. It's in the med school, which is often assessed among the top 3-5 med schools in the country. Wash U. has this similar agreement w/ 25 or so schools, and it carries little weight in terms of getting students advantage in admission. Rather what they are intended to provide is a "guarantee" to receive a B.S. degree after a year of OT school, in addition to one's eventual graduate degree (OTD or MS @ Wash U.). So ...these are nice for marketing for the liberal arts colleges and universities, but they are not at all like going to, let's just say Pitt or Duquesne as a freshman pre-OT major, where there is a guarantee of admission into the grad program pending certain course and performance benchmarks.

Frankly, I'm persuaded that for places like Wittenberg (and many others) to market these pre-health career things IMPLYING more than is there, is phony advertising. The real problem is that most students enrolling in these programs do not have sufficient contact and information from the "2" school of the 3-2 arrangement. Wash U. is very open about this, noting that students from these contracted partners receive little or no preference in admission.

Lastly, generally these 3-2 programs are not majors, as gymnastau notes. There may be an on-campus liaison/advisor (often who know relatively nothing about the specifics beyond pre-reqs.) but beyond that, major areas of study are left to the student's ability to fit in those pre-reqs to the major requirements. That is an upside to these programs, especially if one is not 100% certain of OT.

 

[1Corinthians13]

Thanks, everyone for the thoughtful insight.🙂

I'm hoping to go to a school very close to my home, and I am also looking into a combined bachelors/masters program. Although it's nice to know I COULD get a bachelors in anything, I don't see why I wouldn't just go straight to OT (since it's what I want to be in the first place.)


Whistle Pig: Yeah, that's one of my favorite scriptures, and I want to go into a career that lets me follow those guidelines. A am looking into a a program at a Christian university, but it is SO expensive, so I don't know how likely it is that I will go there. (But that's a whole other question for another thread.)

Thanks everyone so much!😀

 

[gymnastau]

Thanks, everyone for the thoughtful insight.🙂

I'm hoping to go to a school very close to my home, and I am also looking into a combined bachelors/masters program. Although it's nice to know I COULD get a bachelors in anything, I don't see why I wouldn't just go straight to OT (since it's what I want to be in the first place.)


Whistle Pig: Yeah, that's one of my favorite scriptures, and I want to go into a career that lets me follow those guidelines. A am looking into a a program at a Christian university, but it is SO expensive, so I don't know how likely it is that I will go there. (But that's a whole other question for another thread.)

Thanks everyone so much!😀

You would be amazed at what many private schools can do to help you with tuition. So never put out any schools of consideration due to cost, always apply! It sounds like you have a lot to offer any school!

I transferred from a large public university into a private Christian college with a very low GPA at the time. I had suffered a serious injury from gymnastics and being only a "number" without a name at this public university really affected my ability to focus & be happy during my recovery... It also affected my cum. GPA but that is another story. 🙂

Anyways this amazing private Christian university gave me incredible funding despite that GPA. The school (at the time was $27,000) per year and I graduated with very little in loans because of the wonderful grants I was given.

My point is, apply everywhere you can. In fact you can also inform the school about your financial situation being tight and some/many may not require you to pay your application fee. Every penny counts!

I think you are a very bright individual considering so many important questions about a career you are interested in at such a young age. Any school would be lucky to have a student that thinks like you!!

 

[Whistle Pig]

So true. Discounting runs rampant in higher education, and it is going to escalate as the rebound from the baby boomers heads down the backside of the population curve. And especially @ private institutions w/ higher sticker prices (and as noted, NOT NECESSARILY higher "sale" or net prices), who will find it increasingly challenging to compete in a coming decade of economic chaos. There is going to be a whole lot of negotiating and bargaining going on w/ unsustainable capacity having been generated. It's like symphonies in every city having to "paper" the seats. Colleges and universities will be doing precisely the same, with seats being bought, buildings already built, profs hired and tenured, dorm rooms being potentially empty. And with the trending continuing toward publics because of PERCEIVED cost savings, generally there will be lots of purchasing leverage for good students willing to avoid becoming enamoured and married to specific institutions.

And as gymnastau has well noted, there can be a world of difference in the nature and quality of experience. Mostly egoes and wallets prevent better decision-making for many students. Your early research should serve you well. Make sure to engage your parent-funders in the process.