General Admissions & OTCAS CSUDH MSOT 2018-2019

[hellonice2meetu]

Hi all! I've also been just watching this forum for months, and also wanted to share that I got accepted! The date on the letter says yesterday, November 7th (my birthday is Nov 7, so THE BEST BDAY GIFT EVER), but I received the acceptance email today at 10am. Also applied directly to Cal State Apply, not OTCAS. Delivered physical copy directly to the department on September 14, a day before deadline.

Congrats! Did you get the email today? Are you able to share your stats with us?

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[LVOT]

Congrats!! I’m just curious, did you apply through OTCAS?

I applied straight to the department, so no OTCAS.

 

[OT20191]

Yes, I received my email today at 10am. And no problem!

UCLA Psychology major
Undergrad GPA: 3.73
OTCAS Overall: 3.78
Pre-Req GPA: 4.00
GRE: Q154 V155 W4.5 (took it again second time for USC, only Q increased to 161.. pretty much useless since OT schools care more about Verbal or Analytical Writing. Still waiting for Writing)
Observation Hours: 192 hours at Pediatrics Outpatient Facility
LOR: 1 professor, 1 director (boss from work), 1 OT
Related Experiences: 6 years at disability center (provided assistance and play dates) but this was long time ago 2007-2013. 2 years as research assistant for Infant Siblings Study (Autism related) at UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. Pre-school TA, Afterschool program TA, tutoring

I have other experiences that are not directly OT/education/psychology related that I also included (school organization, work, etc)
I took a gap year after undergrad to do my pre-reqs and observations.

 

[myOTdream]

Just received my acceptance via email today around 10AM! Good luck to you all!

 

[bh8]

Hey all, I just received an email from CSUDH saying I was accepted to the program! MyCSUDH still says "Your file is complete and has been sent to the appropriate department for review," so check your emails! It says they are also sending a hard copy in the mail. The deadline to accept is 11/21, so I assume more decisions will be sent out after that date as well. Good luck everyone!

Ahhh! Congrats! Your stats are great. I'm not surprised you got in

 

[bh8]

Hey all! I just got an email acceptance today! I'm not sure how they are sending them out in terms of dates, but I'm wishing you all the best!

Congrats!! So happy for those who are getting back good news! Fingers crossed for the rest of us.

 

[whatisoccupationaltherapy]

No problem!

UCI Psychology and Social Behavior
Undergrad GPA: 3.618
Prerequisite GPA: 4.0
GRE: 159V 156Q 4.5 Writing
LOR: 2 OTs and 1 from director of therapy clinic
Experience: 1 year as OT Aide in Hand therapy setting, 120 hours at SNF, 40 hours in Peds

I also stated other experience as well that weren’t directly OT related settings, but similar aka teaching with children, etc. Honestly did not think I would get in because I did not have a letter of rec from a professor. My CSUDH portal now states “You have been admitted to the university”. Good luck guys!

 

[whatisoccupationaltherapy]

To those who were accepted:

How did you respond to the confirmation of acceptance? Did you just reply to the email with the attachments or is there a set of instructions that I'm missing on how to submit them?

Thanks in advance!

 

[bh8]

Hi everyone!

I received a letter of acceptance yesterday! I feel like I'm the only one who didn't receive an email confirmation. Did anyone else only get a letter of acceptance via mail? I checked my account and it says "You have been admitted to the university and you are now eligible to enroll." Just to make sure, I'll be calling the department on Tuesday to confirm. I can't wait to meet all of you in January


I want to leave some words of encouragement for current and future applicants. I applied last year and was put on the wait list. I felt discouraged and lost because I wasn't anywhere near where I wanted to be at my age. I pictured myself graduating from grad school and studying for the NBCOT by now. I felt really disappointed in myself, but I knew pity wouldn't get me into a program. So, I called the department to ask what I could do to improve my chances. The person who helped me said to focus on my GRE scores (specifically my awa score). For those who are struggling with the awa section, I found it really helpful to type out an outline for each essay. Ets has provided every single essay prompt for both the argument and issue tasks on their website. Practice coming up with examples to support your stance and time yourself while typing the essays. Reading past forums helped me understand what the committee was looking for. So I'm hoping this will at least help one person with their application process. A lot of people don't get accepted their first time applying, so don't feel discouraged! Improve your stats and reapply again! If anyone has questions, feel free to ask/message me good luck to those who are still waiting!

 

[bh8]

Hi all, I've been reading this thread and last year's thread for a while but finally decided to make an account! It's my first time applying to CSUDH here are my stats:

Undergrad GPA: 3.69
Pre-req GPA: 4.0
GRE: V167 Q156 AW4.5
LOR: 1 from adult day program director (boss), 1 from an OT, and 1 from my psych prereqs prof
Experience: worked in elementary schools as a teacher assistant for ~4 years, worked as a counselor for adults with developmental disabilities and mental illnesses for 2.5 years
Observation: 110 hrs in a pediatric outpatient setting

I'm getting antsy now that it's finally November! Anyone looking for roommates near CSUDH if we get in? I'm from the San Fernando Valley and I think that commute might kill me long-term.

Hi there!

I tried messaging you, but for some reason the website said I couldn't. I live in Northridge and I'm looking for someone to room with as well! The neighborhoods around CSUDH are kind of unsafe.. do you happen to know which city is the safest around that area? Let me know if you're still interested in rooming

 

[ermykneestranger]

To those who were accepted:

How did you respond to the confirmation of acceptance? Did you just reply to the email with the attachments or is there a set of instructions that I'm missing on how to submit them?

Thanks in advance!

I'm planning on scanning the signed confirmation letter and ToroPay receipts and emailing them to the address on the back page!

 

[ValleySY]

Congratulations to everyone who was accepted! bh8, you're so sweet for writing such kind words. You clearly deserved acceptance!

For those who were accepted, can you share with us how you approached the Statement of Purpose? The Cal State Apply prompt was general, and even though I knew I was only applying to CSUDH, I kept it general because the prompt asked for "reasons for pursuing graduate school" and specifically stated to keep it general. Now I see I made a BIG mistake. So, I spoke about my path toward an interest in OT but I didn't write too much about my observation hours and its impact on me. I'm between crying and laughing at myself for the way I interpreted the prompt.

Thanks for helping out future applicants who may be reading this!

 

[whatisoccupationaltherapy]

I'm planning on scanning the signed confirmation letter and ToroPay receipts and emailing them to the address on the back page!

Thanks I just saw the bottom portion of the third page just now, haha feel so dumb. Just submitted mine

 

[whatisoccupationaltherapy]

Congratulations to everyone who was accepted! bh8, you're so sweet for writing such kind words. You clearly deserved acceptance!

For those who were accepted, can you share with us how you approached the Statement of Purpose? The Cal State Apply prompt was general, and even though I knew I was only applying to CSUDH, I kept it general because the prompt asked for "reasons for pursuing graduate school" and specifically stated to keep it general. Now I see I made a BIG mistake. So, I spoke about my path toward an interest in OT but I didn't write too much about my observation hours and its impact on me. I'm between crying and laughing at myself for the way I interpreted the prompt.

Thanks for helping out future applicants who may be reading this!

Don’t worry! There’s still a chance for you as I know they send out in at least three batches. I honestly don’t think they weigh the Statement of Purpose too heavily as Terry had mentioned in the info session that they wouldn’t even look at it unless they were really on the fence about your stats. That being said, I do believe that instead of the essay, they focus heavily on numbers and your stats- especially the verbal and writing section of the GRE. However, if it helps I can tell you that my Statement of Purpose was also very general although I mentioned OT, I only briefly talked about my volunteer experiences like you. Hope that helps.

 

[ermykneestranger]

Hi there!

I tried messaging you, but for some reason the website said I couldn't. I live in Northridge and I'm looking for someone to room with as well! The neighborhoods around CSUDH are kind of unsafe.. do you happen to know which city is the safest around that area? Let me know if you're still interested in rooming

bh8, I sent you a dm!

Congratulations to everyone who was accepted! bh8, you're so sweet for writing such kind words. You clearly deserved acceptance!

For those who were accepted, can you share with us how you approached the Statement of Purpose? The Cal State Apply prompt was general, and even though I knew I was only applying to CSUDH, I kept it general because the prompt asked for "reasons for pursuing graduate school" and specifically stated to keep it general. Now I see I made a BIG mistake. So, I spoke about my path toward an interest in OT but I didn't write too much about my observation hours and its impact on me. I'm between crying and laughing at myself for the way I interpreted the prompt.

Thanks for helping out future applicants who may be reading this!

I wrote pretty specifically about my volunteer and work experiences leading me to pursue OT, and specifically addressing mental health. I don't know if they took my personal statement into account though :/

Thanks I just saw the bottom portion of the third page just now, haha feel so dumb. Just submitted mine

You're welcome! I'm gonna send mine today too; I need to unearth my scanner from a pile of junk first

 

[ValleySY]

Any more acceptances/updates? My inbox and mailbox are equally empty .

 

[hellonice2meetu]

Any more acceptances/updates? My inbox and mailbox are equally empty .

Mine too
They did call me last week to verify my hours, so I hope that turns out to be good news...

 

[ValleySY]

Mine too
They did call me last week to verify my hours, so I hope that turns out to be good news...

That bodes well!! I don't think they'd go through the trouble of calling if they weren't interested. At the very least, they're taking your app seriously. I hope you can post good news soon!

 

[bh8]

Hi guys,

For those who got accepted, what are your plans for housing? I'm looking for people to room with so let me know if anyone is interested

Best of luck to those who are still waiting!

 

[kvn224]

Hi guys,

For those who got accepted, what are your plans for housing? I'm looking for people to room with so let me know if anyone is interested

Best of luck to those who are still waiting!

Hi everyone! I got accepted last week through email and got my paper letter this week.

My stats:
UCLA B.A. in Psychology
GPA: 3.7
GRE: (had to take it twice, darn this test) 164V 160Q 5.0W
Observation hours: a little over 100 hours total in different settings; pediatrics, hippo therapy, hand therapy, and geriatrics
Experiences: spent two years working at a community integration program for adults with developmental disabilities, right now I work as a sensory motor coach at a place called Brain Balance

I am so excited! And I am also looking to make housing plans! Maybe we should start a facebook group for our class?

 

[Pusheen04]

Hey everyone, I have also been reading up on this years forum and the past couple year's forums and I finally decided to make an account and join this. Here are my stats:

Undergrad GPA: 3.693
Pre-req GPA: 3.8 (B in Stats)
GRE: V152 Q 153 AW 4.5
LOR: 1 from OTR, 1 from A&P Professor, 1 from supervisor of internship at a Child development School
Experience: 200 hours volunteering at an OT Karate program for children with special needs, 50 hours shadowing OTs, 300 hours internship at a child development school for special needs, 1 week mission trip for children with special needs, and now working in ABA therapy

Kinda nervous because it's my first time applying and I've only worked/ volunteered with pediatrics but we shall see! Hoping these next weeks fly by fast till we find out!

Sounds awesome! I hear that if you have strong LOR then it also helps! Lots of volunteering hours and I don’t think they’d be too picky on where you do the hours. Did you volunteer at karate for all? I used to volunteer there! Awesome place but had to leave bc the drive was so far I also think the mission trip is something that stands out. It shows that you’re going to outdoor sources and helping there. I hope you get in! I feel like someone’s it’s easier to get into USC than CSUDH probably because it’s so cheap compared to USC. Best of luck to you!

 

[story316]

Anxiously on this forum for about 2 years now and I finally received my acceptance today via email with it dated for November 13! The email said that a physical copy has also been sent and I have to accept by November 27!

Good luck to everyone who is waiting!

 

[ValleySY]

Anxiously on this forum for about 2 years now and I finally received my acceptance today via email with it dated for November 13! The email said that a physical copy has also been sent and I have to accept by November 27!

Good luck to everyone who is waiting!

Congrats!! Would you mind sharing your stats with us?
I wonder why they send them in batches...

 

[story316]

Congrats!! Would you mind sharing your stats with us?
I wonder why they send them in batches...

Yea of course!

BA Psychology
GPA: 3.766
GRE: 156V 164Q 4.5W

Over 100 hours OT observations in 3 different pediatric/early intervention/sensory integration clinics for children mainly diagnosed with autism

~200 hours internship in an early intervention program
Currently a behavioral interventionist in the same program for approx. 11 months

 

[ValleySY]

That's impressive! Nice quant score. People on this board tend to think that the most competitive candidates are the first to hear back...but you're definitely way up there and just got an email! My GRE is 163 Verbal 155 Quant and 4.5 AW but my undergrad GPA is my major weakness. I'm still waiting for an answer.

 

[Pupperz4lyfe]

Congrats to those who have been accepted into Cohort 15 !!!

I am a member of Cohort 14 and we have set up the Facebook group for Cohort 15. Please join as this will be one of your greatest means of communication among your new classmates! Especially for those looking for housing! Search "CSUDH MSOT - COHORT 15" and we should pop up!!

Can't wait to meet all of you!!!

P.S. To those still waiting, don't worry, I found out I was accepted very late in the game! Keep your hopes up !!!

 

[SCAL-Ot 11]

Sounds awesome! I hear that if you have strong LOR then it also helps! Lots of volunteering hours and I don’t think they’d be too picky on where you do the hours. Did you volunteer at karate for all? I used to volunteer there! Awesome place but had to leave bc the drive was so far I also think the mission trip is something that stands out. It shows that you’re going to outdoor sources and helping there. I hope you get in! I feel like someone’s it’s easier to get into USC than CSUDH probably because it’s so cheap compared to USC. Best of luck to you!

Thank you! Yeah, I did volunteer at Karate for All! Best of luck to you too!

I also got an acceptance letter through email this afternoon at around 5pm.

 

[kyleklin]

Congrats to those who have been accepted into Cohort 15 !!!

I am a member of Cohort 14 and we have set up the Facebook group for Cohort 15. Please join as this will be one of your greatest means of communication among your new classmates! Especially for those looking for housing! Search "CSUDH MSOT - COHORT 15" and we should pop up!!

Can't wait to meet all of you!!!

P.S. To those still waiting, don't worry, I found out I was accepted very late in the game! Keep your hopes up !!!

Thank you for the encouragement.

 

[OThopeful777]

That's impressive! Nice quant score. People on this board tend to think that the most competitive candidates are the first to hear back...but you're definitely way up there and just got an email! My GRE is 163 Verbal 155 Quant and 4.5 AW but my undergrad GPA is my major weakness. I'm still waiting for an answer.

My undergrad GPA is my weakness as well. I did well on GRE and well on prereqs, so really hoping my undergrad performance doesn't haunt me forever like I feel it might...

 

[ValleySY]

My undergrad GPA is my weakness as well. I did well on GRE and well on prereqs, so really hoping my undergrad performance doesn't haunt me forever like I feel it might...

Hey,
I tried sending you a direct message but your profile settings don't allow it. There are schools that are known for having a holistic approach in reviewing applicants. CSUDH isn't one of them, unfortunately. Send me a message if you want to chat about other schools!

 

[whatisoccupationaltherapy]

Hi all who have been accepted so far:

I have turned in my confirmation of acceptance last week- has anyone heard anything back from the school regarding instructions after this? They haven't sent me anything after I sent in my deposit and letter of acceptance admission. Wondering if it's the same for you guys or if you did receive something back! Let me know

 

[SCAL-Ot 11]

Hi all who have been accepted so far:

I have turned in my confirmation of acceptance last week- has anyone heard anything back from the school regarding instructions after this? They haven't sent me anything after I sent in my deposit and letter of acceptance admission. Wondering if it's the same for you guys or if you did receive something back! Let me know

I sent my confirmation in a couple days ago and I haven’t heard anything back either

 

[ermykneestranger]

Hi all who have been accepted so far:

I have turned in my confirmation of acceptance last week- has anyone heard anything back from the school regarding instructions after this? They haven't sent me anything after I sent in my deposit and letter of acceptance admission. Wondering if it's the same for you guys or if you did receive something back! Let me know

I haven't received anything back either! Maybe they're waiting until they receive all acceptances so they can send them all at once?

On another note, have any of you received info about financial aid? I filed FAFSA before I was admitted. Haven't received any confirmation from their financial aid office.

 

[whatisoccupationaltherapy]

I haven't received anything back either! Maybe they're waiting until they receive all acceptances so they can send them all at once?

On another note, have any of you received info about financial aid? I filed FAFSA before I was admitted. Haven't received any confirmation from their financial aid office.

Thanks for your responses! And I also filed FAFSA before I was admitted and haven’t heard anything back either. I guess we will hopefully hear back soon!

 

[LAOT2B]

Is the anxiety of waiting to hear from CSUDH killing anyone else? I was really hoping to get some kind of information before I needed to submit other applications (due Nov 30th).

 

[hellonice2meetu]

Is the anxiety of waiting to hear from CSUDH killing anyone else? I was really hoping to get some kind of information before I needed to submit other applications (due Nov 30th).

I called, and CSUDH said they will have all responses out by Nov 30th. I noticed the FB group only has 38 people in it...and since there's usually 60 people total in a class, I'm hoping for the best although I feel as if I've been denied at this point.

 

[ValleySY]

Is the anxiety of waiting to hear from CSUDH killing anyone else? I was really hoping to get some kind of information before I needed to submit other applications (due Nov 30th).

I like to think the waiting period allowed me to go through every emotion possible so that I'm prepared for the rejection! haha I'm pretty sure I didn't get in. They must have their reasons (lack of proper planning?) for not sending the denial letters but I still think it's a little inconsiderate that they haven't notified us. I know it's not past the Nov. 30th deadline but no one has posted a rejection..

Anyway, I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

 

[futureot2018cali]

I like to think the waiting period allowed me to go through every emotion possible so that I'm prepared for the rejection! haha I'm pretty sure I didn't get in. They must have their reasons (lack of proper planning?) for not sending the denial letters but I still think it's a little inconsiderate that they haven't notified us. I know it's not past the Nov. 30th deadline but no one has posted a rejection..

Anyway, I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Hi! I believe they’re not sending denial letters as they are waiting for people to accept the admissions and they have an alternate list of people to send acceptances to. I feel we’re going to start seeing rejection notices after they fill out the 60 slots. They sen out letters at all different times last year as well and I read some people even get acceptance letters in January as some people back out the last minute to accept USC or other school admissions.

Don’t give up! There’s still hope. I hope you have a wonderful thanksgiving

 

[kyleklin]

After 2 years of preparation, 3 months of waiting (after submitting application), 2 weeks of intense pain and suffering (after seeing the 1st batch came out on Nov 7th), I finally received my acceptance via email this morning (11/21) at 10am. I was unable to use words to describe how I felt when I saw the email. Anyway, here are my stats:

Major: Psychology
GPA: 3.85
Prereqs: 4.0
GRE: Q155 V152 AWA 4.0
(I should've retaken the test as it seems everybody here has a 4.5 or 5.0)

LOR (submitted through OTCAS):
1 from OT (Rehab Supervisor, i.e. my boss)
1 from Volunteer Manager at a hospital
1 from PhD student from college (aka teaching assistant or TA)

Volunteer experience:
70 hours at skilled nursing facility (SNF)
100 hours at outpatient rehab at a hospital

Paid work/medical/clinical experience:
1 year as a Rehab Aide at a senior daycare center
6 months as a contractor medical interpreter

For those who are still waiting, I wish you all the best. Even if you cannot get in, your effort will not be in vain. Happy thanksgiving!

 

[smac-ot]

Is the anxiety of waiting to hear from CSUDH killing anyone else? I was really hoping to get some kind of information before I needed to submit other applications (due Nov 30th).

OMG - yes!! I’m so anxious, I catch my breath every time I get a new email or the see our mail in the mailbox....no news yet.

 

[ValleySY]

OMG - yes!! I’m so anxious, I catch my breath every time I get a new email or the see our mail in the mailbox....no news yet.

smac-ot: Your GPA and verbal score are both high. Is this your first year applying?

Anyway, as much as I enjoyed Thanksgiving and family time, I have to admit I'm looking forward to the new week! Being part of this thread has been so comforting. It's nice to sympathize with others in my position but it's also exciting to see all the happy news from admitted applicants. Hopefully the rest of us will get a promising email at 10am on Monday.

 

[LAOT2B]

That's impressive! Nice quant score. People on this board tend to think that the most competitive candidates are the first to hear back...but you're definitely way up there and just got an email! My GRE is 163 Verbal 155 Quant and 4.5 AW but my undergrad GPA is my major weakness. I'm still waiting for an answer.

Based on your post I think we are in a similar boat. My GPA stinks, but I have 161 Verbal, 153 Quant, and 4.5 AWA. I am nervously excited for this next week.

 

[ValleySY]

Based on your post I think we are in a similar boat. My GPA stinks, but I have 161 Verbal, 153 Quant, and 4.5 AWA. I am nervously excited for this next week.

Yep, our scores are similar! It's unfortunate we can't do anything about our GPA. Mine is over 5 years old! If I don't get in this year (I highly doubt I will), I'll retake the GRE and aim for a 5 in AWA. I feel so silly for not knowing ETS publishes the essay prompts. I only found out like 2 weeks before my test date OOPS. The upside is that there's room for improvement.

 

[LAOT2B]

Yep, our scores are similar! It's unfortunate we can't do anything about our GPA. Mine is over 5 years old! If I don't get in this year (I highly doubt I will), I'll retake the GRE and aim for a 5 in AWA. I feel so silly for not knowing ETS publishes the essay prompts. I only found out like 2 weeks before my test date OOPS. The upside is that there's room for improvement.

I have a bachelor's from 8 years ago(3.1 GPA), and have since gone back to school for an associates (4.0 GPA), but they won't take those grades into consideration... All I can do is retake my prerequisites (which are almost all from my bachelor's), retake my GRE again, or apply elsewhere. It's rather frustrating, and I've gone with the third option.

 

[ValleySY]

I have a bachelor's from 8 years ago(3.1 GPA), and have since gone back to school for an associates (4.0 GPA), but they won't take those grades into consideration... All I can do is retake my prerequisites (which are almost all from my bachelor's), retake my GRE again, or apply elsewhere. It's rather frustrating, and I've gone with the third option.

Ahh, our backgrounds are so similar. I wanted to send you a direct message but i couldn't. Feel free to message me!

 

[smac-ot]

smac-ot: Your GPA and verbal score are both high. Is this your first year applying?

Anyway, as much as I enjoyed Thanksgiving and family time, I have to admit I'm looking forward to the new week! Being part of this thread has been so comforting. It's nice to sympathize with others in my position but it's also exciting to see all the happy news from admitted applicants. Hopefully the rest of us will get a promising email at 10am on Monday.

Yep, first time applying. Feel pretty good about my stats and I know my letters of recommendation are very strong, so hopefully that will be considered. Fingers crossed for all of us that haven’t heard anything yet!!

 

[ValleySY]

I'm happy to share that I was admitted this morning!

 

[smac-ot]

I'm happy to share that I was admitted this morning!

That’s awesome - congrats!!!

 

[rachelgreen123]

Hi all, I am getting super discouraged since the time is slowly winding down for us to hear back and I have yet to hear anything. I was wondering if anyone knew how many people were on the FB group already to get an idea of how many spots are left in theory?

 

[smac-ot]

Hi all, I am getting super discouraged since the time is slowly winding down for us to hear back and I have yet to hear anything. I was wondering if anyone knew how many people were on the FB group already to get an idea of how many spots are left in theory?

I’m feeling discouraged too. Just checked the FB group and it looks like there are 47 members. Guessing a few of those are admins/mediators. Not sure what that means for those of us still waiting to hear - but maybe it’s a reason to be hopeful...??