General Admissions & OTCAS Pre-reqs to Pre-reqs?

[Jilless]

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I am an Early Childhood teacher trying to move into OT after many successful interactions in my classrooms with therapy for my students. I'm just beginning the process and have been out of school for about 10 years.

I don't have a lot of science classes from my liberal arts BA in Elementary Ed, so I'm trying to piece together all of my pre-reqs in order to even have a shot at applying. My undergrad GPA is 3.98 but in a completely different field, so I'm unsure if this will help as much as I hope it will.

My primary question is regarding pre-requisite classes. The program I'm most interested in requires Human Anatomy & Physiology with lab; but to take that class at large I am required to also have pre-requisite biology classes that I don't have. Has anyone had luck taking JUST the pre-reqs required or do I really have to go through this many classes to just apply to OT programs?

It's a bit daunting. I appreciate your feedback.

 

[cb31]

I am an Early Childhood teacher trying to move into OT after many successful interactions in my classrooms with therapy for my students. I'm just beginning the process and have been out of school for about 10 years.

I don't have a lot of science classes from my liberal arts BA in Elementary Ed, so I'm trying to piece together all of my pre-reqs in order to even have a shot at applying. My undergrad GPA is 3.98 but in a completely different field, so I'm unsure if this will help as much as I hope it will.

My primary question is regarding pre-requisite classes. The program I'm most interested in requires Human Anatomy & Physiology with lab; but to take that class at large I am required to also have pre-requisite biology classes that I don't have. Has anyone had luck taking JUST the pre-reqs required or do I really have to go through this many classes to just apply to OT programs?

It's a bit daunting. I appreciate your feedback.

Your undergrad GPA is great!!!! Your major really doesn't matter in terms of getting accepted... I've met plenty of people that got their BA in education and pursued OT afterwards... it's not rare at all!! In terms of the pre-reqs you should email the school that you want to take the anatomy and physiology class at and ask them if they could waive the pre-req requirements (they will definitely ask you for your transcript so in your email attach an unofficial transcript... if you have one... or tell them that you are willing to send the transcript their way if it's needed). I've done this before and it worked, but not all schools will do that!

 

[thebiggestsky]

I was sorta in the same boat. For A&P, I think taking an Intro Bio is really helpful (unless you feel pretty comfortable with your knowledge in that area). If you're really trying to hustle and get all your pre-reqs done in a semester or two, then yeah, it totally wouldn't hurt to see if they'll waive that requirement! Maybe talk to an advisor at the school you wish to go to. I wanted to take Chem without having to take a pre-req Calculus/higher level math (since I took it in high school), and my advisor said I could get it waived if I talked to the head of the department.

For someone who was a non-science major, the pre-reqs required for OT school aren't too daunting compared to other graduate programs (like PA or PT). I thought they would be going in (as someone with a BA in English), but I was a part-time student and completed most of my pre-reqs in 3 semesters (summer, fall, spring). It sounds like a lot from the outset, but I wanted to pace myself and do well. Time flies--I'll be applying to programs in a couple months, and I feel like I just started this process!

 

[c2902]

I had to do that with Abnormal Psychology, which is a common prereq - I have a BFA as an undergrad degree and had to do the entirety of my prereqs through the local community college (I'm a career-changer, so it was years after I finished undergrad, and my first grad degree!). To be able to take Abnormal Psych at the CC, I had to do a a Gen Psych class. I asked the CC if there was any way they could waive it, and they said no. That being said, the Anatomy and Physiology classes they offered had differing requirements - if you took the basic "BIO" A&P course with lab, there were no prereqs, but if you did it through the nursing courses, there was a intro Bio requirement. We still learned human anatomy and physiology, but our lab didn't involve dissection of anything. Does the program you're applying to required specifically a cadaver lab or anything like that? A few do, but many do not, so I would maybe ask and then see if you can find an A&P course that doesn't require a prereq. If the course covers the human musculoskeletal system, you should be okay.

 

[3DtoOT]

Hi Jilless!
I had a similar situation to you - I graduated from an art school in 2010, learned what OT was in 2011 and immediately decided that was where I wanted to be. Basically, I've been working on pre-req's ever since and I'm just nearing the end of my list. I took all of my classes through community colleges while I worked full time and also had to take pre-reqs for my pre-reqs and wasn't able to get around them... (I had to take Intro to Psych. in order to take Abnormal Psych and Human Development and intro to bio for AP I and II).
BUT I just took Neurology through a private university and when I offered my transcript to prove that I had taken AP I and II they told me that they didn't need it... she told me that if you aren't able to handle the material because you don't have the pre req skills then either you won't get a good grade or the professor can drop you... I don't know if that's specific to only this university but it's worth investigating! Obviously it's not the cheapest route though...
The lists are definitely daunting but if it's what you want to do then you'll keep plugging away at it, some of the classes will feel stupid since you're an educator already but the sciences are really interesting and will inform the work you're doing now. Good luck to you! I hope that helps!