British Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy
This pathway would generally take 5 to 5 ½ years (3 years for the undergraduate degree and 2 to 2 ½ years for the master’s program). There may be prerequisite subjects that you must complete in your undergraduate course to be eligible to apply for a master’s program to become an Occupational Therapist .
To get onto a full-time occupational therapy degree course you usually need two or three A levels, along with five GCSEs (grades A-C), including English language, maths and science . You may also be able to get onto a course with alternative qualifications, including: BTEC, HND or HNC which includes biological science .
Occupational Therapy is a very rewarding profession. Aside from the rewarding career, an OT can expect a stable career with prospects of earning about $84,000/year on average according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The short answer is: YES, occupational therapy school is hard . But so is physical therapy school, nursing school, medical school, pharmacy school, physician’s assistant school, etc. All healthcare degrees are going to be challenging, and for good reason.
OTA is a dying field . There are NO jobs. If you love OT and have some flexibility about getting a job maybe go ahead. If you need to be able to support yourself or a family, I would look at other fields.
OT and PT school are definitely not easier than nursing . Different subject matter in some regards, but not an easy route, especially considering that OT /PT school are graduate level degrees and nursing is only a Bachelors. Graduate programs, as mentioned, are more strict regarding grades.
An accredited degree in Occupational Therapy is generally considered a prerequisite for this profession. However, entry without a degree is possible at assistant, technician, or support worker level, where you could then progress to become a fully qualified Occupational Therapist after further study and experience.
In most cases, you’ll need to complete an undergraduate degree (four years, unless you graduate early or pursue an accelerated program), and then you’ll be in occupational therapy school anywhere from two to three years.
Becoming an occupational therapist is expensive. If you’re going for the OTR (Master’s or Doctorate) route, you can expect to pay anywhere from $40,000 to well over $100,000 for your degree.
10 States Where Occupational Therapists Earn the Most Money Nevada average occupational therapist salary: $105,450. California average occupational therapist salary: $98,450. New Jersey average occupational therapist salary: $96,820. Arizona average occupational therapist salary: $95,180.
There is often a combination of stressful , draining times and exciting, fulfilling times while working as an occupational therapy practitioner.
Occupational therapists are versatile and can work in so many different settings, and the jobs are out there. However, as a new occupational therapy grad, you may have found that finding an OT job is harder than you thought. OTs are usually in high demand depending on the city’s job market.
Challenging Classes , Worthwhile Result Still wondering, “Are OTA classes hard ?” Well, consider this. The classes might be hard , but it could be worth the effort to earn your college degree and begin a rewarding healthcare career in as little as 2 years as an Occupational Therapy Assistant .
As part of the health sector, OT is a profession in demand and likely to experience employment growth. Health care and social assistance is projected to have the strongest employment growth of any industry over the five years to May 2022.