Occupational therapists help people across the lifespan participate in the things they want and need to do through the therapeutic use of everyday activities (occupations). Common occupational therapy interventions include helping children with disabilities to participate fully in school and social situations, helping people recovering from injury to regain skills, and providing supports for older adults experiencing physical and cognitive changes.
To become a licensed OT, students MUST attend a professional OT Program at the master’s or doctoral level. These are commonly 2-3 year programs. Students should be most concerned about achieving the pre-requisite requirements for admission to the OT program of their choice. The pre-requisite requirements for all programs can be found on the American Occupational Therapy website.
The most common course pre-requisites are Anatomy & Physiology I & II, Lifespan Development, Abnormal Psychology and Statistics.
Courses
Below are the course requirements for the Pre-Occupational Therapy Concentration:
This does not replace official academic requirements in the university catalog. Enrolled students will work with their faculty advisor to ensure they meet all the requirements of their major.
Required:
- HSC 110 Foundations of Prof. Practice
- HSC 171 Acute Care of Injury & Illness
- HSC 150 Medical Terminology
- MTH 119 Statistics I
- PSY 101 General Psychology
- BIO 123+lab Biology I
- ESS 306 Nutrition
- ESS 240 Community Health
- CHM 111+lab General Chemistry
- PSY 205 Lifespan Development
- HSC 213 Anatomy for Orthopedic Assessment
- ATR 171: Acute Care of Injury & Illness
- ATR 213: Anatomy for Orthopedic Assessment
- HSC 290 Applied Pathology & Pharmacology
- PHY 101+lab General Physics I
- HSC 390 Applications of Professional Practice
- BIO 363+lab Human A&P I
- BIO 364+lab Human A&P II
- HSC 370 Internship
- HSC 490 Research Methods
- HSC 425 Healthcare Seminar
- HSC 487 Exercise Physiology
- HSC 477 Kinesiology
The vast majority of the prerequisite courses required to apply to the previously listed professional programs are embedded into the HSC major and concentration. There are a handful of courses outside of the major and concentration that students will need to complete before applying to the respective graduate program. Common examples are as follows:
- Physical Therapy: Physics 102+lab & Chemistry 112+lab (General Chem. II)
- Occupational Therapy: Psychology 209 (Abnormal Psy), Sociology 100 (Intro to Sociology)
- Athletic Training: All prerequisite coursework satisfied within the major/concentration.
- Nursing & Chiropractic: prerequisites vary greatly across institutions. Our Pre-Health Advisors will work with students individually to determine a specific 4-year academic plan to meet your professional goals.
***Please note that pre-requisite requirements can vary from institution to institution, and your advisor will work with you to determine how best to meet the prerequisite requirements for each institution***
For a more detailed academic schedule, or to ask questions about any of our majors, contact the Admission Office at admission [at] heidelberg.edu or (419) 448-2330.
Students can choose any major - admission to OT graduate programs is based on overall GPA, prerequisite course GPA, experience/knowledge of the field, and leadership/involvement. Students from Heidelberg that have attended Occupational Therapy programs have majored in:
One of the best part of Heidelberg is getting to know and working with your professors. You'll be supported and challenged as you develop skills and experiences centered around research you're interested in.