May 8, 2019
The Walsh University Occupational Therapy Program has earned national accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy (ACOTE) for a full five year cycle.
Walsh’s two-year master’s degree program was launched in fall 2017 and is specifically designed to provide students with experiences in a wide variety of fieldwork settings so they understand the full scope of occupational therapy practice. Occupational therapists work with clients to build or restore their abilities to perform daily tasks or "occupations" by utilizing a holistic approach. Each client is evaluated to determine not only the reason abilities have been impacted, but also to establish a personalized therapy plan that considers an individual’s responsibilities and everyday environment.
Housed within the University’s School of Behavioral and Health Sciences, Walsh also offers Pre-Occupational Therapy Psychology and Exercise Science Pre-OT majors for undergraduate students. This pre-professional program provides a strong background in behaviorally based techniques for interacting with clients and a solid foundation in coursework for graduate studies.
Occupational Therapy was cited as a Top 25 job for 2019 by U.S. News and World Report, According to The Bureau of Labor Statistics, the field of occupational therapy is expected to grow by 27 percent between 2014 and 2024.
Walsh’s Occupational Therapy Program has more than 90 community partners to serve as clinical fieldwork sites in both traditional settings such as hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, and schools, as well as emerging settings such as shelters and drug treatment centers. In addition, students have the opportunity to explore clinical experiences internationally through specially designed OT global learning programs.
The Walsh University entry-level occupational therapy master’s degree program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), located at 4720 Montgomery Lane, Suite 200, Bethesda, MD 20814-3449. ACOTE’s telephone number c/o AOTA is (301) 652-AOTA and its Web address is www.acoteonline.org. Graduates of the program will be eligible to sit for the national certification examination for the occupational therapist administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). After successful completion of this exam, the individual will be an Occupational Therapist, Registered (OTR). In addition, all states require licensure in order to practice; however, state licenses are usually based on the results of the NBCOT Certification Examination. Note that a felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure.