Occupational Therapy, MOT

School of Health Sciences

School of Health Sciences
Health Sciences 101
(216) 687-3567
http://www.csuohio.edu/sciences/dept/healthsciences/graduate/index.html

Elizabeth Domholdt, Director, School of Health Science
Beth Ekelman, Graduate Program Director

Introduction

Occupational Therapy, which began in 1917, is a health field that focuses on individuals’ ability to do their everyday occupations in self-care, work, and leisure (such as dressing, homemaking, working, and recreating). Its goal is to help people achieve their own unique, desired lifestyles. It requires getting to know individuals personally, understanding their goals, and identifying creative ways to allow them to reach their desired levels of independence and productivity. This work is highly personal and creative. In addition to working directly with clients, occupational therapists often consult with others important to the client about adapting the client’s lifestyle or environment. Occupational Therapists also design programs for themselves or others to implement, they speak on behalf of clients and their families, and they participate in research.

The occupational therapy 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.  Students must complete a minimum of 79 credits, including 24 weeks (940 hours) of full-time fieldwork in order to be eligible to sit for the national certification examination and to apply for state licensure. The fieldwork must be completed within 24 months after completion of the academic course work. The certifying body for occupational therapists is the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) (www.nbcot.org) . Note: A felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or to attain state licensure.

Faculty Research

The Occupational Therapy Program faculty has an outstanding record of research and publications. Areas of expertise within the core faculty include outcome studies, assistive technology, gerontology, quality of life, legal issues in occupational therapy, occupational therapy education, mental health and function, international health care issues, work-related injuries, parent-professional collaboration, wellness and prevention, service learning, and development of occupational therapy assessments.

The program has collaborative arrangements with many health care and service organizations that enhance research and learning opportunities. Some of these include The Benjamin Rose Institute, The Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland Metropolitan Schools, The Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities, Eliza Bryant Village, MetroHealth Medical Center, and University Hospitals of Cleveland.

Current faculty information can be located on the Cleveland State University Faculty Profile page.

Financial Assistance

A limited number of graduate assistantships (minimum of nine credit hours per semester) are available to full-time students for the second year of the Program.  Assistantships may cover up to 9 credits of tuition. Assistants may be involved in departmental projects or work with individual faculty on specific research and teaching endeavors. Contact the School of Health Sciences at (216) 687-3567 or via e-mail at healthsci@csuohio.edu for more details.

Admission Information

Admission to the program is limited to forty-five students. Applications are available August 1 and are due no later than January 15 for Fall Semester admission.

Admission Criteria

Students must have:

1. A bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution.
2. GRE score of 300 for combined verbal and quantitative scores, and 3.5 for writing score.  Test scores taken within 5 years will be accepted, with appropriate conversion of scores for tests utilizing the old scoring system
3. An overall grade-point average of at least 3.0 or a score at the 50th percentile or above in each area of the GRE.
4. A minimum GPA of 3.0 in prerequisite courses, with at least two of the natural science prerequisites, and at least 4 of the 8 required courses (or their equivalent) completed prior to the application deadline.

Application Procedures

Students must submit an application to the MOT Program through the Occupational Therapy Centralized Application Process (OTCAS).

Click here to begin application to the CSU MOT Program.

All transcripts, application fees, the program application, and other documents required to apply are submitted directly to OTCAS with the exception of the following:

1. An official GRE test score report must be submitted to the Occupational Therapy Program at Cleveland State University by the January 15 deadline.
2. Non-native English speakers must demonstrate proof of English-language proficiency. See Admission to the College of Graduate Studies for applicable policies and procedures.
3. Students must complete all 8 required prerequisite courses (or their equivalent) with a grade of C or better by the end of summer semester of the year of application.

Students who are enrolled in the Pre-therapy Track of the BSHS degree at Cleveland State University (after completing 30 hours of college course work with an overall GPA of 3.0 or above) may apply for an Intent to Enroll Program that guarantees admission into the Master of Occupational Therapy Program for selected BSHS graduates. The student must complete an intent-to-enroll form that identifies the anticipated year of enrollment into the MOT program. The form also lists the application procedures and academic standards that must be maintained to be eligible for admission into the MOT program. Students must meet with a BSHS Program advisor to initiate this process, and must submit documentation annually to indicate compliance with all minimum admission standards for the MOT Program.

Required Prerequisites

Pathology (HSC 381, if taken at Cleveland State).  Introduction to medical diagnosis and treatment, covering basic concepts and nomenclature of pathology, major diseases of body systems, epidemiology, biopsychosocial concepts, pharmacology, infectious disease, cellular injury, tissue repair, enoplasia, genetic disorders, musculoskeletal disorders, nervous system disorders, and psychiatric disorders.

Physiology  (HSC 422 and HSC 450 or BIO 422 and BIO 423, if taken at Cleveland State). Human or vertebrate physiology is recommended.

Human Anatomy (HSC 475 and HSC 457, if taken at Cleveland State). Human cadaver dissection or prosection is recommended.

Neurosciences (HSC 476 and 478, if taken at Cleveland State). Study of structure and function of human central and peripheral nervous systems, including vascular components and special senses.

Lifespan (PSY 223, if taken at Cleveland State). Examination of human development from infancy to old age preferred.

Abnormal Psychology (PSY 345, if taken at Cleveland State). Survey of major psychological disorders and their classification, etiology, and management.

Social Science Statistics (PSY 317 or Math 147 and 347 if taken at Cleveland State). Content should include measures of central tendency, correlations, t-tests, analysis of variance, nonparametric statistics, application of descriptive and inferential statistics to analysis and interpretation of data in the social sciences, and hypothesis testing.

Medical Terminology (HSC 203, if taken at Cleveland State). Evidence of completion of medical terminology course or self-study.

Although not mandatory, it is strongly recommended that applicants volunteer and/or work under the direct supervision of an occupational therapist in at least two areas of practice.

Requests for applications and advising appointments (also recommended) can be scheduled online (http://www.csuohio.edu/sciences/dept/healthsciences/graduate/MOT/index.html)