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General Education Requirements
Professional Curriculum
The Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) Program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). ACOTE contact information is: ACOTE, c/o Accreditation Department, American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), 4720 Montgomery Lane, Suite 200, Bethesda, MD 20814-3449. Phone number is (301) 652-2862. ACOTE's website is www.acoteonline.org and email is accred@aota.org. Graduates of the program are eligible to sit for the national certification examination of the occupational therapy assistant administered by the National Board of Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). After successful completion of this exam, the individual will be a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA) in most states (including New York, New Jersey and Connecticut). Please refer to the "Practice Acts" of each state for the licensure requirement of a particular state.
NOTE: A felon conviction may affect a graduate's ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure.
NOTE: Students must be in good academic standing with a grade point average of 2.75 or higher in all major courses (all those courses that begin with OCTR) in order to advance to the full-time advanced clinical component of the program. All Occupational Therapy Assistant students are required to complete all Level II Fieldwork within 18 months following completion of academic coursework. All required coursework and fieldwork must be completed within five years from the initiation of coursework in the major concentration of occupational therapy.
Essential Performance Standards
The program has an "Essential Performance Standards" form that outlines the necessary affective skills and professional behaviors, communication/interpersonal skills, psychomotor skills, cognitive skills and self-care skills deemed essential for completion of the program and performance as a competent occupational therapy assistant. This form is reviewed at the time of the interview and is signed by all accepted students stating whether they are or are not capable of performing the skills and abilities that are listed. Information regarding the Office of Accessibility is discussed at the time of the interview.
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To take the program on a full-time or part-time basis, all candidates must:
Deadlines for applications into the Program:
a) March 31 for the fall semester.
b) October 31 for the spring semester.
Admissions Decisions
Exceptions
Each applicant's record will be reviewed by the Admission Committee of the Program. The final admission decision is based on a cumulative scoring and then ranking of the candidate's GPA, interview, references and the written essay. Admission to the Occupational Therapy Assistant Program at Mercy College is very competitive; completion of the application requirements and formal interview does not guarantee admission.
The Mercy College Occupational Therapy Assistant 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 phone number c/o AOTA is (301) 652-AOTA.
Graduates of the Occupational Therapy Assistant program will be eligible to sit for the national certification examination for the occupational therapist administered by the National Board of Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). After successful completion of this exam, the individual will be Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant (COTA). In addition, most states require licensure in order to practice; however, state licenses are usually based on the results of the NBCOT Certification Examination. A felony conviction may affect a graduate's ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure.
For further information on these limitations, you can contact NBCOT at: National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy, 12 South Summit Avenue, Suite 100, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20877 - (301) 990-7979. Applicants are also encouraged to contact the State Board of Occupational Therapy in the state they anticipate practicing to investigate any limitations.
Degree Completion
The total number of graduates from the Mercy College Occupational Therapy Assistant Program during the 3-year-period of 2015 - 2017 was 91, with an overall graduation rate of 93.8%
Graduation Year | Students Entering/Graduating | Graduation Rate |
2015 | 29/27 | 93% |
2016 | 35/33 | 94% |
2017 | 33/31 | 94% |
TOTAL | 97/91 | 93.8% |
Program results from the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) can be found online at: https://www.nbcot.org/EN/EDUCATORS/
HOME#SCHOOLPERFORMANCE.
Employment
Overall, employer surveys indicated that employers are satisfied with Mercy College occupational therapy assistant program graduates. 100% of employers indicated satisfaction with Mercy College occupational therapy assistant program graduates as entry-level generalist practitioners in terms of professional skills and behaviors, interpersonal communication and critical thinking.
75% of the students who graduated in 2017 and sought employment within the occupational therapy profession began working within three months of graduation. One hundred percent of employers stated they would hire a Mercy graduate in the future.
The School of Health and Natural Sciences Clinical Simulation Lab prepare students for their future as health care professionals. The 12,000 square-foot space consists of several specialized labs to simulate different disciplines within a health care facility. The students can work as a team while practicing patient assessment, critical thinking, communication and interventions based on specific patient scenarios.
By choosing a career as an Occupational Therapy Assistant, you’ll have the opportunity to make a difference in people’s lives while entering a rewarding profession that has flexible and diverse job opportunities in areas such as:
Occupational Therapy Assistant Program
Information Sheet - Summer 2018
Students must attend mandatory meetings during OCTR 209 (1st Level II FW Experience) in order to discuss the expected NBCOT exam preparation and to practice answering practice exam questions. During OTCR 210 (2nd Level II FW Experience) students will participate in at least four sessions of exam prep activities and a mandatory 4 hour practice exam. The practice exam will be conducted by a faculty member at no cost. FW II grades will be released only if students attend both sessions. Student's attendance and feedback will be documented. Fieldwork grade/degree conferrals will not be released unless the student attends both sessions and any other exam preparatory events scheduled by the program.
Degree Completion
The total number of graduates from the Mercy College Occupational Therapy Assistant Program during the 3-year-period of 2015 - 2017 was 91, with an overall graduation rate of 93.8%
Graduation Year | Students Entering/Graduating | Graduation Rate |
2015 | 29/27 | 93% |
2016 | 35/33 | 94% |
2017 | 33/31 | 94% |
TOTAL | 97/91 | 93.8% |
Program results from the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) can be found online at: https://www.nbcot.org/EN/EDUCATORS/
HOME#SCHOOLPERFORMANCE.
Employment
Overall, employer surveys indicated that employers are satisfied with Mercy College occupational therapy assistant program graduates. 100% of employers indicated satisfaction with Mercy College occupational therapy assistant program graduates as entry-level generalist practitioners in terms of professional skills and behaviors, interpersonal communication and critical thinking.
75% of the students who graduated in 2017 and sought employment within the occupational therapy profession began working within three months of graduation. One hundred percent of employers stated they would hire a Mercy graduate in the future.
Occupational Therapy Assistant Program Policies:
The Mercy College Occupational Therapy Assistant Program is organized around a developmental model, which examines the impact and effect of life challenges and occupations throughout the life span. Consistent with its philosophy, the program is designed to utilize the stages of human development. The developmental approach provides the students with a learning framework from which to develop their skills and abilities as an Occupational Therapy Assistant. The program is divided into four modules which are presented in an evening/weekend format. These modules focus on application of material in a variety of settings and with different populations in a developmental sequence so that the students learn to generalize the information and are able to use it to solve problems as they develop their own knowledge base.
The pediatric and adult major module courses require 21 hours of Level 1 Fieldwork for each course. These Level I Fieldwork experiences are designed to provide practical application of classroom work.
Upon completion of all course requirements, students complete two full-time Level II Fieldwork experiences for eight to ten weeks each. All Level II Fieldwork experiences must be successfully completed within 18 months of the academic coursework in order to satisfy degree requirements.
By the end of this program, students should be able to: