Mar 28, 2024  
USC Catalogue 2022-2023 
    
USC Catalogue 2022-2023 [ARCHIVED CATALOGUE]

Occupational Therapy (BS)


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The undergraduate curriculum leads to the Bachelor of Science with a major in Occupational Therapy. Only incoming freshmen may apply to the bachelor’s to doctorate program in occupational therapy; students may not change their major to occupational therapy once admitted to USC. Students majoring in occupational therapy begin full-time graduate study during their senior year, substantially reducing their overall cost of education and preparing them sooner for the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy® (NBCOT) examination. Successful completion of an Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) degree, including successful completion of a minimum of 24 full-time weeks of clinical fieldwork, qualifies students for eligibility to sit for the NBCOT examination. Certification from the board and state licensure are required to practice as an occupational therapist.

Admission Criteria and Application Procedures for Incoming Freshmen

See the Undergraduate Admission  section of this catalogue for admission criteria and application procedures for the university.

Program Requirements

A total of 128 units is required for the Bachelor of Science degree. An occupational therapy major cannot count any 300-level OT course toward the BS degree.

General Education Requirements

The university’s general education (GE) program provides a coherent, integrated introduction to the breadth of knowledge you will need to become a generally well-educated person. This program is effective for all students entering USC in fall 2015 or later, or transfer students beginning college elsewhere at that time and subsequently transferring to USC. The general education program requires eight courses in six Core Literacies, plus two courses in Global Perspectives (which may double-count with courses in the Core Literacies) and two courses in writing. See General Education  for more information.

Required Pre-Professional Courses


Students in the Occupational Therapy major are required to meet with their adviser within the Chan Division once each semester to ensure satisfactory completion of requirements outlined below. Students must successfully complete the pre-professional required courses prior to taking the advanced professional courses.

All pre-professional courses must be completed:

  • Within the last seven years
  • With a minimum GPA of 3.0 (pass/fail or grades below a C are not accepted)
  • From an accredited junior college, four-year college or university
  • Either in a classroom setting or online; however, the anatomy laboratory must be completed in a classroom setting (refer to Course Work Taken Elsewhere)
  • For a total of three semester units each (with the exception of medical terminology, which may be certificate, credit/no credit, 1 or 2 units)

Required Pre-Professional Courses (USC course numbers are noted)

  • Students who wish to transfer credit for courses taken at another institution must gain university approval.

Pre-Professional Courses


Six pre-professional courses are required, one from each category below, or a total of seven if PSYC 336 and PSYC 337 are taken to fulfill the Developmental Psychology/Human Development requirement. 

Notes:


All pre-professional courses must be completed by the start of the senior year.

Required Professional Courses


Enrollment in professional occupational therapy courses is limited to junior and senior occupational therapy majors only.

Additional Requirements


Scholastic Standards

Undergraduate occupational therapy students must maintain a GPA of at least 3.0 (A = 4.0) in all required OT courses in order to continue into the graduate program. If an undergraduate student’s OT grade point average (GPA) falls below 3.0, or if the cumulative undergraduate GPA falls below 3.0 at the end of the fall semester of the senior year, continuance is not assured.

Advising

Students enrolled in the occupational therapy major are required to meet with an academic adviser within the division each semester.

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