Health Professions: Pre-Occupational Therapy www.career.vt.edu/OHPA
Dr. Judith A. Wubah
Office of Health Professions
Smith Career Center (0128)
Advising
231-6241 jawubah@vt.edu
(OHPA)
Dr. Jay Williams (HNFE), 323 Wallace jhwms@vt.edu
Pre-PT/OT Coordinator
Be sure to meet with your departmental Academic Advisor regularly in addition to the individuals listed above.
MAJORS INFORMATION
Any major is acceptable as long as the student meets the prerequisites for the graduate program.
Common Majors: Human Development (HD), Human Nutrition, Foods and Exercise (HNFE), Psychology (PSYC),
and Sociology (SOC).
SPECIFIC COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Common Course Requirements: The courses listed below are common courses to the Occupational Therapy
programs in Virginia. Students should check with individual programs for requirements as requirements vary
by graduate program. The courses below are common but not all schools require the same thing; also, schools
may have specific information for the particular requirement. For example, Shenandoah University specifically
states that online courses are not acceptable for the Human Anatomy & Physiology requirement. In addition,
requirements for labs and credit hours vary by program.
Course Number
*
*
*
BMSP 2135, 2145
2136, 2146
PSYC 2004 / SOC 1004
STAT 2004
3604 or 3615*
PSYC 2034 or
HD 1004 & 2004
SOC 1014
Title
Credits
General Biology
General Chemistry
General Physics
Human Anatomy & Physiology and labs
3
3
3
8
Introductory Psychology
OR
Introductory Sociology
(Many programs require credits in Sociology)
Statistics.
*Requirements vary by program.
*STAT 2004 may not cover the information
required by graduate school.
Developmental Psychology or
Human Development I & II.
*Program requirement: Lifespan Development
Intro to Social Anthropology
*Program requirement: Anthropology
3+
Prerequisites
BIOL 1005, 1006 or
1105, 1106
3
MATH 1015
3
PSYC 2004
PSYC 3014
No known VT equivalent.
Abnormal Psychology
3
PSYC 2004
Medical Terminology
1
*Programs may allow an online course to fill
this requirement
*Program requirement is listed, and matched with a VT course that may fulfill the requirement. Please check
the school requirement and also check the requirements of your major!
OTHER COURSES REQUIRED / RECOMMENDED BY SOME SCHOOLS:
Course will vary by dept.
Research Methods
HNFE 3804
Exercise Physiology
Health Professions: Pre-Occupational Therapy
3
July 2012
BMSP 2135, 2136
rev: JAW
HNFE 3824
Kinesiology
3
PHIL 2304
Ethics
3
EDHP 1514
Health
BMSP 2135, 2136
PHYS 2205 or 2305
GET INVOLVED!! VT Student Organizations, Courses, and Opportunities
Course: UH 2004: Careers in Medicine 1 credit, sophomore or higher (Fall only)
Office of Health Professions Advising http://www.career.vt.edu/OHPA
Alpha Epsilon Delta Pre-Med Fraternity http://www.alphaepsilondelta.org.vt.edu/
American Medical Student Association (AMSA) www.vtamsa.org.vt.edu
Minority Assoc of Pre-Health Students (MAPS) http://www.snma.org/premedical.php
Pre-OT http://www.physicaltherapy.org.vt.edu/officers.html. Students interested in Occupational Therapy may
benefit from involvement in the Pre-Physical Therapy Club.
INFORMATION SESSIONS
Health Professions Group Information Sessions: Twice per week in the Smith Career Center
Online registration required, there will be specific sessions for Freshmen/Sophomores (Wednesdays at 8am) and
Juniors/Seniors (Fridays at 8am).
Check the OHPA website frequently for dates and times.
APPLICATION & ADMISSION INFORMATION

Admission Test: Graduate Record Examination (GRE) A computer-based test with emphasis on verbal
reasoning, quantitative reasoning, analytical writing. It is recommended that students take the GRE in the spring or
summer a year before planning to apply to medical school.

GPA: 3.0 or higher to be competitive. The GPA is calculated several ways; overall, and combined science and
math GPA. Students should check on-line for the mean and range of GPA for their schools of choice.

Experience: Requirements vary but experiences can be acquired in hospitals, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers
or school systems. Please see the table listed below, and also check with individual schools for specific
requirements. The Office of Health Professions Advising will work collaboratively with students to assist them gain
this necessary practical experience.

Application: Students apply using OTCAS – OT Centralized Application Service
(http://www.aota.org/Educate/EdRes/OTCAS.aspx). Filling out of the occupational therapy school application
through this service is time consuming thus students are advised to plan accordingly.

Campus Interviews: Conducted by the Health Professions Evaluation Committee in the spring of each academic
year (March - May)

OT School Interview: Yes, most schools do have an interview process in the fall of application cycle.

Information Tidbits: No school in Virginia has an accredited doctoral OT program. Currently five Virginia
schools offer Master’s programs: James Madison, Jefferson College of Health Sciences, Radford, Shenandoah, and
Virginia Commonwealth.
OTHER RESOURCES




www.ExploreHealthCareers.org, an exceptional resource for students
National Institutes of Health Career Finder, http://science-education.nih.gov/LifeWorks.nsf/feature/index.htm
http://www.aota.org/ American Occupational Therapy Association
American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) http://www.aota.org/Students/Prospective/OT.aspx
Health Professions: Pre-Occupational Therapy
July 2012
rev: JAW
The Office of Health Professions Advising assists students and alumni pursuing a health care career in medicine,
dentistry, optometry, pharmacy, chiropractic, occupational therapy, nursing, physician's assistant, veterinary medicine,
or other graduate health professions.
Any student of Virginia Tech, regardless of major, can use the services of OHPA. Although the majority of pre health
professions students major in a science field, it is not required.
Students should meet with their departmental Academic Advisor on a regular basis to ensure requirements are being met
for graduation. The Office of Health Professions Advising is an important complement to academic advising.
School
Minimum GPA
GRE
Clinical Hours
James
Madison
2.8 (3.0 recommended)
C or better in all
prerequisite work
Yes. Scores
not specified
40 hours of OT
observation
minimum
Jefferson
College of
Health
Sciences
Radford
3.0 or higher recommended
Yes. Scores
not specified
No requirement
specified. Please
check with school.
3.25 recommended.
C or better in all
prerequisite work
Yes.
Scores not
specified.
Recommended but
no specific
requirement.
Shenandoah
3.0 or higher
24 hours
VCU
2.7 or higher for last 60
hours of work and
3.0 on prerequisites with no
grade below a C.
480 minimum
on
quantitative
section
Yes.
Scores not
specified.
Health Professions: Pre-Occupational Therapy
July 2012
60 hours in OT
Other
Evidence of at least one
instructional experience in the arts
or media.
Documentation of competency in
computer technology &
information seeking skills
Students need to learn a new
activity in either an academic or
community setting. Examples are
classes in art, dance, etc.
Also required to list all experience
working with people with
disabilities, special needs, and
community service.
rev: JAW