BSc in Occupational
Therapy
Occupational Therapy,
Trinity College,
What does an
occupational therapist
do?
• As an occupational therapist you enable
people to do the activities that are important
to them regardless of their physical or mental
ability.
These activities may be
• work or school related
• self-care related
• leisure related
Occupational therapists facilitate a
diverse range of people to learn new
or better ways of achieving
satisfaction in day to day living
through involvement in meaningful
activity or occupation.
Examples of the kinds of things occupational
therapists might do include:
• Improve the play and movement skills of a
baby or child with a disability.
• Work with a disabled or elderly person to
modify their home environment to suit their
needs so they can manage independently
and safely.
• Assess the driving ability of someone with a
disability.
• Visit work places to assist people to modify
their jobs and design better work areas to suit
their needs.
• Help people select equipment and
appliances, such as wheelchairs, assistive
technology and dressing aids, to increase
their independence.
• Assist people with mental illness (e.g.
depression or schizophrenia) to learn
necessary life skills, such as cooking,
banking, etc.
• Estimate costs for future care in medical-legal
disputes.
• Travel to Third World countries to set up
rehabilitation programs.
• Research the health effects of participation in
meaningful occupations.
Occupational therapists can work in:
• Hospitals
• Rehabilitation units
• Schools
• Community health centres
• People’s homes
Occupational therapists work alongside
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Social workers
Physiotherapists
Speech and language therapists
Nurses
Psychologists
Doctors
Teachers
Architects
What kind of person do you need to
be ?
• If you are social, compassionate, patient,
analytical and a problem solver, then you
might be the kind of person who would make
a good occupational therapist.
• If you are considering applying for the course,
you should visit an occupational therapist at
work.
Salary Scale
• Occupational Therapist
– €32,738 - €43,614
• Senior Occupational Therapist
– €43,527 - €51,525
• Occupational Therapist Manager
– €52,788 – €63,227
Salary
– Internationally many entrepreneurial
occupational therapists enjoy healthy
incomes in the private sector.
– Sometimes occupational therapists have
moved into related areas where the
ceilings on salaries are much higher,
particularly in management, administration
or consultative positions.
BSc in Occupational Therapy
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Four year degree course
40+ places
505 points random selection (2005)
One science subject required
10% mature students > 23 years
Classes between Trinity Centre for
Health Sciences St. James Hospital and
Trinity College campus
BSc in Occupational Therapy
• What subjects do you study?
– basic sciences such as anatomy,
psychology and physiology
– medicine, paediatrics, orthopaedics and
psychiatry
– theories and practice of occupational
therapy
– clinical skills and fieldwork
leisure
play
Self-care
work