Students earning Bachelor’s degrees in one of America’s fastest growing occupations
While the United States has seen record-setting job growth in 2022, one of the most popular areas of career growth focuses on the area of occupational therapy. With an expected job growth of 17% for occupational therapists in the coming years, this career path has seemingly limitless potential.
Becoming an occupational therapist is a career path that allows men and women to serve a critical role in improving lives of people in need of rehabilitation as a result of injuries, illnesses or disabilities. Occupational therapists apply their training by helping patients learn or regain basic physical and mental skills through physical and cognitive therapy, device technology and life skills. An occupational therapist provides hands-on work in assisting people improve their daily quality of life through hospitals, nursing homes, schools and even via in-home health services.
Choosing this path of study has many possibilities, beginning with a two-year associate degree as a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA), which allows graduates to work in the field. With an additional two years of study, graduates are able to earn a bachelor’s degree in Occupational Studies (OS) before going on to achieve a master’s degree in Occupational Therapy (OT). Graduates can earn a doctorate degree (OTD) that could potentially earn annual salaries of $100,000 and above. All Occupational Therapists in the United States, including COTAs, must be licensed by passing a national certification exam.
Orange County’s Santa Ana College, or SAC, not only offers an associate degree program in Occupational Studies, but as a result of the passage of California’s SB 850 Bill, is the only community college in California to also offer a bachelor’s degree in the same field of study. Senate Bill 850, passed in 2014, allowed 15 colleges in California, including SAC, to offer a baccalaureate degree program in specific workforce fields. With their first bachelor’s degrees conferred in 2019, SAC is well on its way to being the premier institution for residents throughout the state to earn their initial OTA/OS degrees. Students are reaping the benefits of being able to attend SAC’s respected and accredited program straight through to their bachelor’s.
“My overall experience from attending SAC’s OTA/OS program has made me a confident practitioner,” explains program graduate Stephanie Ortega. “After graduation, I had multiple job offers that resulted from my standing out as a candidate who showed a lot of knowledge and applied it properly when asked clinical questions during the interview. This is one of the most rewarding careers I could have ever imagined, with Santa Ana College’s OTA/OS program helping me stand out as a capable practitioner.”
Ortega’s experience of quickly finding a lucrative and satisfying job as an OTA/OS is in line with what the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics projects as one of the most rapidly growing careers in the next ten years.
Whether you’re thinking about a career change or about to graduate, the world of occupational therapy may be just the professional niche you’ve been seeking at Santa Ana College.
Learn more at sac.edu/os.