OTA Admission Requirements - Transfer Credits

Admission Requirements

In addition to the admission requirements of the College, the following are requirements for admission to the Occupational Therapy Assistant Program:

1. Earned grade point average (GPA) of 2.75 or better in ALL general education courses required by the program towards the degree and a minimum Overall GPA of 2.0 to meet graduation requirements.
   
   
2. Satisfactory completion of any remedial coursework needed to be eligible for college-level courses.  Prerequisite courses may be required for ENC 1101 and  Mathematics ( Any Area II, A.S.). These prerequisites MUST be taken and successfully completed PRIOR to entry into OTH 1001C.  Consult the course descriptions in the back of the catalog or the specific department of the College for additional information.
   
   
3. Prerequisite courses MUST be completed with a grade of "C" or better at the time of application to be considered for acceptance.
   
   Prerequisite courses:
   
   
   • BSC 2085C - Anatomy and Physiology I, Class and Lab 
   • Mathematics Any Area II, A.S.
   • PSY 2012 - General Psychology
   • ENC 1101 - Written Communication I
     
     
   Additional General Education Credits for OTA Degree:
   
   
   • BSC 2086C /2086L - Anatomy and Physiology II, Class and Lab
   • HUM - Humanities - Choose from Area IV A.S.
   • POS 1041 or AMH 1020 - American Government OR US History 1877 to Present - No exemptions
   • DEP 2004 - Human Development: Life Span
     
     
4. A minimum grade of "C" is required on all courses applied to the Occupational Therapy Assistant degree.
   
   
5. Completed College Application.
   
   
6. Official high school or GED transcript.
   
   
7. Official transcript from EACH College attended or credit courses*.
   
   
8. Florida Placement Test scores and/or ACT or SAT scores*.  The test must have been taken within the last three years. (not required if program mathematics and English requirements have been met)
   
   
9. Program Application and Degree Works "What If Analysis".
   
   
10. Application fee - $35.00 Non-refundable (per program). The fee is good for 3 years.  

IMPORTANT NOTES REGARDING  THE APPLICATION 

Students are admitted to the Occupational Therapy Assistant program ONCE a year and begin in the Fall semester. The program is a limited enrollment program. Completion of all or part of the general academic courses required in the degree does not guarantee acceptance into the program.

**Applications must be submitted by June 1st**  

SELECTION AND INTERVIEW PROCESS

SELECTION PROCESS

The following selection process will be used to determine admission into the Fall 2024 OTA program.

• All applicants that meet the admission requirements will receive an interview.
• Applicants will receive points on courses that have been completed or are in progress.
• Applications will be scored based on the OTA Program Application Scoring Rubric
• Applicants will be notified via the email address provided on the application regarding interview selection. Applicants that receive an interview will be assigned an interview time slot. 

THE INTERVIEW

Students are selected for the interview based on GPA and coursework completed at the time of application submission. Only students who are selected for the interview will be considered for admission.  Applicants are evaluated on professional appearance and behaviors as it relates to the OTA profession, creativity, problem solving, maturity, role as a group member, relating to others, communication skills and responses to interviewer questions. Interview scores will be tabulated and added into the Composite Admission Score.

NOTE:  The Program Faculty reserves the right to request an additional personal interview with an applicant if the interview process does not provide the interviewers with sufficient information to rate the student. Applicants must earn a minimum of a “recommendation: through the interview process to be accepted into the program.

Scoring for the Interview:

• Interview: 25 points
• Writing Sample: 20 points
• Total: 45 points

In addition to the interview, all applicants are required to prepare a writing sample on-site. Students will be given 15 minutes to complete their writing sample. 

COMPOSITE ADMISSION SCORE

The composite admission score is the total of the students score on the interview, writing sample, and OTA program application scoring rubric.

Composite Admission Score is as follows:

OTA Program Application Scoring Rubric                                                                _____/80 points

Interview                                                                                                                   _____/25 points

Writing Sample                                                                                                          _____/15 points

Total: 120 Points

Scores will be ranked from highest to lowest and applicants with the top 24 scores will be selected for program admission.

APPLICANT INTERVIEW EVALUATION FORM

Applicant: _________________________________________     Date:___________________

Directions:  Rate the applicant in each area on a scale of 1-5, with 1 being the lowest and 5 being the highest.

EVALUATION SUMMARY

COMMENTS:

1. Knowledge/Responsibility _________________________________________________________
   
   
2. Motivation/Commitment    _________________________________________________________
   
   
3. Interpersonal/Communication      ___________________________________________________
   
   
4. Critical thinking/Problem Solving ___________________________________________________
   
   
5. Professional Behaviors___________________________________________________________

 RECOMMEND: _______                                                DO NOT RECOMMEND: _______

 Evaluator Name:                                           Evaluator Signature:                                           Date: _______

WRITING SAMPLE RUBRIC

Notification of Admission

Upon notification of admission, students are required to complete the following prior to the start of the fall semester:

1. A statement of satisfactory physical and mental health and a record of current serum titers verifying immunity from communicable diseases from a licensed physician or nurse practitioner.  This form will be provided at the program orientation scheduled after admission to the program.
   
   
2. A criminal background screening. These forms will be provided at the program orientation.
   
   
3. Mandatory attendance at the Occupational Therapy Program orientation.  Date to be announced in the acceptance letter.
   
   
4. Successful completion of Basic Life Support for the Health Care Provider offered through the American Heart Association prior to the first fall semester after acceptance into the program.  This requirement can be completed through courses offered by the Corporate and Community Division at SCF.  Information regarding course dates, times, locations, and costs will be provided at the program orientation.
   
   
5. All students accepted into the OTA program will submit to a drug screening as a condition for remaining in the program.  Random testing will be done at intervals throughout the program.
   
   
6. Students may need to submit to additional background checks/drug screenings to meet the requirements of some fieldwork facilities.  Students may be responsible for the cost of these tests/screenings.

Failure to complete these requirements within the designated time frame will result in withdrawal/dismissal from the occupational therapy assistant program.

The Occupational Therapy Assistant Program is a limited enrollment program.  Completion of all or part of the general education courses required in the degree does not guarantee acceptance into the program.  Priority will be given to applicants who have completed, at the time of admission, the most general education courses required in the degree.  If there are more qualified applicants than seats available in the program, GPA (grade point average) on the general education courses required by the program will be the determining criteria.

The admission policies for the college are found in the current catalog and apply to all students. 

Transfer Credits for OTA Coursework

The program will:

1. Accept transfer credits for all general education courses required by the program pending review via the Registrar. Criteria for this review is outlined in the College Catalog.
   
   
2. Only first-semester OTA coursework will be considered for transfer credits. This is limited to courses that meet the content for OTH lOOlC - Introduction to Occupational Therapy and OTH 1014C - Functional Anatomy and Kinesiology
   
   
3. Courses taken more than 2 years from the student's admission date into the OTA Program at SCF will not be considered for transfer to the program.
   
   
4. The program director will review the syllabi for the courses to be considered for transfer:
   
   
   1. Students requesting the transfer credits for an OTA course must meet with the program director.
      
      
   2. Students must provide a copy of the curriculum from the program the student previously attended.
      
      
   3. Students must provide a copy of the syllabi for the courses being reviewed.
      
      
   4. The program director will review the content of the courses and make a determination of transfer.
      
      
   5. Prior to accepting the transfer credit the student will need to take the final exam from the SCF course to ensure that the student has the knowledge base from the transfer
      
      
5. If it is determined that an OTA course will be transferred to the OTA program at SCF, the Program Director will notify the Registrar.