Occupational Therapy School Guide
In your journey to becoming an occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant, you will want to begin honing in on which schools are right for you.
In this post, we’ll look at OT and OTA schools by the numbers, outline some considerations, then showcase the alumni from multiple OT schools around the country.
OT School by the Numbers
According to ACOTE there are currently 470 accredited occupational therapy programs in the United States. These include doctorate-level OT programs, master’s level OT programs, and occupational therapy assistant programs.
Per the last report there are currently about 23,000 students in school to become occupational therapists and 7,000 in school to become an occupational therapy assistants.
How easy is it to get admitted to OT school?
It’s good to see the big-picture numbers, but the big question is: What are YOUR chances of getting in. Roughly, you have about a 20% chance of getting into an OT program. And, a 50% chance of getting admitted to an OTA program.
Here are the exact numbers for a 2021 report:
10,361 applications were submitted to doctoral level OT programs.
2,405 students were admitted.
26,362 applications were submitted to masters-level OT programs.
6,137 were admitted.
8,987 applications were submitted to associate-level OTA programs.
4,746 were admitted.
Which type of occupational school is right for you?
Before you look at specific programs, you need to decide which TYPE of program is right for you.
I highly recommend our article Which OT Degree? if you are considering being an occupational therapist. This will help you decide between masters and doctorate level degrees. (Sadly we do not yet have a piece about OTA degrees.)
You’ll also want to decide if you are looking for a traditional full-time program or another format like weekends, evenings, or blended. Roughly 75% of programs follow the traditional format.
Lastly, Before you even apply, I also encourage you to start thinking through how you will manage your debt.
Which OT schools should you apply to?
OK, now you’re ready to look into specific programs, we’ve provided a list of programs attended by people on the OT Directory.
You can find a complete list of programs on the ACOTE site, but we chose to feature these, because you can head into our directory and see the work that alumni from these schools are doing! (We just launched this directory in early 2023—and look forward to it continuing to grow!)
Schools Found on the OT Directory
A.T. Still University | Alumni Directory
Alvernia University | Alumni Directory
American International College | Alumni Directory
Augusta University | Alumni Directory
Barry University | Alumni Directory
Boston University | Alumni Directory
Cabarrus College of Health Sciences | Alumni Directory
Calvin University | Alumni Directory
Chatham University | Alumni Directory
Cleveland State University | Alumni Directory
College of Saint Mary | Alumni Directory
Colorado State University | Alumni Directory
Columbia University | Alumni Directory
Creighton University | Alumni Directory
Dalhousie University | Alumni Directory
Dominican University New York | Alumni Directory
Duquesne University | Alumni Directory
East Carolina University | Alumni Directory
Eastern Kentucky University | Alumni Directory
Eastern Michigan University | Alumni Directory
Eastern Washington University | Alumni Directory
Elizabethtown College | Alumni Directory
Florida International University | Alumni Directory
Governors State University | Alumni Directory
Grand Valley State University | Alumni Directory
Husson University | Alumni Directory
Indiana State University | Alumni Directory
Kean University | Alumni Directory
Keiser University-Ft. Lauderdale | Alumni Directory
Medical University of South Carolina | Alumni Directory
MGH Institute of Health Professions | Alumni Directory
Misericordia University | Alumni Directory
Nebraska Methodist College | Alumni Directory
New York Institute of Technology | Alumni Directory
New York University | Alumni Directory
Northern Arizona University | Alumni Directory
Nova Southeastern University-Ft. Lauderdale | Alumni Directory
Pacific University | Alumni Directory
Pima Medical Institute-Denver | Alumni Directory
Quinnipiac University | Alumni Directory
Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions | Alumni Directory
Rush University | Alumni Directory
Springfield College | Alumni Directory
St. Catherine University | Alumni Directory
Texas Woman’s University | Alumni Directory
Thomas Jefferson University-Center City Campus | Alumni Directory
Towson University | Alumni Directory
Tufts University | Alumni Directory
University at Buffalo | Alumni Directory
University of British Columbia | Alumni Directory
University of Illinois Chicago | Alumni Directory
University of Kansas Medical Center | Alumni Directory
University of Medical Sciences Arizona | Alumni Directory
University of Missouri | Alumni Directory
University of Nebraska Medical Center | Alumni Directory
University of New Hampshire | Alumni Directory
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Alumni Directory
University of Pittsburgh | Alumni Directory
University of South Dakota | Alumni Directory
University of Southern California | Alumni Directory
University of Southern Indiana | Alumni Directory
University of Southern Maine at Lewiston-Auburn College | Alumni Directory
University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences-Austin Campus | Alumni Directory
University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences-California Campus | Alumni Directory
University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences-Dallas Campus | Alumni Directory
University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences-St. Augustine Campus | Alumni Directory
University of Washington | Alumni Directory
University of Wisconsin-Madison | Alumni Directory
Utica University | Alumni Directory
Washington University in St. Louis | Alumni Directory
Wayne State University | Alumni Directory
Western Michigan University | Alumni Directory
Winston-Salem State University | Alumni Directory
Xavier University | Alumni Directory
York College | Alumni Directory
Conclusion
We hope this post has given you new insight into the OT school options out there. If you have any questions that were not answered, please drop them below!
If you haven’t checked out our Become an OT and Which OT Degree posts, we highly recommend them for further reading on this topic!
Contributors
Sarah Lyon
OTR/L
Sarah Lyon, OTR/L, is the CEO of OT Potential. Sarah earned her BA from St. Olaf College and her master’s degree in occupational therapy from New York University. Her diverse clinical background spans multiple settings, including critical access, acute trauma, and state inpatient psychiatric hospitals. In 2011, she founded OT Potential to fulfill the industry's need for reliable, high-quality occupational therapy resources and continuing education.
As a recognized content creator, Sarah has collaborated with top healthcare brands like VeryWell Health, WebPT, and MedBridge. She blends her clinical expertise with a talent for creating clear, action-oriented content that empowers practitioners to excel. Passionate about elevating the OT profession, she has been featured on numerous industry podcasts. Sarah ultimately returned to her roots, running OT Potential and raising her family in her hometown of Aurora, Nebraska.