FAQs

Florida International University’s Occupational Therapy department is built on the idea that we will establish excellence in occupational therapy education, research and scholarly activities as well as prepare culturally aware entry-level practitioners who will provide evidence-based occupational therapy services to a locally and globally diverse community.

No. Your transcripts are sent to the University Graduate School if admitted. We do not receive your transcripts. You must also submit all official transcripts to the University Graduate School from any higher-level institution that you attended once you have been accepted into the program.

The admission committee carefully reviews all applicant files. The program is academically rigorous, and we want to make sure that students, if admitted, can be successful. One indicator is the GPA – research suggests that prior success (i.e. in the prerequisites) can indicate the ability to be successful in the program. We want to see all your prerequisites be completed at the time of application. However, other indicators are also important to us. We look for evidence of leadership and volunteer activities, prior work or life experiences that enhance the applicant’s profile, and a thoughtful, well-written essay.

Applicants who meet the minimum eligibility criteria will be asked to interview.

Though we do not require you to have prior OT shadowing experience, it is highly recommended. Shadowing can be done in a variety of fields, and we will take this into consideration while reviewing the applications.

International students are accepted subject to space and fiscal limitations. The Graduate Admissions Office, as part of the admissions process, evaluates foreign credentials internally at no cost to the applicant. Applicants with foreign educational credentials in a language other than English must provide a translation from a recognized translation agency or official translator. Students must have a baccalaureate degree or equivalent from an institution recognized in their own country as preparing students for graduate-level study.  International graduate student applicants whose native language is not English are required to submit a score for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). A total score of 80 on the TOEFL or 6.3 overall on the IELTS.

The FIU OT program does maintain a waitlist of eligible applicants for the application cycle. As we offer admission, we know that some applicants will make other choices or change their plans. We then begin to offer applicants on the waitlist admission until the class is full. We do not specifically “rank” the list, although we do take into consideration if all coursework, degrees, prerequisites are complete. This would indicate readiness to come into the program if a spot opens up. There have been times where we don’t know if the class is full until the first day of the first semester. Sometimes a person can’t start and we accept off the list at the last minute. We close the waitlist and finalize admission decisions on the first day of classes in the fall semester.

Not currently. However, an OTD program is being conceptualized.

YES, PCB 2099 will count for the Physiology prerequisite. However, we prefer that you take HSC 3549 –Physiology for Health Professionals.

Although you can receive your Bachelor’s in any field, we recommend that students major in related fields such as Psychology, Liberal Studies, Biology or Anthropology/Sociology and incorporate the prerequisite courses as elective coursework.

A maximum of six (6) graduate credits with grade of “B” or higher may be transferable. These credits must be approved by the OT Graduate Coordinator. For questions on whether the credits are transferable, please contact Graduate Coordinator Dr. Ingris Tremino by phone at (305) 348-6068 or via e-mail at occupthe@fiu.edu.

While we do not recommend working while in the MS-OT program, we do understand some students may financially need to work. The program is full-time and very time consuming. However, we have had students who could balance work and school. It is entirely dependent on the type of student you are and whether you think you can be successful in finding the right balance between work and school.