Master of Arts in Occupational Therapy: The Two Year, Entry Level Professional Program

We welcome students from all educational backgrounds and hope to help you to meet your own personal and professional goals. Sarah Kelly, Director of Admissions, can answer your questions, schedule your visit, or arrange contacts with faculty members or students to help you further explore your interest in the Occupational Therapy Master’s program. You can reach her at (866) 385-4250 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). If you would like to know more, please use our Request Program Information Form, and we will be happy to send you a beautiful brochure about any of our programs.

Admission Criteria and Prerequisites

All applicants to the Master of Arts program must:

Complete a baccalaureate degree with a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 from an accredited college or university*
Complete the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) general test within the last five years with a minimum combined score of 1000 on the verbal and quantitative sections*
Submit three letters of recommendation from professors, therapists, and/or other professionals familiar with your capabilities and achievements
Submit an essay describing your interests and skills, goals and professional accomplishments, including why you are choosing a graduate degree and your current understanding of the profession of Occupational Therapy

In addition, international students must demonstrate competency in English, as measured by the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) examination. For more information, refer to www.usc.edu/admission/graduate/international/english.html.

*Conditional admission may be possible if one of these two criteria is slightly below the requirement.

Prerequisite Courses

You must have completed all prerequisites:

Within the last five years
All prerequisites with a minimum GPA of 3.0 (Pass/fail or grades below a C are not accepted.)
All courses from an accredited junior college, college, or university
Either in a classroom setting or on-line, however anatomy and physiology must be completed in a classroom setting
Each course totaling three or four semester units (with the exception of medical terminology which may be 1 or 2 units) as follows:
- Human Anatomy with laboratory*
- Human Physiology*
- Introductory (General) Psychology
- Developmental Psychology or Human Development
- Abnormal Psychology
- Introductory Sociology or Introduction to Social Anthropology
- Medical Terminology
- Gerontology or Adult Development (Recommended but not required)

Four week intensive courses in human anatomy with lab and human physiology are offered from mid-May to mid-June (just prior to the start of the program) for those students who have been unable to complete them earlier.

*If Anatomy and Physiology are combined, students must take two sequential semesters with a laboratory each semester.

Possible Background Checks

The University of Southern California Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy does not require background checks, drug testing or fingerprinting for admission into the Master of Arts program. However, an increasing number of health care facilities require USC students to provide this and other additional information in order to participate in clinical rotations at their sites. The successful completion of clinical rotations is a prerequisite for being able to sit for the NBCOT (National Board for Certification of Occupational Therapists) exam and practice as an Occupational Therapist. For additional information contact us at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Tuition and Fees

The University of Southern California is a private institution where tuition is the same for all students. Residents of California, of other states and international students all pay the same tuition rate. Tuition and fees are subject to change.

Tuition for 2009-2010 is $1,299 per unit.

Estimated 2009-2010 tuition and fees for two-year, entry-level MA students is presented below.

Estimated Tuition and Fees 2009-2010

Semester	# of Units	Tuition	USC Fees
Summer	8	$10,392	$442
Fall	18	$19,285 (flat fee)	$312
Spring	18	$19,285 (flat fee)	$277
Summer	2	$2,598	$192
Fall	16	$19,285 (flat fee)*	$277*
Spring	16	$19,285 (flat fee)*	$277*
Summer	2	$2,598*	$192*

* Tuition costs for 2010-2011 should be very similar or slightly increased.

There is a flat fee of $19,285 for 15-18 graduate units.

Optional student health insurance fees are not included in the above estimate (Verification of other health insurance is required if student health insurance is not purchased at registration). USC Financial Aid Office estimates annual costs of $15,842 for room and board, $1,344 for books and supplies and $2,250 for transportation. International students incur an additional orientation fee of $90.

Financial Aid

Department Merit-based Support
The Department provides teaching assistantships, which cover 8 units of tuition, student health insurance, and a monthly stipend of $800 or more. Substantial tuition scholarships are also awarded. These are awarded on the basis of academic achievement. For more information, or to request a packet of information which describes a wide variety of financial reources within and outside of USC and includes an application for departmental awards, contact Sarah Kelly, Director of Admissions, at (866) 385-4250 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

USC Graduate Financial Aid