I’m currently a junior in high school looking into college choices. I want to ultimately be an occupational therapist, so I’m looking at schools with MSOT programs, especially those with direct freshman admit BS-MSOT programs. I also horseback ride competitively, so I want a school with an equine science program and/or a good riding team. My stats so far in high school are weighted GPA of 4.29, unweighted GPA of 3.62 and ACT composite of 31 with 26 on writing. I go to a very competitive (top 10 in Illinois) public high school and take challenging classes. My family has all gone to competitive and prestigious colleges so they are pushing me to do the same, but due to the very specific programs I’m looking for, I’m interested in some schools that aren’t as well known. I’d love to go to University of Southern California as they have the number one OT school in the country, but I think that will be a reach to get into. Other than USC (obviously prestigious), I’m interested in University of New Hampshire and University of Findlay as they both have direct freshman admit OT programs and great equine science/riding. I’ve also looked into University of Wisconsin, Villanova, Boston College, and more. Money is not a big factor and my family doesn’t qualify for need based aid, however merit aid (I know Findlay offers a lot) would be a factor in my decision as it would allow me to have money left in college savings to pay for the MSOT. I guess my question is, does it matter what college I go to as long as I’m happy there and get the degree I want? My family and friends have been pushing going to well known and challenging school where I couldn’t major in OT then later apply to grad school, but I’d love to be studying what I’m interested in during undergrad. What are some reasons that I should go to a big and prestigious school like University of Wisconsin or a smaller or less known school like University of Findlay?
Boston College offers almost no merit aid. Villanova is highly competitive for merit aid.
To me choosing a school simply because of name recognition makes no sense, and going to a school that doesn’t offer what you want to study makes no sense. But everyone has differing priorities in life.
Yes it matters what school you go to. I don’t think prestige as viewed by the lay public is important. But better known schools are often better known for a reason. The reason may mean you’ll have a better experience there. Regional schools can be good but are more risky. I’ve been in education a very long time. I had to look up University of Findlay. That means that of literally thousands of applications I’ve reviewed from college students looking for various graduate programs, none came from University of Findlay. Why not? I’ve reviewed plenty from other small schools so why not University of Findlay? Do they not encourage graduate training? Out of thousands of conferences I’ve attended and presented at, I’ve never seen the name University of Findlay. Why? Of the student’s I’ve advised about college, none have mentioned University of Findlay? Maybe they specialize in only OT and animal science (broadly defined). If so, I’d not have run into them. But if not, then I would wonder if top notch research is taking place there and whether the faculty members are hooked into their specialty areas or are they teaching from 20 year old notes. It can go either way. Just something to check out. I see Michigan, Wisconsin, Swarthmore, Williams, all over the place.
For most jobs, the school you attend will play an critical role in determining where what clinical placements are available for their students as well as the places that come to interview students for full time jobs. If you eventually choose to go into private practice there may be some people who will want to know where your degree was from. Since you are going for a career, you need to look into the clinical and job placement of each school as well. In addition, if you don’t want to practice in the area you are going to college in, you will need a “name” that will travel well when you interview at hospitals and clinics in your desired area to settle down in. It may well be a lovely school, but I’m guessing that nationwide clinical/job placement will not be a strength of U Findlay as compared to other schools on your list.
I am not saying that you should go to a school you don’t like for the name, but IMO you do need to find the right combination of fit and career opportunities.
Thanks for all the advice! What do you think of University of New Hampshire? Although it isn’t very selective, it is a flagship state school so I’m thinking that it might be pretty good as far as getting a job after graduation.
I have not heard of the University of Findlay, so I had to look it up. It is accredited by the American Occupational Therapy Association, so it must meet certain standards. I would not discount the school just because it is not as well known- this does not always matter depending on the field. I would look at the internships that are available and I would ask where their graduates find employment. Would you be taking a licensing exam? If yes, I would ask what percentage of students do well.
Sometimes schools that are not as well known have stronger programs in education and health care than schools that are very well known. I am not saying that this is the case, but it is something that should be investigated before totally discounting the program.
The University of New Hampshire is a better known school (at least around here), but that does not mean it has a stronger OT program. There are too many unknowns right now.
Wisconsin is an outstanding school with a lot to offer, but it does not appear to have a 6 year OT program (maybe I am wrong?). How difficult is it to get into grad school? Some fields are super competitive to get into, which would make a BS-MSOT program very attractive. A family friend is an OT and her daughter is interested in the field. She is only applying to direct entry BS-MS programs.
Yeah, UNH has a direct admit 5 year program while Wisconsin does not and I would love to go to a school with direct admit. Do you know what other direct admit BS-MSOT programs your friend’s daughter is applying to?
I don’t think a person needs to go to the most famous, prestigious school out there, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable for my child to go to a school that hardly anyone has heard of. I know of all kinds of schools, even small, obscure ones all over the country nd I have never heard of Finlay. With your credentials, you can find a school that isn’t so unknown. At least people have heard of Univ of NH. Apply to a variety of schools and see where the cards land.
She applied to Quinnipiac, SUNY Buffalo, U of Pittsburgh, Ithaca College, University of Delaware. UDel has a program with a school in Philadelphia where you go to UDel for 3 years and then you leave and go to Philadelphia. There may be a few others that she applied to. My personal favorite is Pitt- great, great school.
These are all east coast schools, although some would argue that Pitt is not really east coast. I agree that I would not want to apply to a school that is unknown, yet at the same time Findlay has a BS-MSOT program and is accredited by the national OT organization. It is also a recognized as a top regional school by USNWR. I am not sure that I would want my daughter to attend a school that most have not heard of, yet at the same time I am not ready to discount the school since it is an accredited program. Have people in the midwest heard of Findlay? I would like to know where the internships are and where these students are employed.
There are 3,000 colleges and universities in the U.S.; I would wager that even experienced people in higher education haven’t heard of all of them (or even half of them). The University of Findlay is a health sciences-focused school and is also a Christian university. Furthermore, not every student needs to go to a place with “top-notch research” and faculty that are hooked into their specialty areas. Only a small fraction of undergraduate students will even be remotely interested in undergrad research or need it to enter their career fields, nor do most undergrads need constantly upgraded, cutting-edge courses. The vast majority of undergrads need good, competent teachers who keep up with the field a moderate amount but give them the breadth and depth they need to go out int o the world. (Sending a lot of kids to graduate school isn’t necessarily an indicator of quality, nor is the converse an indicator of lack of quality; in fact, a health sciences focused school with combined programs would send fewer students away.)
That said, I don’t think it’s necessarily a good idea to narrow one’s focus down so narrowly and eliminate any schools that don’t fit the mode. BS/MS in OT programs are not that common; the much more common route is to get your BS first and then an MS in occupational therapy. A BS/MS program will save you, at most, a year. That’s not really worth sacrificing the kind of experience you want (and potentially financial aid), IMO, especially since most kinds of schools that have well-developed equine programs are also not really the kinds of schools that tend to have pre-professional combined programs for undergraduates. Also, imagine that you changed your mind - let’s say you decided that physical therapy is better suited for you, or you decided you wanted to take two years between college and grad school, or that actually you really want to be a lawyer. Would you regret having made the choice to go to any of the schools on your list if you decided you didn’t want to be in the BS/MS program anymore? You don’t want to attend a college you’d regret if you do anything to deviate from the path - because you’re supposed to be exploring at this stage in your life.
School reputation does matter somewhat. I agree that you don’t have to go to a prestigious brand-name school or even a school that people have heard of. But you do want to go somewhere with a good quality education where you will feel appropriately challenged. That doesn’t mean prestige - The University of New Hampshire I’m fairly confident fits that. I don’t know much about Findlay, so you’d have to find that out. (I have to say, judging from student inputs and the 55% 6-year graduation rate, it looks mediocre.)
Findlay is probably like a number of other smaller schools - well known for graduates of certain majors. I know Pharmacy is like that (many of OH’s pharmacists are graduates of Ohio Northern). I would imagine Findlay is similar for occupational therapy in OH.
You do not need to attend a well-known or top ranked school in order to be employed as an OT. You need an accredited program with good internships. Over the years I have worked with many OT’s and related service providers in schools, hospitals, etc. Many of these professionals graduated from schools that I never heard of yet went on to have successful careers.
I agree that a negative of applying to a BS-MSOT program is that you are stuck (?) if you want to switch majors. That is why I asked how competitive it is to get into grad school. Some fields are very difficult- for example speech has become very competitive. If a school receives 200 applications the program may take 20-25. Not sure if OT is similar, but If it is then the BS/MS program may be beneficial.
Since you have a particular major, I would choose college based on which have direct entry programs first and then the others that have OT. Also consider cost and where you want to end up working after you graduate.
Look for other posts on this topic such as:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/quinnipiac-university/1596693-chance-me-for-5-year-bs-ms-in-occupational-therapy.html
I am an OTR and have been practicing for over 30 years. I can tell you that OT has always been and continues to be a very competitive program to be accepted into. As graduate degrees become necessary to practice , it has become more competitive to be admitted to programs. All OT programs are accredited by AOTA. As someone who has mentored and supervised OT students from all over the country, I’ve not noticed much difference in the caliber of students from well known schools vs lesser known schools .