2013–2014 The Bulletin - USS at Tufts - Tufts University

Occupational Therapy >
through the College of Special Studies. As a result
of a merger between Tufts University and the
Boston School of Occupational Therapy in January
1960, the legal name was changed to Tufts University-Boston
School of Occupational Therapy. It
became a department within Arts and Sciences and
is currently housed on the Medford/ Somerville
campus at 26 Winthrop Street.
The goal of occupational therapy is to develop
an individual’s ability to manage life tasks and
engage in meaningful activities in a way that
enhances the quality of life. Occupational therapy
focuses on both preventive and rehabilitative
services.
GRADUATE ProgrAM
The department offers both master’s and doctoral
degree programs which prepare graduates for work
as practitioners, administrators, researchers, and
educators. The program interfaces the social and
the health sciences, recognizing the importance of
the profession’s theoretical base in both the liberal
arts and the sciences.
Clinical reasoning is the central organizing
framework of the curriculum. It provides a foundation
for clinical decision making and interaction
that considers theoretical and procedural components
of therapeutic interventions. Human behavior
results from dynamic interaction between the
individual’s innate potentials and characteristics,
and experiences with people, objects, and events in
the environment. In ongoing clinical reasoning
seminars, the faculty and students examine these
interactions in the contexts of clinical and community-based
practice.
MASTER‘S DEGREE ProgrAM
The master’s degree program prepares students for
entry-level positions in occupational therapy or
provides post-professional graduate studies for
therapists with a bachelor’s degree in occupational
therapy.
Program options are described below.
Entry-Level Program (for Non-OTRs)
(Options I and II)
Eligibility: A bachelor’s degree in a field other than
occupational therapy. Candidates enter the program
at the professional level and proceed to eventual
certification as registered occupational therapists.
Program can be completed with 2 ½ years if done
full-time.
Prerequisites: (Total of five courses.) All pre-requisites
must be passed with a grade of B- or better
and taken at an accredited college. Two courses in
social sciences, i.e., anthropology, psychology,
human development, sociology. Two courses in
biology, including content in cell biology. (Anatomy
and physiology may be substituted for the biology
prerequisite.) One Bio course must have a lab
component. One course in introductory statistics.
Certificate of Hepatitis B vaccination upon
enrollment is required.
Option I (No thesis)
Master of Science in Occupational Therapy
REQUIRED COURSES
OTS 101 Human Physiology (one course credit)
OTS 102 Gross Anatomy (one course credit)
OTS 103 Neuroanatomy (one course credit)
OTS 104 Kinesiology (one course credit)
OTS 106 Occupation and Adaptation in the Child and
Adolescent (one course credit)
OTS 107 Occupation and Adaptation in the Adult Years
(one course credit)
OTS 137 Fieldwork Seminar (no credit)
OTS 138 Fieldwork Seminar (no credit)
OTS 205 Clinical Reasoning Seminar I: Observation and
Interpretation (one-half course credit)
OTS 206 Clinical Reasoning Seminar II: Interactive
Reasoning in the Practice of Occupational Therapy
(one-half course credit)
OTS 207 Clinical Reasoning Seminar III: Procedural
Reasoning in the Practice of Occupational Therapy
(one-half course credit)
OTS 209 Clinical Research (one course credit) or
OTS 210 Thesis Research (one course credit)
OTS 219 Group Theory and Community-Based Practice
(one course credit)
OTS 224 Occupational Therapy Practice in Physical
Dysfunction (one course credit)
OTS 226 Occupational Therapy Practice with Pediatric
Population (one course credit)
OTS 227 Occupational Therapy Practice in Psychosocial
Dysfunction (one course credit)
OTS 229 Occupational Therapy Practice with Older Adults
(one course credit)
OTS 232 Health and Community Systems (one-half course
credit)
OTS 233 Occupational Therapy Management and
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