One hundred percent of SUNY Jamestown Community College's most recent Occupational Therapy Assistant program graduates attempting the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy passed the licensing exam.
According to the National Board’s website, of 12 New York colleges that offer the program, SUNY JCC was one of only three that achieved a 100% pass rate.
“We are so excited for our students and proud of this exceptional result,” said Sarah Tranum, professor and director of OTA at JCC. “We want to have the best-prepared professionals to send out into the world. We work constantly to ensure our program prepares students to pass their boards and hit the ground running as problem solvers who work well with people and are creative in meeting their needs.”
Licensure requirements differ between states. NBCOT sets a standard in the field by providing initial and renewal board certification for occupational therapy in the United States. The certification programs are accredited by the International Accreditation Service and the National Commission for Certifying Agencies.
Tranum believes providing practical experience is the best way to prepare students to pass their boards, and succeed in the field. In an effort to build more hands-on experiences into the program, the OTA department recently opened a pro-bono sensory clinic to the community that is staffed by students and overseen by JCC faculty.
“We have changed our curriculum and embedded fieldwork completed at the Explore and Soar clinic into our plans so all of our students have time to work in the clinic,” Tranum said. “We can also stream OT sessions happening in the clinic into our classroom so students can observe real-world situations within their first year of studying at JCC.”
The complete list of courses for the OTA program at JCC can be found at sunyjcc.edu/OTA.