Occupational Therapy Schools in Louisiana

The Louisiana state has 3 ACOTE accredited Occupational therapy Schools which provide an entry-level master degree. Plus, the state also has 3 ACOTE accredited Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) Schools which provides an associate degree. The license is required to practice as an OT or OTA in the state of Louisiana and it’s compulsory for the graduates of OT schools to apply for the licensure.

The 3 Occupational therapy schools in Louisiana are-

1. Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, Shreveport;
2. Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans;
3. University of Louisiana at Monroe.

Occupational therapy in Louisiana-

The occupational therapist, Occupational therapy assistant, and OT/OTA students have their own state association, i.e. LOTA (Louisiana Occupational Therapy Association).

The LOTA is a non-profit volunteer organization which provides a professional community for its members. The LOTA is a state-based professional organization and public voice for the occupational therapy profession in Louisiana.

The main role of the association is to promote the occupational therapy profession, create public awareness, provide support to the therapist in continuing education and improve and maintain the quality of occupational therapy profession in the state of Louisiana. The LOTA is an affiliated state body of the American Occupational therapy association.

Website – www.lota.camp9.org

Occupational therapy License in Louisiana-

Occupational therapist and Occupational therapy Assistants are required to get a license from the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners.

The minimum requirements for the license are –

• Entry level master degree or OTD degree
• NBCOT exam’s passing certificate.
• Application fees of $150.

Temporary OT/OTA License :

A temporary license to practice as an occupational therapist (OT) or as an occupational therapy assistant (OTA) may be granted to persons who have completed the educational and experience requirements for licensure and are waiting to take or receive the results of the certification examination. The limited permit is valid for three months or until the date on which the results of the certification examination are made available.

List of Occupational therapy schools in Louisiana-

#1 Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center Shreveport

Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center Shreveport
Course Offered–	Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT)
University Campus	Shreveport, Louisiana
Public or Private-	Public Institute.
Program Director-	Robin Steed, PhD, LOTR
Course Duration- MOT	27-months program (91 semester hours)
Seat capacity	—–
OT Admission	Once a year (Fall)
Application Procedure	Submit an application through OTCAS.
Minimum Requirement (MOT)	A baccalaureate degree; GPA of 3.0 or better in all college coursework; GRE score ( Min requirements are a Verbal Reasoning score of 146, Quantitative Reasoning Score of 140 and 4.0 on the Analytical Writing.); 20 hours of Observation under an OTR.
Pre-requisite Course work	Human Anatomy/Lab; Human Physiology; Abnormal Psychology; General Chemistry; Developmental Psychology (lifespan); Inferential Statistics; Motor Development; General Physics or Bio-mechanics/Lab; Introduction to Sociology.
Address	Program in Occupational Therapy Department of Rehabilitative Sciences 1501 Kings Highway Shreveport, LA 71130-3932 Email- acoll2@lsuhsc.edu
Website	www.lsuhscshreveport.edu

#2 Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans Campus

Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans School of Allied Health Professions
Course Offered–	Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT)
University Campus	New Orleans, Louisiana
Public or Private-	Public Institute.
Department Head-	Kelly Landry Alig, Ph.D., LOTR
Course Duration- MOT	27-months program (91 semester hours)
Seat capacity	—–
OT Admission	Once in a year (Spring – January)
Application Procedure	Submit an application through OTCAS.
Minimum Requirement (MOT)	A baccalaureate degree; GPA of 3.0 or better in all college coursework; GRE score ( Min requirements are a Verbal Reasoning score of 150, Quantitative Reasoning Score of 141 and 3.5 on the Analytical Writing.); 40 hours of Observation under an OTR; Computer literacy.
Pre-requisite Course work	Human Anatomy/Lab; Human Physiology; Abnormal Psychology; Chemistry; Human developmental across the lifespan; Statistics; Sociology. *Strongly recommended courses (but not required): Computer Science, Medical Terminology, Public Speaking, Technical Writing, and Philosophy.
Address	School of Allied Health Professions Department of Occupational Therapy 1900 Gravier Street, 8th Floor New Orleans, LA 70112 Email- OTNO@lsuhsc.edu
Website	alliedhealth.lsuhsc.edu/ot/

#3 University of Louisiana at Monroe
The OT school at the University of Louisiana, Monroe offers Both Occupational therapy Assistant program and entry-level master of occupational therapy (MOT) program. The MOT program is exclusively for the Certified Occupational therapy assistant (COTA), this bridge MOT program helps OTA to become OT.

OTA to MOT bridge program-

The OTA to MOT program is a 2.5-year combination online/on-site program. Students can expect to meet on-campus one weekend a month. Applicants to the OTA to MOT bridge program must be a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant(COTA), have obtained a bachelor’s degree, and have met the pre-requisites prior to application to the program.

University of Louisiana at Monroe College of Health Sciences
Course Offered–	Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) – OTA to MOT bridge program
University Campus	Monroe, Louisiana
Public or Private-	Public Institute.
MOT Program Director	Dr. Patti Calk
Course Duration- MOT	2.5-year program.
Seat capacity	25-27 students
OT Admission	—-
Application Procedure	Submit an application to the college.
Minimum Requirement (MOT)	A baccalaureate degree; GPA of 3.0 or better in all college coursework; Certified as Occupational Therapy Assistants (COTAs) with a minimum of one-year experience or 1,000 hours as a practicing COTA. GRE score ( Min requirements are a Verbal Reasoning score of 143, Quantitative Reasoning Score of 138).
Pre-requisite Course work	Human Anatomy/Lab; Human Physiology; Intro to Psychology; Abnormal Psychology; Human growth and development; Statistics; Sociology. Conditions in Occupational Therapy Practice.
Address	College of Health Sciences Department of Occupational Therapy Monroe, LA 71209-9000 (318) 342-1610 Email- calk@ulm.edu
Website	www.ulm.edu/ot

Louisiana OTA Schools-

#1 Bossier Parish Community College
Occupational Therapy Assistant Program
Division of Science, Nursing, and Allied Health
6220 East Texas Street
Bossier City, LA 71111
Status: Accreditation

#2 Delgado Community College
Occupational Therapy Assistant Program
615 City Park Avenue
New Orleans, LA 70119-4399
Status: Accreditation

#3 University of Louisiana at Monroe
Occupational Therapy Assistant Program
Department of Occupational Therapy
700 University Avenue
Monroe, LA 71209-9000
Status: Accreditation.

The Occupational Therapy jobs in Louisiana-

The outlook for occupational therapy employment is very good in Louisiana. The United States’s Bureau of Labor Statistics includes occupational therapy as one of its fastest-growing occupations, with registered occupational therapists predicted to have a faster than average growth (21- 36%). Many Health Care Recruitment providers have reported a shortage of occupational therapists and OTA in Louisiana.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were about 1660 employed and licensed occupational therapists in Louisiana in May 2016. And the requirement of license practitioner is increasing. Huge opportunities are there in Louisiana for the occupational therapist and occupational therapy Assistant.

Occupational Therapy Salary in Louisiana-

As per indeed.com, the average salary for an occupational therapist in Louisiana was $82,000 per annum (in 2016) and According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average annual and hourly income of occupational therapy professionals were $81,510 and $39.06, respectively in May 2016.