Occupational Therapists
What Occupational Therapists Do
Assess, plan, and organize rehabilitative programs that help build or restore vocational, homemaking, and daily living skills, as well as general independence, to persons with disabilities or developmental delays. Use therapeutic techniques, adapt the individual's environment, teach skills, and modify specific tasks that present barriers to the individual.
See full salary breakdown & percentiles →
Career Outlook
National employment outlook, 2024–2034.
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- None
- Self-employed
- 2.2%
Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.
How Much Preparation Does This Take?
Job Zone 5 of 5Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed
- Experience
- Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience.
- Education
- Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
- Job training
- Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.
Source: O*NET Job Zones.
Key Knowledge Areas
Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.
- Therapy and Counselingimportance 4.7/5
- Psychologyimportance 4.5/5
- Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 4.3/5
- Medicine and Dentistryimportance 4.2/5
- English Languageimportance 4.1/5
- Education and Trainingimportance 3.9/5
- Biologyimportance 3.5/5
- Sociology and Anthropologyimportance 3.2/5
Work Environment
What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.9/5
- Contact With Others4.8/5
- E-Mail4.7/5
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled4.7/5
- Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals4.5/5
- Physical Proximity4.5/5
Careers With Similar Skills
Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.
- Nurse Midwives98% skill match
- Physician Assistants98% skill match
- Neurologists98% skill match
- Nursing Instructors and Teachers, Postsecondary98% skill match
- Obstetricians and Gynecologists98% skill match
- Pharmacists98% skill match
- Recreational Therapists97% skill match
- Social and Community Service Managers97% skill match
Transferable Skills
Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.
- Service Orientationimportance 4.1/5
- Social Perceptivenessimportance 4.0/5
- Instructingimportance 4.0/5
- Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 4.0/5
- Coordinationimportance 3.8/5
- Time Managementimportance 3.8/5
- Complex Problem Solvingimportance 3.3/5
- Operations Analysisimportance 3.1/5
Software & Technologies
Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.
Hot Technologies
Other Software Used
- Bizmatics PrognoCIS EMR
- Casamba Smart
- Computer drawing software
- Crick Software Clicker 4
- Duxbury Braille Translator
- Email software
- Fifth Walk BillingTracker
- FileMaker Pro
Work Style
Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.
- Empathy
- Cooperation
- Attention to Detail
- Dependability
- Social Orientation
- Adaptability
- Sincerity
Career Interests
This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.
- SocialHigh
- InvestigativeMedium
- RealisticMedium
- ConventionalMedium
- ArtisticMedium
- EnterprisingLow
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Where This Career Is Most Concentrated
Metro areas where occupational therapists make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).
- 1Homosassa Springs, FL2.56× national avg
- 2Victoria, TX2.53× national avg
- 3Gadsden, AL2.41× national avg
- 4Bay City, MI2.37× national avg
- 5Hot Springs, AR2.36× national avg
Possible Career Moves
A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.
- Physical TherapistsLateral Move
- Nurse PractitionersLateral Move
- Family Medicine PhysiciansLateral Move
- Physician AssistantsLateral Move
Related Education Programs
Schools that offer related fields of study, based on the NCES CIP-SOC crosswalk — not a guarantee that graduates enter this specific career.
Assistive/Augmentative Technology and Rehabilitation Engineering
- University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences (San Marcos, CA)grads earn ~$76,852
- The University of Montana (Missoula, MT)grads earn ~$82,240
- University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences (San Marcos, CA)grads earn ~$77,356
- University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA)
- Arcadia University (Glenside, PA)