Home ⟩Education at USC Chan ⟩Entry-Level Doctorate (OTD) ⟩Meet the Students

Catie Lingelbach MA ’19

What brought you to occupational therapy?
After interning at an early intervention clinic for children with various types of delays while I was an undergraduate student, I realized that this profession felt like home.

What area of practice am I interested in?
I am currently most interested in working in inpatient acute or inpatient rehab settings with adults with neurological conditions. After doing my first level 2 fieldwork at an inpatient rehab facility with people who had acquired spinal cord injuries, I felt driven to work with and learn from this population.

Describe your background before coming to occupational therapy.
Before I decided to pursue a career in occupational therapy, I was studying psychology in undergraduate schooling. I was convinced that I wanted to pursue a career in forensic psychology. But, once I did a forensic science internship after graduation from my undergraduate college, I realized it was not the field for me. I quickly left that internship and got a job working at a traumatic brain injury day program as an one-on-one aide back in my hometown of Washington, D.C. A lot of what I was doing was related to occupational therapy and I was hooked. I applied to graduate programs in occupational therapy and thankfully got into USC!

If your childhood had a smell, what would it be?
I would definitely say it would be the smell of sidewalks after a summer thunderstorm. D.C. has hot summers with regular thunderstorms that leave the outdoors smelling like the hot cement after a heavy rain.

What are small things that make your day better?
I love candles and essential oil diffusers, basically calming smells. Also, if I’m feeling stressed, I know a good blasting of a song in the car can cheer me up.

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USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy
1540 Alcazar Street, CHP 133, Los Angeles, CA 90089-9003

ACOTE accreditation | NBCOT certification

The USC entry-level master’s degree program (cost of attendance) is fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education® (ACOTE®) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). The USC entry-level doctorate in occupational therapy (OTD) degree program (cost of attendance) has applied for accreditation and has been granted Preaccreditation Status by ACOTE®. View our program’s ACOTE® standards public data. ACOTE® c/o the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.®, 7501 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 510E, Bethesda, MD 20814, (301) 652-AOTA, www.acoteonline.org. The program must complete an on-site evaluation and be granted Accreditation Status before its graduates will be eligible to sit for the national certification examination for the occupational therapist administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy, Inc.® (NBCOT®).

Professional program graduates are eligible to apply for certification by National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy, Inc.® (NBCOT®), nbcot.org. Program results from the NBCOT® can be found online at www.nbcot.org/Educators-Folder/SchoolPerformance.