Caroline Hardin OTD, OTR/L (she/her/hers)

Assistant Professor of Clinical Occupational Therapy

UCEDD
(323) 361-7711
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Caroline Hardin, OTD, OTR/L is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Occupational Therapy at the USC University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA).

Dr. Hardin graduated magna cum laude from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina with Bachelor of Arts Degrees in Psychology and Spanish. She then made the cross-country move to California to complete her Master of Arts and Doctorate of Occupational Therapy degrees at the University of Southern California. She completed her doctoral residency at the USC UCEDD at CHLA where she specialized in occupational therapy within a pediatric mental health setting. She was a Fellow in the California Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (CA-LEND) program while completing her OTD Residency at the UCEDD, with a project focus on using sensory integration in combination with other mental health interventions for children. Dr. Hardin has completed the USC Chan Sensory Integration Continuing Education Certificate Program and has additional training in group social skills interventions (The Incredible Years & Secret Agent Society).

Dr. Hardin’s area of passion and expertise is in interprofessional pediatric mental health care. Dr. Hardin conducts OT assessments as part of an interdisciplinary assessment team at the Boone Fetter Clinic at CHLA, an Autism Treatment Network site which operates as a diagnostic, clinical, and research center for children with developmental, behavioral, and Autism Spectrum Disorders. At the UCEDD, Dr. Hardin provides occupational therapy assessment, consultation, and intervention for infants, children, and young adults with mental health labels, who often also have a co-occurring developmental disability. She coordinates occupational therapy services within the interdisciplinary School Age Medication Management Clinic and works with clients within CHLA’s Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine. She enjoys mentoring Fieldwork Students and OTD Residents at the UCEDD.

Education

Awards

ACOTE accreditation | NBCOT certification

The USC entry-level master’s degree program (cost of attendance) is 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) is accredited 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.

Professional program graduates are eligible to apply for the national certification examination administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy, Inc.® (NBCOT®), nbcot.org. All states require licensure to practice; a felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the NBCOT® OTR certification examination or attain state licensure. Program results from the NBCOT® can be found online at www.nbcot.org/Educators-Folder/SchoolPerformance.