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Home ⟩The People of USC Chan ⟩Meet Our Trojan Family ⟩Entry-Level Doctorate (OTD)

Kaitlin O’Hara MA ’17

What brought you to occupational therapy?
My fall semester sophomore year at USC, I realized on the last day to add and drop classes that I was enrolled in the wrong accounting course for my Business minor. I frantically switched out of the class and into the only course I could find open: Kate Crowley’s “Introduction to Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy.” I loved the class and learning what OT was all about while also discovering that I wasn’t really passionate about my current major. I decided that semester that OT was the field for me; it was quite serendipitous!

What are some of the occupations you engage in?
My favorite occupations are those in which I am active! I enjoy long distance running with friends from the program. I am also a swimming Assistant Coach for Special Olympics Pasadena, where I work with some amazingly talented and vibrant athletes. Additionally, I enjoy reading non-fiction and traveling around the country to visit my friends from undergrad (when I have time!).

Tell us about your favorite memory from the program so far.
I think my favorite part of the program so far was the eight-week summer session, fondly referred to as “OT Camp.” The professors really tried to have us enjoy these intense couple months by having very creative ways to help us apply the concepts we were learning in class. For Dr. Rafeedie’s kinesiology class, we hit piñatas to learn about trunk rotation and forces on the body, and for Dr. Stein’s neuroscience class, we dressed up in our best ’80s clothing and sang a modified version of a Madonna song to help us remember the nerves of the upper extremities!

If we opened your fridge, what would we see?
I suppose this would in my fridge and pantry, but everyday for lunch at school I eat a PB&J, string cheese, carrots, apple sauce, pretzels, a cutie, and a granola bar. In the words of the pediatrics immersion professor Dr. Kingsley, “You have the lunch of a four-year-old and it’s awesome.”

If you could choose anyone (living or dead) to be your mentor, who would you pick?
Leslie Knope from “Parks and Recreation.” It sounds silly, but she always puts her friends and family first, isn’t afraid to fail, accomplishes anything she sets her mind to, and has great taste in breakfast food.

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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). The USC entry-level OTD degree program (cost of attendance) has been granted Candidacy Status by ACOTE. View our program’s ACOTE standards public data. ACOTE c/o Accreditation Department, American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.®, 6116 Executive Boulevard, Suite 200, North Bethesda, MD 20852-4929, (301) 652-6611 x2914, acoteonline.org

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.