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Nolan Mathew Sucdad MA ’20

What brought you to occupational therapy?
I found occupational therapy by chance when looking into going somewhere in the healthcare field. After consulting with many of my friends and family who were already doing various jobs within healthcare, occupational therapy was constantly being brought up as an area of the field that they thought I should look into. Doing some research, I was really drawn into how many different areas that occupational therapists can practice in, as well as how this field encourages creativity and analytical skills, to name a few.

What area of practice are you interested in?
Right now, I am interested in adult rehabilitation, although listening to the experiences that our professors and guest speakers have been through has really made me keep an open mind to potentially practicing in other areas.

Describe your background before coming to occupational therapy.
Before coming to occupational therapy, I was really involved in planning and holding events that would benefit various communities I was involved in and/or causes that I support. Whether it be a fundraiser to rebuild a school following a typhoon on the other side of the world, or helping to run a concert for my undergraduate college community, I really just wanted to promote and spread positivity.

What are some of the occupations you engage in?
Some of my favorite occupations that I engage in are music, traveling, and learning new things.

Tell us about your favorite memory from the program so far.
So far, I have really just enjoyed meeting a lot of new amazing people and listening to their own stories and experiences because these different perspectives allows us to learn and appreciate something that we may have never realized or have only seen from our own viewpoint.

If your childhood had a smell, what would it be?
Chlorine and sunscreen, but also garlic fried rice and grilled meats and vegetables.

What song can you sing entirely by heart?
Having been in choir, as well as being a karaoke enthusiast, probably too many to count, although I do remember lip-synching all the words to NSYNC’s “Bye Bye Bye” at the end of the Decades Party.

What are some small things that make your day better?
Some things that make my day better are getting to spend some quality time with some quality people whether it be planned or, more often than not, spontaneous.

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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 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.