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Shannon Mirshokri MA ’18

What brought you to occupational therapy?
Since I was a young girl, I was always intrigued by two disciplines — medicine and psychology. Only problem was that I had trouble finding a medical field profession that looked at a patient not only biomechanically, but through a psychosocial lens as well. Enter Occupational Therapy! While watching a television special with my mom one night in high school, I watched a pediatric OT in action helping a child improve his fine motor skills after a car accident injury. I paused the special, turned to my mom and told her, “This is what I want to do.” Five years later, I am in the occupational therapy program at USC and could not be happier.

What area of practice are you interested in?
I am interested in adult rehab, but can’t resist cute kids, so pediatrics as well.

What are some of the occupations you engage in?
When I’m not in school or studying, I enjoy swimming, sleeping, going out dancing with friends, and baking sweet treats (then eating them). My favorite occupation of all is trying new occupations, so send me all your recommendations!

If we opened your fridge, what would we see?
Cake . . . so much cake.

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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.