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Wendy Hernandez OTD ’25

What brought you to occupational therapy?
I have always loved to help out and make a difference in peoples lives. Working as an OT, I love that there are so many occupations and ways to make a positive impact in others’ lives.

What area of practice are you interested in?
I love working with kids and would love to work with pediatric OT. It seems like it would be so much fun and I am excited to see the laughter and smiles from my clients.

Describe your background before coming to occupational therapy.
Prior to OT, I worked as an ABA therapist. Working as an ABA therapist, I have gained an understanding of working with people with disabilities. I love the difference that I have made so far in my clients lives and can’t wait to continue to make a difference and bring a smile on my future clients.

If you could travel anywhere, where would it be?
I would love to travel to all over Europe. My first stop would be England then I would like to visit Scotland and Ireland. Finally, my next stops would Italy and Greece. I would love to do site seeing and hiking as well.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
The best advice I’ve ever been given is you can’t always be the best but you can be your best and try your best. There would always be someone who would try to compete with you and be better than you. That is definitely okay, as long as you try your best you should be happy that you did your best and completed the challenge.

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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.