Faculty / Staff Resources Student Resources
University of Southern California
University of Southern California
USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy
USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy
X/Twitter Facebook Instagram LinkedIn YouTube
People
People

Changing Careers for OT

Joe

September 10, 2015
by
Joe

What are OS/OT?

X/Twitter Facebook LinkedIn email

Hello beautiful people! Sticking with the years long tradition of student ambassadors sharing their “how I found OT” stories, here goes mine.

White Coat Ceremony Oath 2014

Back to the beginning: White Coat Ceremony 2014

Before finding OT, I was nearly a decade into a career in higher education, pursuing 2 additional bachelor’s degrees part-time, and highly involved with a wide variety of “meaningful activities” from mixed martial arts to dance, knitting to interactive media.

As a non-traditional student, my interest and preparation for the field were the result of a long journey of self-discovery and necessary exposure. Academically, I explored the mind-body connection through studies in language acquisition, moral philosophy, and kinesiology with practice in athletics and dance training. Professionally, my life revolved around helping people through academic advising, mentoring, coaching and teaching. Without knowing about the OT field, I inadvertently developed broad interests & knowledge in biomechanics, functional movement, mobility and nutrition, but also in psychophysiology of emotion, creative expression and learning. As a dancer and artist, I developed strong abilities in analyzing and correcting movement differences, as well as in adapting movements to suit individual challenges. In teaching dance, I focused on self-expression and creative development, which my dancers found cathartic, giving them a venue for emotional expression and leading them holistically to greater emotional stability.

As an academic advisor with USC undergraduate & graduate programs, I worked with domestic and international students, students with families, non-traditional students, and students with various mental or physical challenges, and developed skills and a passion for helping students become more self-reliant and independent by guiding them through a self-selected process of engaging in their education. For me, it was critical that each student develop their own measure of success, and adapt their pursuits towards what they personally value and find most meaningful.

Each of these professional experiences revolved around helping people, but they also felt fragmented. My full-time work as an academic advisor felt both at odds with my part-time roles as student and athlete, and divorced from my continual desire to learn and my passion for human performance. Funny enough, my work as an advisor is what first exposed me to the field of Occupational Therapy, through working with students who were interested in pursuing OT as a career. As I researched OT to better inform myself for my students, I realized that OT would allow me to perfectly synthesize my personal interests and experiences in a meaningful way.

And so far, it’s been absolutely fantastic!

Ungco & Clark Photo

With the eminent Dr. Florence Clark!