Student Blog
Ryan
Feelin crazy, but in a crazy awesome program!! ⟩
September 9, 2013, by Ryan
Whoa! What a crazy two weeks! Actually, it has been a nice transition from summer because we had Monday off for the Labor Day holiday. Also, each semester we are required to fulfill a Level I Fieldwork within the immersion that we are learning (mine is Adult Physical Rehab & Disability) that is just one day a week. We don’t start our fieldwork until September 18th, so I had Wednesday off, meaning I had two days off of school last week (I know, I shouldn’t complain). Going into our third week, I already have a test in my Adult Rehab course tomorrow (we’ll see how that goes) . . . but I am interested in today’s optional lunch meeting provided for us second year students. It is a Q&A panel for our upcoming course this spring, OT 580 Leadership Externship. OT 580 is a class where we get to explore leadership, advocacy, ethical reasoning, professional behavior and public policy opportunities as they impact the practice of occupational therapy, without actually practicing. We have the chance to go to other countries, work with different companies or populations in order to learn new skills to add alongside our OT practice. In the past, students have traveled to Ghana and worked alongside staff at orphanages advocating for OT. I think this is so exciting! I am looking forward to gaining more information about it today and thinking about what I might want to do . . . ideas, anyone?
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Week One down . . . 15 more to go! ⟩
September 3, 2013, by Ryan
Last week was our first week back to classes for our fall semester. I cannot believe I am in my second year of OT school at USC and that it has been a year since I started this glorious program. My life is so different from when I started the program. I feel like l look at my life in such a different way and make better choices for myself because of the daily influence of OT. I am so excited for my future in such an amazing, creative, and inspiring career.
So, the summer was a very intense 12 weeks completing my Level II Fieldwork at a Pediatric Sensory Integration OT Clinic (if you haven’t heard of Sensory Integration look it up, it is so fascinating). I was amazed at how much work was involved but I learned SO much from the greatest supervisors (I had two of them, when usually you have one) and I appreciate OT’s even more. Clinical experience is so different than being in class. We talk about it a lot, but until you are really hands on for a good amount of time you just don’t understand it. I really think with this experience under my belt, I am going to get even more out of my classes this semester because I have developed treatment plans, documented notes, and treated clients on my own.
Well, I will keep you posted as the weeks go by . . .
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