Master of Occupational Therapy

Graduation Rate

The total number of graduates from the FGCU Master of occupational therapy program during the 3-year period of 2023-2025 was 95 with an overall graduation rate of 97%.

National Certification Examination Requirements:

The National Board for Certification of Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) is a non-profit organization that was founded in 1987 to protect the public from incompetent and unethical occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants.  There are two primary mechanisms that the board uses to carry out their mission.  One is by requiring that an individual make a minimum passing score on the National Certification Examination for Occupational Therapist.  After successfully passing the certification examination, an individual may use the initials OTR (Occupational Therapist Registered) after his/her name.  However, in many states with licensure, an individual cannot identify themselves as an OTR unless they are also licensed in the state. 

An occupational therapist is certified for five years.  After five years, an occupational therapist may apply for recertification by NBCOT.

Specific information regarding the application process for taking the exam will be provided during the final year of the student's program. For more information on the recertification program, please contact NBCOT.  Telephone: 301-990-7979, email: 'Info' info@nbcot.org .  Student performance on the NBCOT exam by program can be found by selecting the state, program level, and year.

IMPORTANT:  A felony conviction may affect a graduate's ability to sit for the certification exam required by the National Board for Certification in occupational therapy and/or affect the graduate's ability to obtain a license to practice.  Increasing numbers of clinical placement sites are requiring criminal background checks before accepting students for class or fieldwork experiences.  The program therefore requires that accepted students obtain an approved criminal background check while in the program. Information regarding criminal background checks will be provided during the first semester by the Fieldwork Coordinator.

Visit the FGCU Academic Catalog to review specific Admissions information and Program Requirements.

For undergraduate degree programs, also see the Degree Map that can be used as a semester-by-semester guide to timely graduation.

Official Course Descriptions

Search for official course descriptions by using the Course Description Search utility.

Go to the Course Descriptions Search Web page, then follow these steps:

1. Select an Academic Year from the TERM dropdown (required)
2. Select a course prefix from one of the SUBJECT dropdowns (required)
3. Enter search words in the TEXT field (optional, but will narrow the search results)
4. Press Search

Getting started with the Course Schedule Search

Search for program courses by using the Course Schedule Search utility.

Go to the Course Schedule Search Web page, then follow these steps:

1. Select an Academic Year from the TERM dropdown (required)
2. Select one or more of the search options to narrow your results (for example, CAMPUS, COLLEGE, DEPARTMENT, LEVEL, PREFIX*, COURSE ATTRIBUTE**). For virtual or web courses, select VIRTUAL in the CAMPUS field.
3. Press Search.

*A course prefix is a three-letter designator for a major division of an academic discipline (for example, ACG for Accounting , BSC for Biological Science, ENC for English Composition). See the Degree Requirements page for a list of courses (with prefix and number) that can be used to fulfill degree requirements.

**A course attribute identifies specific characteristics of courses that can be used in a Degree Evaluation to satisfy a degree requirement. (Course attribute examples are Humanities courses - GEHM and Social Science courses - GESO.)

Graduates of the Master of Science in Occupational Therapy will be able to:

1. Use clinical reasoning skills to determine appropriate assessments for a given client, conduct and interpret those assessments, and establish a treatment plan consistent with best practices in occupational therapy.
2. Utilize content knowledge and clinical reasoning gained in the program of study to determine appropriate practice responses to various challenges in clinical context.
3. Interact with clients, caregivers, other professionals, representatives of funding sources, and support staff in a respectful manner, using language appropriate for the context.

Tuition and Fees
Current Cost	MS OT Program 1st Fall	MS OT Program 1st Spring	MS OT Program 1st Summer	MS OT Program 2nd Fall	MS OT Program 2nd Spring	MS OT Program 2nd Summer	Total Cost of Program
Tuition*               In-state	$5,600.70	$5,974.08	$4,853.94	$5,227.32	$4,107.18	$373.38	$26,136.60
Tuition**         Out of state	$19,509.90	$20,810.56	$16,908.58	$18,209.24	$14,307.26	$1,300.66	$91,046.20
Equipment Fees	$129.00	$129.00		$129.00	$129.00		$516.00
Course Fees	$342.00	$51.00	$5.00	$90.00			$488.00
Textbooks (Hard bound, new)	$877.00	$438.00	$155.00	$233.00			$1,703.00
					In-state		$28,843.60
					Out of state		$93,753.20
							REV: 2026

* Information on Tuition, Fees and estimated total Cost of Attendance also available on the Office of the Bursar web site.

**It takes one year to establish FL residency.

Fees are subject to change.

In addition to typical FGCU student cost, occupational therapy students can anticipate additional cost (estimated/subject to change) related to the following:

  CPR: (Infant, Child, & Adult): $48.00 or higher

  Medical Terminology: $95.00

  Medical Documentation Management: $35.00

  Level 1 Criminal Background Check: $62.74

  Level 2 FBI Fingerprinting: $68.76

  Professional Liability Insurance: $18.00

Fieldwork sites also require additional information including an annual physical, 2-step PPD, and influenza shot; medical insurance, TDAP, and titers (measles, mumps, rubella, varicella, & Hepatitis B); some fieldwork sites require additional requirements such as a Hepatitis C titer, urine/blood drug screenings and COVID vaccinations. Students will be required to obtain all site requirements before completing fieldwork. 

In the event of a negative titre, students will be required to obtain additional vaccines and will not be permitted to attend fieldwork until a positive titre is recorded. Additional costs for MMR : $87; Hepatitis B: $50.

Students must provide own transportation to fieldwork sites.

Financial Aid Opportunities

Visit FGCU's Financial Aid Web site for information about grants, additional scholarships, loans, and student employment. Visit https://www.fgcu.edu/graduatestudies/financinggradstudies#InStateISGraduateStudentTuitionSupport for information about Graduate Studies tuition support.

Scholarship Information

Occupational Therapy Advisory Council Endowed Scholarship Fund

• Recipients will be students who have been accepted into and are enrolled in the occupational therapy program at FGCU.
• Recipients will have a history of service to the community.  This can be through service-learning courses or direct service without credit.
• Awards will be based on academic merit and need.  Merit will be the first criterion, with financial need being the deciding factor when merit is similar (though not necessarily exact) amount candidates. Merit will be based on a combination of undergraduate GPA and GRE scores.

To apply for the Occupational Therapy Advisory Council Endowed Scholarship or to find information in regards to other scholarships please visit FGCU Foundation/Scholarship.

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