The program invites applications from students who hold a baccalaureate degree, in any area, granted by a college or university of recognized standing. Prerequisites for the term beginning in September 2009 are:

Courses
Category 1: The Sciences

• A one-year (totaling 6 credits) combined anatomy and physiology course; or one semester of human anatomy and one semester of physiology.
• A pplications can be initially reviewed if another science course has been taken.  Acceptances are pending completion of anatomy and physiology.
• A science course with a lab.  This can be anatomy, or any other science.
• A course in physics (covering mechanical physics related to movement and/or principles of movement) while not required, is highly recommended.

Category 2: Psychology

• 9 credits in psychology, including one 3 credit course in developmental psychology covering the lifespan from childhood through adulthood. 
• The lifespan requirement can be fulfilled by combining several developmental psychology courses that cover the life span.  NB: Courses used to fulfill the life span requirement cannot be used to fulfill the remaining psychology requirement.

Category 3: Distribution requirements

• 3 credits in the social sciences, such as sociology or anthropology.
• 3 credits in English composition.
• 3 credits of introductory statistics.
• 3 credits in humanities, such as literature, history, or philosophy.

In order to have an application considered for admission, at least half of the prerequisites in each category must be completed. If a student receives provisional acceptance on the basis of course work still in progress, satisfactory completion (a grade of B or better) of all outstanding courses must be attained prior to matriculation as an entering student. Courses not taken within 10 years of application will be evaluated at the discretion of the Admissions Committee. It may be necessary to repeat such courses.

Letter grades are required for all prerequisites; applicants taking classes Pass/Fail MUST have the registrar or the course instructor provide a grade equivalency.
Applicants who wish to submit Advanced Placement (AP) scores in fulfillment of a pre-requisite course must have scores that meet the criteria used by Columbia College. Depending upon the department, only scores of 4 or 5 are accepted. Please see Columbia College's website for details:
http://www.college.columbia.edu/bulletin/programs_of_study/placement.php
We do not accept CLEP in lieu of coursework.

References
Three letters of reference are required. References from family / friends are not acceptable.  While references can be mailed in, it is preferred that they are submitted via the Applyyourself website. 

CPR Certification
Prior to matriculation, current certification in community cardiopulmonary resuscitation is required.

Health Care Experience
Applicants must have prior knowledge of, or experience in, occupational therapy through observation, work, or volunteer experience.

Additional Information
The deadline for submitting an application for a September 2009 matriculation is January 2, 2009. On that date, the application form, essay, prerequisite checklist, and application fee are due. Supplemental material (such as the three required letters of reference on forms that are supplied by the Program; and an official transcript, if not included with the application) must be submitted no later than January 31.
International students who have graduated from universities in non-English speaking nations are also required to submit the results of the TOEFL, including the written portion of the test.
The Admissions Committee may ask an applicant to come in for a personal interview.

The application for enrollment in September 2009 is available beginning in September 2008. We encourage you to apply online, through our online service Applyyourself. If you prefer to mail inanapplication, you can download thepaper versionthrough Applyyourself. If you choose to mail in theapplication rather than apply online, there is an additional fee.

Admission Requirements for the Postprofessional Program
(The Postprofessional MS Program is for licensed occupational therapists seeking the Master of Science degree)
We are not accepting new applications to the Postprofessional MS Program.