Occupational Therapy (Pre-Registration)

Overview

Education

On successful completion of the Occupational Therapy (Pre-Registration) programme from Cardiff University  you will be eligible to apply for registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) as well as professional membership of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT). Our programme is also recognised by the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT).

Our course fully prepares you to join the future generations of occupational therapists. It focuses on developing your competence and capability in key areas such as critical thinking, problem solving, professional reasoning, research, and leadership. You will also learn professional values and behaviours and develop an understanding of the nature and meaning of occupation in human life, the relationship between occupation, health and wellbeing and the power of occupation to transform the lives of individuals, groups, and communities.

A varied profile of placement experience undertaken across the two years of the programme will allow you to integrate academic theory with actual occupational therapy practice and gain an insight into the wide-ranging employment opportunities available to you upon registration. Your practice-based learning will be facilitated by experienced occupational therapy practice educators who will support you in becoming the best occupational therapist you can be.

Careers and placements

There are excellent employability options for those pursuing a career in occupational therapy and Cardiff University occupational therapy graduate prospects were rated at 95% by the Complete University Guide 2022.

This programme of study will equip you with a sound understanding of the changing landscape of health, social care, and wider community services, supporting your development as a creative, dynamic, and innovative occupational therapist and will provide opportunities to develop the leadership and research skills you will require to shape current and future services.

If you are in receipt of an NHS Wales Bursary you are expected to gain employment as an occupational therapist in Wales within three months of completing your programme and gaining registration with the HCPC. Traditionally Cardiff University pre-registration postgraduate students have been highly successful in securing posts in Wales and are considered very desirable employees by NHS and Local Authority employers.

We promote compassionate and aspiring leadership. You will be introduced to the NHS Wales Gwella Leadership Portal as a key learning resource. We also use the Cardiff University ‘Becoming a Caring & Compassionate Practitioner’ website-hub to support your learning and reflection on effective and evidence-based leadership models.

Placements

All occupational therapy students must complete a minimum of 1000 hours of supervised and successfully assessed practice-based learning as a requirement of the professional body (WFOT 2016). The programme includes three placement modules which will enable you to apply and build upon the theoretical knowledge and practical skills you will have acquired in the academic setting. Practice-based learning placements occur in each year of the programme, they are all full-time and range in duration as follows:

Year One

• Assessment and Planning Placement 8 weeks (February – March).
• Intervention Placement 10 weeks (June – August).

Year Two

• Critical Evaluation Placement 11 weeks (March – May).

Accreditation

• Health and Care Professions Council, the (HCPC)
• Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT)