ACOTE’s Disclosure Statement regarding Probationary Accreditation Action: The occupational therapy assistant program at Ross College in Hopkinsville, Hopkinsville, Kentucky, was placed on Probationary Accreditation effective March 23, 2024, because the area of noncompliance related to 2018 Standard A.6.4 (certification exam pass rate) is so serious that the capability of the program to provide acceptable educational experiences for the students is threatened. The program has been requested to submit a Progress Report to return the program to full compliance with the Standards within the mandated time period for correction.

What is an Occupational Therapy Assistant?

Occupational therapy assistants work alongside and under the supervision of occupational therapists. They assist occupational therapy clients as they relearn and develop typical daily life skills like eating, getting dressed, working, driving, etc. In order to accomplish this, occupational therapy assistants think creatively to help clients with disabilities. Occupational therapy assistants can be found in a variety of settings and working with many different types of patients. Some opportunities and career pathways are, but not limited to:

Study to become an Occupational Therapy Assistant at our Hopkinsville Ross campus.

The Occupational Therapy Assistant Associate of Applied Science degree program can prepare you for the opportunity to help improve the quality of a person’s life and ability to perform daily activities through a rehabilitative approach. Upon successful program completion, graduates should be able to:

• Demonstrate the core values and ethical values of the profession in an occupation-based, client-centered manner
• Engage clients across the lifespan, in meaningful occupations which support participation in a variety of contexts
• Demonstrate practical performance and critical thinking skills needed for entry-level employment in a variety of facilities and community-based settings
• Display professional behaviors and demonstrate skills to support lifelong learning including using evidence-based research and scholarship to guide practice
• Possess the necessary didactic and clinical skills needed to sit for the certification exam and enter into the job arena as a competent entry-level Occupational Therapy Assistant

At Ross Occupational Therapy Assistant program, we are committed to your success and provide individualized support during the program and exam preparation after graduation.

Occupational Therapy Assistant Fieldwork

Students enrolled in the Ross Occupational Therapy Assistant program are required to successfully complete two different fieldwork components.

First Fieldwork Experience

• One week full time observation based experience in a psychosocial setting.
• Scheduled during the same month as Intervention in Mental Health allowing students to apply academic principles to real world settings.

Second Fieldwork Experience

• Two 2-month full time fieldwork experiences at the end of the didactic portion of the program.
• Allows students to follow and learn from experienced, well respected occupational therapy assistants and occupational therapists.

In summary, the four months of fieldwork allows students to apply academic principles to real patient care. The combination of the academic coursework and the fieldwork experience serve as an appropriate starting point for students to pass the certification exam allowing them to be practicing occupational therapy assistants.

Admissions Requirements

Students entering Ross College meet the following admission requirements:

• At least 18 years of age at the time they complete classroom training and begin externship, as applicable.
• Graduated from a valid high school, GED, or a valid secondary education in a home school setting.
• Complete an evaluation that measures general ability utilizing Accuplacer and achieve a minimum score:
• Reading score of 237
• Writing score of 232
• Arithmetic score of 232
• See the Ross Catalog for more details.

Certification for Occupational Therapy Assistant Graduates

Once a student successfully completes the Occupational Therapy Assistant program at Ross, they are eligible to take the Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA) exam through the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). In order to be able to work as a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant, graduates must take and successfully pass the exam. Ross College is committed to your path towards your career and provides graduates with:

• Initial certification exam fee paid with state score transfer
• Personalized certification tutoring customized to your specific needs
• Job placement assistance and career support

In addition, most states require licensure in order to practice; however, state licenses are usually based on the results of the NBCOT Certification Examination. Note that a felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure.

NBCOT Certification Examination Performance: For information pertaining to the most recent OTA graduates on the national certification examination, please refer to https://www.nbcot.org/Educators-Folder/SchoolPerformance.

Occupational Therapy Assistant graduate information for Ross College Hopkinsville, KY, and Ross College Quad Cities, IA

The total number of graduates from Ross College – Quad Cities/Bettendorf, Iowa, campus for the Occupational Therapy Assistant program during the three-year period of 2022-2024 was 11 with an overall graduation rate of 73%.

The total number of graduates from the Ross College – Hopkinsville, Kentucky, campus for the Occupational Therapy Assistant program during the three-year period of 2022-2024* was 29 with an overall graduation rate of 88%.

Graduate Performance Information

Graduation Requirements, Tuition and Fee

Graduation Requirements

An Associate of Applied Science Degree will be awarded to each student who successfully:

1. Complete all program requirements in the specified time.
2. Have earned all credits required by his or her program within the maximum program length (1.5 times the number of credit hours in the program).
3. Have a cumulative grade point average 2.00 or higher with no less than a final grade of a D/1.0 in any individual course.
4. Have satisfied the residency requirement.

* There is an optional technology kit that would add $395.00 to the cost of the program if selected. Published fees for the program are subject to change

Cohort Rate

Ross College Official 3 year Cohort Default Rate (for all campuses under the main campus of Ross Medical Education Center – Brighton, MI) for 2022 is [0.0].

Accreditation

The occupational therapy/occupational therapy assistant program is programmatically accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), located at 7501 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 510E, Bethesda, MD 20814. ACOTE’s telephone number, c/o AOTA, is (301) 652-AOTA, and its web address is acoteonline.org.

Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education 7501 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 510E Bethesda, MD 20814 (301) 652-2682 acoteonline.org