Career Library · Sourced profile
Occupational Therapy Assistant
Occupational therapy assistants guide therapeutic activities under an occupational therapist's direction and record client progress.
Sources reviewed 2026-10-23
Daily responsibilities
Guide exercises and practice with daily-living tasks or adaptive equipment.
Use developmental play activities where appropriate to the client and plan.
Record progress and work under occupational-therapist direction.
Work setting
Environment
Work settings include offices, hospitals, and nursing facilities.
The work is client facing. Assistants may spend much of the day standing and can need to kneel, stoop, or help move clients.
Schedule
Full-time work is common; part-time roles also occur. Evening or weekend work may fit client schedules.
People and work demands
Human interaction
The role includes guiding client exercises and daily-living practice; direct client interaction is part of the described tasks.
Emotional intensity
The supplied brief does not provide an emotional-intensity rating for OTA work.
Physical reality
The work can involve long periods standing, frequent kneeling and stooping, and occasionally lifting or moving clients.
Compensation evidence
Estimated U.S. median: $72,300 per year · May 2025
Scope: Occupational therapy assistants (not occupational therapy aides). U.S. assistant occupation median for May 2025, not starting pay, a local quote, or a guarantee. This is the assistant figure, not the separate aide occupation.
The amount is an occupation-level national median sourced from the cited BLS evidence; it is not a starting wage or guarantee.
Education and credentials
Typical entry path
An associate degree from an accredited occupational therapy assistant program is typical. Programs generally involve about two years of full-time study followed by several months of supervised fieldwork and a qualifying exam.
Credentials
A state-issued license is usually required. State licensure requires an accredited program, fieldwork, and an exam; some states add requirements such as a background check. NBCOT national certification is distinct from the state license.
What still needs local verification
Check your state board's current education, fieldwork, examination, and background-check rules. No state-specific license path is asserted here.
Transferable skill prompts
Potentially reusable evidence includes demonstrating activities, explaining steps clearly, adapting to a person's needs, documenting progress, and supporting practice of daily tasks.
Other titles to search
Employers do not all use the same title. Try these terms when you research the work and its requirements.
Occupational therapy assistant
OTA
Practical tradeoffs
The work involves direct client contact during exercises and daily-living practice.
Standing, kneeling, stooping, and occasional lifting or moving of clients can be part of the job.
An accredited associate program, several months of fieldwork, an exam, and state licensure require time and money before eligibility is clear.
A practical first step
Compare two accredited associate programs on prerequisites, tuition, fieldwork hours, exam preparation, and likely travel for placements; then check the license rules in your state.