Occupational Therapy Assistant Career Outlook

OTA GRADUATION

WITC's process of graduating the students' records may take up to 15 business days AFTER graduation to complete.  The (OTACPE) Occupational Therapy Assistant Certificate of Professional Education form (Statements of Graduation) will NOT be submitted to the WI Dept. of Safety & Professional Services (DSPS) until all campuses report the students' records have been completed and a report is run to confirm.  DSPS requires an additional 15-20 business days to process the forms.

In order to give WITC and DSPS time to process all the paperwork, WITC will only respond to inquiries regarding the process 6 weeks after graduation. Updates will be posted on the web as they occur.

• STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES

  • BEFORE GRADUATION

    • 1. Login to your MyWITC portal to indicate your plans to attend the graduation ceremony. Complete the Graduation Information Form (in an email from the Registrar's office) and send to Student Services. You will need to complete this form whether or not you plan to attend the graduation ceremony.

    • 2. Ensure all of your WITC accounts are paid and you do not owe money to WITC

    • 3. Ensure your high school transcript is on file with WITC in Student Services

    • 4. Ensure ALL required coursework has been completed with a "C" or better, and/or credit for prior learning has been processed

    • 5. Begin NBCOT application process

    • 6. Begin appropriate state licensure/credentialing process

    • 7. Attend required OT Practice and Management (10-514-185) class on campus in May

  • AFTER GRADUATION

    • Within one (1) month after graduation, request an official transcript be sent to NBCOT which includes the confer date of graduation and degree earned . On the Basic Order Information page, be sure to check Hold for posting of current semester degrees, which means WITC will not release your transcript until your degree has been conferred. If you do not check this box, you will end up requesting & paying for a 2nd transcript to be sent when your degree has been conferred.

      • All transcript requests must be made online and sent directly to NBCOT by WITC:

      • NBCOT
        One Bank Street, Suite 300
        Gaithersburg MD 20878

    • Or send it electronically using a secure document transfer program to: transcripts@nbcot.org

    • Three weeks after graduation, please check this page for updated information as to when the OTACPEs were submitted to Wisconsin DSPS.

    • This web page and your student email will be the only notifications you will receive from us.

• PROGRAM DIRECTOR RESPONSIBILITIES

  • 1. Collect OTACPEs from students and send to Allied Health Technician in Shell Lake as a batch

  • 2. Make note of any student who is missing OTACPE and reason

  • 3. Inform students where they can find graduation process and forms on the website

• ADMINISTRATION RESPONSIBILITIES

  • Allied Health Technician will process, stamp and submit all OTACPEs via email to DSPS. Copies will be kept in Shell Lake for 1 year.

• NBCOT APPLICATION

  • Link to NBCOT Application & Handbook

    • Complete either the online application or paper application

    • Complete all items as requested

    • Exam Level: CERTIFIED OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSISTANT COTA

    • U.S. School Code: 15513

    • Spring 2020 Completion/Graduation/Confer Date: May 15, 2020 (If graduating other than Spring 2020, the confer date can be found by running an unofficial transcript through MyWITC)

    • COTA Credential: Associate Degree

    • Pay applicable fees

    • Upon confirmation of eligibility to examine, the candidate will receive an Authorization to Test (ATT) Letter by email. Candidates will be instructed to contact a Prometric Test Center (PTC) to schedule their NBCOT exam.

• STATE APPLICATION

  • Link to Wisconsin OTA Application

    • School Name: WISCONSIN INDIANHEAD TECHNICAL COLLEGE

    • School Address: ASHLAND WI USA (not campus location)

    • Date Diploma Granted: May 15, 2020 (If graduating other than Spring 2020, the confer date can be found by running an unofficial transcript through MyWITC)

    • Degree: ASSOCIATE DEGREE

    • Specialty: Occupational Therapy Assistant

    • Complete remainder of application as applicable

    • Pay applicable fees fees: $150 ($160 if also applying for temporary permit)

    • Date/sign application

• OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSISTANT CERTIFICATE OF PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION (STATEMENT OF GRADUATION)

  • Graduating students who want to be certified in Wisconsin should:

    • Complete APPLICANT (top half) section of Form 1570 - Occupational Therapy Assistant Certificate of Professional Education (OTACPE):

    • Submit completed form to OTA Program Director at required OT Practice and Management (10-514-185) class on campus in May

    • If your graduation date is other than May 15, 2020, complete the APPLICANT section and scan/email the form to lisa.hall@witc.edu or send via USPS to  Lisa Hall, WITC Administrative Office, 505 Pine Ridge Dr., Shell Lake WI  54871

Double check all paperwork to ensure accurate information.

Make copies of WI application before submitting to DSPS.

Be sure you have signed/dated all appropriate forms.