Occupational Therapy Assistant Career Outlook

OTA GRADUATION

WITC's process of conferring degrees takes time.  This process may take up to 15 business days after grades are due (May 25) 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 have conferred student degrees.  Once WITC has conferred the degrees and the forms have been submitted, DSPS requires an additional 15-20 business days to process the applications.

In order to give WITC and DSPS time to process all the paperwork, WITC will not respond to inquiries regarding the status of the process until after July 1.  Updates will be posted on this webpage as they occur.

• STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES

  • BEFORE GRADUATION

    • 1. Login to MyWITC to access the email from the Registrar about the graduation ceremony. Complete the Graduation Information Form and submit 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

    • Fifteen (15) business days after grades are due (May 25), 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 RESPONSIBILITIES

  • 1. OTA program Program Director/Faculty will Inform students where they can find graduation process and forms on the WITC & Wi DSPS websites and assist students to navigate the entire process at the required OT Practice and Management (10-514-185) class on campus in May.

  • 2.  Allied Health Technician will process and submit all OTACPEs to WI DSPS via email.  Forms will be maintained for one (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 2021 Completion/Graduation/Confer Date: May 14, 2021 (If graduating other than Spring 2021, 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.

• WISCONSIN STATE APPLICATION

  • Link to Wisconsin OTA Application

    • School Name: WISCONSIN INDIANHEAD TECHNICAL COLLEGE

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

    • Completion/Graduation/Confer Date: May 14, 2021 (If graduating other than Spring 2021, the completion/graduation/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)

    • If submitting a paper application, date and sign the application and make a copy before mailing.

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

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

    • Complete APPLICANT section of Form 1570 - Occupational Therapy Assistant Certificate of Professional Education (OTACPE) and submit in electronic form to the OTA Program Director at the required OT Practice and Management (10-514-185) class on campus in May.

    • If your graduation date is other than May 14, 2021, complete the APPLICANT section of Form 1570 and submit in electronic form to Lisa Hall at lisa.hall@witc.edu.  

    • Do NOT submit the OTACPE form as a picture taken from your phone as this cannot be submitted to the Wi DSPS.  The best option is to scan and email the form.

Double check all paperwork to ensure accurate information.