Course overview
Working in healthcare
Hear from a range of health professionals, including Teesside University graduates, working at James Cook Hospital. Discover the variety of health professions and learn about their roles, why they chose a healthcare career and why its so rewarding.
OTs work with adults and children of all ages with a diverse range of physical and mental health conditions, in settings such as health and social care organisations (hospitals and the community), education, charities and private practice.
Technology is integral to your learning, ensuring you are future-ready. Our on-campus facilities allow you to develop and practice your skills within a simulated area, including a mock living space with a kitchen, living room, bedroom and bathroom. Other facilities include creative, art and pottery areas for group work and activity analysis skills.
Designed with involvement from service users and carers, your learning is relevant to the everchanging landscape of professional practice, with modules around traditional health and social care employability, and private practice and entrepreneurship.
This course is accredited by the Health and Care Professions Council and the Royal College of Occupational Therapists, offering a wide range of future working opportunities in countries affiliated to the World Federation of Occupational Therapists. This also allows you to work in Eire if you are from the Republic of Ireland.
Top reasons to study this course:
- Financial support: you may be eligible for a £5,000 maintenance grant each year from the NHS Business Service Authority. Find out more. You can apply for our Placement Support Fund if you are experiencing financial difficulties attending your placement. Find out more.
- Student satisfaction: 93.1% of counselling, psychotherapy and occupational therapy students agreed that staff were good at explaining things (National Student Survey 2024, tees.ac.uk/source).
- Industry-standard facilities: our OT facilities mirror aspects of clinical practice environments including creative group work rooms, a four-bed hospital ward and a simulated home.
- Experienced teaching team: our teaching team has over 60 years academic experience and knowledge in a wide range of clinical practice.
Supporting information for applicants
Course details
Course structure
Year 1 core modules
An Introduction to Evidence-based Practice for Health Professionals
You are introduced to evidence-based practice and sources of evidence: primary and secondary research, guidelines, audits and evaluations. Consider how to use sources of evidence to support clinical decision-making and develop skills in formulating focused questions, developing effective search strategies and literature retrieval.
Facilitating Independence and Inclusivity
You focus on facilitating independence through the OT process. Recognise that optimum health can exist within the context of disability, underpinned by concepts of health promotion, and explored through OT practice and professional beliefs. Explore the factors limiting opportunities, referring to the environment, current assistive technology and equipment within the home. Analyse, develop or modify therapy and environments, focusing on future home design to develop independence, and enhance occupational performance through a range of practical activities.
You focus on what makes us occupational beings, exploring functional anatomy and how it impacts people. Consider the importance of psychological and sociological theory, and how it can influence occupation to improve people’s health.
Supported by theoretical preparation, you experience the OT process in a practice setting. Learn to appreciate the philosophy of OT, identifying how theory enhances practice. Spend seven weeks with a practice educator in one of a variety of settings, demonstrating how the OT works in the setting and exploring how the process is applied to service users. Identify their level of occupational performance, and the impact of illness and disability on their functional ability, ultimately reflecting on your overall practice experience.
Focus on the centrality of occupation in human life and its transformative potential. Explore occupation-based activity analysis and the relationship between the person, environment and occupation through experiential learning.
Professionalism for Health Professionals (Allied Health Professional Module)
Explore a range of concepts and issues relating to professionalism, developing your knowledge of communicating and working with patients, their families and other professionals. Learn how to work effectively independently and in a team, and become familiar with the concepts of consent, confidentiality, safeguarding and working with people who have behaviours that challenge.
Year 2 core modules
Dissertation Planning for Health Professionals
Build on your knowledge of different research methodologies, designing a project using primary or secondary research methods.
Facilitating the Occupational Voice
Become more aware of the influences on health and wellbeing experiences. Develop the skills you need to hear and interpret the ‘occupational voice’ and engage fully in the whole client process. Develop your knowledge and awareness of influences and complete a range of tasks to gain skills in line with necessary professional competencies.
Occupational Therapy Core Skills
Link your knowledge of OT theory and foundation sciences, applying them to practice. Your underlying knowledge of individuals as occupational beings is now applied to individuals experiencing occupational performance/engagement issues. Develop knowledge and skills core to the OT process, including standardised and non-standardised assessment, professional reasoning, goal setting, intervention planning, and outcome measurement/evaluation. A combination of learning techniques reflect the diversity of the OT role, ensuring a variety of specialist areas and settings are considered. You apply OT theory to practice and encourage the development of autonomy.
Occupational Therapy for Entrepreneurs
Consider how occupation can promote participation, health and wellbeing for a range of people in novel and innovative ways. You work collaboratively with other organisations, such as third sector organisations and charities to explore ways occupation can contribute to or expand provision. Develop entrepreneurial and leadership skills to lead, innovate and manage change, demonstrating this through an assessment where you market and promote the benefits of OT for a particular issue or client population.
Final-year core modules
Community Building through Collective Occupations
Understand OT in community settings by focusing on the power of collective occupations. You look at an identified community and understand their occupational needs and assets. From an occupational perspective, it is important that OTs have a deeper understanding of the importance of meaningful activities and social connections shared as a community or group of people. It is expected that OTs expand their work with communities and organisations in the future, focusing on their needs.
Developing Leadership and Service Improvement Skills for the Future Ready Practitioner
You develop knowledge and understanding of healthcare, statutory and professional policy, exploring the impact with respect to patient care, professional practice and service delivery. Focus on personal and professional development, and examine the theories and concepts underpinning continuous professional development, leadership, human dimension of change and quality improvement.
Dissertation for Health Professionals
You consolidate and further develop the knowledge and skills you have gained, and carry out the project you previously designed.
Lifelong Learning in Occupational Therapy
Focus on future readiness by revisiting the Royal College of Occupational Therapists’ Career Development Framework. You are guided through portfolio construction, applying for employment and professional requirements of being a lifelong learner. Critically evaluate and reflect on your personal approach to education in the OT profession and interprofessional areas. Explore your aspirations through a range of participatory sessions.
Modules offered may vary.
How you learn
Your learning takes place in a variety of settings and contexts, including lectures, seminars and practical sessions. Practical learning takes place in the well-equipped mock living suite, with an adjoining seminar room. This includes a simulated bathroom, bedroom and kitchen, with a practical room and group work room.
You must complete 1,000 hours of practice placements where you are assessed for clinical and professional competence by a trained practice placement educator. This is in line with the OT professional body, The Royal College of Occupational Therapists.
How you are assessed
You are assessed on your academic work and on your practice placements. A variety of assessment methods are used, including case studies, assignments, presentations and practical/written assessments. This demonstrates your ability to meet the Health and Care Professions Council standards of proficiency.
Our Disability Services team provide an inclusive and empowering learning environment and have specialist staff to support disabled students access any additional tailored resources needed. If you have a specific learning difficulty, mental health condition, autism, sensory impairment, chronic health condition or any other disability please contact a Disability Services as early as possible.
Find out more about our disability services
Find out more about financial support
Find out more about our course related costs
Entry requirements
Entry requirements
You are expected to have:
- a minimum of two GCSEs at grade 4 (C) or above including English language and maths. Key Skills/Functional Skills Level 2 in Communication and Application of Number can be accepted in place of English and maths GCSE. Please note these are not required if you are doing an Access course – however, you must have English and maths as listed below.*
Plus any of the following qualifications:
GCE and VCE Advanced Level
112-128 points from three A levels, preferably biology, or equivalent T levels.
AS Level
These are only acceptable combined with at least two A levels, excluding general studies.
Access course
112-128 UCAS points from a QAA-recognised Access course (any combination)
*We can accept level 2 Access units in communication and maths in place of English and maths GCSEs.
BTEC QCF Extended Diploma
112-128 points (DMM) in a science or health subject.
CACHE Level 3 Extended Diploma in Health & Social Care
120 points (B) in health and social care.
Foundation degree
A pass in a health or science subject, preferably biology.
Irish Leaving Certificate
120 points from five Highers/Honours subjects, preferably including biology.
NVQ
Not acceptable
Scottish Highers
117 points from four or five Highers, preferably including biology.
Advanced Scottish Highers
112-128 points from three Advanced Highers, preferably including biology.
For further detailed entry requirements for this course please visit www.ucas.com.
You're encouraged to seek some work experience before you apply.
Please note: EU applicants must have an overall IELTS score of 7 with no elements below 6.5.
If you have at least an upper second-class honours degree and are considering applying for an undergraduate course you may be eligible to apply for a master's degree in occupational therapy.
The selection process includes shortlisting of your application, following which, if successful you will be invited for an interview.
Your personal statement will be measured against the following criteria:
- your ability to complete all sections of the application form fully and correctly
- the level of all qualifications and grades must be specified
- appropriate academic entry requirements achieved or predicted
- personal statement that supports your chosen course and demonstrates an understanding of the uniqueness of the profession and the role of the professional
- motivation for completing the course is evident
- satisfactory references.
At the interview you will be measured against the following criteria which is mapped against the NHS Constitution:
- knowledge of chosen profession/career
- an appreciation of the demands of the course and chosen profession
- enthusiasm for the course/profession
- understanding of professional values and attitudes in health and social care
- ability to communicate effectively verbally and non-verbally
- relevant background experience in this area
- team skills
- problem solving skills / creative activities.
If you are invited to an interview and the date is not suitable we may not be able to offer you an alternative date due to the high volume of applications received for this course but it is important that you contact the admissions office immediately.
If you are successful in both shortlisting and interview you will receive an offer which is subject to the following:
- evidence of achievement of the required academic qualifications
- a successful work based risk assessment which will reflect the HEOPS recommendations - please read these here. For more information on all of the HEOPS standards click here
- an enhanced criminal history (DBS) check may be required for certain modules or placements which involve working with children and/or adults at risk. The DBS check is funded by the School of Health & Life Sciences so you do not need to pay for this process.
- satisfactory references.
Please note until 1 to 4 have been successfully completed the offer of a place on the course remains conditional.
International applicants
- International applicants must have IELTS 7.0 with a minimal score of 6.5 in all sections or Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a minimum score of 100/120 (in conjunction with a Teesside University English language test)* before an unconditional offer is made
- If you are successful at shortlisting you will be invited to attend an interview (which may be in person OR video call) in one of our international offices in either India, Malaysia or China, or through a secure web link (which will be arranged by the University).
- If you can not attend an interview as stated, you will be unable to proceed with your application.
*Students holding TOEFL qualifications at the required grade will be able to combine the qualification with a Teesside University English language test to meet the English language requirement. The English language test will assess listening and speaking competency.
For international enquiries please email internationalenquiries@tees.ac.uk
The maximum amount of the pre registration course that may be considered for RPL for occupational therapy must be less than or equal to one third of the total pre-registration course and may include practice based learning. The hours of practice based learning being considered for RPL must have been successfully completed and must not exceed the scheduled hours for the equivalent point of the course.
For general information please see our overview of entry requirements
International applicants can find out what qualifications they need by visiting Your Country
You can gain considerable knowledge from work, volunteering and life. Under recognition of prior learning (RPL) you may be awarded credit for this which can be credited towards the course you want to study.
Find out more about RPL
Employability
Career opportunities
Once the course has been successfully completed you can apply to register with the Health and Care Professions Council. Registered occupational therapists practise in the UK and overseas, in all areas of health and social care. You will work closely with other professionals such as doctors, physiotherapists, speech and language therapists, social workers, psychologists and nurses.
Alternatively you may choose a career in a charity or any other emerging areas of practice. Occupational therapists also work in private practice, research and education.
Information for international applicants
Qualifications
International applicants - find out what qualifications you need by selecting your country below.
Select your country:
Useful information
Visit our international pages for useful information for non-UK students and applicants.
BSc (Hons) Occupational Therapy
BSc (Hons) Occupational Therapy
BSc (Hons) Occupational Therapy 
