Master of Occupational Therapy OTCAS Application Guide

Transcription

1 Master of Occupational Therapy OTCAS Application Guide

2 Introduction This guide has been prepared to assist you in submitting the strongest application possible via the OTCAS service. The follow are suggestions about information you should include in various sections of the OTCAS application that the Occupational Therapy department will consider. For more information Samuel Merritt University Office of Admission-MOT Program Samuel Merritt University 3100 Telegraph Ave, Suite 1000 Oakland, CA Phone: OTCAS OTCAS PO Box 9120 Watertown, MA Phone:

3 Repeat for each term you have attended as well as for terms that are currently in progress or are planned. You must complete this step for EACH institution you have attended or are currently enrolled in. Additionally, you must include ALL attempted courses, including failed, repeated, and withdrawn college courses. Click on the Instructions button at the top of the screen for more detailed instructions. Submission of Transcripts Reporting coursework New applicants Although you will be asked to submit your official transcripts to OTCAS for verification purposes, you must also self-report your grades for all terms attended under the COURSEWORK section of the application. Enter each course you have completed and your grade, using a personal copy of your transcripts. You must also report courses that are currently in progress for the fall and courses you plan on completing in the spring and summer terms. Please follow these steps to ensure that your transcript will be successfully verified: Click on the Colleges Attended from the application main screen and Add New Entry to enter all previous and/or current institutions you have attended. For detailed instructions completing this section of the application, please click on the Instructions button located at the top of the screen. After adding all of your institutions, click on Coursework from the application main screen and then Add New Session. Each semester or quarter you have attended is a separate session. Enter the first semester you attended at the institution. Once you have the session entered, click on Add Course to enter each course and grade fro that term using your personal copy of your transcript. Remember: OTCAS will verify your self-reported courses against your official transcripts. If more than four mistakes are found, your application will be undelivered back to you and OTCAS will you to make the necessary corrections. The Service will not enter your courses for you. If you fail to properly enter all of your courses when you first submit your application or do not make corrections as requested, your application will be delayed in processing and thereby delay SMU s receipt of your application. This may jeopardize your chances for admission. Once you complete the entire application and submit it to OTCAS, the Service will verify your grades against your transcripts which must be sent directly to OTCAS from your college/university. Please do not send a set of your transcripts to Samuel Merritt University. We will have access to your transcripts from OTCAS once your application has been verified. Fall grades-academic Update If you submit your OTCAS application before your fall grades are available, you must enter your updated courses online during the Academic Update. Arrange for your updated fall transcripts to be sent to OTCAS as soon as it is available. The Service will notify you by as to when you can begin to enter your updated fall grades and any new planned/in-progress courses on the OTCAS application. To update your fall grades, you will not need to have an official transcript. You may update courses as soon as you an unofficial grade report. OTCAS will only allow you to update your coursework ONCE during the Academic Update.

4 Reporting your fall grades to SMU We will receive you updated OTCAS application from the Service after the Academic Update has been completed. HOWEVER, please send an that includes the department/section, course name, credit hours, and final grade to: with the words Fall grades, (Your Name) in the subject line. This will allow us to review your application quickly and update your admission file. References The Service requires all applicants to enter up to three (3) evaluator names on your OTCAS application. It is strongly encouraged that your evaluators send electronic letters of reference to OTCAS. If your reference will be submitting their letter electronically, alert them to watch for an automated for OTCAS with the subject OTCAS Reference Request. Paper references can be submitted to OTCAS, however it will take the Service longer to duplicate and send them to SMU. If your reference will be submitting a paper letter on your behalf, you will need to log in to your OTCAS applicant ion and print the OTCAS Reference Form found in the REFERENCE section. Each OTCAS reference form is unique to the evaluator listed in this section. Please instruct your reference to complete the paper form and attach it to a signed letter. SMU will not accept paper references from OTCAS unless a completed form and letter are attached. Paper references mailed to OTCAS must be sent in a sealed envelope on the evaluator s signed official institutional or business stationery. The letter of reference and OTCAS reference form must arrive together in a single envelope. OTCAS will not accept paper reference mailed by applicants. Click on the Instructions button at the top of the screen for more detailed instructions. Submission of additional letters to SMU Additional letters of reference may be submitted directly to SMU only after you have received an confirmation that we have received your application from OTCAS. Please do not send additional letters or other documentation until you have received your confirmation. We cannot guarantee that items sent to SMU prior to receipt of your application from OTCAS will be included in your admission file. Occupational Therapy Observation/Volunteer Hours Documentation of OT hours completed is entered in the ACTVITIES, ACCOMPLISHMENTS & RECOGNITIONS section of the OTCAS application. Please enter your completed hours to date in the OT and Health Related Volunteer, Observation and Service Experiences section. If you have observed an occupational therapist in more than one setting, select the Add New Entry button to enter each additional experience. OTCAS will ask for the following information for each entry: Name of Facility- Enter formal name of clinic, hospital, or OT facility in which you observed or worked with a occupational therapist Street Address of Facility Name of OT-Enter the name of a licensed occupational therapist that supervised you during the observation experience and/or can verify your OT hours. If the OT will also complete a letter of reference on your behalf, you must also enter the individual s information in the REFERENCE section. Are you requesting a reference from an OT or other individual associated from this facility? Select YES if you plan to ask the OT listed. Remember to also include their name in the REFERENCE section. OT License Number- If this information is not available, leave this item blank Stat of OT License- If this information is not available, leave this item blank

5 OT Address OT Phone Number Type of Experience-Select inpatient or outpatient experience Paid or volunteer Experience Select the OT Setting Status of experience-indicate if the OT experience is completed, planned, or in-progress Total Number of Hours Over Span of Experience (to date)- OTCAS will automatically tally your total number of hours Start Date End Date Please do not send any additional documentation regarding hours to SMU after submission of the OTCAS application. If you are selected for an interview, you will have an opportunity to provide us with updated information. Deadline You must submit your OTCAS application by 11:59 PM EST on or before November 1 st. OTCAS is located on the east coast. Review the time zone listed below to determine when the OTCAS application will close in your area: 11:59PM (EST) 10:59 PM (CST) 9:59 PM (MST) 8:59PM (PST) 7:59 PM (AKST) 6:59 PM (HST) We strongly recommend that you submit your application by October 1 st to allow for the verification processing time. Who can re-apply? Re-Applying to OTCAS Applicants who have a VERIFIED (GPA calculated) application from last cycle are eligible to have their application information imported to the new cycle. Applicants who do not have a verified application will have to recreate a new account and resubmit all information. What information will be/ will not be carried over? The following will be carried over: Most application fields (i.e. OT Observation Hours, etc.) VERIFIED transcripts (transcripts containing coursework calculated into your GPA during the last cycle by the OTCAS staff) Narratives/personal statements are also carried over. **It is advised that you compose a new personal statement that address what you have done since the last application cycle to make yourself a more competitive applicant. The following will not be carried over (will need to be resubmitted): Letters of recommendation Payments Transcripts containing updated coursework

6 Additionally, there will be fields on the OTCAS application which may have changed or been added since the last cycle that will not be filled in by the data import. Applicants will have to go over all sections of the application to ensure that new sections are filled in. It is the applicant s responsibility to review all imported information to ensure that it is complete and accurate. OTCAS will not do this for you. Can OTCAS carry over my letters of recommendation? No. OTCAS is not authorized to carry over letters of recommendation from previous cycles. Letters must be resubmitted for the new cycle. No exceptions or special circumstance will change this policy. Do I need to resend transcripts from last year? Any verified coursework does not require transcripts. Any new coursework complete since submission will require transcripts. Key contact information Arrange for your OTCAS materials to be sent to the address below: OTCAS PO Box 9120 Watertown, MA otcasinfo@otcas.org Phone: For submission of 3D skill/craft portfolio and other documentation (only after receiving confirmation by SMU): Office of Admission-MOT Program Samuel Merritt University 3100 Telegraph Ave, Suite 1000 Oakland, CA RAlvarado@samuelmerritt.edu Phone: How do I start the re-application process? Please click the large blue Reapplying to OTCAS? button on the login page to proceed with creating a re-applicant account. Do not click Create New Account on the home page.