Become an Occupational Therapist

An Occupational Therapist will work with people who are struggling with day-to-day activities and need support to engage or re-engage in everyday occupations. This could be because of disability, ill health, social disadvantage, trauma, or ageing.

Occupational Therapists support people using services by helping them overcome challenges which are making day-to-day activities difficult to access or undertake. They help people become as independent as possible by helping them learn new ways of doing things, engage in activities that may be unfamiliar to them, making adaptations to their environment and introducing useful equipment and assistive technologies if that is required.

An Occupational Therapist works to improve the lives, independence, wellbeing and occupational engagement of individuals, groups and communities. They may work with people throughout the lifespan who have experienced physical ill health, social disadvantage, mental health issues or learning disabilities.  The work is very varied from supporting people in hospital with activities of daily living like: re-learning how to dress and bathe after a stroke; helping people with learning disabilities to use community facilities like public transport independently for the first time; helping people in a mental health setting gain the confidence and skills to get back to work; helping children with disabilities to engage in school through adapting the environment to suit their needs.  Occupational therapists can work with people in their own homes, in hospital settings, prisons, schools or community settings.

To become a qualified Occupational Therapist in the UK requires at least a BSc (Hons) qualification. You can find out more  about the course content and how you will be taught on our Occupational Therapy BSc (Hons) Course page.

An Occupational Therapist is a Band 5 role within the NHS with a starting salary of £28,834 rising to £35,099. A specialist Occupational Therapist with experience can progress to a Band 6 role, with a starting salary of £35,922, whilst advanced and highly specialist Occupational Therapists can be employed within a Band 7 role within the NHS (£44,398-£50,807).*

_{*All pay scales were accurate at the time of publishing in February 2024}

An Occupational Therapist is not a doctor. Occupational Therapists are allied health professionals, and the role of an Occupational Therapist is separate to that of a Doctor, with different training. They can but do not necessarily work in just heath settings, often in the community or in social care.

We offer a separate Graduate Entry Medicine course for those with a degree who wish to become a Doctor.

There are some shared interests between Physiotherapists and Occupational Therapists in some settings, especially hospitals or health settings where occupational therapists and physiotherapists work together to help people manage disabilities or in their rehabilitation or recovery from physical health problems.  In these settings both professionals work to improve overall function and quality of life for the person they are working with, helping them to maintain or improve their health and wellbeing.  Occupational therapists work with people who have mental health issues or in community settings like voluntary organisations more than physiotherapists..

The major difference when these professions work together is that an Occupational Therapist will focus more on facilitating safe and effective engagement in day-to-day activities. They both promote independence and support people using services and their carers in any transitions or challenges they may face.