Early Acceptance Program for MS in Occupational Therapy

Selected Majors

• Health and Wellness (BS Degree)
  • has all prerequisites included in the major
• Psychology (BA Degree)
• Neuroscience (BS Degree)

Criteria for Admission as an Incoming Freshman

• Overall high school GPA – 3.3
• 4 years of math and science academic coursework with a grade of a B or better

Criteria to Progress to the MS OT Program

• Successful completion of bachelor’s degree with a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.25
• Successful completion of all required prerequisite courses with a minimum of a 3.0 and no individual prerequisite course grade below a “C+”.  Only one prerequisite course may be retaken.
  • Human Anatomy and Physiology I and II with lab
  • Introductory Psychology course
  • Abnormal Psychology course
  • Lifespan Development course
  • Sociology or Anthropology
  • Statistics/Research Design in Behavioral or Health Sciences course
• Participation in the Iona Student Occupational Therapy Association (SOTA) as a Junior member including participation in at least two SOTA meetings and at least two SOTA community activities each academic year.
• Documented participation in community service activities in hospital, school or community settings throughout undergraduate education.   
• Documentation of a minimum of 40 hours of observation in two different Occupational Therapy settings (e.g. outpatient, hospital rehabilitation, skilled nursing facility, school/pediatrics, etc.) The NewYork-Presbyterian Iona School of Health Sciences’ OT Program provides an Observation Form to document this experience, which must be submitted by September 15 one year prior to matriculation into the MS OT program.
• Demonstration of an understanding of the role of the occupational therapy profession in the healthcare or educational environment as evidenced through a personal reflection statement. This statement is submitted after completing observation hours.
• Demonstration of academic ability, interpersonal skills and potential to be successful in the MS OT Program as evidenced by a letter of attestation from an Iona University faculty member who has had the student in classes related to student’s major. This must be submitted by September 15 one year prior to matriculation in the MS OT program.
• Demonstration of strong work ethic and interpersonal skills as evidenced by a letter of attestation from a community service mentor/supervisor, or employer who can speak to work performance by September 15 one year prior to matriculation into the MS OT program.