Occupational Therapy Fieldwork Education
Fieldwork education is designed to provide occupational therapy students with opportunities to integrate academically acquired education with practice. It is during the students’ experiences in fieldwork that they can learn, apply practice and refine skills of observation, evaluation, treatment planning and implementation, documentation, and communication. In the fieldwork setting, the students begin to define their future role as practicing occupational therapists and can develop the necessary personal and professional skills essential to meeting the demands of this challenging field.
Fieldwork education is divided into Level I Fieldwork and Level II Fieldwork. It is an essential and required component of the occupational therapy educational program by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE). At Misericordia University, fieldwork education begins in the senior year for entry-level traditional weekday students and ends in the spring semester of their fifth year. For students of the nontraditional weekend program, fieldwork education begins in the second year of the program and ends in the summer semester of their graduate year.
The Fieldwork Office at Misericordia University is composed of the Academic Fieldwork Coordinator and the Fieldwork Specialist. Fieldwork Education is managed by the Academic Fieldwork Coordinator. For more information related to Fieldwork Education, please feel free to contact Amanda Salak, OTD, OTR/L, Academic Fieldwork Coordinator at 570-674-6481 or email at asalak@misericordia.edu. Paula Eddy, the Fieldwork Specialist, supports the Academic Fieldwork Coordinator. Paula can be reached at 570-674-6355 or email at peddy@misericordia.edu.