Fieldwork education is an essential component of the GW occupational therapy program, with 42 total weeks between fieldwork and the doctoral capstone experience, to expose students to diverse settings, including a psychosocial/behavioral setting, to provide learning opportunities with individuals across different ages and environments. The fieldwork education portion of the curriculum is broken into two parts: Level I Fieldwork and Level II Fieldwork and a series of courses focus on experiential and active learning to develop the clinical skills and critical inquiry for professional practice and for faculty assessment of clinical performance.
Upon graduation, students will be prepared for entry-level occupational therapy practice in any clinical setting
Fieldwork education opportunities are located regionally, nationally, and internationally to provide depth and diversity to each student’s unique educational experience.
Level I Fieldwork
Level II Fieldwork
Overview
|
|
Level I (1 credit each) | Level II (6 Credits each) |
|---|---|---|
| When | Year 1 – Spring (SEM 2) Year 1 – Summer (SEM 3) Year 2 – Fall (SEM 4) Year 2 – Spring (SEM 5) |
Year 2 – Summer (SEM 6) Year 3 – Fall (SEM 7) |
| Type | Introductory | Immersive |
| Duration | Variable | 12 weeks each* |
| Location | Flexible | Flexible |
| Time Commitment | Part-time | Full-time |
| Experience Count | 4 | 2 |
*There are some instances or extenuating circumstances where fieldwork does not follow this typical format, but it is highly individualized.
Fieldwork Locations
GW has contracts all over the US for fieldwork/clinical education. Student location, site availability, and other variables are being taken into account to maximize student learning and ensure fieldwork fit to the overarching curricular themes.
GW has the ability to establish new contracts for clinical sites. Students may have the ability to complete fieldwork in the city they live in depending on contract availability and timing to process the contract with the university.