Four different occupational therapist days
If you only shadow one setting, you may mistake that setting for the whole profession.
School OT day
Student sessions, handwriting or sensory work, classroom observation, teacher consultation, IEP notes, evaluations, and goals that must fit the school day.
Hospital rehab day
ADLs, transfers, cognition, upper extremity function, discharge planning, family training, and fast decisions about what home will require.
Home health day
Driving, bathroom safety, kitchen tasks, caregiver education, equipment, fall risk, documentation, and adapting care to the real home.
Hand therapy day
Splinting, range, scar management, fine motor function, work tasks, pain, repetition, and very specific documentation around hand use.
A realistic workday map
EvaluateFind the barrierAssess the task, person, setting, support system, risk, and goal.
TreatPractice the taskCoach daily skills, movement, cognition, sensory regulation, hand use, or routine.
AdaptChange the setupModify equipment, environment, cueing, pacing, or expectations.
HandoffTeach the teamEducate family, teachers, aides, nurses, or caregivers on what will actually work.
DocumentDefend the goalTurn functional progress into notes, IEP language, plan updates, or discharge reasoning.
Sources and methodology
O*NET Database 30.3Occupation descriptions, alternate titles, work context, work activities, and education signals.
BLS OEWS May 2025National wage estimates, percentile pay, mean pay, and employment estimates by SOC group.
BLS Employment Projections2024 to 2034 projected employment, growth, annual openings, entry education, experience, and training.
BLS OOH profileOfficial Occupational Outlook Handbook context for the matched career family.
NBCOTCertification exam context for occupational therapy licensure pathways.ACOTEAccreditation context for occupational therapy education programs.
Career Dish adds fit scores, workload metrics, AI exposure estimates, and interview-style guide scenes on top of public datasets. Those interpretive layers are meant to make the data scannable, not to replace official licensing or school-specific research.