ERGOBPRA2 Occupational Therapy Practice Placement, Part 2 Course description

In this practical training period, the students continue working with therapeutic use of occupation in real-life situations. Students work systematically to help users to develop or maintain skills, occupational habits and roles. Through the work process, students will also practice clinical reasoning in relation to their own work. The practical training can take place in all arenas where occupational therapists work.

The student must have passed the first year of the programme or equivalent,.

After completing the course, the student is expected to have achieved the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

• is capable of describing relevant user groups, professional issues and occupational therapy methods at the placement training establishment
• is capable of describing the position of occupational therapy within the placement’s framework and organisation at different levels
• is capable of describing relevant partners' tasks
• is capable of discussing how activity analyses are consistently used in occupational therapy processes

Skills

The student is capable of

• using mapping methods relating to occupation, skills and functional assessments that are relevant at the practical training establishment
• using and communicating systematic activity analyses through an occupational therapy work process
• initiating relevant interventions under supervision based on, among other things, a complete systematic occupational analysis
• applying activities methodically to promote occupational performance and justifying this through clinical reasoning
• assessing and adjusting their own therapeutic competence in encounters with users, or making referrals as needed
• applying users' and next of kin's experiential competence in line with evidence-based practice
• applying clinical reasoning, assessing and adjusting his/her own therapeutic expertise in dealing with people who are in a learning and coping process, or referring them to other professionals if necessary
• searching systematically for and disseminating scientific literature of relevance to his/her for own professional practice at the practical training establishment
• applying relevant theory and research, and making professional assessments, decisions and actions in accordance with evidence-based practice

General competence

The student is capable of

• demonstrating good communication skills and adapting their communication in meetings with users and other partners
• disseminating and documenting occupational therapy professional practice in writing and orally in the forms and procedures relevant to the practical training establishment
• identifying and reflecting on professional and ethical issues and dilemmas
• taking responsibility for, showing initiative and cooperation skills in practice
• planning and interdisciplinary cooperation within the framework of the practical training establishment
• assessing and preventing the risk of undesirable incidents and complying with the practical training establishment’s procedures

The practical training period normally takes place over twelve weeks and starts with a week’s preparation as part of the programme. During a practical training week, the students spend 30 hours in practical training. The students will be assigned a supervisor at the practical training establishment and a contact lecturer at the university.

The students also receive group supervision during the practical training. The supervision groups are jointly led by a lecturer from the programme and an occupational therapist from the practical training field. The goal is for the group supervision to connect theory and practice through reflection and clinical reasoning. The topics for the supervision groups are based on selected learning outcomes for the programme.

The following must be approved:

• cooperation agreement with specification of the learning outcomes

An attendance requirement also applies, see ‘assessment of practical training’ in the programme description's main part for more information.

Assessment of practical training. The assessment is based on the learning outcomes for the course, the cooperation agreement with specification of the learning outcomes and the formative assessment made of the student during the practical training period.

Students’ practical training can only be assessed if their attendance is sufficiently high (90%). See ‘assessment of practical training’ in the main part of the programme description for more information.

Not relevant.

The Master's Program in Behavioral Science comprises 120 ECTS credits in accordance with § 3 of the National Regulations Relating to Requirements for a Master's Degree, appointed by the Ministry of Education and Research on December 1st, 2005. A successfully completed program leads to the degree Master of Behavioral Science/master i atferdsvitenskap.

The study program is established in accordance with the Act Relating to Universities and University Colleges of 1 April 2005 and Regulations Relating to Studies and Examinations at OsloMet - Oslo Metropolitan University of 26 June 2012. The program may be completed as a full-time study of 2 years or a part-time study of maximum 4 years.

The program teaches modern behavioral science. The knowledge, skills and competence from the program are useful when designing, implementing, managing and documenting processes of change for individuals and in systems. The program content adds value to all professional repertoires, and prepares graduates for working with complex systems, whether social or technological. Interventions taught in the program are empirically based and well suited for measuring and assessment of outcomes.

Career opportunities and post-graduate studies

Graduates of the program will usually have a set of professional skills from their undergraduate studies, and the program enhances and adds value to those skills. Graduates have found rewarding work in

• planning, implementing and evaluating change processes for individuals and in organizations
• risk assessment and management
• general and special education
• higher education 

The program prepares the graduates for Ph.D. studies.

The master program is accredited by Association for Behavior Analysis International (ABAI).https://www.abainternational.org/accreditation.aspx

Graduates who wish to sit for the certification exam by the Behavior Analyst Certification Board must complete a specific BACB-approved course sequence. http://bacb.com/

The midway and final assessments are made by the practical training supervisor and the contact lecturer at the university. The final decision on whether to award a pass or fail grade is made by the university.