Occupational Therapist Philosophy

1) Why do you want to be an occupational therapist? I want to be able to assist people to live independent, fulfilling lives. I believe everyone deserves to live comfortably regardless of his or her diverse upbringings, and I want to be able to help them in achieving their goals. 2) What are four traits that you possess that you feel are critical for this profession and why do you see these four as the most important? I am genuinely interested, eager to learn, patient, and caring. These traits are critical to occupational therapy school. Having a genuine interest in the subject allows individuals to be motivated to grasp the concepts of occupational therapy and practices. It also shows that the individual considers every piece of knowledge as significant and critical to understand. Eagerness to learn is important because it shows that the individual is excited for their career as an OT. Patience is important because it will allow the individual to remain calm if they dont understand a concept and to seek understanding. Caring about the subjects will also be critical in getting the most out of the education that individuals receive at the institution. 3) What are two traits that you possess that you feel might be detrimental for this profession and why do you see them as detrimental? I travel back home often because of an ill family member. It may be detrimental to my studies but I work hard to keep up with my studies. I tend to worry about my family member and it has interfered with my studies in the past but I have steadily improved with my coping. I am also very empathetic. I am able to easily take on the feelings of another. I feel that may be detrimental for this profession at times if I let myself get too emotional or too overwhelmed. I need to be able to remain composed and strong for my patients to ensure that I am giving them the support and help that they need. 4) What place does conformity have in the work environment? Its important to find some common ground with classmates with respect to interests and hobbies. A sense of camaraderie is important. I also feel that once you get out in the work field, conformity becomes important to ensure that the clinic runs smoothly and efficiently by following all appropriate rules and protocols. 5) Give me an example of work that you are proud of that you did by yourself and work that you are proud of that you did as part of a team. Which way do you feel that you are the most effective and why? I was a mentor for freshman at The University of Texas at Austin. I was very proud of this work because I was able to help new students at the university adjust to the college lifestyle. I prepared every week for the seminar that I would present at. I fostered a tightknit group among the new students, and they were able to learn more about themselves and the university through it. I am proud of work that I did as a team when I worked on a research project at UT. I couldnt have been successful without the help from others. I was the project coordinator and it was critical for everyone to cooperate and work together. I communicated effectively with the other members of the research team and established a feeling of trust and authority for them. I feel I am most effective when I work alone. I am able to push myself to be the most creative and innovative that I can be. I am also better able to concentrate and get more work done in a shorter amount of time. 6) If the organization were to divide everyone into three categories: superstars, hard workers, or out-of the box thinkers, which one are you? Why and why do you think these skills are important in this profession? I would be in the hard workers category. When I am given a task, I give it my all. It is important to give the work that you care about your best. I am constantly looking at ways that I can improve my work and ways that I can better assist others. 7) Tell me about a time that you set your sights to high and a time you set them too low. What did you learn from these experiences? My junior year of college I took on the volunteer coordinator officer position at a student organization at UT. I was able to manage the role successfully but it was very time consuming and stressful with all the other activities I had going on including ballet, school, and boxing. I felt overwhelmed, stressed, and as a result my grades suffered. A time I had set them too low was when I took easier classes at UT while completing my practicum. I thought the practicum would be more time consuming than it actually was and the academic semester was not as challenging. I could have taken more classes or challenged myself in other ways. I learned that I am still learning about and adjusting my work limits. I am still learning about how much work is too much and how much is too little, but most importantly, I learned that I can handle a lot. 8) What would you do if you knew someone was cheating? (In class for graduate school, on expense report for work)

For graduate school, I dont think I would report his or her activity simply because they are the ones hurting themselves in the end. I would however, encourage the individual to report his or her own cheating or encourage them to self-reflect so that they may discover how to better prepare so that they do not cheat again. 9) Give me an example of a time you had to comply with a policy with which you did not agree. When I worked at Best Buy we were told to upsell all the customers. I think it is important to give customers everything they need but I didnt agree with trying to sell them products that were not of the highest quality, our only selection, to upsell them. I thought it was unfair to the customer to buy a product that would not last them very long only to increase the profit of the company. 10) How would you describe your work ethic? What would you consider your most important work ethic? I work diligently and for long periods of time. I give my work the best of my ability, and I try to consider all the factors involved and all the people that will be affected by my work. I try to make sure that I am meeting the needs of all those affected by my work and that I am producing high quality work. The most important part of my work ethic is my commitment to excellence, professionalism, and consideration of others. 11) What do you see as your responsibility to those that are less fortunate? It is so important to help those that are less fortunate. It is both humbling and necessary. I believe everyone should have a desire to help the welfare of his or her communities. Without that desire, so many of our communities would be lacking in the necessary resources to produce productive members of society. Not everyone is born on equal footing, and helping those that are less fortunate helps to even out the playing field just a little bit more. 12) Describe a time that you took on a leadership role and what you learned from the experience. When I took on the leadership role as a mentor for university freshman, I learned that I care immensely about the people whose lives I touch and that I want to have a positive imprint in their life. I brought in guest speakers to talk to my mentees about internship and research opportunities. I also brought in one of their professors to come talk to them so that they may lose any intimidation they may have for their professors and be able to see that they are truly regular people. I also helped them discover and learn more about themselves by taking them to the Sanger Learning and Career Center where they were able to pinpoint their interests and discover new career opportunities. I learned that I love helping people and that I want to serve them to the best of my ability. 13) What is the most important development in this field over the past 25 years, and why? The most important development in this field is the incorporation of research into occupational therapy practices. It is important in knowing who needs it and what will work for individuals receiving treatment. 14) How do you deal with authority? Give me an example of when you had to confront someone in authority and how you handled the situation. What would you have done differently? I always respect authority. I believe it is important to treat them with the utmost respect. The vice provost of the international office has an office space in the international office where I work at The University of Texas at Austin. She frequently has very important visitors and we have to follow a protocol when they arrive that I was unaware of. Instead of letting her assistant know that her visitor was here I went to her directly and she was not prepared for her visitors. If I could do it over again I would have asked about the proper protocol. 15) What makes you special? Why should we hire you (or admit you) over our other qualified candidates? People say that I am always smiling. I think that I am a positive energy and presence to those around me. You should hire me over other qualified candidates because I encourage others, I bring a sense of peace to those around me, I am productive, and I get along with many different personality types.