The Occupational Therapist Registered (OTR®) certification exam is a critical step in the occupational therapy (OT) student’s journey as they must obtain a pass to become licensed and practice professionally.
Known to be a grueling exam, the OTR® is set for a format revision beginning in January 2024, whereby clinical simulation test (CST) items will transition to scenario sets.
How can OT programs and faculty best prepare students to take on the OTR® exam in 2024 without stretching themselves too thin? More importantly, what hurdles do they need to overcome to ensure exam readiness and improve OTR® exam first-time pass rates, which have trended downward in recent years?
To understand this and other key challenges faced by OT programs and educators and identify possible solutions, TrueLearn conducted a survey inviting faculty, program leaders, and key academic stakeholders to share their viewpoints.
Key Findings:
- 68% Said that ensuring students retain content for optimal OTR® exam performance was the top challenge
- 56% Mentioned identifying at-risk learners early enough for effective remediation as a key concern
- 66.7% Believe that declining OTR® exam first-time pass rates are due to students struggling to apply knowledge through board-style questions
- Only 12% of those surveyed have meaningful objective data specific to student performance on the OTR® exam
Want to know more about the challenges OT educators face? Download the full report now!