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Health & Allied Health

Bachelor of Occupational Therapy (Honours)

Occupational Therapists are qualified health professionals who are skilled in a number of areas, including physical health, mental health, rehabilitation, pain management, driving assessments and paediatrics.

Limited availability

Places in this course are limited and entry is competitive. Apply early for the best chance of securing your place.

Next intake: 01 Mar 2027
Learn more

Course essentials

ATAR

If you receive an ATAR equal to or above the guaranteed ATAR, and meet the course prerequisites and any extra requirements, you're guaranteed a place.

A lowest adjusted ATAR shows the lowest selection rank (ATAR plus adjustments) offered a place last year. It's not a guaranteed entry score and changes annually.

This course uses the ATAR as part of its selection considerations.

Entry requirements

See entry requirements

Fees

Commonwealth Supported Place

Credit

A full-time study load is 120 credits a year (usually four 15-credit units each semester). 120 credits equal one equivalent full-time student load (EFTSL). Each credit point equals about 10 hours of learning, so a 15-credit unit means roughly 150 hours.

480 credit points = 4.0 EFTSL

Study mode

Study modes tell you how teaching and learning will be delivered for your course and include where and when classes can be scheduled, what you'll do and the tech you'll use.

On campus

Duration

4 years full-time or part-time equivalent

Start dates

01 March 2027

Locations

Gippsland (on campus)

Course overview

Our comprehensive four-year program covers a variety of topics, focusing on contemporary occupational therapy practice, and based on real-life scenarios and cases. Some subjects are delivered with other health professional students, so you will have an inter-professional experience which will increase your employability upon graduation.

You'll play a key role in helping clients by providing guidance and the physical skills required to modify and undertake daily tasks. You'll also be key in helping people achieve participation in recreational or leisure activities that are important factors in enabling them to enjoy a fulfilling lifestyle. Rural Australians have less access to occupational therapists than Australians who live in cities, so the demand for qualified occupational therapists continues to grow. This program is designed to help to fill this gap while providing you with rewarding career opportunities locally, nationally and beyond.

Current Year 12 students whose primary residence is in a regional or remote area may be eligible to apply for this course through the Regional and Remote Entry Scheme. Eligible students can apply using the reduced Guaranteed ATAR and specific VTAC codes. 

https://www.federation.edu.au/study/information/high-school-students/early-offer-program/guaranteed…

IT requirements

To do this course you’ll need a fast and reliable computer and access to high-speed internet. Expect to use about 5GB of data per month for every unit you’re doing. Find out more about the minimum IT requirements for studying with us.

Got questions?

Call us on 1800 333 864, start a live chat or submit an enquiry.

Student support

The support we offer is second to none. Need academic help? No problem. Extra access or financial assistance? Let’s see what we can do. View our student services.

The fine print

The commencement of all courses is subject to available funding and enrolment quotas.

Everything in this course overview is correct at the time of being published. However, the University reserves the right to alter any course, procedure or fee. Please check for changes before you apply or enrol.

Federation University uses Victorian and Commonwealth Government funding (for eligible students) to deliver training.

School department

Occupational Therapy

Course co-ordinator

Amanda Timmer

Work with people across the lifespan to overcome health challenges and participate in meaningful self-care, vocational, educational and leisure occupations."
— Amanda Timmer, Bachelor of Occupational Therapy (Honours) course coordinator

Career paths

Occupational therapists are employed in public and private hospitals medical rehabilitation centres community health centres home care services aged care facilities psychiatric clinics hostels and hospitals vocational rehabilitation centres schools and educational facilities independent living/respite centres and private practice. Occupational therapists work with people across the lifespan in injury prevention and management and with the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). 

Occupational therapist

Professional recognition

The Occupational Therapy course is currently accredited by The Occupational Therapy Council of Australia Ltd (OTC) and approved by the Occupational Therapy Board of Australia (OTBA).  
Graduates will be eligible to apply for registration as an occupational therapist with the OTBA.

The Occupational Therapy course is also endorsed by the World Federation of Occupational Therapy (WFOT) Program Approval Committee

Fees and scholarships

Tuition fee information

Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP)
2026 indicative full-time fee: $9,537

Commonwealth Supported Places are subsidised by the Australian Government. The tuition fee is called the student contribution amount. The indicative fee above is based on a typical first-year enrolment for this course and should be used as a guide only. For 0.5 EFTSL (60 credit point) courses the certificate fee is displayed. Your fee will depend on the units you chose, your study load, the time it takes to complete your course and any approved credit you receive. 

How it's calculated

The government sets the fee each year. The amount depends on the discipline area and band of each unit. 2026 annual student contribution amounts for 1 EFTSL (equivalent full-time student load) range from $4,738 (Band 1) to $17,399 (Band 4).  The sample course structure below link to the EFTSL, Band and fee for each unit or you can use our unit search to find these details.

Other fees

You will also need to pay the Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF).

Fee assistance

If you're eligible for a HECS-HELP loan,  you can defer the payment of all or part of your student contribution fee. If you’re also eligible for a SA-HELP loan, you can defer your SSAF payment too. You won’t have to start paying either loan back until your income reaches the compulsory repayment threshold.

Scholarships

There’s a range of scholarships and grants available. Find out what you can apply for.

Course details

Start dates

Semester 1, 2027

1 March 2027

Locations

Gippsland (on campus)

Register interest

Contact hours

You’d be looking at about 25-30 hours per week (if you’re full time), but this includes on-campus classes and self-directed study (i.e. homework).

Work integrated learning

This course requires for delivery to international students that the following work based training hours (40 hours per week x 25 weeks = 1000 hr) are completed.

Sample course structure

Here’s what the course structure could look like. It’s just an example (so don’t use it for enrolment). Interested in the details? You can find current course structure or select a single unit name below to find out what it’s about and how much it costs.

Semester 2

Semester 1

Semester 1
Semester 2
Spring Semester

Semester 1
Semester 2

Entry requirements

Entry requirements (year 12)

Prerequisites

•             Units 3 and 4: a study score of at least 25 in any English or English (EAL).
•             Units 1 and 2: satisfactory completion of any Mathematics: General Mathematics, Maths: Mathematical Methods or Maths: Specialist Mathematics
•             Units 3 and 4: satisfactory completion in one of Maths: General Mathematics, Maths: Mathematical Methods, Maths: Specialist Mathematics, or Science.

This course uses the ATAR as part of its selection considerations.
Guaranteed ATAR

This program has a guaranteed ATAR.  If you meet the program pre-requisites and any 'Essential Requirements for Admission', we will guarantee you a place in this program with this ATAR. We use the adjusted ATAR, factoring in subject adjustments and SEAS as detailed below:
Subject Adjustments

A study score of 35 in Biology, Chemistry or Physics equals 3 aggregate points per study. Overall maximum of 5 points.

Entry requirements (non year 12)

Admission criteria for applicants with a Higher Education Study

Successful completion of a cognate AQF level 7 bachelor’s degree with a GPA 5.0 and above, or;
Successful completion of any AQF level 7 bachelor’s degree with a GPA 5.5 and above, or;
Completion of 8 units in a Bachelor of Nursing, Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood Education), Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood & Primary), or Bachelor of Community and Human Services from Federation University (or other cognate courses) with a GPA 6.0 and above, or;
Completion of the Federation Access Studies (FAST) course with a credit result or above in all units, and; completion of Anatomy and Physiology for Rehabilitation Science 1 (NHPBM1031) and Anatomy and Physiology for Rehabilitation Science 2 (NHPBM1032) with a pass result or above in both units.

English language requirements

Overall Academic IELTS band score of 7, with no band less than 7, or equivalent.

Extra requirements

Essential requirements for enrolment or graduation
 

Immunisations
Compulsory: Prior to commencing clinical placements students are expected to provide evidence of current immunisation status.
Working with children check
Compulsory:  Applicants will be required to hold a valid Working with Children (WWC) Check for the relevant state prior to undertaking professional placements as part of this course.  For more information see Federation University Australia WWCC information and Working with Children in Victoria.

Police record check
Compulsory: Applicants will be required to hold a valid National Police Check for professional placements as part of this course.  For more information see Federation University Australia police check information and Victoria Police national police record checks 

NDIS Work Screening Test

 

How you apply will depend on your current situation – school leaver, tertiary background or life experience – and whether you’re also applying for courses at other institutions. Visit our how to apply page to find out more.

Ready to fill out your application? You might need these codes:

VTAC application
Yes
VTAC code
3700711251 - Gippsland (on campus)
Direct application
Yes
Federation University code
OT8

Applicants with Higher Education Study

  • Successful completion of a cognate AQF level 7 bachelor’s degree with a GPA 5.0 and above, or;
  • Successful completion of any AQF level 7 bachelor’s degree with a GPA 5.5 and above, or;
  • Completion of 8 units in a Bachelor of Nursing, Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood Education), Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood & Primary), or Bachelor of Community and Human Services from Federation University (or other cognate courses) with a GPA 6.0
     

Entry via FAST (not applicable)
Please note, successful completion of as tertiary preparatory program such as the Federation University Foundation Access Studies Program (FAST) is NOT a direct pathway into this degree.
 
 

 

Hear from our staff

Dr Anne Baker talks about the Bachelor of Occupational Therapy and what you can expect studying health and allied health at Federation.

Hello, my name is Dr Anne Baker and I'm a lecturer in Occupational Therapy at Federation Uni on the Gippsland campus in Churchill. One thing I really love about teaching here is that we have small class sizes so that I get to really know my students and it means I can work with them to work on their personal learning goals and to help support them to become occupational therapists. An interesting thing about studying here is that we have brand new facilities that were developed in 2020 when the program first started, and we have a great teaching space which includes up-to-date equipment and assessment. So students are really getting the most relevant skills. And as they work to become occupational therapists, we also have excellent relationships with our clinical partners. So students get a great range of placement experiences and develop their skills in a range of different areas. A fun fact about me is that I'm also an occupational therapy driver assessor, which means that I can assess, make recommendations about people's fitness to drive. This is typically not an area that people think about when they think about occupational therapy, but occupation is more than just your job, so it includes things like self-care, so things like sharing and dressing, productive occupations, which does include work, and also things like driving, as well as leisure occupations, which are things that people do to occupy their time and their space. So this means as occupational therapists, we work from early on in people's lives, so pretty soon after birth, all the way through to advanced age and conditions that involve dying. We'd love you to come and study occupational therapy with us. We have a really great teaching team here, fantastic resources and I think you'll enjoy the student experience. 

Credit for previous study

Your previous studies might count towards this course (which means you could finish it sooner). Check your eligibility to find out if that’s the case.

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