5 Tips for Choosing an OT Clinical Rotation Site
When I started OT school the one thing I was excited (yet terrified) about was our clinical rotations, also called level II fieldwork. There are so many different settings out there and depending on your program, you might actually have the freedom to choose your own site. Of course, this widely depends on your program and their process but if you’re trying to decide where you want to spend your hands-on experience, this is the post for you!
Keep in mind that not all OT programs allow you to establish contact with a potential site. My program specifically told us that if we wanted to go out of state, we would have to initiate contact first and then if the site indicated interest and availability for students, our clinical coordinator would take over. However, if we wanted to stay in the same state our school was in, we would be able to “rank” our desired setting but there was no guarantee you’d get your top pick. It’s a great idea to ask about this process during your OT school interview - especially if there’s a setting you truly desire to be in, like me!
I actually started to prepare for my rotations the first semester of the program because I had a very particular setting that I knew would take a lot of hard work, planning, and determination to find a placement in. If you know me, you know the story of how I fought my way into the NICU at every single one of my rotations - it wasn’t an easy feat! But that’s another blog post for another day.
The point of this post is that just like in my “5 Tips for Choosing an OT Setting” post, it can be tough to know what you should even be looking for in your clinical rotations. So here are five tips to think about when trying to choose your level II fieldwork location…
Relevant experience: You aren’t expected to be an expert on the setting but it certainly helps if you already have relevant experience! For example, I really wanted a pediatrics setting because I am very comfortable with working with children in general and it comes natural to me. Of course, it’s okay to want to step out of your comfort zone, too - but if you’re looking for a setting that you can ease into, think about what past experience you have with certain people, diagnoses, or conditions that you might already be familiar with.
Previous students: It’s always comforting to know that the setting has had other students before you. I have personally been in the situation where I was the first student at a site and I definitely felt those “guinea pig” vibes. It’s also nice because usually you’ll find your rotation to be more structured and organized when they have experience hosting other students. Speaking of students, try to contact some other students in the years above you to see if they can give you any tips to help you be successful at the site!
Population: Think about the type of people you enjoy being around and who you love working with or think you might love working with. Do you love babies or older adults? Do you prefer to work with a high risk or low risk population? If you can narrow down the population you want to gain more experience with, it’ll be much easier to decide which settings are going to be a good fit for you
Future Job: Your clinical rotations are really where you are going to get the most experience to prepare you for your first job. Regardless of setting, your site will prepare you with the foundational knowledge to practice as an entry level practitioner. However, if there’s a particular setting you are strongly thinking you want to practice in after graduation, it’s a great idea to try to find a placement in that setting. This way you’ll not only learn those foundational skills, but you’ll also be exposed to that exact population, conditions, diagnoses, and treatment interventions. You will feel much more prepared for your first position if it’s in a setting that you had a placement in already.
Finances: Okay you definitely didn’t think I’d let this one slip through the cracks, did ya? Unfortunately our clinical rotations are unpaid (which absolutely stinks) and it’s really important to consider the financial aspect of choosing a clinical placement, particularly one that is out of state. I personally racked up the most amount of debt while on my placements because I had to live 100% off my student loans and even borrow extra to cover my living and travel expenses. This quickly added up and now I’m stuck here paying it off...with interest. If you are considering going out of state, I highly encourage you to think about how you can reduce your living expenses as much as possible to keep your costs low, especially if you’re not able to work while doing your rotations. Since rotations are full-time, many people cannot work at the same time. Perhaps I’ll have to do another blog post about tips for managing money during unpaid clinicals? Stay tuned for that one!
I personally enjoyed every single one of my rotations and I wouldn’t have changed a thing because I gained valuable experience during each one. I was also very intentional in choosing my rotations because there are so many things to consider. If your program grants you the freedom to choose your site, keep these tips in mind to help you narrow down a setting where you’ll be able to grow personally and professionally, and prepare you to successfully enter the field!