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HealthcareTop JobColorado Talent Pipeline Report-aligned occupation with strong annual openings, growth, and wage signals.

Occupational Therapist

Assess, plan, and organize rehabilitative programs that help build or restore vocational, homemaking, and daily living skills, as well as general independence, to persons with disabilities or developmental delays. Use therapeutic techniques, adapt the individual's environment, teach skills, and modify specific tasks that present barriers to the individual.

Annual openings

285

Median wage

$106,720

Typical education

Master's degree

Growth 2026–2032

+12%

Median wage source: Colorado BLS OEWS (2025).

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Career requirements

What does this career require?

Explore education, required qualifications, voluntary credentials and employer preferences for this role. Check the details to see which apply.

Typical education

Master's degree

Credential requirement

A certification is required for this job.

Credential detail

To practice, you will need to be certified as an occupational therapist by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT).

Work experience

No previous work experience is required.

Experience detail

However, it is common for a person to work as an Occupational Therapy Assistant or Physical Therapy Assistant before they become an Occupational Therapist. However, you will want to understand whether or not Occupational Therapy Assistant job openings exist in your region before deciding that is the right path for you.

Training

To practice, you will need to complete an approved Occupational Therapist degree, which must include supervised fieldwork.

Employer competency information

Feedback from employers identifies the following critical competencies and how they apply for this job

  • Communication and Interpersonal Skills — Working very closely with other team members and patients is critical. It will be very important to understand, connect with, communicate to, and provide instructions to patients, regardless of their background or circumstances.
  • Customer Focus — Providing excellent customer service is critical, reimbursements are based on patient feedback and outcomes.
  • Critical & Analytical Thinking and Problem Solving & Decision Making — An important skill in developing and implementing patient care plans.
  • Psychology — Understanding patients is important in order to be able to motivate them to make positive changes.

Is this work a fit?

What the work actually feels like

How people in this career tend to spend their time, the interests it draws on, and a look at a typical day.

Automation exposure

Low exposure

Tasks here lean on judgement and people skills that are hard to automate.

A typical day

  1. Test and evaluate patients' physical and mental abilities and analyze medical data to determine realistic rehabilitation goals for patients.
  2. Complete and maintain necessary records.
  3. Plan, organize, and conduct occupational therapy programs in hospital, institutional, or community settings to help rehabilitate persons with disabilities because of illness, injury or psychological or developmental problems.
  4. Plan and implement programs and social activities to help patients learn work or school skills and adjust to handicaps.
  5. Select activities that will help individuals learn work and life-management skills within limits of their mental or physical capabilities.
  6. Evaluate patients' progress and prepare reports that detail progress.
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