🇺🇸American Dream Jobs
Healthcare (Technical)31-2011.00Specialization

Occupational Therapy Assistants

Assist occupational therapists in providing occupational therapy treatments and procedures. May, in accordance with state laws, assist in development of treatment plans, carry out routine functions, direct activity programs, and document the progress of treatments. Generally requires formal training.

$67,010
Median Pay
2 to 4 years
Training
🟡
AI-Augmented
📚Find TrainingCompare with other careersCalculate lifetime earnings
View Occupational Therapy Assistants & Aides

This is a specialization of

Occupational Therapy Assistants & Aides

Career Overview Video

AI Impact Assessment

AI Resilience Score

Score 4/6: growing job demand means AI will assist but humans remain essential

🟡AI-Augmented

How we calculated this:

AI Exposure
Medium+1

27% of tasks can be accelerated by AI

Job Growth
Growing+2

+19% projected (2024-2034)

Human Advantage
Moderate+1

EPOCH score: 14/25

Total Score4/6
Methodology: v2.0 - GPTs are GPTs / BLS / EPOCH Additive ScoringUpdated: 2026-01-09
View full methodology →

Key Responsibilities

  • Instruct, or assist in instructing, patients and families in home programs, basic living skills, or the care and use of adaptive equipment.
  • Maintain and promote a positive attitude toward clients and their treatment programs.
  • Report to supervisors, verbally or in writing, on patients' progress, attitudes, and behavior.
  • Implement, or assist occupational therapists with implementing, treatment plans designed to help clients function independently.
  • Monitor patients' performance in therapy activities, providing encouragement.
  • Observe and record patients' progress, attitudes, and behavior and maintain this information in client records.
  • Select therapy activities to fit patients' needs and capabilities.
  • Attend continuing education classes.
  • Aid patients in dressing and grooming themselves.
  • Evaluate the daily living skills or capacities of clients with physical, developmental, or mental health disabilities.

Education & Training

Typical Entry Education

Associate's degree

Time to Job Ready

1-3 years

Based on Job Zone 3. For formal education duration only, see education_duration.

Technology Skills

Therapy documentation software (WebPT)EHR systemsMicrosoft OfficeOutcome trackingScheduling systems

Key Abilities

Oral ComprehensionOral ExpressionWritten ExpressionProblem SensitivityWritten ComprehensionNear VisionDeductive ReasoningInformation OrderingSpeech ClarityInductive Reasoning

Ready to Start Your Career?

Find jobs and training programs for occupational therapy assistants- Median salary: $67K/year

🔍

Find Jobs

Search positions from LinkedIn, Indeed, Glassdoor, and more. Get up to 50 relevant job listings with salary info.

  • Real-time results
  • Export to Excel
📚

Find Training

Discover training programs, certifications, and educational resources to help you get started or advance your career.

  • Local programs
  • DOL verified
Find Training Programs
Training data powered byCareerOneStop- U.S. Department of Labor

Compensation Details

$48,670
10th Percentile
$67,010
Median
$89,230
90th Percentile

Based on 46,090 employed workers

Also Known As

Acute Care Occupational Therapy Assistant (Acute Care OT Assistant)Certified Occupational AssistantCertified Occupational Therapist Assistant (COTA)Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA)Certified Travel OTA (Certified Travel Occupational Therapist Assistant)Home Health COTA (Home Health Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant)Independent Living SpecialistLicensed Occupational Therapist Assistant (LOTA)Licensed Occupational Therapy Assistant (LOTA)Nursing Facility COTA (Nursing Facility Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant)

Data from O*NET 30.1 and BLS Occupational Employment Statistics

O*NET Code: 31-2011.00