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Occupational Therapy Personal Statement
Sarah
Chen
·
schen
.
ot
@
gmail
.
com
· (415) 555-0192
October
15, 2025 ·
University
of
Washington
Doctor
of
Occupational
Therapy
Program
The
first
time
I
truly
understood
the
word
"
occupation
,"
I
was
sitting
on
the
edge
of
my
grandmother
'
s
hospital
bed
watching
an
occupational
therapist
guide
her
through
the
seemingly
simple
act
of
brushing
her
hair
.
Three
weeks
prior
,
a
left
-
hemisphere
stroke
had
robbed
my
grandmother
of
the
fluid
,
unconscious
movements
she
had
performed
for
seventy
years
.
In
that
thirty
-
minute
session
,
the
therapist
did
not
merely
rehabilitate
a
limb
;
she
restored
my
grandmother
'
s
sense
of
self
.
That
distinction
—
between
a
task
and
the
meaning
behind
it
—
is
what
draws
me
to
occupational
therapy
.
Over
the
past
three
years
,
I
have
accumulated
more
than
1,200
hours
of
clinical
experience
across
acute
care
,
outpatient
pediatrics
,
and
hand
therapy
settings
.
As
a
rehabilitation
aide
at
Stanford
Medicine
,
I
observed
OTs
transform
the
mundane
into
the
monumental
.
I
watched
Marcus
,
an
eight
-
year
-
old
with
spastic
cerebral
palsy
,
spend
six
weeks
learning
to
button
his
school
uniform
.
When
he
finally
succeeded
during
his
final
session
,
his
mother
wept
in
the
corner
of
the
room
.
These
moments
taught
me
that
occupational
therapy
occupies
the
space
where
medicine
ends
and
living
begins
.
The
therapists
I
worked
alongside
were
not
technicians
;
they
were
translators
,
converting
clinical
goals
into
the
language
of
a
patient
'
s
daily
life
.
My
academic
background
in
kinesiology
and
dance
has
given
me
a
unique
lens
through
which
I
view
motor
control
and
purposeful
movement
.
Studying
biomechanics
taught
me
how
muscles
fire
in
sequence
;
studying
ballet
taught
me
how
intention
shapes
motion
.
In
my
undergraduate
research
at
UC
Berkeley
,
I
investigated
sensory
-
processing
differences
in
adults
with
autism
spectrum
disorder
,
presenting
our
findings
at
the
2024
California
State
OT
Conference
.
This
work
solidified
my
belief
that
effective
intervention
must
be
grounded
in
both
rigorous
evidence
and
deep
respect
for
neurodiversity
.
What
distinguishes
occupational
therapy
from
other
rehabilitative
disciplines
is
its
unwavering
commitment
to
the
whole
person
.
During
my
time
volunteering
at
the
Glide
Memorial
Free
Clinic
,
I
facilitated
a
weekly
cooking
group
for
adults
experiencing
homelessness
and
schizophrenia
.
One
participant
,
James
,
refused
to
hold
a
knife
after
a
kitchen
accident
decades
earlier
.
Rather
than
forcing
progression
,
our
supervising
OT
adapted
the
entire
curriculum
around
tearing
herbs
,
squeezing
lemons
,
and
layering
sandwiches
.
Six
months
later
,
James
prepared
a
vegetable
stir
-
fry
for
the
group
.
The
goal
was
never
the
knife
;
it
was
agency
.
That
lesson
—
that
occupation
is
both
the
means
and
the
end
of
therapy
—
continues
to
guide
my
philosophy
of
care
.
I
am
applying
to
the
University
of
Washington
'
s
Doctor
of
Occupational
Therapy
program
because
of
its
renowned
emphasis
on
community
-
integrated
practice
and
global
health
.
Dr
.
Lisa
Mara
'
s
research
in
stroke
rehabilitation
aligns
directly
with
my
interest
in
neuroplasticity
and
upper
-
extremity
recovery
.
Additionally
,
UW
'
s
partnership
with
Harborview
Medical
Center
offers
unparalleled
exposure
to
level
-
one
trauma
and
complex
neurological
cases
.
I
am
eager
to
contribute
to
this
environment
not
only
as
a
learner
but
as
a
peer
who
brings
interdisciplinary
research
experience
and
a
practice
-
informed
perspective
.
Looking
forward
,
my
goal
is
to
specialize
in
neurorehabilitation
for
adults
with
acquired
brain
injury
,
with
a
long
-
term
aspiration
of
splitting
my
time
between
clinical
practice
and
academia
.
I
want
to
teach
future
therapists
how
to
read
the
silent
cues
of
fatigue
and
frustration
,
how
to
celebrate
the
smallest
victories
,
and
how
to
center
a
patient
'
s
values
even
when
they
conflict
with
standardized
assessments
.
Occupational
therapy
is
not
about
returning
people
1 / 2
to
who
they
were
;
it
is
about
equipping
them
to
become
who
they
want
to
be
.
I
am
ready
to
dedicate
my
career
to
that
transformation
.
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