Occupational therapy technician vs occupational therapist

The differences between occupational therapy technicians and occupational therapists can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an occupational therapist has an average salary of $75,707, which is higher than the $32,056 average annual salary of an occupational therapy technician.

The top three skills for an occupational therapy technician include patients, physical therapy and adaptive. The most important skills for an occupational therapist are patients, rehabilitation, and home health.

Occupational therapy technician vs occupational therapist overview

	Occupational Therapy Technician	Occupational Therapist
Yearly salary	$32,056	$75,707
Hourly rate	$15.41	$36.40
Growth rate	25%	14%
Number of jobs	54,684	78,315
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age	41	40
Years of experience	-	12

Occupational therapy technician vs occupational therapist salary

Occupational therapy technicians and occupational therapists have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Occupational Therapy Technician	Occupational Therapist
Average salary	$32,056	$75,707
Salary range	Between $14,000 And $68,000	Between $58,000 And $97,000
Highest paying City	-	Salinas, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Waters
Best paying industry	-	Professional

Differences between occupational therapy technician and occupational therapist education

There are a few differences between an occupational therapy technician and an occupational therapist in terms of educational background:

	Occupational Therapy Technician	Occupational Therapist
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common major	Kinesiology	Occupational Therapy
Most common college	Northwestern University	Duke University

Occupational therapy technician vs occupational therapist demographics

Here are the differences between occupational therapy technicians' and occupational therapists' demographics:

	Occupational Therapy Technician	Occupational Therapist
Average age	41	40
Gender ratio	Male, 26.1% Female, 73.9%	Male, 16.8% Female, 83.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.9% Unknown, 5.8% Hispanic or Latino, 8.6% Asian, 5.2% White, 70.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 4.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 6.2% Asian, 9.6% White, 75.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	8%	14%

Differences between occupational therapy technician and occupational therapist duties and responsibilities

Occupational therapy technician example responsibilities.

Administer physical and occupational therapy treatment plans to patients under the direct supervision of a therapist.
Assist therapists with transfers and ADL sessions in acute, ICU, and rehabilitation.
Assist in providing rehabilitative therapy to patients in the rehabilitation, transitional care and outpatient clinics.
Prepare materials for assessments and provide assistance to individuals through hands-on methods and direct contact observations by assisting the rehabilitation supervisor.
Maintain dynamic and static AAC devices, create overlays and programme changes to devices.
Suggest energy conservation/work simplification techniques.

Occupational therapist example responsibilities.

Achieve advance clinical competency in UE splinting.
Manage outpatient occupational therapy rehabilitation program.
Provide home assessment and recommend adaptive equipment and/or home modification needs to maximize safety of patients in their own environment.
General debility, CVA, joint replacement, upper extremity weakness, ADL 's
Founder of TLC program to educate patients, staff and family about CVA.
Complete evaluations and IEP's for home school children and perform on-going therapy for the kids.

Occupational therapy technician vs occupational therapist skills

Common occupational therapy technician skills

Patients, 37%
Physical Therapy, 9%
Adaptive, 7%
Vital Signs, 6%
Occupational Therapy Treatments, 6%
Patient Care, 5%

Common occupational therapist skills

Patients, 23%
Rehabilitation, 12%
Home Health, 12%
Patient Care, 9%
COTA, 7%
Occupational Therapy, 4%

Occupational Therapy Technician vs. similar jobs

Occupational Therapy Technician related careers

Occupational Therapy Technician related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Healthcare Support Industry
Occupational Therapy Technician
Occupational Therapy Technician vs Occupational Therapist

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse healthcare support jobs