# Occupational therapist interview questions and how to answer them

Occupational therapist interviews ask how you set goals with clients, a case you're proud of, how you plan discharge, and why you want this setting. The thread through all of them is occupation: what the person needs and wants to do in daily life. Answer with a real client, kept anonymous, and show how their goals shaped your decisions.

By the Speaking Coach team at Sodhera Intelligence. Updated 2026-10-22. Source: https://www.orecci.com/speaking-coach/interview-questions-by-role/occupational-therapist/

## What the interviewer is listening for

OT managers listen for whether you think in terms of what the person does all day, not just their impairment. A candidate who says "we worked on grip strength" sounds weaker than one who says "she wanted to cut her own food again, so we worked on grip strength with her own cutlery." Keep the client's daily life at the centre of every answer.

## Goal-setting with clients

Show that goals come from the client, are measurable, and are reviewed.

1. **Ask what matters:** "What do you need to be able to do when you go home?"
2. **Turn it into a measurable goal:** who, what, how well, by when.
3. **Agree it with the client, and family where appropriate.**
4. **Review it** at set points and change it if their priorities change.

Example answer for an adult rehab OT:

> "A retired teacher after a stroke told me the thing she missed most was making tea for her husband. So instead of a generic upper-limb goal, we set one for her to make a hot drink safely in the therapy kitchen, with set-up only, within three weeks. Every session tied back to that. She was motivated because it was hers."

## "Tell me about a case you're proud of"

Pick a case where you made a decision that mattered, not just one with a happy ending. Say what was hard, what you tried, and what changed for the person.

Example answer for a pediatric OT:

> "A six-year-old was refusing to write in class and his teacher saw it as behaviour. My assessment showed weak hand strength and poor sitting posture, so writing was tiring and frustrating. I adjusted his chair and table height, gave the teacher three two-minute warm-ups to do with the whole class, and worked on hand strength through play in our sessions. By the end of term he was writing short sentences without meltdowns, and his teacher kept using the warm-ups."

## Discharge planning

The best answers show discharge starts at the first session. Talk about the home, the people around the client, and what happens after you leave.

> "I start asking about home on day one: stairs, bathroom layout, who's there to help. That shapes my goals. Before discharge I check the client can do their key tasks the way they'll do them at home, order the equipment early, and teach the carer, not just the client. If the plan isn't safe, I say so clearly in the team meeting, even when there's pressure on beds."

## Questions by setting

Interviewers tailor questions to the setting. Prepare for the ones in yours.

| Setting | What they often ask about | What to show |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pediatrics and schools | Sensory needs, handwriting, working with teachers and parents | You can explain your plan to non-therapists and build it into the school day |
| Inpatient rehab | ADL retraining, transfers, team meetings, discharge pressure | Clear priorities and safe discharge recommendations |
| Skilled nursing | Long-term goals, cognition, carer training | Patience, realistic goals and working with nursing staff |
| Mental health | Routines, groups, motivation | Using activity to build structure and confidence |
| Hand therapy | Splinting, post-surgical protocols | Precision and close work with surgeons |

## Mistakes to avoid

| Mistake | Why it hurts | Try instead |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Describing only impairments | Misses what makes OT different | Link every goal to an everyday activity |
| "The family was difficult" | Families are part of the work | Say how you found common ground |
| A case with no decision in it | Shows what happened, not how you think | Name the choice you made and why |
| Generic reasons for the setting | Sounds like you'd take any job | One experience that drew you to this setting |

Your "case you're proud of" answer should take about two minutes out loud. Check your timing with the [speech length calculator](/speaking-coach/tools/speech-length-calculator/) and practice saying it, because a case that reads well can sound rushed when spoken. Speaking Coach can play the hiring manager and ask why you chose each goal.

## Questions people ask

### How do I explain occupational therapy simply in an interview?

Try one sentence: "I help people do the everyday things they need and want to do, like dressing, cooking, working or playing, after illness, injury or with a disability." Then give a quick example.

### What do new grad OT interviews ask?

Your fieldwork placements, a client you learned from, how you take supervision, and how you'd manage a caseload. Know one fieldwork case well.

### How do I talk about disagreeing with a family?

Show that you listened, explained your reasoning in plain words, and found a goal everyone could accept, while keeping the client's own choices at the centre.

### Should I mention specific assessments?

Yes, briefly, if they shaped your decisions. Naming an assessment without saying what it told you adds little.

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