Elizabeth Stevens-Nafai, ’09 G Master of Occupational Therapy

“Prior to enrolling in the MOT program at Bay Path College, I spent five years teaching middle school students ‘what’ to think. As I experienced ups and downs in my life, like so many of us do, I realized I was more interested in teaching people ‘how’ to think and improving their quality of life. I found occupational therapy to be a path to help empower others how to think, and decided to shift careers.

With a bachelor’s degree in German and a minor in economics, I knew I would need to take additional courses to fulfill pre-requisites for any OT graduate program. As I searched for a college that provided high quality education as well as convenience, I discovered Bay Path. My admissions counselor and advisor arranged for me to attend pre-requisite courses at Bay Path’s One-Day-a-Week Saturday College, making the shift into a new field much less intimidating than other MOT programs in the area and enabling me to easily transition into Bay Path’s two-year MOT program. When I enrolled in the MOT program, I immediately recognized that occupational therapy was just a part of who I am. The profession allows me to teach essential life skills to those with physical and mental impairments, giving them the support they deserve as they learn how to adapt to their lives.

Time and time again, Bay Path faculty have encouraged my interests. They have not only provided me with necessary skills and knowledge to help patients live life to the fullest, but they have supported my research related to MOT graduate students’ critical-thinking changes throughout the course of their Level II Fieldwork. I recently had the privilege to work one-on-one with Dr. Anne James to conduct scientific research on this topic, and we were invited to present our paper “Effect of Level II Fieldwork on Critical Thinking in Masters’ of Occupational Therapy Students,” as well as our findings which demonstrated significant improvement of critical thinking skills, during the AOTA’s (American Occupational Therapy Association) National Conference and Expo in Texas as well as at the Massachusetts Association for Occupational Therapy Annual Conference.

Bay Path has its students’ best interests at heart, and everyone wants you to succeed. As a student in Bay Path’s MOT program, I have been given extraordinary opportunities that I know I would not have the chance to experience anywhere else.”