Personal OT Journeys

We’ve all been there. You open your laptop, stare at 400 pages of a study guide, and think: “Where do I even start?” After my own 8-day, 13-hour-a-day study marathon, I realized that passing the NBCOT isn't just about how much you know—it's about how you organize what you know . I’m a tactile, visual learner, and I needed something I could touch, highlight, and flip through to make the concepts stick. That’s why I created the Study Hard, Pass Hard Prep Binder . It’s the physi

Even though this was my first time taking the NBCOT , I was very intentional about one thing: 👉 How I treated the day before the exam. At that point, I knew the content was already there. What mattered most was my mental — my mindset, my calm, my nervous system. This post isn’t about cramming or last-minute studying. It ’s about how I set myself up mentally so I could actually show up and perform. The Stress I Didn’t Anticipate: Testing Center + Traffic Here’s a real-life

If you’ve been following along, you already know this wasn’t my original plan. I did create a 28-day study schedule that included TherapyEd, AOTA, OT Miri, OT Exam Prepper, and Mometrix Flashcards … but long story short, life happened, and I ended up doing an 8-day intensive study sprint (about 10–13 hours a day ). This post is my honest, no-sugar-coating review of the materials I actually used and how they felt in real life, not just on paper. TherapyEd Pros : incredibly

One of the biggest questions I get is: “ What was the NBCOT exam really like? ” So I wanted to share my honest experience, not to scare anyone, but to help you frame how to think about this exam. Overall exam balance From my experience, the exam felt like a fair balance across all four major areas: Adult rehab Pediatrics Mental health Geriatrics Nothing felt wildly overrepresented, and nothing felt completely absent. That said, many of the scenarios, regardless of population,

If you’ve ever thought, “I’ll start studying early so I won’t be stressed,” and then somehow ended up cramming anyway, this post is for you . I took my NBCOT exam on 11/20 (2025), and I waited about three weeks for my results. Those weeks felt longer than the entire prep period combined. To make it extra spicy, 11/20 was the only test date available for me , and I had already booked a non-refundable trip to Japan starting 12/10, which also happened to be score release day .

Entering a Doctoral program in Occupational Therapy at USC is no small feat. It's a journey filled with dedication, passion, and a thirst...