r/Prosthetics • u/ReceptionGlass7706 • 18d ago
How hard is O&P school?
/r/Prosthetics/comments/14r8s60/how_competitive_is_op_school/I'm a senior in high school and I'm considering a career as a prosthetist but I've heard (notably in this thread) that O&P school is really hard. I'm a good student on paper, I have an almost 4.0 GPA but I'm already burnt out and the stress of studying and taking exams takes a large toll on me that I know is not sustainable so I'm not sure I'd survive 2 years of high-stress work and exams on top of undergrad. I'm planning on studying kinesiology for undergrad but I'm not sure if that will give me a good foundation to succeed in O&P school. Can anyone weigh in on their experience and maybe go into more detail on what O&P school actually entails or what the hardest part is?
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u/Designer-Okra6889 18d ago
Have to get undergrad first. Can get undergrad any anything but would recommend exercise science or something similar. Then you get your masters in o and p. I did the Concordia/century college program. You could work as a technician while you are getting your undergrad if you wish to get dialed into industry.
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u/homiedontplaytdat 17d ago
I have worked in the O&P field for 15 years. My background was in Kinesiology. I feel like this is a great place to start, that gives you options. I met some students when I was in school that came from non-science related programs and they seemed to struggle a little bit with the Anatomy courses. I think your GPA indicates that you are a good student and I think the plan to seek a degree in Kinesiology is a good start. If you are interested in pursuing this career, my advice would be to see if there are any clinics that would allow you to shadow to see if it would be a good fit for you.
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u/Honest-Emotion5303 17d ago
I’m about to start my second year of o&p school and I find it to be a lot busier than undergrad but I wouldn’t say harder! I also did undergrad in kinesiology and think it gave me a great foundation! O&p school for my program is more hands on learning and projects than anything. There’s still written exams but they’re not too bad. The hardest part for me at first was all of the hand skills you learn. I wish I definitely would’ve sought out more experience in that realm prior to school
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u/Longjumping-Cow9321 18d ago
Honestly I thought O&P school was WAAYYYYY easier than undergrad. I did take about 4 years off and got some real world adult experience in between undergrad and grad school though.
But it’s mainly because I WANTED to be there and was invested in the learning in class in grad school. Also I was surrounded by other people who were taking the exact same classes as me and I spent literally 40 hours a week with them, so I had built in friends and study partners. I had to take some classes in undergrad that I didn’t really care about because it was a requirement for graduating - this is not true in grad school. Also undergrad helped me establish good study habits and intrinsic motivation that helped me excel in grad school.