Progression routes and attainment in occupational therapy education: the impact of background characteristics

Abstract

UK government agendas promoting widening participation in higher education and diversification of the health and social care workforce have contributed to changing student profiles in pre-registration occupational therapy education. Sixty-seven percent of the 2005 intake was mature and students increasingly enter with a range of ‘non-traditional’ academic backgrounds. A small body of evidence suggests that final degree marks are indistinguishable for occupational therapy students holding traditional and non-traditional entry qualifications, but none of these studies considered students unable to complete or the potential influence of socio-economic background or gender.

The progression routes and academic achievements of 239 consenting occupational therapy students from a single programme were analysed to explore the influence of entry qualifications, age at entry, gender and socio-economic background. None had a statistically significant impact on the final degree marks of graduating students. Binary logistic regressions, however, highlighted that male gender and a background from amongst the lower socio-economic groups were significant predictors of poorer outcomes in relation to passing at Level 4, 5 and 6 and the achievement of a ‘good’ (upper second or first class) honours degree. The findings raise important questions about how a profession that promotes social justice supports diversity amongst its own ranks.

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ORCID for Jo Watson: orcid.org/0000-0002-2756-2148

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