Download as PDF
Therapeutic Recreation
Overview
Official Name of Program
Plan Code
Department(s) Sponsoring Program
Career
Degree Designation
HEGIS Code
NYSED Program Code
CIP Code
The B.S. in Therapeutic Recreation is designed to prepare students for entry into the therapeutic recreation profession and meets the eligibility requirements for taking the national certification exam for Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS), upon graduation. Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialists are employed in a wide range of agencies servicing people of all ages with illnesses, disabilities, and related health concerns. The CTRS is responsible for assessing the needs of their clients, planning and implementing a variety of individual and group therapeutic recreation services in conjunction with a person-centered approach, and, documenting and evaluating the efficacy of the services as a member of the interdisciplinary team.
About the CTRS:
The National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification (NCTRC) serves as a professional certification organization acting in the public interest by establishing and enforcing education, examination, experience, and ethics requirements for the therapeutic recreation profession. Currently, the CTRS designation is represented in all 50 states and throughout Canada and nine other countries.
Recreation therapists with the CTRS certification have demonstrated a unique set of competencies, abilities, and skills for practice in a wide variety of health care and human service settings.
Entry-level professionals who seek the CTRS designation need to complete a defined set of requirements that include:
• A Bachelor’s degree or higher in the concentrated area of Recreation Therapy/ Therapeutic Recreation
• Completion of a minimum 14 week, 560-hour internship under the supervision of a CTRS
• Successful completion of the NCTRC Certification exam
Students who complete the B.S. in Therapeutic Recreation program meet the eligibility requirements to sit for the NCTRC Certification Exam.
Departmental Grading Policy
Students must earn a C- or above in all Departmental courses required for the major and the minor. A D grade is acceptable in only one of the following: BIO 181, PSY 166, PSY 234 and HIN 268 for therapeutic recreation majors. If a student earned a D in more than one of those courses, the student may choose which course to repeat. D grades in those courses transferred in from another institution as part of a completed degree program are acceptable.