Recreational Therapist

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Work Tasks

• Use activities to improve the mental, physical, and emotional well-being of patients
• Help patients build strength, confidence, and self-esteem
• Plan activities like games, dance, drama, arts, crafts, music, sports, and field trips
• Look at patient records and decide what they need; record patient progress
• Work in offices, gyms, activity rooms, playing fields, or swimming facilities for nursing homes, hospitals, community mental health centers, adult day care programs, correctional and residential facilities for the mentally handicapped, community programs for people with disabilities, and substance abuse centers
• Work with arts and crafts materials, sports equipment, patient records, progress notes, and reports

Salary, Size & Growth

• $43,000 average per year ($20.75 per hour)
• A small occupation (20,800 workers in 2010)
• Expected to grow moderately (1.5% per year)

Education/Training

• Minimum for Entry: A 2-year degree for entry-level positions in recreational therapy
• Employers Prefer A 4-year degree in recreational therapy
• Skills/Courses: College courses include program planning, patient evaluation, human anatomy, physiology, abnormal psychology, medical and psychiatric terminology, and characteristics of illnesses and disabilities.
• Certification/Licensing: Some states regulate recreational therapists to be licensed.