Therapeutic Recreation Emphasis

The Therapeutic Recreation emphasis in the Recreation, Parks and Leisure Services department prepares you for a rewarding profession helping those with disabilities, illnesses and limiting conditions discover and nurture their passions. Through leisure, you’ll help people find meaning and purpose, become healthier and improve their functioning.

Prerequisites to the Major

RPLS 272 Introduction to Recreation, Parks and Leisure Services (3 credits)

Curriculum

The Therapeutic Recreation curriculum consists of RPLS professional core courses as well as five courses specific to Therapeutic Recreation. Students seeking national certification must then complete an additional 18 credits of supportive coursework, including:

Human Anatomy and Physiology
Abnormal Psychology
Human Development Across the Lifespan
Introduction to Psychology
Introduction to Sociology
Sensitivity to Disability
Ethics

RPLS Professional Core Courses Required for Major

RPLS 277 Recreation Leadership (3 credits)
RPLS 302 Pre-Practicum Seminar (2 credits)
RPLS 375 Recreation Technology (3 credits)
RPLS 376 Program Planning in RPLS (4 credits)
RPLS 377W Public Relations (3 credits)
RPLS 379 Recreation Management Facility Resources (3 credits)
RPLS 473 Recreation Management: Financial Resources (3 credits)
RPLS 483 Recreation Management: Human Resources (3 credits)
RPLS 495 Practicum (9 credits)

Therapeutic Recreation Career Track

RPLS 274 Therapeutic Recreation Services (3 credits)
RPLS 440 Therapeutic Recreation Assessment (3 credits)
RPLS 447W Therapeutic Recreation Process (3 credits)
RPLS 450 Therapeutic Recreation Techniques (3 credits)
RPLS 489 Advancement of the Therapeutic Recreation Profession (3 credits)

Therapeutic Recreation Practicum

The Therapeutic Recreation Practicum Checklist (link to PDF) outlines the steps to complete your practicum. The practicum is a 9 credit capstone course that allows you to apply what you’ve learned in the classroom to real life settings while supervised by a qualified professional. The practicum lasts a minimum of 14 consecutive weeks for a total of 560 hours. During the practicum, you gain valuable experience with each of the following 10 job task domains:

Professional roles and responsibilities
Assessment
Planning interventions and programs
Implementing interventions and programs
Evaluating outcomes of the interventions and programs
Documenting intervention services
Working with treatment and service teams
Organizing programs
Managing TR/RT services
Public awareness and advocacy