A) ATRA defines therapeutic recreation as "the provision of Treatment Services and the provision of Recreation Services to persons with illnesses or disabling conditions. The primary purposes of Treatment Services, which are often referred to as Recreational Therapy, are to restore, remediate or rehabilitate in order to improve functioning and independence as well as reduce or eliminate the effects of illness or disability. The primary purposes of Recreational Services are to provide recreation resources and opportunities in order to improve health and well being. Therapeutic recreation is provided by professionals who are trained and certified, registered and/or licensed to provide therapeutic recreation (1987)."

For additional information regarding the American Therapeutic Recreation Association contact us at our national office: ATRA, 1414 Prince Street, Suite 204, Alexandria, VA 22314, (703) 683-9420 or visit ATRA's web site at www.atra-tr.org

A) The largest national organization is the American Therapeutic Recreation Association, which was founded in 1984. It is a professional organization whose members include practitioners, educators, and others interested in the field of therapeutic recreation. Some of the noted accomplishments of ATRA include a variety of publications, refinement of clinical practice standards, provision of various continuing education opportunities, and strengthening the recognition and respect of therapeutic recreation through local, state, and national advocacy efforts. In addition, ATRA has full-time staff members dedicated to meeting the needs of its members.

The following are the contact information about the organizations.

American Therapeutic Recreation Association
1414 Prince St., Suite 204, Alexandria, VA 22314-2853.
Internet: http://www.atra-tr.org

A) There is no legal obligation to become a member of a professional organization to practice as a therapeutic recreation specialist. However, as a therapeutic recreation specialist, it is important to understand the responsibilities one has when providing professional services. Being a member of ATRA helps the professional meet their responsibilities and experience a variety of benefits. Some of the benefits for ATRA members include: networking with other TR professionals, continuing education opportunities, access to professional on-line resources, scholarships, discounts on publications, conference registration, and hotel fees, and tools for educating employers, consumers, and the general population about the importance of therapeutic recreation. Therefore, it is strongly recommended for any TR professionals to become a member of a professional organization.

For more information of the benefits of a membership, please visit ATRA's membership web site at http://www.atra-tr.org/membership.htm

A) United States has a certifying body called "National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification" (NCTRC, web site: http://www.nctrc.org/). To become certified, the applicant must have a bachelor's degree, pass a written certification examination, and complete an internship of at least 480 hours under the supervision of a certified therapeutic recreation specialist (again, please visit the web site above for details). Additional requirements apply in order to maintain certification and to recertify.

Most employers prefer to hire candidates who have a CTRS™ credential are certified therapeutic recreation specialists™. Theoretically, certified therapeutic recreation specialist™ (CTRS™) is only valid in North America. I am not sure if the credential (CTRS™ by NCTRC) will be honored by other countries. It's totally up to the agency in that region. The CTRS™ credential awarded by NCTRC may be helpful, but may or may not required in job setting in other countries. However, the CTRS™ credential by NCTRC will qualify you when you apply RT job in North America.

More specific information on Certification can be obtained from:

National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification
7 Elmwood Dr., New City, NY 10956.
Internet: http://www.nctrc.org

A) Theoretically, Certified therapeutic recreation specialist™ (CTRS™) in the states maybe only valid in North America. It is not certain if the credential (CTRS™ by NCTRC) will be honored by other countries. It may be up to the agency in that region. The CTRS™ credential awarded by NCTRC may be helpful, but may or may not required in job setting in other countries. However, the CTRS™ credential by NCTRC will qualify you when you apply RT job in North America.

NCTRC manual (pages 6-8) explains "Eligibility." You can download this manual from the site I mentioned above. However, you might want to find an option for distance learning courses (e.g., web-based courses) in TR offered by various universities in USA.

A) Although some countries may have their own certification programs, it is believed that each country require different standards and evaluation criteria in academic and internship requirement, and in certification exams. Therefore, certification overseas America is not valid in the states and vice versa.

If you want to work in USA as a recreational therapist, we strongly recommend you to become a certified recreational therapist. Plus, we also would like to urge you to join ATRA membership in order to get in touch with recreational therapists in US as well as get yourself socialized with this wonderful professional organization.

A) Each institute and department may have different admission policies. However, in general, it is not required for candidates to have a bachelor's degree in TR Rather, it is common that graduate students in TR are from other fields such as such as education, psychology, nursing, and even from business and computer science.

The application packet for a graduate program typically includes: (a) official transcripts from previous institutes, (b) recommendation letters, (c) a statement of purpose, and (d) official test scores of TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) and GRE (Graduate Record Examinations). For more information about TOEFL and GRE, please contact ETS (Educational Testing Service, (609) 921-9000, http://www.ets.org/).

A) We cannot recommend one university program over another and certainly do not weigh in on correspondence programs. There are many variables that you will want to consider to meet your own personal learning needs.

One of the important considerations might be to find out what your specific interest is. For instance, some programs offer more clinically oriented TR programs while some offer more community-based programs. Some faculty may have specialty in gerontology while some may have expertise in adolescence. Therefore, you need to obtain as much information as possible about the program (e.g., curriculum and courses) and faculty (number and their expertise), and to make sure you that you will get the most out of the program.

Other important considerations would be: availability of graduate assistantship (if you apply for a graduate program, weather condition (e.g., too cold and dry for you? too hot and humid for you?), living expenditure, community environment (e.g., urban vs. rural, safety, cultural diversity, kindness of people, etc.). Although these factors sound like secondary issues, many times, these become very important matters that influence your (and your family's) quality of life during your stay in the states.

A) You can find employment update from ATRA's web site: http://www.atra-tr.org/employmentupdate.htm

Jobs and internship opportunities in US, in general, can be also found through the following web site: http://www.recreationtherapy.com

It might be also a good idea for you to check with local College and/or University Departments that offer TR programs. In addition, subscribing the ATRA News Letter and attending conferences may provide you with opportunities to explore jobs and internship opportunities.

A) Contact persons:
1. Dr. Gilber at agilbert@healthy.uwaterloo.ca.
University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada 519-885-1211

2. Jerome F. Singleton Jerome@ac.dal.ca.
Dalhousie University, Halifax, N. S., B3H 3H5 CAN; 902-494-1166.

A) Please contact:
1. Yong Gu Noh (janenoh@chollian.net)

2. Jae-Sub Yoon, Director of DTRA (Daehan Therapeutic Recreation Association) liss@chollian.net