What is Allied Health Academy?
The North Orange County Allied and other Health Careers Opportunity Program (HCOP) aims to increase the pipeline of underrepresented Latinos, Pacific Islanders (including Native Hawaiian, Samoan and Chamorro) and Southeast Asians (particularly Vietnamese, Cambodian, Hmong and Lao), and other underserved, first generation college students into the professions of communicative disorders, counseling, occupational therapy, public health (including environmental health specialists, epidemiologists, health educators, and gerontologists), physical therapy, and social work. This multifaceted effort is specifically designed to increase retention and graduation of these diverse underserved students across the educational continuum, from high school and community college into four year college and graduate allied and other health profession programs.
This project is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number D18HP29033 Health Careers Opportunity Program for $1,765,528 (0% financed by nongovernmental sources). This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.
How to improve health in your Orange County community?
We can help you do that! The Allied Health Academy supports students toward an allied health career. We provide services and resources at each step, through high school, community college, undergraduate, and graduate school!
Through the success of the first three years of the Allied Health Academy, CSU Fullerton has been awarded with another five-year grant! The new grant extends our focus to not only get students into graduate programs, but to support them during graduate school as well. Check out our Resources page for a list of other helpful resources.
Why should I choose an Allied Health career?
Allied Health Careers Pay Well!
Occupation | Avg Hourly Pay | Avg Annual Salary |
---|---|---|
Physcial Therapist | $43.75 | $91,010 |
Occupational Therapist | $41.48 | $86,280 |
Speech Therapist | $38.69 | $80,480 |
Environmental Scientist | $35.21 | $73,230 |
Epidemiologist | $35.84 | $74,560 |
Occupational Health Specialist | $34.87 | $72,530 |
Social Worker | $24.88 | $51,760 |
Health Educator | $23.15 | $48,140 |
Mental Health Counselor | $22.91 | $47,660 |
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (2021), California Employment Development Department Occupation Profile.
Allied Health Careers are Needed in Orange County!
Occupation | Projected Growth (2022-2023) |
---|---|
Physical Therapist | 21% |
Occupational Therapist | 17% |
Speech Therapist | 29% |
Environmental Scientist | 8% |
Epidemiologist | 30% |
Occupational Health Specialist | 7% |
Social Worker | 12% |
Health Educator | 17% |
Mental Health Counselor | 23% |
Note: The growth rate for epidemiologists was not available for Orange County, so the national rate is used instead.
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook (2021), California Employment Development Department Occupation Profile.