Federal therapy jobs: OPM qualification standards for OT, PT, SLP, and assistants
Federal job postings for therapists cite an occupational series and its qualification standard from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). This page summarizes the basic requirements OPM lists for each series. Agencies, including the VA, may add their own requirements; read the posting.
Quoted from official pages checked November 12, 2026. Confirm current requirements and dates on those sites. This page is not legal, tax, or compliance advice.
Occupational therapist (series 0631)
From the Occupational Therapist Series 0631 standard: a graduate or higher degree with an occupational therapy curriculum approved by ACOTE or another accreditor recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, plus “Completion of the clinical requirements prescribed by the school.” And: “For all grade levels, applicants must have passed the national examination administered by the” National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy.
Physical therapist (series 0633)
From the Physical Therapist Series 0633 standard: a graduate or higher degree with an approved physical therapy curriculum and the school’s clinical requirements (paraphrased). “For all grade levels and positions, applicants must possess a current, active, full, and unrestricted license or registration as a Physical Therapist from a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States; and must have passed the National Physical Therapy Examination”.
Speech-language pathologist (series 0665)
From OPM’s Speech/Language Pathology and Audiology Series 0665 standard: for speech pathologist positions, “a graduate or higher level graduate degree that included 18 semester hours in the field of speech pathology with approved clinical practice.” The program must be approved by the accrediting council the standard names, and the standard requires “a full, current, and unrestricted license to practice” in a state, DC, Puerto Rico, or a U.S. territory (paraphrased).
Specialty training and higher grades
For OT and PT, OPM states that applicants who completed an approved graduate curriculum and then “additional graduate training in a specialized field of clinical practice designed to assure professional competence to practice in the specialty meet the requirements for GS-11.”
Assistants (series 0636)
The Rehabilitation Therapy Assistant Series 0636 standard lists specialized experience such as “work as an assistant to one of the specialized therapies such as occupational, physical, manual arts, corrective, or educational therapy”. Education can substitute: the standard lists one year of study, or two years of study “in a program directly related to the specialized field of therapy” (paraphrased for grade levels).
Already in a federal job
The OT and PT standards read state: “Employees currently assigned to positions in this occupational series as of September 2017 will be considered to have met the basic requirements for the position occupied.”
What this page does not do
It does not list federal pay or open jobs. Pay data from BLS is on pay and outlook.