Occupational therapy.

This course is organized as a dynamic congress format, bringing together national and international speakers, researchers, and clinical experts in occupational therapy. Across multiple days, participants engage in keynote lectures, thematic sessions, and interactive workshops addressing contemporary and innovative topics in the field.

Themes may include inclusion and participation across the lifespan. The sessions explore disability critically examine societal attitudes toward individuals situated in vulnerable social positions, encouraging critical reflection on diversity, equity, and occupational justice.

Students not only attend expert-led sessions but also actively participate in workshops that translate theory into practical, occupation-centered applications. This congress-style format fosters networking, international exchange, and exposure to emerging evidence and best practices within occupational therapy.

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This course invites international students to explore occupational therapy through direct engagement with diverse client groups across the lifespan. Within a generalist occupational therapy program, you will “taste” different practice domains in depth, ranging from mental health and physical rehabilitation to community development and social care.

The central focus is participation: understanding how occupational therapists enable individuals and communities to engage meaningfully in daily life.

By immersing yourself in various target groups, you will deepen your professional reasoning and discover how context, environment, and life roles shape occupational performance. The course combines theoretical integration with hands-on experiences, allowing you to connect models, assessments, and intervention strategies directly to practice situations.

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In collaboration with Research Centre 360° Care & Well-being

In a European Union committed to promoting social cohesion and equality, the evolving dynamics of migration call for innovative and inclusive approaches in health and social care. This course focuses on diversity-sensitive care for older people with a migrant background and their families, aligned with the principles of inclusivity and solidarity as outlined in the European Pillar of Social Rights.

Students explore how migration histories, cultural identities, language, religion, and socio-economic factors shape occupational participation and access to care in later life. From an occupational therapy perspective, the course addresses how professionals can recognize structural inequalities and respond with culturally responsive, person-centered interventions.

In close collaboration with Research Centre 360° Care & Well-being, students engage with current research findings, community initiatives, and practice-based cases. You will critically reflect on your own professional attitude, develop intercultural sensitivity, and learn to adapt communication and intervention strategies to diverse family contexts.

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This international course Motivational Interviewing in Healthcare (3 ECTS) is designed specifically for occupational therapy students who want to strengthen their impact in client-centered practice.

You will explore the theoretical foundations of motivation and behavior change, directly linked to occupational engagement and participation. The course focuses on applying motivational interviewing within real occupational therapy contexts such as rehabilitation, mental health, community practice, and chronic care. You will learn how to facilitate meaningful goal setting, enhance intrinsic motivation, and support sustainable participation in daily life. Through hands-on training, simulations, and practice-based exercises, you will develop advanced communication and coaching skills tailored to occupational therapy. Special attention is given to empowering clients to take ownership of their occupational performance and life roles. The course emphasizes evidence-based practice while remaining strongly person-centered and occupation-focused.

By the end of the program, you will be equipped to confidently use motivational interviewing as a powerful tool to promote autonomy, participation, and occupational well-being across diverse international healthcare settings.

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This international course explores how occupational therapists can actively promote participation, inclusion, and well-being in aging societies. Through five interconnected modules, students analyse the societal, cultural, and professional challenges linked to demographic aging from an occupation-centered perspective.

The course is based on the TOPOI model. TOPOI is the abbreviation of language, structure, persons, organization and effort. These are the five areas in which cultural differences and misunderstandings can take place. The TOPOI model includes a practical analysis and intervention framework to detect and deal with these cultural differences and misunderstandings in an intercultural contact.

Module 1 – Ensuring the Rights and Inclusion of Older Adults. Focus on autonomy, dignity, and occupational justice in later life, and the role of occupational therapy in promoting inclusive participation.

Module 2 – Threats to Inclusion of Older Adults. Exploration of barriers such as ageism, social isolation, poverty, and environmental obstacles that limit participation.

Module 3 – Functional Capacity and Prevention. Understanding functional capacity in interaction with environment and occupation, with emphasis on prevention and healthy aging.

Module 4 – User-Friendly Age Technology. Introduction to age-friendly technologies and digital inclusion as tools to enhance autonomy and engagement.

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A collaboration between Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany

This international Blended Intensive Program (BIP) brings together students from Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany to explore community development within health care from a comparative European perspective. The program combines online preparation with an intensive on-site week, fostering intercultural exchange and collaborative learning.

The course is situated at the behavioral levels of application (T) and integration (I). Students learn to interact professionally in an international context (I), adapting their communication style and professional behavior to intercultural situations (I). They understand and are able to apply community oriented frameworks for action within communities.

You will formulate and defend a professional opinion on international societal and political themes related to health care and occupational therapy (I). Through structured comparison, you analyse differences and similarities between professional practice in your home country and in partner countries and within different disciplines.

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This international course Research on New Contexts for Occupational Therapy in Health and Social Care (3 ECTS) invites students to explore the evolving roles of occupational therapists in innovative and emerging practice settings.

You will critically engage with scientific literature to understand how occupational therapy is expanding within community development and primary care. The course highlights how occupational therapists contribute to social inclusion, prevention, and health promotion beyond traditional clinical environments.

Students gain hands-on experience with qualitative research methods such as interviews, focus groups, and photovoice, all applied to real occupational therapy contexts. You will conduct fieldwork and collect authentic data from professionals working in community-based or primary care settings.

A strong emphasis is placed on analysing professional roles, competencies, and societal impact through an occupation-centered lens.

Throughout the course, you will develop research skills that strengthen your academic profile and professional reasoning. By the end, you will be able to critically reflect on and scientifically substantiate the future potential of occupational therapy within diverse international health and social care systems.

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Start locally, debate globally (3 ECTS)

Start locally, debate globally can be the stage of the U!reka partner institutions that offers university and university college students, teachers and interested parties a forum for reflection on those relevant social, cultural and scientific themes.

One kick-off session is given by the organizing institution with detailed information about the course. This will be followed by an opening lecture.

The other partners organize 2 lectures, one in each semester, with the same theme given by experts from various fields or disciplines. Each lecture is followed by a debate or by questions from the audience.

Study Guide U!reka Debates

 

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Survival Dutch (3 ECTS)

• This course is an introduction to the Belgian cultural and political characteristics. At the same time, it is a language course: learning Dutch is the central goal. Daily situations are the starting point to learn grammar, vocabulary and specific skills to function in a Dutch speaking environment.

  As a result, the student should be able to:

• Understand words and basic sentences about himself, family and close environment, when people are talking clearly and slowly
• Understand sentences and messages on billboards, announcements, etc.
• Use a number of expressions and sentences to describe oneself, family and other people, education, job, etc.
• Participate in a simple discussion, when other participants are prepared to talk slowly and repeat certain things if necessary. The student should be able to ask simple questions and give answers as long as it concerns topics that are familiar.

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Innovative Solutions Lab (3 ECTS)

 

Tnnovative Solutions Lab is an activity-based course that combines design thinking, entrepreneurship, and intercultural collaboration. This course is uniquely designed to work in close synergy with the Entrepreneurial Teams program, an interdisciplinary honors initiative where select student teams address real-world challenges over multiple years.

In this course, students form their own project teams to tackle sub-challenges defined by the Entrepreneurial Teams and their stakeholders. These sub-challenges are approached using a combination of design thinking methodologies and entrepreneurial principles, enabling students to develop innovative, user-centered solutions while enhancing their cultural adaptability, creativity, and self-directed learning skills.

The course begins with three foundational sessions introducing key concepts in design thinking, entrepreneurship, and collaborative teamwork. After this introduction, students take ownership of their projects, working more autonomously and interacting regularly with the Entrepreneurial Teams and their stakeholders. This dynamic collaboration provides students with real-world experience in addressing complex challenges within an international and interdisciplinary context.

The LoopMe app is employed throughout the course to support individual learning and reflection tasks. These tasks foster critical thinking, self-regulation, and the ability to link theoretical knowledge to practical problem-solving.

At the conclusion of the course, student teams present their solutions to the Entrepreneurial Teams and their stakeholders, showcasing their innovative approaches, entrepreneurial mindset, and ability to work in diverse, cross-cultural teams.

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Interprofessional collaboration (3 ECTS)

The course consists of the following components:

• meetings with students from other programs to elaborate on a case within an interdisciplinary team
• developing meeting techniques
• developing knowledge and understanding of responsibilities and vision of other disciplines
• developing a treatment through the perspective of the student’s own discipline
• drawing up common treatment goals and an individual treatment plan

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