Assessing the effectiveness of podcasts in supporting occupational therapy career readiness

Background Preparing occupational therapy students for emerging practice areas (E/IPA) requires scalable strategies to build career readiness beyond traditional clinical training. While podcasts show promise for career exploration, their efficacy in fostering OT career preparedness remains understudied. Objective To evaluate how podcast interventions enhance OT students’ career readiness by improving awareness, confidence, and perceived competence in emerging and innovative practice areas (E/IPA). Methods A cohort study (N = 87 OT students) used pre/post surveys including the Perceived Competence Scale (PCS) and researcher-designed Likert scales. Mixed-effects linear regression was used to model the odds of improvement in interest, awareness, confidence, and competence, and to examine demographic associations. Results Podcast exposure was associated with significant increases in awareness, confidence, and competence relative to interest. First-year OT doctoral student listeners demonstrated greater effects (awareness OR = 37.33). Gender effects were non-significant. Conclusions Podcast content may support OT students’ preparation for diverse career pathways by demystifying E/IPA roles and providing and providing affective and cognitive scaffolding for non-traditional practice areas. These findings suggest that podcasts can foster career adaptability and may help address inequities in access to role models and exposure to innovative practice. Integrating podcasts into curricula could enhance career readiness while equipping students to navigate healthcare's evolving landscape.