Occupational therapy is a health and rehabilitation profession. Occupational therapists provide services to individuals of all ages who have physical, developmental, emotional, and/or social deficits. Occupational therapists practice in public and private schools, rehabilitation centers, hospitals, hand therapy clinics, home health agencies, and in private practice.

Mission Statement

The mission of the University’s OTD Flex program is to graduate OT practitioners with the doctoral skills necessary to analyze human occupation and to implement science-driven and evidence-based interventions that promote quality of life for the clients whom they will serve. The graduates will contribute to their profession and to a global society through their competence, ethical standards, and professionalism. Upon successful completion of the OTD program, graduates will demonstrate preparation beyond the generalist level in practice, theory and research skills, leadership, advocacy and program development.

Program Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the OTD Flex program, graduates will demonstrate the ability to:

• apply the skills of a lifelong learner reflective of a professional occupational therapist,
• advocate for the profession of occupational therapy while collaborating with other members of a health care team,
• design and perform optimal programs or interventions treating occupational deficits by using effective clinical reasoning,
• create optimal and culturally competent verbal and written communication of occupational therapy services,
• implement principles of ethical and professional behavior in the delivery of occupational therapy services,
• advance the role of occupational therapy by performing as effective leaders,
• produce evidence-based information that contributes to the advancement of occupational therapy,
• synthesize information, problem solve, and think critically to judge the most appropriate theoretical basis, assessment and/or intervention strategies for individuals and populations,
• apply theoretical and empirical knowledge from the foundational bases of physiological, behavioral, social, and occupational therapy in the planning and implementation of occupational therapy in current and emerging areas of practice,
• apply OT practices to different populations, cultures, etc. based on an expanded view of individual client interventions to a global perspective of OT, and
• disseminate findings of scholarly inquiry that delve deeply into a clearly articulated problem facing OT professionals that impacts future practice.

Program Prerequisites

Required prerequisite coursework (must be completed with a grade of C or better):

• 3 credits of general college physics or kinesiology
• 3 credits of general college biology
• 6 credits of anatomy and physiology
• 1 credit of medical terminology
• 3 credits of human development across the lifespan
• 12 credits of social sciences (e.g., psychology, sociology, anthropology, abnormal psychology)
• 3 credits of statistics
• Unless candidates have current work experience in a health sciences field, it is recommended that their prerequisites be no more than 5 years old—especially anatomy and physiology.

Note: Prerequisite substitutions can be considered with the approval of the Program Director.

Delivery of Coursework

The OTD Flex program is 117 credits and is offered over 12 trimesters. More than 50% of the coursework is delivered online to the student. The online courses consist of Web-based text with extensive graphics, videos, and audio clips. There are opportunities provided for faculty-to-student and student-to-student synchronous and asynchronous interactive collaboration. Assessment of online learning outcomes includes a wide variety of evaluation tools depending on the course outcomes, such as (1) regular quizzes completed online, (2) graded bulletin board assignments, (3) case reports, (4) group projects, (5) research papers, and (6) article critiques.

In courses with a lab component, students come together for up to 16 hours of laboratory classes per selected weekends during a 15-week trimester. The lab sessions provide an avenue for teaching activities not well suited for online delivery, such as the hands-on learning that is vital to occupational therapy education, as well as oral presentations, lab practical testing, and socialization activities. Additionally, students may have to make arrangements for online exams at other times, which may include non-lab weekends.

Students in the Flex program complete two full-time fieldwork experiences that are 12-weeks in length in the second half of the program. Generally, this portion of the curriculum is completed with full-time attendance by the Flex OTD student, although alternate arrangements can be made when this is not possible.

There are two cohort groups of students admitted per year, with a minimum of eight students. If the number of Flex cohort students drops below eight, the University reserves the right to hold the cohort group back a trimester to combine with the following group.

Note: OTD Flex students must complete all Level II fieldwork within 24 months following completion of all prior didactic portions of the program. Students must complete the experiential component of the program within 18 months following completion of the remaining didactic portion of the program. For further information about accreditation contact: Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE), 4720 Montgomery Lane, Suite 200, Bethesda, MD  20814-3449, phone (301) 652-AOTA.