Program Overview

Doctor of Occupational Therapy (Entry-Level)

The entry-level OTD program (OTDE) at KU Medical Center has been designed to provide students with the skills necessary to work as occupational therapists in a range of healthcare, educational, and community-based settings. The OTDE program is a three-year full-time on-site commitment at the University of Kansas Medical Center campus, where lectures and labs are delivered. Upon completion of didactic coursework and fieldwork, students complete a doctoral capstone experience that may be situated in the Kansas City metropolitan area, the state of Kansas, and/or across the country.

Overview

This OTDE program was granted full Accreditation Status in 2021 for a 7-year period by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) for the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA). This allows its graduates to be eligible to sit for the national certification examination for the occupational therapist administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). After successful completion of this exam, the individual will be an Occupational Therapist, Registered (OTR). In addition, all states require licensure in order to practice; however, state licenses are usually based on the results of the NBCOT Certification Examination. Note that a felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure.

Admissions

Applications for this program are accepted online and require two parts to be completed separately. Like many entry-level programs across the country, KU uses the Occupational Therapy Centralized Application Service (OTCAS) as the first part of the application process. In the second part, supplemental materials are submitted to KU using an online application portal.

• A bachelor's degree in any field from a regionally accredited institution is required and must be documented by submission of an official transcript indicating the degree has been conferred before entering the OTDE program.
• Applicants must possess a cumulative grade-point average (GPA) of at least a 3.2 on a 4.0 scale for his or her bachelor's degree program and specifically a 3.2 GPA on the specific prerequisite courses.
• The following prerequisite courses are required:
  • abnormal psychology
  • lifespan development/developmental psychology
  • statistics
  • ethics
  • human physiology
  • human anatomy with a lab
  • a social science course
  • medical terminology
• Applicants who are not native speakers of English, whether domestic or international, must demonstrate they meet the minimum English proficiency requirement.
• As part of the online application, applicants will submit a personal statement describing why occupational therapy is their chosen career, and how a degree in OT will support the applicant's personal and professional goals.
• Three separate references are required and should be written by a professional, advisor, instructor, supervisor, coach, or other adult contacts who can attest to the applicant’s potential success in the program and future contributions to the occupational therapy profession.
• A background check is required during the admission process; it may affect the student's eligibility to enter the program.

Degree Requirements

• All students are enrolled as full-time students, and degree requirements are normally completed within 3 years of admission to the program.
• Cumulative grade-point average (GPA) of at least a 3.0 for all graduate coursework.
• Successful completion of all courses with the grade of “C” or higher.
• Successful completion of required Level II fieldwork experiences with the grade of “B” or higher.
• Successful completion of a minimum of 112 credit hours, including academic course work and fieldwork experiences.
• Enrollment in a minimum of one (1) credit hour the semester the student will graduate.
• Successful completion of the following courses:
  • OTDE 700: Foundations in Occupational Therapy
  • OTDE 705: Functional Anatomy and Kinesiology to Support Occupational Performance
  • OTDE 710: Professionalism in Context - I: Interpersonal and Interprofessional
  • OTDE 711: Professionalism in Context II
  • OTDE 715: Scholarly Practice I: Becoming an Evidence-Based Practitioner
  • OTDE 716: Scholarly Practice II: Professional Writing
  • OTDE 720: Theory to Practice in Occupational Therapy
  • OTDE 725: Analysis & Adaptation I
  • OTDE 726: Analysis & Adaptation II
  • OTDE 730: Population Health & Wellness
  • OTDE 740: Neuroscience Foundations to Support Occupational Performance
  • OTDE 754: Occupational Performance and Participation Across the Lifespan - I
  • OTDE 755: Occupational Performance and Participation Across the Lifespan - II
  • OTDE 756: Occupational Performance and Participation Across the Lifespan - III
  • OTDE 760: Policy and Advocacy for Occupational Therapy - I
  • OTDE 761: Policy and Advocacy for Occupational Therapy - II
  • OTDE 795: Scholarly Practice III: Understanding Research Methodology
  • OTDE 815: Supporting Occupational Performance Across the Mental Health Continuum
  • OTDE 845: Scholarly Practice IV: Interpreting, Integrating, and Translating Evidence
  • OTDE 850: Professionalism in Education
  • OTDE 860: Professionalism in Practice I
  • OTDE 861: Professionalism in Practice II
  • OTDE 870: Contemporary Community Engagement
  • OTDE 900: Occupational Therapy Level II Fieldwork - Part I
  • OTDE 901: Occupational Therapy Level II Fieldwork - Part II
  • OTDE 915: Professionalism in Leadership and Administration
  • OTDE 940: Capstone I: Exploration
  • OTDE 950: Capstone II: Planning
  • OTDE 970: Capstone III: Preparation
  • OTDE 980: Capstone IV: Dissemination
  • OTDE 990: Capstone V: Experience

Technical Standards

Because an OTDE degree signifies that the holder is eligible to sit for the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) exam and signifies that the holder is prepared for entry into the profession of occupational therapy, it follows that graduates must have the knowledge and skills to function in a broad variety of clinical, community, or school-based situations and to render a wide spectrum of occupational therapy services.

• Essential Motor Skills:
  • have gross motor skills to move safely about the Medical Center and fieldwork sites
  • be able to perform moderately taxing physical work, often requiring prolonged sitting
  • have strength, balance, and equilibrium necessary to do such things as move clients from bed to wheelchair or to manipulate parts of, or whole bodies of, simulated and real people of all ages
  • have fine motor skills essential to perform such tasks as writing, typing, and manipulation of objects
• Essential Sensory Skills:
  • accurately perceive objects in the environment
  • accurately observe human performance
• Essential Communication Skills:
  • assimilate information from written sources
  • attain, comprehend, retain, and use new information presented in written formats
  • independently complete assignments, tests, and professional documentation appropriately, in a timely manner, and in appropriate format
  • impart information so that it can be understood by others
• Essential Cognitive Skills:
  • make correct observations and have the skills of comprehension, measurement, calculation, reasoning, integration, analysis, and synthesis
  • recognize, label, and categorize information to draw conclusions
• Essential Behavioral/Social Skills:
  • exhibit professional behaviors and attitudes during their participation in the classroom and in clinical situations
  • exhibit a positive attitude toward persons being served, family members, peers, and supervisors
  • be flexible and creative to adapt to professional and technical change

Dual Degree

You can earn a dual degree in occupational therapy and business at the University of Kansas. Designed to advance one's individual professional goals and development, the dual degree is beneficial for occupational therapists who will be engaging with corporate executives, starting a private practice, or moving into a management position.

• Your first step is to apply to KU's entry-level doctorate program in occupational therapy (OTDE)
• You can apply to the master's degree program in business administration (MBA) in the summer between years two and three of the OTDE program
• Starting the next fall semester, complete two semesters of business coursework on the KU-Lawrence campus
• Return to KU Medical Center in the summer of year three for the capstone project planning course
• Finish with two semesters of occupational therapy courses during your fourth year at KU Medical Center

Program Schedule

After successfully completing the first two years in the doctoral program in occupational therapy, completion of the business administration portion takes one academic year. The two-semester master's degree in business administration prepares the occupational therapist with health care finance and management information and experiences across 32 credit hours of business coursework that can be completed during the fall and spring semesters.

Eligibility and Requirements

To participate, you must meet the admission requirements to be accepted into the doctoral program in occupational therapy before entering the dual-degree OTD/MBA program. All students must remain in good academic standing during study in the occupational therapy program to be eligible to enroll in the MBA component (maintaining a minimum 3.0 grade point average). Applications for the MBA program are accepted in the summer prior to the fall start of the program. The Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) is not required for this dual degree. Once your doctorate in occupational therapy is earned, following the four-year course of study, the master's degree in business administration will officially be added to your transcript.