Date of Award

5-16-2017

Document Type

Capstone Project

Degree Name

Doctorate

Department

Occupational Therapy

Faculty Mentor

Gillian Rai

Abstract

Occupational therapy education has accepted two degree paths for entry-level practice since 2007 – the Masters in Occupational Therapy (MOT) and the Clinical Doctorate in Occupational Therapy (OTD). A national debate exists about this approach, with strong voices on each side but there is a gap in the research supporting either side. A cohort study was used to gather data from program directors of entry-level occupational therapy programs in the U.S. to determine if there are trends, common perceptions, or predictive factors regarding which degree is supported by a program. Trends were identified, as were some common perceptions regarding the advantages of both degrees. There were conflicting views regarding the disadvantages and actual barriers associated with the OTD. Results of this study were compared to results from a similar study completed in 2006 (Griffiths & Padilla, 2006). This study contributes to the historical account of the ongoing debate regarding occupational therapy education.

Keywords

occupational therapy education, entry-level OTD, clinical doctorate, MOT, occupational therapy degree selection, dual entry

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

Comments

© 2017 Tara N. Ruppert.

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