
The mission of the post-professional Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD)
program is to enable occupational therapists in any practice area to develop roles
and skills beyond that of the therapist-clinician. Our program supports their
development toward practitioner-scholars who can translate knowledge, including
cross-disciplinary theories and research, into practice, and who are capable of
serving as change agents in new and expanded arenas within the field of
occupational therapy.
The post-professional OTD curriculum is designed to prepare practicing
occupational therapists to become advanced practitioners capable of serving as
evidence-based leaders. The capstone component is an integral part of the program.
It is designed to develop occupational therapists with advanced knowledge/skills in
one of the following eight areas: clinical practice, research skills, administration,
leadership, program and policy development, advocacy, education, or theory
development.
With a keen understanding of the responsibilities of the practicing occupational
therapist that holds a master's degree, this mission is accomplished by offering a
two-year, part-time online program. It combines web-based instruction with a onetime
campus visit to present Capstone to faculty and students. Our program is
unique in that post-professional OTD students have an opportunity to interact with
both MSOT students at the Erie, PA campus and entry-level OTD students at the
Ruskin, FL campus.
Quick Facts
DEGREE AWARDED: Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD)
ADMIT TERM: Summer
NUMBER OF CREDITS: 34
TUITION: $770/credit (no additional fees) for 2020-2021 academic year
LENGTH OF PROGRAM: 2 years; flexible options may be available upon request
MODALITY: ONLINE, no residency requirement
PLAN OF STUDY: Part-time
WHERE TO APPLY:
http://apply.gannon.edu
- Flexible, online learning environment designed for the practicing
clinician in today's field.
- Opportunity to interact with master's level OT students and
entry-level OTD students.
- Curriculum that allows the opportunity to develop a personalized
capstone process that tailors the program to the individual goals
and expectations of the clinician.
Curriculum
The Post-Professional Occupational Therapy Doctorate is a doctoral degree which is awarded upon the successful completion of the following 34 credits:
Summer I
DOCCT 900 Applied Research in Clinical Practice (3)
DOCCT 90 Advanced Occupations (3)
Total: 6
Fall I
DOCCT 902 Capstone 1 (2)
DOCCT 844 Community Based Interventions (3)
Total: 5
Spring I
DOCCT 903 Capstone 2 (2)
DOCCT 873 Emerging Models of Practice in OT
Total: 5
Summer II
DOCCT 910 Advanced Leadership and Ethics (3)
DOCCT 912 Reasoning and Evidenced-Based Practice (3)
Total: 6
Fall II
DOCCT 906 Analysis of Policy and Change in OT (3)
DOCCT 918 Teaching in Practice and Community (3)
Total: 6
Spring II
DOCCT 907 Capstone Project (3)
DOCCT 871 Entrepreneurial Management Practice in OT (3)
Total: 6
Total Credits: 34
Alumni Success
Marie Johnson, OTR , Assistant Vice President of Rehabilitation
Services
Erie County Medical Center
"Yesterday I attended a
strategic planning session for the hospital where I work. I thought I would
bring a copy of the OTPF and the WHO document we received in our first semester
course. A lot of time was spent presenting the hospital’s current statistics on
finances, programs and challenges. Then a speaker with a PhD from Harvard
presented trends and challenges in healthcare. So much of the information
presented was familiar to me from the OTD program. Leading health
indicators, population health, and health disparities were discussed. Local
data was presented on the quickly growing segment of people over the age of 65,
the high poverty rate, educational disparities, and how all of this impacts the
future of value-based healthcare. I have to say that I was already aware of the
language, and the local statistics due to a project I worked on in my second
semester on Meals on Wheels of WNY. Additionally, the Affordable
Care Act was discussed at a very basic level, and I felt like I already had a
baseline level of knowledge about that information too. It is not that I
needed to know this information, but I felt so much better
informed. A year ago, this would have all been foreign to me. I was
on the edge of my seat thinking about the big picture and a year ago I would
have been more likely trying to understand the individual statistics, concepts
and what they represent. It was another personal fulfilling moment in my
educational journey."
Marie Johnson, OTR