Post-Professional Doctorate (OTD) of Occupational Therapy
The USC Post-Professional OTD program is designed with flexibility for the working professional. Coursework can be taken completely remotely either full-time or part-time and your courses and residency can be tailored for your professional interests and career goals. Intensive mentorship allows you to learn alongside outstanding faculty and to network within the Trojan Family.
The OTD program offers four leadership pathways:
Pedagogy and Academic Administration This pathway equips you with the teaching expertise and other skills necessary to fulfill roles as clinical teaching faculty or in academic administration.
Clinical Research This pathway will immerse you within a Chan research lab where you will develop the expertise needed to effectively implement evidence-based outcome studies in practice.
Policy and Administration This pathway is designed to prepare you as an executive decision maker, public policy advocate, or administrator.
Advanced Clinical Practice This pathway offers you the opportunity to remain in your current clinical context and develop skills to lead quality improvement initiatives, implement innovative programs, and evaluate outcomes of your practice.
The Post-Professional OTD requires the completion of 36 units beyond the master’s degree, including:
Advanced coursework in leadership, occupational science, and knowledge mobilization to continue developing your leadership and professional skills
Customized elective coursework aligned with your pathway
Residency experience to build/enhance your hands-on skills
Completion of an evidence-based portfolio to demonstrate what you achieved over the course of study
Delivery of a leadership presentation focusing on how occupational science and other evidence informed your residency experience, as well as your Knowledge Mobilization product(s) and outcomes
Residency
The doctoral residency is a crucial element of our OTD program. We believe that immersion in specific practice contexts (whether they be clinical, policy-related, educational or research focused) gives you the skills and expertise to move the profession of occupational therapy forward. As a result, our OTD program involves 22 units taken over three semesters. You will work in carefully selected settings that align with your professional goals with the guidance of a mentor. Many practitioners choose to complete their residency at their current place of employment, so that they may apply the latest evidence and their evolving skills in program evaluation and quality improvement within their current context.
Residency Site Preceptor
The preceptor should be knowledgeable and experienced within the particular context chosen and will provide on-site consultation and mentorship to you as needed. The residency site preceptor does not need to have a doctorate degree or to be an occupational therapist.
USC Faculty Mentor
Your USC faculty mentor will support you in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to: providing consultation as you begin your evidence-based review, reviewing your academic work, offering feedback and guidance as you consider your leadership development and career trajectory, and supporting you through various challenges that may arise.
Portfolio
In the final semester of enrollment, you will submit a portfolio demonstrating your knowledge of and expertise in your selected leadership concentration. The final portfolio will highlight how occupational science and other evidence informed your residency and doctoral experience, as well as your Knowledge Mobilization product(s) and outcomes. Your portfolio will also include other highlighted accomplishments and professional reflections that emerged from your doctoral experience.
Important Notes for International Students
If you were educated outside the United States, you must have graduated from a program approved by the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT). USC maintains additional admissions requirements for international students, including English language competence as measured by standardized examination. Please bear in mind that certification through the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy® (NBCOT®), which is necessary to practice as an occupational therapist in the United States and is required for students on the Advanced Clinical Practice track, can take up to six months. A felony conviction may affect your ability to sit for the NBCOT® certification examination or attain state licensure. Please view nbcot.org for more information.
Fall semester generally begins in late August and continues for 16 weeks.
OT 716 (2 units): Mobilizing Knowledge for Impact: Knowledge and Skills (KMb I)
OT 718 (2 units): Applied Leadership for Health Professionals
OT 719 (2 units): Occupational Science Origins and Evolutions
OT 686 (6 units): Part-time Residency
Spring Semester
Spring semester begins in January and continues for 16 weeks.
OT 729 (2 units): Focused Applications of Occupational Science
OT 686 (6 units): Part-time Residency
Elective Course (4 units)
Summer Session
Summer session begins in mid-May and continues for 12 weeks.
OT 736 (2 units): Mobilizing Knowledge for Impact: Application (KMb II)
OT 686 (10 units): Full-time Residency
Elective Courses (4 units required)
You will complete 4 units of customized elective coursework at the 500-level or higher. The elective coursework must clearly relate to your professional goals and remain consistent with the objectives of your specialty pathway in the OTD program.
Completing the OTD on a Part-Time Basis
There are many pathways through the OTD program. The Program Director will work with you to customize an ideal trajectory that aligns with your specific needs and is tailored to your overall life plan.
USC Chan recognizes that the occupational therapy workforce does not fully reflect the range of backgrounds and experiences represented among those receiving healthcare services. Consequently, our academic programs are committed to recruiting highly qualified applicants of all backgrounds, and to expanding access through financial support for promising students, particularly those who have faced barriers to higher education. Read more about Community, Culture, and Belonging at USC Chan and our Access to OT Mentoring Program.
A Day in the Life of a Post-Professional OTD Student
Jodie, a student in the Post-Professional Doctorate of Occupational Therapy program, shares about daily life as an OTD resident at the University of Southern California.
