Occupational Therapy

Doctorate (entry-level)

Occupational Therapists work with people across the entire lifespan to help them participate in their everyday life activities, routines, and responsibilities. They utilize best available scientific evidence to identify ways to help their clients remediate or compensate for an impairment(s) and/or ways to modify the task and environment to optimize their performance.

The Occupational Therapy Doctorate is an is an entry-level degree option for individuals to prepare and obtain their licensure as an Occupational Therapist (OT). If you are already a licensed OT, check out the 100 percent online post-professional doctorate.

Man holding a fishing pole in Tiger OT
U.S. News and World Report - Best Grad Schools - Health Occupational Therapy 2024

Named a Best Occupational Therapy Program 2024 by U.S. News and World Report

In the latest graduate school rankings, U.S. News and World Report ranked Mizzou’s Occupational Therapy program in the top 8% in the nation.


Overview

The continued high demand for occupational therapists (OTs) and increasing accreditation requirements prompted the American Occupational Therapy Association to vote in support of entry-level education for OTs at the doctoral level, in addition to the traditional master’s degree. We are confident in the high quality of education within our OTD degree to prepare our graduates for a long and successful career in occupational therapy.

Careers in OT

The median pay for occupational therapists is $85,570 per year, and more than 10,000 job openings are projected each year.

Learn more

Already interested? Want to talk to someone from the OT department who can answer your questions?

Course work

Students will complete 105 credit hours over 3 years in a full-time onsite cohort model curriculum. Students will also be required to pass a national certification exam administered by the National Board of Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) in order to gain entry into the profession and obtain licensure. Students will have the ability to customize their educational plans through unique combinations of elective coursework, fieldwork and doctoral capstone experiences. 

Curriculum

See required courses and a semester-by-semester plan.

Admission and application

Learn more about prerequisite courses, GPA requirements and more about the application process.

Clinical experience

Students choose from more than 300 fieldwork sites across the nation to complete their Level I and II field placements and a doctoral capstone. 

Cost and aid

The Occupational Therapy department follows the University of Missouri’s Professional tuition and fees for the Occupational Therapy Doctorate program.