Doctor of Occupational Therapy Degree
Learn occupational therapy by doing occupational therapy. UM-Flint’s three-year OTD program combines classroom learning with repeated hands-on experiences in community settings, simulation, interprofessional education, a pro bono clinic, fieldwork, and a doctoral capstone—so you begin applying what you learn throughout the program, not just at the end.
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Michigan’s First Accredited, Entry-Level Doctorate in Occupational Therapy
The University of Michigan-Flint is proud to offer the first entry-level Doctor of Occupational Therapy program in Michigan. As the highest level of academic preparation an entry-level occupational therapist can attain, the OTD program prepares you with advanced knowledge, practical experience, and leadership skills to make an impact in a rapidly evolving profession.
UM-Flint’s entry-level Occupational Therapy doctorate program is designed for students who have completed their bachelor’s degree but have no previous clinical experience. Whether you are a recent college graduate or a working professional pursuing a new career, the OTD program combines rigorous academic preparation with extensive experiential learning to prepare you to help people participate in meaningful daily activities across a variety of settings.
Accelerated Occupational Therapy Program
Earn your bachelor’s degree and OTD in six years, saving one year of time and tuition.
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Why Earn Your OTD Degree from UM-Flint?
A Doctorate That Prepares You to Lead
An entry-level doctoral degree in occupational therapy prepares graduates for clinical practice as well as opportunities in leadership, program development, education, advocacy, and scholarship. Throughout the program, you will develop your skills through classroom learning, experiential education, fieldwork, and collaboration with faculty, practitioners, clients, and community partners. The doctoral capstone is a defining component of the OTD and provides advanced training in areas such as clinical innovation, education, advocacy, leadership, and research translation. It gives you an opportunity to build upon the knowledge and practical experience developed throughout the program while pursuing an area aligned with your professional interests.
Clear and Affordable Path to a Doctoral Degree
The OTD program is designed to be completed in three years—comparable in length to many master’s programs in Michigan—while offering the added value of doctoral-level preparation. The program emphasizes affordability, with few additional course fees beyond tuition. Students also have opportunities to apply for paid graduate student research assistantships, gaining hands-on research experience while helping to reduce overall educational costs.
Doctoral Capstone Project
OTD students complete a capstone experience and project in collaboration with clinical and community partners. Building upon the hands-on learning and fieldwork completed throughout the program, the doctoral capstone provides an opportunity for an in-depth experience in one or more of the following areas:
- Administration
- Advocacy
- Clinical practice skills
- Education
- Leadership
- Program and policy development
- Research skills
- Theory development
Small Class Sizes and Accessible Faculty
Our program admits up to 40 students each year, creating an environment where students can develop meaningful relationships with faculty and receive individualized mentorship and support. You will learn from faculty and professional clinicians who bring real-world expertise into your education. Smaller cohorts provide more opportunities to connect with faculty who can support, mentor, and guide your development throughout the program and as you prepare to enter the occupational therapy profession.
Learn by Doing
At UM-Flint, you don’t wait until the end of the program to begin applying what you learn. You learn OT by doing OT. OTD students complete five fieldwork experiences, including three Level I experiences precepted in actual community practice settings. These community-based Level I experiences provide meaningful early exposure to occupational therapy practitioners, clients, and different practice settings, allowing you to connect classroom concepts with professional practice. Fieldwork is only one part of the experiential learning built into the program. Throughout the curriculum, you will participate in simulation, hands-on laboratory activities, faculty-led community experiences, service learning, interprofessional education, community-engaged projects, Level II fieldwork, and the doctoral capstone. Together, these experiences give you repeated opportunities to develop your skills, build confidence, and translate classroom knowledge into practice.
You will also have opportunities to provide occupational therapy services through HEART, UM-Flint’s student-run pro bono clinic, where students work alongside faculty and other health professions to serve members of the local community. Together, these experiences connect classroom learning with real-world practice and prepare you to enter the profession with meaningful experience working with clients, communities, and other professionals.
Learn With – and From – Other Health Professionals
As an OTD student at UM-Flint, you won’t learn occupational therapy in isolation. Occupational therapy, physical therapy, physician assistant, nursing, social work, respiratory therapy, and other health professions are brought together within UM-Flint’s collaborative health sciences environment.
This concentration of health professions creates significant opportunities for interprofessional education and simulation throughout the curriculum. You will learn alongside students from other disciplines, understand their roles and perspectives, and practice the communication, teamwork, and clinical decision-making skills that are essential to providing effective, patient-centered care. These experiences help prepare you for the reality of contemporary health care, where occupational therapists regularly collaborate with professionals from multiple disciplines to address the needs of patients, families, and communities.
The Michigan Advantage
Our program is the only OT program offered at any University of Michigan campus and is widely recognized as one of UM’s outstanding clinical programs, making our graduates highly desirable. Our connection with Michigan Medicine in Ann Arbor gives our students unique access and opportunities to network with highly skilled occupational therapy clinicians and researchers. Guest lectures, clinical placements, and workshops help our students build the strong skillsets they need to specialize in areas such as spinal cord injuries, stroke, amputations, lymphedema, hand therapy, complications of cancer treatment, and many more.
OTD/MBA Dual Degree
Encouraging interdisciplinary learning, UM-Flint provides an OTD/MBA dual-degree option for students interested in starting their own private practice, pursuing health care leadership, or developing a business related to occupational therapy. The OTD/MBA dual-degree curriculum allows OTD students to apply up to 12 specified credits toward both degrees, reducing the time and tuition required to earn two graduate degrees.
“The UM–Flint OTD program meant a great deal to me, both personally and professionally. Through diverse coursework and fieldwork experiences, I gained a strong foundation that prepared me for the fast-paced, collaborative environment of inpatient rehab and helped me grow in confidence as a clinician. The program also allowed me to explore different practice settings and discover areas of occupational therapy that genuinely excited me. I completed several demanding but fulfilling Level II fieldwork experiences and was able to pursue my dream capstone project. Throughout the program, I felt supported both in the classroom and during my clinical rotations. Just as meaningful as the experiences I had were the relationships I built with classmates and faculty, many of whom became close friends and mentors. The support, challenges, and experiences I had at UM–Flint helped shape the occupational therapist I am today and set me on a path toward a rewarding career. I’m still learning every day, but the UM–Flint OTD program helped lay the foundation for my career.”
Gunnar Lundteigen
Occupational Therapy 2023
Doctor of Occupational Therapy Program Curriculum
UM-Flint’s OTD program curriculum includes 110 credit hours of in-depth study that can be completed in nine semesters, or three calendar years, on a full-time basis. The curriculum combines classroom instruction with laboratory work, collaborative learning, simulation, community engagement, and extensive experiential education.
Hands-on learning occurs throughout the program rather than being reserved for its final stages. Students complete five fieldwork experiences, including three community-precepted Level I experiences, participate in interprofessional education and simulation, rotate through the HEART pro bono clinic, engage in additional community-based experiential learning, complete Level II fieldwork, and culminate their education with the doctoral capstone. This combination provides repeated opportunities to move between learning and doing—applying concepts, developing clinical reasoning, working with clients and communities, collaborating with other health professionals, and preparing for professional occupational therapy practice.
Career Outlook
With a doctorate degree in Occupational Therapy, you are prepared to pursue occupational therapy opportunities across a variety of health care, educational, community, and other practice settings.
14%
Increase employment of occupational therapists.
$98,340
median annual wage for
occupational therapists
10,200
Openings for occupational therapists are projected each year over the decade.
NBCOT Exam
Graduates of the program are eligible to sit for the national certification examination for occupational therapists administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy. After successful completion of this exam, the graduate can become an Occupational Therapist Registered. In addition, all states require licensure to practice; however, state licenses are usually based on the results of the NBCOT certification examination. A felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the examination or attain licensure status.
Accreditation
The entry-level occupational therapy doctoral degree program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education of the American Occupational Therapy Association, located at 7501 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 510E Bethesda, MD 20814. ACOTE’s telephone number c/o AOTA is 301-652-6611.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: Completion of Level II Fieldwork (OTP 855 & 865) and Doctoral Capstone Project (OTP 795) must be done within 24 months of academic coursework following completion of the didactic portion of the program. All fieldwork, the Occupational Therapy Knowledge Exam, and preparatory activities must be completed before students can begin their 14-week (560 hours) Doctoral Residency. Residency placement must meet the specific objectives of the student’s capstone project. No more than 20% of the 560 hours can be completed outside of the mentored residency setting. Prior fieldwork or work experience cannot be substituted for the Doctoral Residency.
American Occupational Therapy Association
7501 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 510E
Bethesda, MD 20814
Telephone: 301-652-6611
Estimated OTD Program Tuition and Fees
OTD Program Outcomes
The total number of graduates from the University of Michigan-Flint Doctorate of Occupational Therapy program during the three-year period 2023–25 was 52, with an overall graduation rate of 100%.
| Graduation Year | Students Entering | Students Who Withdrew for Reasons Other Than Academic Performance | Students Graduating | Graduation Rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 24 | 0 | 24 | 100% |
| 2024 | 21 | 0 | 21 | 100% |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 100% |
| Total | 53 | 1 | 52 | 100% |
*The number of students who graduated according to the published program length. If a student does not graduate according to the published program length, the student should not be counted in any graduation rate.
National Board of Certification in Occupational Therapy School Performance Data
Prerequisite Courses
Applicants also must complete the following prerequisite courses at a regionally-accredited institution with a minimum GPA of 3.0 overall, a minimum GPA of 2.75 in science courses, and no grade lower than a C (2.0):
- Four credits in human anatomy with laboratory**
- Four credits in human physiology with laboratory**
- Nine credits in psychology (Introduction to Psychology, Developmental Psychology and Abnormal Psychology)
- Three credits in Introduction to Sociology or Introduction to Anthropology
- Three credits in statistics
- One credit in medical terminology (in a letter-graded course)
**If a 5-6 credit combination of anatomy and physiology classes is taken, the course content must be reviewed.
- Prerequisite courses should be completed within seven years of applying to the program; prerequisite courses taken more than seven years prior will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
- Domestic students are allowed to have coursework outstanding at the time of application. These prerequisites must be completed prior to program enrollment, if admitted. Students seeking an F-1 visa (international students) must have all prerequisite courses completed at the time they are offered admission.
- The science GPA is determined using all completed coursework in mathematics, natural sciences, and physics.
- Updated First Aid and CPR certification: CPR certification, including infant, child, and adult CPR with AED training for Healthcare Providers is required and should be through the American Heart Association class “First Aid” and “Basic Life Support for Healthcare Providers”. Certification will need to be updated for each year of the program.
- Observation hours are no longer required
- We encourage you to review your courses and determine which transfer by using the College of Health Sciences Prerequisite Courses Guide. This guide is intended as a starting point for prospective students. If you do not find your course(s) listed or need assistance, please reach out to the OTD program directly.
Admission Requirements
The OTD admissions process uses the Occupational Therapist Centralized Application Service centralized application service. The most competitive applicants demonstrate knowledge of the depth and breadth of the profession, as well as consistent academic performance, maturity, and values associated with health care professionals.
All applicants must have a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution with a minimum GPA of 3.0 overall.
Applicants admitted to the OTD program must demonstrate that they possess the attributes necessary to succeed in a challenging curriculum as well as perform in the practice of occupational therapy. Essential Functions are the cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physical abilities required for satisfactory completion of the OTD curriculum and the development of professional attributes required of all students at graduation.
While an applicant is not required to disclose the specifics of any disability, it is the applicant’s responsibility to request a reasonable accommodation if they cannot demonstrate these Essential Functions without accommodation.
Application Deadlines
For the fall 2027 admission period, UM-Flint will use the Occupational Therapist Centralized Application Service. Application cycle opened July 16, 2026. Application deadline is June 4, 2027.
- Up to 40 students will be admitted once per year in the fall semester.
- The UM-Flint Occupational Therapy program operates on a rolling admission basis. We encourage you to apply early.
- The deadline to submit all your documents to OTCAS is June 4, 2027, to ensure full consideration of your application. It can take up to six weeks for OTCAS to send UM-Flint all of your documents after you have submitted them to OTCAS.
- If you do not submit all OTCAS materials to OTCAS by June 4, 2027, the materials may arrive at UM-Flint late and could take your application out of consideration.
- While June 4, 2027, is the application deadline, applicants have longer to be verified by OTCAS.
- We encourage you to apply early in order to meet the deadline for guaranteed consideration for scholarships, grants and assistantships
How to Apply to UM-Flint’s OTD Program
Submit the following to OTCAS by June 4, 2027*
- Official transcripts from all colleges and universities you have attended in the United States (foreign transcripts are to be sent to the Office of Graduate Programs, not OTCAS)
- Three professional letters of recommendation submitted to OTCAS
Submit the following directly to UM-Flint by June 4, 2027
- Transcripts and diplomas or certificates of graduation from any colleges and universities you have attended from outside the United States (do not send to OTCAS)
- For any degree completed at a non-U.S. institution, transcripts must be submitted for an internal credential review. Read International Transcript Evaluation for instructions on how to submit your transcripts for review.
- If English is not your native language, and you are not from an exempt country, you must demonstrate English proficiency.
- Students from abroad must submit additional documentation.
This program is an on-campus program with in-person courses. Admitted students can apply for a student (F-1) visa. Students living abroad are unable to complete this program online in their home country. If you currently hold a non-immigrant visa and are residing in the United States, please contact the Center for Global Engagement at globalflint@umich.edu for guidance regarding your eligibility.
The application process for the fall 2027 cohort includes an interview with OT faculty. Qualifying applicants will receive an invitation for this interview to be conducted via virtual meeting.
For questions about admissions requirements and the application process, contact otadmissions@umich.edu.
*We encourage you to apply by February 1, in order to meet the deadline for guaranteed consideration for scholarships, grants and assistantships
Occupational Therapy Non-Resident Graduate Tuition Scholarship
Covers up to 100% difference between residential and non-residential graduate tuition rates
Academic Advising & Visiting Campus
At UM-Flint, we are proud to have many dedicated advisors who are experts students can rely on to guide their educational journey. As an admitted student, you will be assigned an OTD faculty advisor. For academic advising prior to being admitted, please contact the OT Department at otadmissions@umich.edu.
Are you interested in visiting the UM-Flint campus and meeting with a current OTD student?