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Edgewood University Doctor of
Occupational Therapy Program

Baccalaureate Degree

• Completion of a baccalaureate degree in any discipline from a regionally accredited institution. Applicants are required to achieve a minimum of a 3.00 grade point average (GPA) on a 4.00 scale. Individuals with an undergraduate GPA lower than a minimum of a 3.00 will be considered if they achieve a 3.20 GPA or above in the last 60 hours of their undergraduate degree.
• Degree must be completed before the student begins the OTD program. Students must submit a final official transcript to the program indicating degree completion.

Prerequisite Courses

• Completion of all prerequisite courses taken at a regionally accredited institution. All prerequisites must be completed before the student begins the program. Applicants must achieve the minimum of a 3.00 GPA on a 4.00 scale, and all prerequisite course grades must be a “C” or higher.
• Students may receive credit for advanced placement toward prerequisite coursework only if the credit appears on an official undergraduate transcript and was awarded by the degree-granting institution. Credit awarded solely through Advanced Placement (AP) examinations may not be used to satisfy prerequisite requirements.
• Students must send the program a final official transcript demonstrating that all courses have been completed.
• Anatomy and Physiology courses should be taken within the last 5 years, unless the individual provides evidence of ongoing work experience keeping the knowledge current.

Observation Hours

• Completion of observation of occupational therapy exploration activities (in-person, virtual, or by alternative means to be determined by the program) is strongly recommended. Applicants should provide evidence of the completion of activities within their OTCAS application.

Application Procedures

• All applications are processed through OTCAS. The Edgewood University OTD Program follows the timeline of OTCAS. Each year, OTCAS opens its applications in mid-July, and the cycle remains open until early June of the next year. Each year, the OTD Program will post specific application cycle dates.
• Applicants are to complete an essay by following instructions within the system. They are also required to provide three (3) professional references. These professional references can be from a volunteer or professional supervisor/manager, an occupational therapy practitioner, or an academic reference. The applicant will request references through OTCAS, and all references are to be submitted through OTCAS.
• Please note: OTCAS requires applicants to obtain official transcripts of all higher education institutions an individual has attended. Students are required to enter final grades from transcripts as part of the application process.
• Completion of an admission interview. Qualified students will be invited to participate in an online interview after a holistic review of their application materials. Admission to the program is on a rolling basis.
• Demonstration of English language proficiency through the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) exam. This is required for applicants for whom English is not their first language or those who have completed a degree and prerequisite courses outside of the United States.
• Demonstration of meeting the OTD program’s Technical Standards for admission.
• Applicants to the OTD program must adhere to all general requirements for admission as established by Edgewood University’s Graduate Admission Requirements: https://catalog.edgewood.edu/content.php?catoid=16&navoid=1246#graduate-admissions

Post Admission Requirements

• Health Requirements
  • Annual physical exam
  • Vaccinations (TB skin test, Tdap – once, current tetanus vaccine, MMR [2 doses or titer], Varicella [2 doses or lab results], Hepatitis B – 3 doses, COVID 19 vaccines and boosters, annual flu vaccination, additional requirements specified by clinical sites)

• CPR certification – All students are required to be certified or recertified in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) for Health Providers by the American Red Cross or the American Heart Association.
• Completion of an approved Drug Screening and Criminal Background Check. Students accepted into the program may require additional testing closer to beginning fieldwork experiences.

The entry-level occupational therapy doctoral degree program has applied for accreditation and has been granted Candidacy Status by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), located at 7501 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 510E, Bethesda, MD 20814. ACOTE’s telephone number c/o AOTA is (301) 652-AOTA and its web address is www.acoteonline.org. The program must have a preaccreditation review, complete an on-site evaluation, and be granted Accreditation Status before its graduates will be eligible to sit for the national certification examination for the occupational therapist administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). After successful completion of this exam, the individual will be an Occupational Therapist, Registered (OTR). 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 NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure.