Academics

The professional curriculum leading the Doctor of Occupational Therapy degree requires successful completion of 105 semester credits completed in six (6) continuous academic semesters over a 24-months period. The curriculum for this accelerated program is based on two foundational documents the Philosophy of Occupational Therapy Education (2018) and the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework: Domains and Process (2018). These documents provide an educational framework for OTD education but also “a broad range of scholarly endeavors that will serve to describe and interpret the scope of the profession, establish new knowledge, interpret and appropriately apply this knowledge to practice, and engage learners in their development and understanding of the profession” (AOTA, 2016).

Preparing students for employment in the dynamic and every shifting practice arena of health care, education, industry, and community practice, the OTD curriculum design consists of five (5) curricular pillars:

• Domain of Occupational Therapy
• Process of Occupational Therapy
• Fieldwork
• Scholarship
• Scholarly Practice

Curriculum integration is specifically accomplished in two ways. The first way is through the principle of repetition in adult learning. Learning and understanding is improved when content is repeated often and provided in a variety of learning experiences. Second, curriculum integration is achieved by incorporation of the Hanover OTD Curricular Threads:

• Evidence-based and outcomes-oriented practice
• Mindful and client-centered care focused on occupational engagement
• Clinical reasoning and decision-making
• Professional responsibility and accountability

The curriculum is dynamic to keep up with the best educational practices and in response to regular assessment and evaluation processes. Semesters are 16 weeks in length. Mini-mesters are 8 weeks in length (1/2 of a semester).

For a student to graduate from the Doctor of Occupational Therapy program, the student must be in a good academic and professional standing, have had satisfactory progress in all semesters of the academic program, and satisfactorily complete the following:

• Successfully complete the required 105 semester credit hours of academic and fieldwork education and Doctoral Capstone Experience course work.
• Maintain a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.00 or above.
• Achieve a letter grade of “C-” (70%) or better in all academic courses.
• Successfully complete and “Pass” all fieldwork education courses.
• Achieve entry-level competence as an occupational therapist, as demonstrated on the FWPE.
• Exhibit professional behaviors consistent with clinical practice as described in the Professional Behaviors and the AOTA Code of Ethics for the Occupational Therapist within the OTD Student Handbook.
• Achieve a score equivalent to or greater than the “on track to pass” score, as determined by the faculty and NBCOT, on the Occupational Therapy Knowledge Evaluation (OTKE) from NBCOT.
• Complete all required Hanover College and OTD Program documents in preparation for graduation.
• Honor all professional and financial obligations to Hanover College as published on the Hanover College and OTD Program Websites, and as specified in any written communications from the College’s administrators.