ENTRY-LEVEL ARMY-BAYLOR DOCTOR OF OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY (OTD)

Mission

The mission of the Entry-Level Army-Baylor Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) program is to produce active duty, commissioned occupational therapists who are clinician scientists and leaders prepared for worldwide military health system practice. The program focuses on academic and clinical excellence to prepare the students for public servant service with entry-level knowledge, skills, clinical reasoning abilities, duties, responsibilities, and ethics to deliver high quality occupational therapy services based on scientific research. This mission is consistent with that of Baylor University, Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences the College, and the U.S. Army Medical Center of Excellence (MEDCoE) and describes the unique role of the program in preparing graduates to be responsible military citizens, educated leaders, dedicated scholars and skilled professionals who meet the workforce and healthcare needs of the U.S. Army. 

Program Director: Enrique Smith-Forbes PhD, OTR/L, CHT     

Assistant Program Director: MAJ Jamie Bell, DSc, OTR/L 

General Information for the Entry-Level Army-Baylor OTD Program Description

The Entry-Level Army-Baylor Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) program provides an accelerated, learner- centered, occupation-based, educational program that emphasizes academic excellence, life- long-scholarship, and servant leadership. This 30 month, educational program prepares doctoral-level, U.S. Army commissioned Occupational Therapy practitioners with the requisite clinical reasoning skills and professional values to be responsive to the occupational needs of persons, organizations and populations within the military they serve. Graduates are eligible to sit for the national certification examination administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). Graduates are employed as U.S. Army Occupational Therapists in such settings as hospitals, mental health facilities, combat stress control units, operational field units, rehabilitation hospitals, out-patient settings, administrative and leadership positions within the Army community. The Entry-Level Army-Baylor OTD program was granted CANDIDACY status by the accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), located at 6116 Executive Blvd., Suite 200, North Bethesda, MD 20852-4929. ACOTE’s telephone number c/o AOTA is (301) 652- AOTA and its Web address is www.acoteonline.org. We are working to acquire approved accreditation prior to the first cohort graduation in 2024.

For the graduate to sit for the national certification examination for the Occupational Therapist administered by the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). The following must occur:

• The program must hold ACOTE Candidacy Status,
• have an ACOTE pre-accreditation review,
• complete an ACOTE on-site evaluation,
• be granted ACOTE Accreditation Status and,
• students must complete all academic and fieldwork requirements of the OTD Program.

After successful completion of this examination, the individual will be an Occupational Therapist, Registered (OTR). In addition, all states require licensure in order to practice; however, state licenses are usually based on the results of the NBCOT Certification Examination. Information about NBCOT and the certification examination can be found at www.nbcot.org.

Note: A felony conviction may affect a graduate's ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure. An individual, who has a felony background and is considering entering an occupational therapy program, can have his or her background reviewed prior to applying for the exam by requesting an Early Determination Review: https://www.nbcot.org/en/Students/Services#EarlyDetermination

For more information about the programs, please contact:

ArmyBaylorOTD@baylor.edu

Robbins College of Health and Human Services

The Entry-Level Army-Baylor OTD Program is sponsored by Baylor University through the Robbins College of Health and Human Services (RCHHS). Please follow this link for the current Baylor University Graduate Catalog: http://www.baylor.edu/graduate/doc.php/358526.pdf

U.S. Army Medical center of Excellence

The Entry-Level Army-Baylor OTD program is an in-residence program, housed at the U.S. Army Medical Center of Excellence at Fort Sam Houston, TX. Students are commissioned officers in the U.S. Army. Due to the students’ active duty obligations and association with the uniformed services, certain policies and procedures governing students are unique to this program and may be found in the current OTD Program Manual or the Individual Student Assessment Plan (ISAP) published by this graduate program.