Admissions to the Post-Professional, OTD named option will be suspended as of fall 2022, and the program will be discontinued as of fall 2024. If you have any questions, please contact the department.

This is a named option within the Occupational Therapy, OTD.

The post-professional OTD program is a part-time, structured online curriculum serving occupational therapists' need for distance access and flexibility to acquire advanced practice and leadership skills. The OTD program trains occupational therapists to become visionary leaders, engage in inter-professional education and practice, and facilitate research translation. Students enter as a cohort in the fall semester and complete the program over three years of part-time study. There is an option to complete within two years as well.

The Post-Professional OTD cultivates and grows practitioners interested in pursuit of careers in health care management, education and public service. Students enrolled in the program will already have the professional clinical training necessary for certification and licensure as occupational therapists. Through this curriculum and completion of a capstone project, occupational therapists will expand their knowledge of the health and education delivery systems, the policies influencing transformation of care in these environments and will gain the tools needed to be visionary leaders in interprofessional contexts.

Admissions to the Post-Professional, OTD named option will be suspended as of Fall 2022, and the program will be discontinued as of Fall 2024. If you have any questions, please contact the department.

This program is no longer admitting and is not accepting applications.

For students interested in Occupational Therapy, see the admitting program of Occupational Therapy: Entry Level, OTD.

Graduate School Resources

Resources to help you afford graduate study might include assistantships, fellowships, traineeships, and financial aid. Further funding information is available from the Graduate School. Be sure to check with your program for individual policies and restrictions related to funding.

On This Page

Minimum Graduate School Requirements

Review the Graduate School minimum academic progress and degree requirements, in addition to the program requirements listed below.

Named Option Requirements

mode of instruction

Face to Face Evening/Weekend Online Hybrid Accelerated
No No Yes No No

 Mode of Instruction Definitions

Accelerated: Accelerated programs are offered at a fast pace that condenses the time to completion. Students typically take enough credits aimed at completing the program in a year or two.

Evening/Weekend: ​Courses meet on the UW–Madison campus only in evenings and/or on weekends to accommodate typical business schedules.  Students have the advantages of face-to-face courses with the flexibility to keep work and other life commitments.

Face-to-Face: Courses typically meet during weekdays on the UW-Madison Campus.

Hybrid: These programs combine face-to-face and online learning formats.  Contact the program for more specific information.

Online: These programs are offered 100% online.  Some programs may require an on-campus orientation or residency experience, but the courses will be facilitated in an online format.

curricular requirements

Minimum Credit Requirement 64 credits (34 beyond the M.S.)
Minimum Residence Credit Requirement 32 credits
Minimum Graduate Coursework Requirement 32 credits (50% of 64 credits) must be graduate-level coursework. Details can be found in the Graduate School’s policy: https://policy.wisc.edu/library/UW-1244
Overall Graduate GPA Requirement 3.00 GPA required.
This program follows the Graduate School's policy: https://policy.wisc.edu/library/UW-1203.
Other Grade Requirements n/a
Assessments and Examinations Capstone project proposal and final product must be reviewed and approved by a dissertation committee of graduate faculty per Graduate School policy.
Language Requirements No language requirements.
Doctoral Minor/Breadth Requirements Breadth is provided via interdisciplinary training (minor requirement waived).

required courses

Fall 1
OCC THER 811 Applied Leadership and Management in OT3
OCC THER 871 Application of Occupational Therapy Evidence in the Practice Environment2
Elective course 11-3
Spring 1
OCC THER 872 Using Information to Optimize Practice3
KINES 785 Human Occupation and Health2
OCC THER 880 Introduction to Capstone1
Elective course 11-3
Summer
OCC THER 812 Current Trends Shaping Occupational Therapy Practice3
OCC THER 873 Advanced Outcome Measurement in Occupational Therapy3
OCC THER 814 Communicating OT to Interprofessional Audiences3
Fall 2
OCC THER 881 Capstone Project 13
OCC THER 813 Advanced Practice in Interprofessional Contexts3
Elective course 11-3
Spring 2
OCC THER 882 Capstone Project II3
Elective course 12-3
Total Credits34-41
1

Five total elective credits must be taken.  Options include OCC THER 890 Inter-Professional Development for Leadership, KINES 699 Independent Study, or E P D courses, including: E P D 701 Writing for Professionals, E P D 702 Professional Presentations, or E P D 704 Organizational Communication and Problem Solving.

Students in this program may not take courses outside the prescribed curriculum without faculty advisor and program director approval. Students in this program cannot enroll concurrently in other undergraduate or graduate degree programs.

Graduate School Policies

The Graduate School’s Academic Policies and Procedures provide essential information regarding general university policies. Program authority to set degree policies beyond the minimum required by the Graduate School lies with the degree program faculty. Policies set by the academic degree program can be found below.

Named option-specific policies

prior coursework

Graduate Work from Other Institutions

With program approval, students are allowed to count up to 30 credits of graduate coursework from other institutions. Coursework should be less than five years old to be considered, additional justification and/or documentation are needed for work taken between five and ten years. Work more than ten years old will not be considered.

UW-Madison Undergraduate

No undergraduate coursework will be allowed to count toward OTD requirements.

UW-Madison University Special

With program approval and payment of the difference in tuition (between University Special and Graduate tuition), students are allowed to count no more than 9 credits of coursework numbered 300 or above taken as a UW-Madison University Special student. These credits are considered part of the total allowable credits available for a student to transfer. Coursework should be less than five years old to be considered; additional justification and/or documentation is needed for work taken between five and ten years. Work more than ten years old will not be considered.

Probation

This program follows the Graduate School's Probation policy.

Advisor / committee

Every graduate student is required to have an advisor to meet UW information management needs, and accordingly, and of its own volition, the department assigns an advisor to each student. The advisor is a graduate or clinical faculty member.

This program follows the Graduate School's Advisor policy and Committees policy.

To ensure that students are making satisfactory progress toward a degree, the Graduate School expects them to meet with their advisor on a regular basis. The OTD Program Coordinator will advise students in the early stages of their studies until a permanent advisor is assigned. The advisor may also serve on the student's capstone project committee.

Credits per term allowed

15 credits

time Limits

This program follows the Graduate School's Time Limits policy.

Grievances and Appeals

These resources may be helpful in addressing your concerns:

School of Education Grievance Policy and Procedures

The following School of Education Student Grievance Policy and associated procedures are designed for use in response to individual student grievances regarding faculty or staff in the School of Education.

Any individual student who feels they have been treated unfairly by a School of Education faculty or staff member has the right to file a grievance about the treatment and receive a timely response addressing their concerns. Any student, undergraduate or graduate, may use these grievance procedures, except employees whose complaints are covered under other campus policies. The grievance may concern classroom treatment, mentoring or advising, program admission or continuation, course grades (study abroad grade complaints are handled through International Academic Programs), or issues not covered by other campus policies or grievance procedures. 

For grievances regarding discrimination based on protected bases (i.e., race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, etc.), contact the Office of Compliance (https://compliance.wisc.edu/eo-complaint/).

For grievances or concerns regarding sexual harassment or sexual violence (including sexual assault, dating/domestic violence, stalking and sexual exploitation), contact the Sexual Misconduct Resource and Response Program within the Office of Compliance.

For grievances that involve the behavior of a student, contact the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards in the Dean of Students Office at https://conduct.students.wisc.edu/).

For grievances about, or directed at, faculty or staff in a School of Education department, unit, or program, students should follow these steps:

  1. Students are strongly encouraged to first talk with the person against whom the concern is directed.  Many issues can be settled informally at this level.  If students are unable to resolve concerns directly or without additional support, step 2 or 3 should be pursued.
  2. If unresolved after taking or considering step 1:
    1. If the concern is directed against a teaching assistant (TA), and the student is not satisfied, the student should contact the TA's supervisor, who is usually the course professor.  The course professor will attempt to resolve the concern informally.
    2. If the concern involves a non-TA instructor, staff member, professor, academic department, or School of Education office or unit, the student should contact the chair of the department or the director of the office or unit, or their designee. The chair or director, or their designee, will attempt to resolve the concern informally. If the concern is about the department chair or office/unit director, the student should consult the School of Education Senior Associate Dean for guidance.
  3. If the concern remains unresolved after step 2, the student may submit a formal grievance to the chair or director in writing within 30 business days1 of the alleged unfair treatment. To the fullest extent possible, a formal written grievance shall contain a clear and concise statement of the issue(s) involved and the relief sought.  
  4. On receipt of a written grievance, the chair or director will notify the person at whom the grievance is directed with a copy of the written grievance. The person at whom the complaint is directed may submit a written response, which would be shared with the student.
  5. On receipt of a written grievance, the chair or director will refer the matter to a department, office, or unit committee comprised of at least two members. The committee may be an existing committee or one constituted for this purpose. The committee, or delegates from the committee, may meet with the parties involved and/or review any material either party shares with the committee.  
  6. The committee will provide a written description of the facts of the grievance and communicate recommendations to the department chair or office/unit head regarding how the grievance should be handled.
  7. The chair or director will offer to meet with the student who made the grievance and also will provide a written decision to the student, including a description of any related action taken by the committee, within 30 business days of receiving the formal grievance.
    1

    For the purpose of this policy, business days refers to those days when the University Offices are open and shall not include weekends, university holidays, spring recess, or the period from the last day of exams of fall semester instruction to the first day of spring semester instruction. All time limits may be modified by mutual consent of the parties involved.

If the grievance concerns an undergraduate course grade, the decision of the department chair after reviewing the committee’s recommendations is final. 

Other types of grievances may be appealed using the following procedures:

  1. Both the student who filed the grievance or the person at whom the grievance was directed, if unsatisfied with the decision of the department, office or unit, have five (5) business days from receipt of the decision to contact the Senior Associate Dean, indicating the intention to appeal.   
  2. A written appeal must be filed with the Senior Associate Dean within 10 business days of the time the appealing party was notified of the initial resolution of the complaint.
  3. On receipt of a written appeal, the Senior Associate Dean will convene a sub-committee of the School of Education’s Academic Planning Council. This subcommittee may ask for additional information from the parties involved and/or may hold a meeting at which both parties will be asked to speak separately (i.e., not in the room at the same time).
  4. The subcommittee will then make a written recommendation to the Dean of the School of Education, or their designee, who will render a decision. The dean or designee’s written decision shall be made within 30 business days from the date when the written appeal was filed with the Senior Associate Dean.  For undergraduate students, the dean or designee’s decision is final.

Further appealing a School of Education decision – graduate students only

Graduate students have the option to appeal decisions by the School of Education dean or designee by using the process detailed on the Graduate School’s website.

Questions about these procedures can be directed to the School of Education Dean's Office, 377 Education Building, 1000 Bascom Mall, 608-262-1763.

Resources

OTHER

None.

Graduate School Resources

Take advantage of the Graduate School's professional development resources to build skills, thrive academically, and launch your career. 

PROGRAM DIRECTOR

Sharon Gartland, OTD, OTR

GRADUATE FACULTY

Karla Ausderau

Dorothy Farrar-Edwards

Beth Fields

Beth Larson

Kristen Pickett

Brittany Travers

INSTRUCTORS, PROGRAM STAFF, AND FACULTY WEBSITES