Accreditation

Mount Mary University’s Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (M.S.) program has maintained full accreditation since its initial accreditation in 1943 and provides a professional education resulting in skilled hands-on practitioners who are client-centered and holistic in their approach to health care.

 

Master of Science (M.S.):

The entry-level occupational therapy master’s degree program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), located at 6116 Executive Boulevard, 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. Graduates of the program 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 in order to practice; however, state licenses are usually based on the results of the NBCOT Certification Examination. Note that a felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure.

Students must complete 24 weeks of Level II fieldwork. Level II fieldwork must be completed by two years from the time the student is eligible to begin Level II fieldwork.

 

Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD):

The entry-level occupational therapy doctoral degree program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), located at 6116 Executive Boulevard, 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. Graduates of the program 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 in order to practice; however, state licenses are usually based on the results of the NBCOT Certification Examination. Note that a felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to sit for the NBCOT certification examination or attain state licensure.

Students must complete 24 weeks of Level II fieldwork as well as an individual 14-week capstone experience. Level II fieldwork must be completed by two years from the time the student is eligible to begin Level II fieldwork. The doctoral capstone experience must be completed by one year from the time the student is eligible to begin the doctoral capstone experience. The doctoral capstone experience must be started after completion of all coursework and Level II fieldwork as well as completion of preparatory activities defined in 2018 ACOTE OTD Standard D.1.3.

Occupational Therapy Certification

Graduates of the program 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 graduate will be an Occupational Therapist, Registered (OTR). In addition, most 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.

Occupational Therapy Licensure

Graduates of the Professional Entry Master of Science (M.S.) or Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) program will be eligible for state licensure. Mount Mary's Occupational Therapy Professional Entry programs satisfy the educational requirements for all 50 states of the U.S. and the territories listed below:

AL, AK, AZ, AR, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, GU, HI, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MS, MO, MT, NE, NJ, NV, NH, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OK, OR, PA, PR, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VT, VA, WA, WI, WV, WY.

All states, including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam require occupational therapists to be licensed. Certain territories do not have regulations for occupational therapy:

Territory Regulation Status
American Samoa (AS) Occupational Therapy is not regulated in this territory.
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (MP) Occupational Therapy is not regulated in this territory.
Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) Occupational Therapy is not regulated in this territory.
Republic of Palau (PW) Occupational Therapy is not regulated in this territory.
Republic of the Marshall Islands (ISO) Occupational Therapy is not regulated in this territory.
US Virgin Islands (VI) Occupational Therapy is not regulated in this territory.

 

Program Outcomes

The total number of graduates from Mount Mary University's Master of Science in Occupational Therapy program during the 3-year period of 2020-2022 was 118, with an overall graduation rate of 95.6%.

Graduation Year Students Entering/Graduating Graduation Rate
2020 48/45 93.6%
2021 48/47 97.8%
2022* 28/26 92.8%
TOTAL 124/118 95.6%

 *Students graduating from the entry level OTD program are reported separately

Results of graduates' performance on the national certification exam are published annually through the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT). Outcomes for this program can be viewed on NBCOT's website at this link: https://www.nbcot.org/Educators-Folder/SchoolPerformance