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If you have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in occupational therapy, you can advance your studies in the areas of clinical practice skills, research skills, administration, leadership, education and program development through the Post-Professional Occupational Therapy Doctorate (PPOTD) program.
Nebraska Methodist College’s PPOTD program gives you flexibility for your busy schedule. Graduates of the program will develop lifelong skills to advance their careers in occupational therapy, promote interpersonal relationships, communicate effectively, apply critical reasoning skills, exhibit leadership characteristics and more.
The PPOTD program will offer two tracks: clinical leadership and OT educator. Both tracks will have core curriculum, with each track including courses geared towards becoming a healthcare leader in a multi-disciplinary environment; or for those who wish to pursue a path of becoming an academic OT educator.
Nebraska Methodist College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org), a regional accreditation agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Tuition for the Post-Professional Occupational Therapy Doctorate program is $793 per credit hour. NMC is committed to helping you find every avenue to finance your education. View the Tuition by Program & Degree page for a comprehensive list of all fees.
In addition to tuition, students may have to pay out-of-pocket for such things as:
NMC encourages students to apply for all types of assistance for which they are qualified. Potential resources for this program include:
Visit our Financial Aid page to learn more about what's available and how to apply.
Contact your organization's human resources office to find out what's available.
Employees of Methodist Health System can find details on the MHS Intranet. Under Human Resources select either MHS Benefits or MJE Benefits then scroll down to Pursuing Your Dreams.
Visit our External Scholarships page to learn more.
Applicants are evaluated on the basis of the following criteria:
To be considered for admission, the following items must be submitted to the admissions office:
Applicant must be a graduate of an ACOTE® accredited program, or be a degree-seeking candidate at the time of application. Students applying while completing a Post-Professional’s Occupational Therapy Doctorate Degree program must successfully pass the NBCOT examination within two months of starting the doctorate program. Specific coursework or practice area concentration are not required if all other criteria are met.
This course will focus on curriculum planning, course design, implementation of teaching strategies, and course evaluation. Best practices in education will be explored including but not limited to: establishing a productive learning environment, engaging learners, promoting higher order thinking, and assessing student learning. The influence of regulatory accrediting bodies on the curriculum will also be examined.
This course explores the role of the health care professional as an educator in client-care environment such as in completing client education, fieldwork education, third-party education and professional staff education. In addition, this course addresses foundational skills required for work in an academic setting. Evidence on teaching and learning theories, learning styles, and best practice for both clinical and academic education will be examined.
This course will focus on the leadership of complex organizations and the skills and qualities leaders need to change organizations. In order to be effective, leaders must understand themselves, the organizations they head, and the complex social and political environments that they are asked to navigate on a daily basis. Students will become acquainted with the principles, concepts, and major theories of leadership; reflect upon their own leadership styles and behavioral tendencies; and apply this new learning to a variety of situations and problems simulating real challenges in real-world organizational settings.
The goal of the doctoral project is to provide an in-depth exposure to one or more of the following: clinical practice skills, research skills, administration, leadership, program and policy development, advocacy, education, or theory development. The doctoral project consists of two parts: project development and the project experience. The individual project allows the student to demonstrate synthesis and application of knowledge gained. Communication and final project presentation with the instructor of record (IOR) is online.
The purpose of this course is to provide practical learning where students receive mentorship for development, implementation of practice strategies, and evaluation of course design and teaching experiences. Students will be responsible for creating material, student instruction, grading, and evaluating for a section of a course offered in the MOT program, of their choosing. Mentorship will be provided by one of the full-time faculty members of the MOT program.
The purpose of this course is to provide students with the key parts for strategic planning and an understanding of the planning and implementation process. Students will describe basic financial principles and terminology. Students will build a business plan of their choosing to encompass knowledge and strategies gained in the course that can be presented to their workplace.
The purpose of this course is to provide practical learning where students receive mentorship for program development, clinical initiatives, leadership development, strategic planning, quality improvement, outcomes measurement, and/or team development experience. Students will be responsible for finding a professional mentor. Upon completion, students will provide their clinical team with a program, new initiative, or evaluation method. Successful completion of the course will be determined through collaboration of the instructor of record (IOR) and clinical mentor.
The goal of the doctoral project is to provide an in-depth exposure to one or more of the following: clinical practice skills, research skills, administration, leadership, program and policy development, advocacy, education, or theory development. The doctoral project consists of two parts: project development and the project experience. The individual project allows the student to demonstrate synthesis and application of knowledge gained. Communication and final project presentation with the instructor of record (IOR) is online.
This course focuses on the analysis of public policy and its’ impact on occupational therapy practice. Local, state, and national processes for the development of occupational therapy practice standards are examined. The role of professional associations and the individual practitioner in advocacy for the occupational therapy profession is explored.
This course addresses understanding of personal leadership characteristics and styles, and introduces differences between leadership and management. The course will explore leadership theory and discussion of real-life scenarios. Team communication strategies will be explored, with emphasis on leading a multi-disciplinary team.
This course examines occupational therapy service delivery in community-based practice settings such as assisted living facilities, homeless shelters, and after-school programs. The role of OT in addressing population health needs is examined. The use of evidence based assessments and interventions to maximize the health and wellness and occupational performance of populations is addressed.
This course addresses the practice skill of planning for and developing programs within the scope of occupational therapy. Students will develop the ability to complete a comprehensive needs assessment, program planning, and program design for an identified emerging practice need. Grant writing as a means to support developing programs will be explored.
This course will introduce learners to quality improvement strategies in traditional, non-traditional and academic healthcare environments. The intent is to develop understanding in the culture of quality and value-based services. Students will implement improvement strategies through knowledge acquirement of quality indicators, monitoring quality, process improvement, and outcomes management through data collection and analysis. Students will evaluate quality and outcome management initiatives in their workplace, and explore connections with evidence-based practice.
The intent of this course is to expose future doctorally-prepared OTs to implementation strategies for EBP in the healthcare and academia practice environments. The different types and styles of research commonly used in occupational therapy clinical and academic practice with be analyzed in order to prepare the student for designing a relevant research project for their Doctoral Project. This will include an emphasis on connecting with colleagues, organizational leaders, key stakeholders, and building organizational system support for enhanced capstone outcomes.
This course addresses occupational therapy's role within new and emerging practice settings to prepare the graduate for future opportunities in occupational therapy practice.
This course is intended to understand the process for publishing scholarly work to a variety of literary markets as well as the professional work setting. The student will integrate their doctoral project when examining publishing resources, and demonstrate knowledge of the steps to publication and dissemination of original work. Professional and scholarly writing will be appraised and students will be responsible for creating original writing in this course.
Our occupational therapy faculty are highly experienced and credentialed, giving you constant real-world insight you can use.
While any instructor can recite from a textbook, ours go a step further and draw from vast personal experience. Instructors here care as deeply about their students as they do the subject matter and it shows.
Upon completion of the PPOTD program, graduates will be expected to:
Please develop a thoughtful and organized response to the questions below. The admissions committee is looking for responses that are not only well supported but that also use appropriate style and grammar. Each question response should be approximately 250-500 words using APA format and citations where applicable. Also know that instances of plagiarism within an applicant’s personal statement will disqualify them for acceptance to Nebraska Methodist College due to the College’s commitment to academic integrity and stringent plagiarism policies. Be sure to include your name and program on the document itself.
PPOTD Written Statement Questions:
Please submit your completed Admissions Essay to admissions@methodistcollege.edu.
NMC's MOT program has specified performance and behavioral criteria that outline expectations from the learner's admission into the OT program. OT learners must be able to fulfill certain tasks and behaviors. The MOT curriculum requires the OT graduate student to be able to perform the following technical standard areas:
Academic Skills
Demonstrate scholarly research skills appropriate for a graduate level program.
Communication Skills
Therapeutic Skills
Behavioral-Interpersonal and Professional Abilities
Health Promotion and Holistic Practices