General Admissions & OTCAS Should an Entry level OT degree move to a doctorate?

[Audrina McKenzie]

I am currently an MOT student in the last semester before becoming an OTR. We are doing a debate on whether an entry level OT should become a doctorate or stay a Master's. I would appreciate it if you guys could give me some feedback on your beliefs and explain why you think it should or shouldn't. Thank you!!

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[Johann00]

I don't think so. I personally think PT made a mistake with this move and only did it for the purpose of "status" within the healthcare community. If students are really excited about research and the occupational science side of the profession, then I say go for it. But if not, it doesn't seem worth it.

 

[prodigiousflame]

no I think that's ridiculous especially if the intent is to become a clinician. I've worked with amazing OT's who only have Bachelors degrees--a doctorates to me just seems like another way for schools to suck even more money out of us.

 

[Kidamnesiac]

I think the word "doctorate" is a misnomer here. It's really only an additional year of study, and the good programs already emphasize research. I don't mean to be derogatory, but a professional doctorate is not the same as an academic doctorate (PhD), which is a true research/teaching doctorate. I would think that someone who has a true interest in research/teaching should pursue a PhD in OS. Wasn't OS established in order to provide OT with a true academic research foundation?

From the other side, I can understand that some field equivalence might be found in moving towards a universal OTD (in order to match J.D., Pharm.D., DPT, etc...), but in essence, I just don't really see the difference. An entry level doctoral program, as well as the MS path, prepares a candidate for professional work, and as long as the MS provides that research component, then what would be the difference? Extra tuition, less time in the field, more supposition that the student eventually end up in a teaching position...all of these things detract from the field of practitioners, IMO.

One final point in praise of my eventual program, and hopefully other programs across the nation. I love that my program integrates different disciplinary fields in its faculty (sociology, special education, OS, practicing OT's from various settings and demographics, business/ethics, psychology, etc...), because this reflects the essence of the field of OT, IMO. We are dealing with various factors of the human experience, which requires a motley approach to the study of OT. Simply filtering everyone through one path of study into the research/teaching side of the field might stamp out this rich diversity and subsequently rob us of an education fit to the holism of our field. Just a few of my own thoughts on the subject.

 

[ExceptionalSea]

i like a lot of the points kidamnesiac makes, especially regarding extra tuition, less time in the field, and the like. as also stated above, i've volunteered with a few older OTs who only have bachelor's degrees, and because of their experience, etc. are still great OTs. it seems like the experience and real-life time in the field trumps years of schooling (as long as the person has a good base of knowledge, of course).

on a related note, i currently work as a paralegal, and the legal field has been having a debate/revolution these past few years about this very thing. a J.D. cureently requires 3 years of full time school, and many of the programs ill-prepare graduates for real-life practice of law. many also graduate with over $100,000 in debt. there was even an article in the New York Times a couple years ago that followed a few graduates from Ivy-League law schools who had no idea how to prepare a Motion (a type of legal proceeding) after they graduated - this is something that you learn how to do working in the field (and something i know how to do as a lowly paralegal!). obviously, the healthcare field is much better at integrating and providing practical learning, given fieldwork requirements, etc....but it's something to think about if adding further years of school when one can learn more by being in the field instead. i've also read that some states are contemplating letting law students who have finished their 2nd year of law school take the bar and begin practicing - meaning people in the legal world are seeing that 3rd year of law school as unnecessary.

anyways, my point is, it seems worthless to add extra schooling requirements if they do not actually help people become better OTs. i can see why they needed to move it to a Master's to make sure dedicated and intelligent individuals are entering the field, but a doctorate seems like a stretch.

 

[mangoslush]

There seems to be a trend these days where doctorates are becoming watered down, for lack of a better phrase. I respect everyone on the healthcare team and do not mean to come off as rude, but it's still hard for me to imagine a doctor who is not 1. an actual medical doctor who went to medical school and did residency for several years or 2. an actual PhD with a dissertation that took several years. I have a close friend who is a PA and tells me she can do "everything a doctor can do." My close friends who are PTs seem very proud of their white coats and like to drop the "doctorate" around quite a bit, but at the end of the day, don't they just have one more year of schooling than an OT with a master's? It really isn't a huge difference, and yet I hear them saying "OTs ONLY have a master's, SLPs ONLY have a master's..." Come on, now. I think it's all about the money. They want a master's degree to be the new high school diploma. Higher education is a huge cash cow, especially when poor students have to compete so much just to get into coveted allied health programs. We feel so lucky to get in, we don't even question the insane tuition prices. Meanwhile people are doing tech boot camps and qualifying for high paying jobs with a few months worth of training. Increasing the requirements and cost to us is not the answer. I just hope that this does not lead to an increase in new OTD schools, which would put those of us who have worked hard to get here at an even greater risk.