Introducing a doctoral level entry route into the occupational therapy profession in the UK: Findings from community discussions
Project summary
What we wanted to explore
To help explain what we wanted to explore in this project, please notice your first reaction to the following questions:
- How would I feel about the opportunity for people to register as an occupational therapist and be awarded a doctorate at the same time?
- Do I think the opportunity to register as an occupational therapist via a doctoral level route is a good or bad thing for the profession and / or the public in the UK?
Conversations started after colleagues at several universities offering occupational therapy routes into the profession, including pre-registration BSc, MSc and more, approached us. A few wanted to add a doctoral level pre-registration route to their existing offer and asked for our view about approving (accrediting) the new route. This is important because the courses in the UK that we accredit are automatically recognised by the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT). This, along with other approvals, gives a high level of trust in the quality of the programmes.
UK university providers want to add this route to the other pre-registration routes – not replace them. There are different conversations in different countries about the starting level qualification for registration as an occupational therapist which mustn’t be confused with the aims of this project.
When we started discussing the pre-registration doctoral level entry route, we saw this was a complex topic which needed in-depth thinking. The response needed to be well thought through and represent the range of views that our members hold. We also needed to listen to people outside of the profession.