The UAB Entry-Level Occupational Therapy Doctoral (OTD) degree program is fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE).

The 2025 U.S. News & World Report (USNWR) rankings place our new entry-level OTD program among the top 12 public university programs nationally.

The Department of Occupational Therapy’s first OTD students began coursework in May 2021 and graduated in December 2023 along with UAB’s last class of MSOT students.

Watch: The Transition from MSOT to OTD

ACOTE

The UAB Entry-Level Occupational Therapy Doctoral (OTD) degree program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA).

ACOTE® is recognized as the accrediting agency for occupational therapy education by both the United States Department of Education (USDE) and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). ACOTE® is also an active member of the Association of Specialized and Professional Accreditors (ASPA).

ACOTE® is recognized as the accrediting agency for occupational therapy education by both the United States Department of Education (USDE) and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). ACOTE® is also an active member of the Association of Specialized and Professional Accreditors (ASPA).

Click here to read the full accreditation statement.

ACOTE Accreditation Status: Accredited

The UAB Entry-Level Occupational Therapy Doctoral (OTD) degree program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education (ACOTE) of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA).

ACOTE® is recognized as the accrediting agency for occupational therapy education by both the United States Department of Education (USDE) and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). ACOTE® is also an active member of the Association of Specialized and Professional Accreditors (ASPA).

Click here to read the full accreditation statement.

Graduation Data

The inaugural cohort of students in UAB’s Entry-Level Clinical Doctorate in Occupational Therapy (OTD) program graduated in December 2023.

Graduation Rate

*ACOTE Graduation Rate Definition: The number of students who graduate on time (G1) divided by the number of students admitted in the original cohort (G2) minus the number of students who withdrew due to military, health, family issues, death and other reasons not related to academic and clinical performance (G3). Calculation per calendar year is = G1 / (G2 – G3).

Note: Non-completion of the program is due to one of the following reasons:

• Withdrawing due to medical or family issues
• Graduation delayed
• Not meeting academic standards

Certification

Graduates of the program are 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.

To learn more, visit the NBCOT website.

NBCOT

Our passing percent data is calculated on the number of New Graduates who passed the NBCOT exam regardless of the number of attempts during the testing year to meet ACOTE’s reporting standard.

Click here to see our NBCOT pass rates.

NBCOT Success Rate

The first class to graduate from UAB’s entry-level OTD program began sitting for the National Board for Certification in Occupational Therapy (NBCOT) examination in January 2024.

This is the data for OTD graduates on the NBCOT examination within the stipulated reporting window of one year from graduation. Our passing percent data is calculated based on the number of new graduates who passed the NBCOT exam regardless of the number of attempts during the testing year to meet ACOTE’s reporting standard.

For official NBCOT data results, visit the NBCOT website.