AFWC- Victoria Boren  

Emory & Henry College’s Occupational Therapy program is located on the institution’s School of Health Sciences campus in Marion, VA.  The program is transitioning from a Master’s to an Entry-Level Doctorate program.  Each cohort consists of 34 students.  The program has an August start date each year.  

The final cohort of Master’s level students will graduate in December 2021.  These students have two Level I rotations immersed throughout the curriculum that incorporate experiences in three settings: physical rehabilitation, pediatrics, and mental health.  They will complete Level II fieldwork in semesters six and seven which are the Summer and Fall semesters of their final year.  

The first cohort of OTD students began in August 2020.  These students will complete three Level I rotations that will consist of both traditional and faculty-led experiences and will involve a variety of sites, including physical rehabilitation, pediatrics, mental health, and community-based settings.  They will complete Level II fieldwork rotations in semesters seven and eight which are the Fall and Spring semesters of their final year.  Following Level II rotations, the final and ninth semester of the curriculum is the Capstone experience.  Students will then graduate following this summer semester.  The program is three years of full-time coursework.  

Old Dominion University is developing a Doctor of Occupational Therapy Program that, pending Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education and State Council of Higher Education for Virginia approvals, will begin in 2023.   

Shenandoah’s 75-credit Master of Science in Occupational Therapy is delivered in a flexible, hybrid format, with over 50% of the content delivered online. Students attend classes on campus one day per week and fieldwork experiences are completed on non-campus days and during normal working hours. Each cohort consists of approximately 30 students. Students complete their first level I rotation in the fall of their second year and their second level I rotation the following spring.  Right after that, in the summer is their first level II rotation and they finish in the fall with their second level II rotation and graduation!

The SUDOT Entry Level Doctorate program is located at the health professions building located within the campus of Valley Health in Winchester, VA. This is a hybrid program with over 50% of the content delivered online. Each cohort consists of approximately 30 students. Students complete six faculty led level I rotations in conjunction with didactic courses as well as one specialization rotation of their choice.  In their seventh semester (summer) students complete their first level II rotation followed by their second level II rotation in the fall. The doctoral students then complete their doctoral capstone experience in their ninth semester (spring) prior to graduation!

South University-Richmond's OTA program, located in the far west end of Richmond, is a 15-month intensive Professional Phase program. The university runs on a quarter system and the program has 2 cohort starts each year in the spring and fall terms. Each new cohort has approximately 10-12 students from a wide variety of backgrounds and geographic locations in Virginia. Fieldwork I experiences associated with course work in mental health, pediatrics, and adults occur in community-based settings allowing students some of their first "hands on" opportunities working with clients and other professionals. Fieldwork Level II is continuous throughout the calendar year due to 2 cohorts on campus.  Start dates typically take place mid-January, mid-April, late June, and early October for 8-week rotations. 

Tidewater Community College OTA program located in Virginia Beach, Virginia currently has 54 students.  The incoming cohort of 24 students are in person for labs and virtual for lectures.  The students go out on level I A for Psychosocial in the Summer and 1 B in the Fall for Physical Dysfunction.

The second year cohort of 30 students go out on level II A and II B for 8 weeks each in January and March.  They are set to graduate in May

Located in Richmond, VCU currently has approximately 48 students in each cohort.  Students complete their level II rotations in the summer and fall semesters of their second year in the program.  They complete their capstone in the spring of their third year in the program (during their last semester).