Doctor of Occupational Therapy

The following are the minimum admission requirements for application to the Occupational Therapy Program for the 2023-2024 application cycle (Please note admission requirement changes for the 2024-2025 application cycle below).

1. Baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university by the first day of class in the OT Program. 
    
2. Minimum 3.0 cumulative undergraduate GPA (4.0 scale) by the application deadline. 
    
3. Minimum 3.2 GPA in required pre-requisite courses (4.0 scale) by the application deadline. 
    
4. Grade of “C” or better in required pre-requisite courses* from a regionally accredited U.S. college or university by the first day of class in the OT Program (see below). 
   • Human Anatomy/Lab (4 credits)
   • Human Physiology (3 credits)
     ·  A&P I and II (at least 7 credits) may be substituted for Human Anatomy and Human Physiology
   • Abnormal Psychology (3 credits)
   • Developmental Psychology (lifespan) (3 credits)
   • Inferential Statistics (3 credits)
   • Motor Development (3 credits)
   • Introduction to Sociology (3 credits)
   
   Not required, but strongly recommended:
   • Neuroscience or Neuroanatomy
   • Technical Writing
    
5. Applicants must complete 18 of the 21 required credits prior to December 31st of the year of application (In other words, only one pre-requisite course may be taken in the spring semester prior to admission in May). 
    
6. Applicants must submit evidence of one by the application deadline:

A)  Complete a minimum of 40 observation hours and document it in the Experiences section on the OTCAS application. The occupational therapy areas of practice MUST include:

• 20 hours in a pediatric setting under one pediatric LOTR, and
• 20 hours in an adult inpatient rehabilitation setting under one adult rehabilitation LOTR. 

If completing observation hours, each LOTR you observed must submit an evaluation on your behalf via the OTCAS Evaluation Portal. 

OR

B)  Complete the Online Shadowing Program and upload the certificate of completion to the Documents section of the OTCAS application. 

7. After the initial processing of applications, selected applicants will be contacted to arrange an interview.

8. Accepted students must certify that they meet the technical standards established by the program with or without reasonable accommodations. 

Please note:

• Applicants to the OTD program are considered for admission on a competitive basis. Satisfaction of basic requirements does not guarantee admission to the program. The admissions committee considers overall grade-point average, pre-requisite grade-point average, interview scores, and quality of courses taken. The committee chooses those considered most qualified for the study and practice of occupational therapy.    
   
• Accepted students are assigned a provisional admission status until meeting conditions outlined in the acceptance letter and completing pre-matriculation requirements set forth by the Office of the Registrar. As part of the pre-matriculation requirements, accepted students are required to pass a drug screen and criminal background check prior to matriculation. Offers of acceptance are contingent on passing both.

*Additional Notes on Prerequisite Requirements: 

• In response to the COVID-19, pass/fail grades will be accepted for non-prerequisite courses for the Spring 2020 semester only. At this time, we are not accepting pass/fail grades for prerequisite courses.
   
• Due to the wide variety of experiential learning that can occur prior to admission, the LSU Health Shreveport OTD program does not waive prerequisite coursework. For the same reason, the LSU Health Shreveport OTD program does not award credit or advanced placement for previous coursework or experiential learning; all coursework must be completed within the OTD curriculum without exception.