Accreditation

Status of all occupational therapy programs currently accredited by CAOT:

Seven year ongoing cyclical continuous quality improvement (CQI) Accreditation Process Categories

The Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists grants academic accreditation for a seven-year cycle of continuous quality improvement when educational programs under review have met the criteria. There are four levels of accreditation awards granted: accredited exemplary, accredited, accredited probationary and not accredited.

For detailed processes please see: ACC.P.03 Seven Year Continuous Quality Improvement Cycle

1. Accredited, Exemplary: Programs that meet 100% of category one and category two indicators and a minimum of 80% of category three indicators will be awarded Accredited Exemplary. These programs will also receive suggestions for continuous quality improvement and will typically not require progress report submission. 
2. Accredited: Programs that meet 100% of category one indicators, more than 80% of category two indicators and more than 70% of category three indicators will be awarded accredited status. They will receive recommendations for continuous quality improvement and will be required to report on progress in a timeline as determined by the Academic Credentialing Council ACC.  Failure to respect timeline and/or to demonstrate progress may result in the program being placed on probation.

3. Accredited, Probationary: Programs that meet 100% of category one, more than 60% of category two and less than 70% of category three indicators will be deemed Accredited, Probationary. The ACC will provide requirements for continuous quality improvement.

4. Non-Accredited: Programs which meet 100% or less of category one indicators and/or than 60% of category two indicators will be considered non-accredited. OR a program with probationary accreditation status has failed to demonstrate progress within the specified period.

To attain an “Eligible for Accreditation” status: 100% of category one indicators must be met. An on-site review will occur before the first student cohort completes the first half of the program. A full accreditation review with an off- and on-site review will take place before graduation of this first student cohort. ACC.P.06 Accreditation of new or lapsed OT programs



Fees: 

Occupational Therapy Program	Occupational Therapy Program With Satellite Program	Year (Oct to Oct)
$8,641.44	$10,369.32	2021-2022
$8,814.27	$10,576.71	2022-2023
$8,990.55	$10,788.24	2023-2024
$9,170.37	$11,004.01	2024-2025
$9,353.77	$11,224.09	2025-2026

Resources and Links

Terms of Reference:

• Academic Credentialing Council

• ACC Registry

Policies

• ACC.P.01 Academic accreditation

• ACC.P.02 Confidentiality

• ACC.P.03 Seven Year Continuous Quality Improvement Cycle

• ACC.P.04 Conflict of interest

• ACC.P.05 Appeal in respect of academic accreditation

• ACC.P.06 Accreditation of new or lapsed OT programs

• ACC.P.07 Training new accreditation reviewers

• ACC.P.08 Distributed (Satellite) program

• ACC.P.09 Substantive change. COVID-19 Updates : March 19, 2020 /  May 4, 2020

Links

• World Federation of Occupational Therapists
• Occupational Therapist Assistant Program Accreditation
• Academic Credentialing Council (ACC): 2016 Annual Report, 2017 Annual Report, 2018 Annual Report, 2019 Annual Report, 2020 Annual Report, 2021 Annual Report, 2022 Annual Report, 2023 Annual Report

 

CAOT is always looking for volunteers to help us for both the Occupational Therapy Program Accreditation and the Occupational Therapist Assistant and Physiotherapist Assistant Education Accreditation Program (OTA/PTA EAP). Although the accreditation process is time intensive, reviewers say they derive benefits for their own development as well as your program from the understanding of the process and learning of new methods and ideas.

For the accreditation of entry-level occupational therapy programs, there are three reviewers involved during the off-site and on-site reviews, and one "reader" only involved during the off-site review. Reviewers submit their curriculum vitae for review by the Academic Accreditation Council (ACC), and must declare any conflict of interest if selected for a particular program review. To express your interest please contact:

Opportunities

Please contact the Occupational Therapist Assistant and Physiotherapist Assistant Education Accreditation Program (OTA/PTA EAP) for more information about volunteering as reviewer.

Roster for the Academic Credentialing Council (ACC) October 2023-2024

Chair

Rose Martini

Council Members

Susan Rappolt
Alicia Carey
Nathalie Veillette
Cori Schmitz

Public Member

Maureen Kershaw

ACOTUP Representatives

Jackie Bosch (Chair-Elect)
Shaniff Esmail

ACOTRO Representative

Kim Doyle
Natalie MacKenzie

ACC Registry Members 2023-2024

List of current accreditation reviewers on the registry:

C. Vallée

 

Important: Programs with upcoming accreditation will have the option of following the 2019 or 2022 Standards until December 2025. All programs with deadlines to submit Self Study materials on or after Jan 1st, 2026, would be required to adhere to the 2022 Standards.

Academic Accreditation Standards and Self-Study Guide (CAOT, 2022)

Academic Accreditation Standards and Self-Study Guide (CAOT, 2019)

Previous versions:
Academic Accreditation Standards and Self-Study Guide (CAOT, 2017) 

Academic Accreditation Standards and Self-Study Guide (CAOT, 2011)

Please note this material is copyright of CAOT, and anyone wishing to use the material should cite the author.

Trends That Shape the CAOT Accreditation Program

There are numerous domestic and global trends that have shaped the final content and process of the CAOT Accreditation Standards and Self-Study Guide (2017).

These trends are:

Accountability through accreditation

Academic accreditation in Canada is voluntary, but ultimately it is the sole instrument to ensure the consistent monitoring of quality and integrity within education programs (Glidden, 2004). As a system it is also recognized by the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT 2005), which is the organization that acknowledges the quality of occupational therapy educational programs internationally. Consequently, stakeholders such as the educational programs and the institutions themselves, as well as students and prospective students, licensing and examination bodies, the profession, and the consumer, are all assured of a consistent outcome with graduates of accredited programs in Canada.
Accreditation provides four key elements to assure quality monitoring and ensure quality education:

1. It provides additional attention to the evidence of institutional and program performance.
2. It supports and draws attention to evidence of student learning outcomes. 
3. It provides better information to the public. 
4. It helps governments recognize that the institution must decide the expectations and evidence of performance and outcomes (Glidden, 2004). 

Therefore an accredited program maintains credibility and visibility for the educational institution. The quality component provides assurance that the program meets the standard of the professional group and is supported by a continuous quality review process. Stakeholders are assured that the university is committed to improving the status of the program for students, prospective students, and scholars. CAOT accreditation assures institutions that the educational program meets pre-determined standards of the profession and is recognized by their Canadian colleagues and the World Federation of Occupational Therapists. This, in turn, assures the student of a certain degree of domestic and global professional mobility upon graduation.

Outcome-based education

The demand for accountability in professional education drives the growth of outcome measures in academic accreditation. An education program must provide potential new practitioners with outcome-based education that will allow them to work in an evolving environment of practice (CAOT, 2004b). To remain competitive within the domestic and international marketplace, professional education programs “must establish and mark progress towards the achievement of outcomes” (O’Neil, 1994). As an outcome orientation becomes more systematically incorporated into accreditation, it will also drive decisions affecting policy development, strategic planning, and resource allocation (Bezold, 1994). Outcome data can be used to demonstrate the importance of the profession to prospective students, potential clients, and funders of education (Glidden, 2004).

The powerful combination of self-report and qualitative measures in the latest document provides the market place with assurance that graduates from Canadian programs have graduated from quality education programs (Fitzpatrick, Sanders & Worthen, 2004; Patton, 1997)

Demonstrating educational effectiveness

O’Neil (1994) suggests that accreditation should support continuous improvement of the quality of the graduate. CAOT academic accreditation is an integrated system that attempts to link the standards to graduate performance through continuous improvement in educational programming. The 2017 CAOT document guides the educational program through a process of self-study to identify the measures of effectiveness.

Diversity and regional approach to entry-level professional education

The Profile of Occupational Therapy Practice in Canada (CAOT, 2012) recognizes the wide range of requirements of occupational therapists for today’s practice context. It primarily reflects the expectations of a “competent” level of occupational therapy practice and also describes a “proficient” level of occupational therapy practice in a given role. The Profile defines the “competent” occupational therapist as an occupational therapist who meets or exceeds the minimal and ongoing performance expectations and demonstrates the requisite knowledge, skills, and abilities for safe and effective practice of occupational therapy at the beginning of and throughout their career. The seven main ‘roles’ of the occupational therapist defined and described in the profile (2012) include:

1. Expert in Enabling Occupation;
2. Communicator;
3. Collaborator;
4. Practice Manager;
5. Change Agent;
6. Scholarly Practitioner; and
7. Professional.

The Profile (2012) provides a foundation for educational standards, continuing education and practice guidelines. It also contributes to the blueprint of the CAOT National Occupational Therapy Certification Examination (NOTCE). Public funding in higher education is currently not meeting the needs of post-secondary education. Professional programs are often the most costly to operate in a university system. Within the context of this national economic reality, educational programs are encouraged to develop a distinctive curriculum plan by capitalizing on their own institutional and regional resource base as long as they demonstrate that the Profile requirements have been met. This meets two purposes as stated earlier: It provides a clear, obvious description of the outcome of the program and provides evidence to the university, government, and public of the competencies of the graduates to contribute to the future of health care (Glidden, 2004; Fitzpatrick et al., 2004).The Profile has provided the foundation for the CAOT accreditation program to evolve into an outcome-based model. This evolution has also reshaped the CAOT accreditation program to support continuous quality improvement and long-term planning that address a wide-range of educational programs.

Global leadership 

Accrediting organizations are encouraged to develop common world-class quality assurance systems with other professions and countries (Taylor, 1995; Peace Lenn, 1996). An international and transdisciplinary perspective serves to maintain excellence in higher education and research, and to assure continued leadership for Canada in the future. The accreditation process described in the CAOT Academic Accreditation Standards and Self-Study Guide (2017 edition) has the potential to be adapted or harmonized with other accrediting bodies nationally and internationally and reflects current and emerging educational practice including Interprofessional education (indicator 2.3) CAOT 2009).

The CAOT Academic Accreditation Standards and Self-Study Guide (2017) include a Canadian set of academic accreditation standards to promote the global mobility of graduates. CAOT’s international relationships and collaborative activities strengthen the position of CAOT members as global leaders in occupational therapy education, practice and research, and publications.
International trade agreements.

International trade agreements drive the growth of common standards. They have vast implications for the professions as well as for educators and accrediting agencies. The premise is to encourage prosperity by reducing barriers to employment for the member countries. Accreditation is regarded as an objective way of determining whether a professional program in one country meets the standards in another country (Ascher, 1996). The CAOT accreditation standards not only meet the world standards established by WFOT (WFOT, 2004) but also exceeds them, promoting mobility of Canadian graduates.