Occupational Therapy
Dean: Reg Urbanowski
Head: Leanne Leclair
Campus Address/General Office: P304 - 770 Bannatyne Avenue, Bannatyne Campus
Telephone: 204-789-3897
Fax: 204-789-3927
Email Address: CORS.MOTprogram@umanitoba.ca
Website: umanitoba.ca/rehabilitation-sciences/occupational-therapy
Academic Staff: Please refer to the Occupational Therapy website for Academic staff information.

Occupational Therapy Program Information

The Master of Occupational Therapy is a professional practice degree that can be obtained through participation in either a Regular program or an Accelerated program option. The Regular program is for individuals who do not have a previous degree in occupational therapy. The Accelerated program is for occupational therapists who have a B.M.R.(O.T.) degree or equivalent.

The Occupational Therapy program maintains accreditation through the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists.

Admission Information

Admission to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies

Application and Admission Procedures are found in the Academic Guide.

Admission requirements for Master’s students are found in the Master’s Degrees General Regulations section of the Guide.

M.O.T. Admission Requirements 

REGULAR PROGRAM

Completion of a previous undergraduate degree with a minimum B average in the last 60 credit hours of study, and completion of all program prerequisite courses or approved alternates with no grade in prerequisites below a B. Prerequisite courses include all of the courses listed below or equivalents¹ approved by the Admissions Committee:

• Anatomy of the Human Body
• Physiology of the Human Body
• Minimum 3 credit hours in Psychology
• Minimum 3 credit hours in Indigenous content

¹

Equivalent academic courses completed at the University of Manitoba or recognized universities elsewhere will be considered.

Completion of the CASPer Test administered by Acuity Insights.

A combination of GPA (last 60 credit hours) and CASPer score will be used to determine who will be invited for an interview.

This program includes a Canadian Indigenous Peoples priority category. Please see the M.O.T. program webpage for additional information specific to this category and other requirements.

ACCELERATED PROGRAM

Completion of a B.M.R.(O.T.) degree or equivalent, with a minimum B average in the last 60 credit hours of study, completion of an additional 42 credit hours of non-O.T. degree credits, and evidence of having passed the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists (CAOT) certification examination and/or eligibility for registration in Manitoba by the College of Occupational Therapists of Manitoba (COTM). Applicants to the Accelerated program are advised to contact the Head of the Occupational Therapy Department prior to applying as admission to the program is dependent on the resources available in any given year.

Please consult the M.O.T. program of study page for further information.

Application Information

Students should complete and submit their online application with supporting documentation by the date indicated on the M.O.T. program of study page.

Degree Requirements

Students in the M.O.T. Regular program must complete 107 credit hours of coursework. All academic and fieldwork courses must be successfully completed in order to graduate.

Students in the M.O.T. Accelerated program will be required to take 12 credit hours of academic coursework from the M.O.T. program or equivalent. Six of these credit hours are to be OT 7752 Critical Inquiry Research Project or equivalent.

Fieldwork education is an integral part of the M.O.T. Regular program. Field placement experiences are integrated throughout the program and include 1 four-week, 2 eight-week and 1 six-week experience. Field placements mostly occur in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. All students should be prepared to travel out of Winnipeg for a minimum of one placement during the course of the program.

Occupational Therapy students are required to provide a health history and immunization record. A student will not be permitted to attend fieldwork placements until all health, immunization, CPR, mask fit and records check requirements are met.

Health Requirements

Standard Health Record Form Packages are sent to new occupational therapy students upon acceptance into the program. New students in Occupational Therapy are required to return forms to the immunization program by dates published yearly in the Health Record Form Packages. Second year students are required annually to review and update immunizations as necessary. Additional information about the certification and records checks requirements outlined below is sent to new applicants upon acceptance into the program.

Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Certification

All students in the M.O.T. program are required to obtain certification in cardiopulmonary resuscitation. Certification must be through a Heart and Stroke Foundation certified course at the level of Basic Life Support - BLS Provider or higher (Advanced Cardiac Life Support - ACLS). New students in the program must provide proof of certification within the first 2 weeks of classes of the academic year in which they commence classes. This certification must have an issue date on or after July 1 of the year the student commences classes in the program. Second year students must provide proof of re-certification with an issue date on or after August 16 of their second year in the program. Certification must remain current for all fieldwork experiences.

Mask Fit Certification

Clinical/fieldwork education sites require students to maintain mask fit certification. Information on acquiring this certification is provided to new students upon admission. All students are required to maintain mask fit certification throughout the program.

Criminal Record Check, Adult Abuse Registry Check and Child Abuse Registry Check

Clinical/fieldwork education sites require that students produce a completed Criminal Record Check (including a vulnerable sector screen), Adult Abuse Registry Check and a Child Abuse Registry Check. New students in the M.O.T. program must provide results for a Criminal Record Check (including a vulnerable sector screen) within the first 2 weeks of classes of the academic year in which they commence classes. First year students should ensure that the Criminal Records Check has an issue date of July 1 or later in the year in which they commence the program. Within the first two weeks of the program, incoming students will apply for an Adult Abuse Registry Check and a Child Abuse Registry Check through the M.O.T. program. Further information is provided to incoming students upon their acceptance to the program. Second year students must provide updated results of their Criminal Records Check by October 16 of their second year in the program. The Criminal Records Check (with vulnerable sector screen) must have an issue date on or after August 16 of their second year in the program. Within the first month of classes in second year, returning students will apply for an Adult Abuse Registry Check and a Child Abuse Registry Check through the M.O.T. program. Some fieldwork education sites require that checks are no more than 6 months old; students may need to reorder these checks more than once a year.

Professional Designation and Registration

Graduates from the M.O.T. program have the degree designation M.O.T. It is important to note that occupational therapy is a regulated health profession, by law. To be eligible to practice in Manitoba, graduates must register with the College of Occupational Therapists of Manitoba (COTM) and must register to write the Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists (CAOT) National Certification Examination. Regulations are similar in most other Canadian provinces, in that occupational therapists must be registered with the regulatory body in that jurisdiction and must pass the CAOT National Certification Exam. Writing of the national exam is scheduled three times a year. The University's Occupational Therapy Department provides a list of potential M.O.T. graduates to CAOT to verify their eligibility to write the National Certification Exam. Newly-educated occupational therapists are eligible for registration with COTM (or other provincial regulatory body) as Provisional Occupational Therapists and for employment prior to convocation and/or writing the national exam, provided they have successfully completed all academic and fieldwork requirements for the M.O.T. program, and have provided the appropriate personnel at the regulatory body with a letter of verification from the Head of the Department of Occupational Therapy (students must request these letters). Registration of Provisional Occupational Therapists requires an offer of employment and arranging to have a mentor. For information on the registration process in Manitoba, you can visit the COTM website at www.cotm.ca or contact them by calling (204) 957-1214. Other provinces have similar provisions to allow some form of registration and thus employment prior to convocation. A listing of provincial regulatory organizations is available from COTM.

Expected Time to Graduate: Regular program - 2 years; Accelerated program - 1 year

Progression Chart

Registration Information

Students should familiarize themselves with the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies ‘GRAD’ courses applicable to their program. If you have questions about which GRAD course(s) to register in, please consult your home department/unit.

All course withdrawals (registration revisions) must be approved by the Department Head.

Course registration information for the incoming first year students will be forwarded to them by the Department/Program Assistant. Returning students will have course registration information sent to their U of M email account.

Regulations

Students must meet the requirements as outlined in both Supplementary Regulation and BFAR documents as approved by Senate.

Supplementary Regulations

Individual units may require specific requirements above and beyond those of the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, and students should consult unit supplementary regulations for these specific regulations. 

Bona Fide Academic Requirements (BFAR)

Bona Fide Academic Requirements (BFAR) represent the core academic requirements a graduate student must acquire in order to gain, and demonstrate acquisition of, essential knowledge and skills.

All students must successfully complete:

• GRAD 7300 prior to applying to any ethics boards which are appropriate to the student’s research or within the student’s first year, whichever comes first; and
• GRAD 7500 within the first term of registration;

unless these courses have been completed previously, as per Mandatory Academic Integrity Course and Mandatory Research Integrity Online Course.

Students must also meet additional BFAR requirements that may be specified for their program.

General Regulations

All students must:

• maintain a minimum degree grade point average of 3.0 with no grade below C+,
• meet the minimum and not exceed the maximum course requirements, and
• meet the minimum and not exceed the maximum time requirements (in terms of time in program and lapse or expiration of credit of courses).

Professional Unsuitability Bylaw (PUB)

The Master of Occupational Therapy program has a Professional Unsuitability Bylaw that sets out the authority of the program's Professional Unsuitability Committee (PUC) and its procedures.

Academic Schedule

Dates applicable to Occupational Therapy

Orientation

Start and End Dates

Registration and Withdrawal Dates

Last Date to Drop without Penalty

Voluntary Withdrawal (VW) Deadline

Term Breaks

The academic and administrative offices will be open during this period, but there will be no classes/examinations held for students.

Examination and Test Dates

N/A

Academic Schedule Fall/Winter Term 2026-2027

Dates Applicable to all UM Students 

University Closure

When the University is closed no classes/examinations will be held, and course assignment deadlines will not be set on dates where the University is closed.

Dates Applicable to most UM Students

Some additional or differing date information is included in separate sections for: Agriculture Diploma, Applied Human Nutrition, Architecture, Art (School of), Dental Hygiene, Dentistry (includes IDDP), Education (B.Ed. only), Management, Medicine (excludes Family Social Sciences), Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Physician’s Assistant Studies, Respiratory Therapy, and Social Work. Students in these programs should also see their respective section of the Academic Schedule. 

Orientation

Additional or differing dates exist for: Agriculture Diploma, Applied Human Nutrition, Dental Hygiene, Education (B.Ed. only), Management, Medicine, Midwifery, Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Physician Assistant Studies, Respiratory Therapy, and Social Work. Students in these programs should also see their respective section of the Academic Schedule.

Start and End Dates

Additional or differing dates exist for: Agriculture Diploma, Applied Human Nutrition, Dental Hygiene, Dentistry, Education, Management, Medicine, Midwifery, Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Physician’s Assistant Studies, Respiratory Therapy, and Social Work. Students in these programs should also see their respective section of the Academic Schedule.

Registration and Withdrawal Dates

Additional or differing dates exist for: Agriculture Diploma and other faculties, colleges and/or schools offering irregularly scheduled courses. Agriculture Diploma students should also see their respective section of the Academic Schedule; all others should also refer to the Class Schedule.

Regular Registration Period

Registration Revision Period

Students may use this period of time to make changes to their selected courses or class schedule. Last day to drop is 1 business day prior to the end of the Registration Revision Period.

Last Date to Drop without Penalty

Last date to drop and have course excluded from transcripts; VWs will be recorded on transcripts for courses dropped after this date. There will be no refunds for courses dropped after this date. Additional or differing dates exist for Agriculture Diploma; students in this program should also see their respective section of the Academic Schedule.

Last Date to Register/Registration Revision Deadline

Voluntary Withdrawal (VW) Deadline

Last date to withdraw and not receive a final grade; students cannot withdraw from courses after this date

Fee Payment Deadlines

A financial penalty will be assessed on accounts with an outstanding balance after this date.*

*

Please see the Last Day to Drop without Penalty

Term Breaks

Academic and administrative offices will be open during this period; no classes, tests or assignment due dates occur during this time. Additional or differing dates exist for: Applied Human Nutrition, Dental Hygiene, Dentistry, Education (B.Ed. only), Medicine, Occupational Therapy, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Physician Assistant Studies, and Respiratory Therapy. Students in these programs should also see their respective section of the Academic Schedule.

Examination and Test Dates

Students are reminded that they must remain available until all examination and test obligations have been fulfilled. Additional or differing dates exist for: Agriculture Diploma, Applied Human Nutrition, Dental Hygiene, Dentistry, Education, Medicine, and Pharmacy. Students in these programs should also see their respective section of the Academic Schedule. Students in faculties, colleges, schools or programs offering irregularly scheduled courses should also see the exam timetable available through their program office.

Challenge for Credit Application Deadline

Final Grade Appeal Deadlines

Graduation and University Convocation

Degrees, Diplomas and Certificates will be awarded at Convocation. Graduation date may differ from Convocation Ceremony date.

For students graduating Fall 2026

For students graduating February 2027

For students graduating Spring 2027

*

Last date for receipt by Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies of Theses/Practica and reports on Theses/Practica, comprehensive examinations, and project reports from students, and lists of potential graduands from departments.

Summer Dates applicable to Occupational Therapy

Dates for Summer Term

Start and End Dates (Generally Monday to Thursday classes)

Classes on Monday, May 24^th will be made up on Friday, May 28^th

Classes on Monday, August 2^nd will be made up on Friday, August 6^th

May - August courses will have no classes scheduled Monday, June 21^st to Friday, July 2^nd

Registration and Withdrawal Dates

Regular Registration Period

Registration start dates are to be determined by the Registrar’s Office.

Late Registration/Registration Revision Period

Students may use this period of time to make changes to their selected courses or class schedule.

Last Date to Drop without Penalty

Last date to drop and have course excluded from transcripts; VWs will be recorded on transcripts for courses dropped after this date. There will be no refunds for courses dropped after this date. 

Voluntary Withdrawal (VW) Deadline

Last date to withdraw and not receive a final grade; students cannot withdraw from courses after this date.

Fee Payment Deadlines

*

A financial penalty will be assessed on accounts with an outstanding balance after this date. (determined by Financial Services)

Examination and Test Dates

Students are reminded that they must remain available until all examination and test obligations have been fulfilled.

Challenge for Credit

Courses