Proud MUSC OT alumna finds her path to teaching through the PPOTD program

A graduate of the MUSC Post Professional Occupational Therapy Doctorate (PPOTD) program, Liz Slaughter, OTD, OTR/L, is an assistant professor in the School of Applied Health Sciences at Jacksonville University’s Brooks Rehabilitation College of Health Sciences, where she teaches in the Doctor of Occupational Therapy program. She reflects on how the PPOTD program created a pathway toward academic teaching that changed her professional trajectory and fulfilled her passion for teaching.

We’ve all heard the saying, “Don’t forget where you came from,” and being a double MUSC alumna is something I value to my core. I earned both my Master of Occupational Therapy degree and my PPOTD from MUSC, and I am proud of where I come from. Choosing to go back to MUSC for my PPOTD was an easy decision. I knew I would be receiving an education from professors who valued learning but also valued being a clinician.

I fell in love with teaching while working as a fieldwork educator. I wanted to become a more effective educator, but at the time, I didn’t know if full-time academia was in my future. Graduating with my PPOTD from MUSC opened that door wider. In the program’s courses that focused on academic teaching, I developed a deeper appreciation for evidence-informed teaching and the value of contributing to the OT profession.

When I look back on my experience in the program, I think about how supportive, empowering, and connected the professors were. Not once did I feel like I was alone. They built a great network for everyone in the cohort to be able to support one another and get to know each other. I have gotten teaching opportunities as an adjunct instructor at another university because of my friendships made in this program. Their support and encouragement have lasted beyond the program.

Today, I am an assistant professor at Jacksonville University, teaching what I love because of my experience and the opportunities the PPOTD program provided me. I graduated from the master's program ten years ago and the doctorate program four years ago, but I can still email or call any of my previous professors at MUSC and they are there to support me. That’s what being a MUSC OT alumna is like.