About Rehabilitation and Health Leadership | School of Rehabilitation Therapy

Why choose DSc RHL at Queen's?

The DSc (RHL) program is designed to produce purposeful, inspirational and effective ‘leader scholars’ who advance rehabilitation and health in Canada and beyond.

The DSc (RHL) is a 36 month executive-style degree program that equips currently practicing rehabilitation and health professionals with the knowledge and skills they need to confidently pursue career opportunities that require advanced competencies in leadership, program development, applied research and evaluation, advocacy, change management, and knowledge translation.

The program format and curriculum design are firmly rooted in the belief that collaboration, creativity, and the discovery of new knowledge can inspire changes that benefit people affected by or at risk of disability. The program will be open to any professional with a background in rehabilitation or health sciences whose current work or future career goals focus on advancing programs, services, and systems that will positively influence the everyday lives of people affected by or at risk of disability.

The cohort-based program has been designed with the working professional in mind. The intent is to enable students to continue working, if desired. The three-year program will be offered in a blended-learning format that includes short, intensive on-campus components (3-7 days) once or twice per year (depending on year of study), followed by on-line learning.

Program Learning Outcomes

DSc (RHL) graduates will be able to:

Critically appraise, synthesize, and integrate knowledge from multiple sources and consider the impact of its application on parties with interests as well as systems/structures (e.g., patients/clients, practitioners, families, public and private systems that fund or deliver services) in order to improve rehabilitation and health practice and service delivery,
Design, implement and evaluate novel services, programs and processes in diverse areas of rehabilitation and health,
Advocate for and lead services and programs to enhance the lives of people affected by or at risk of disability.

Strategic Alliance

The strategic alliance between Queen’s University School of Rehabilitation Therapy and the Canadian College of Health Leaders (CCHL) is an important step towards adding value to the students in the DSc (RHL) program. This strategic alliance demonstrates the commitment by Queen’s University School of Rehabilitation Therapy and CCHL to foster lifelong leadership development for health leaders. The alliance allows the DSc (RHL) students to fulfill some of their requirements to earn the Certified Health Executive (CHE) designation while earning their degree.