How to Get a Physical Therapist

If you've ever fallen and suffered a strain, you may accept needed to encounter a physical therapist during your recovery. Peradventure y'all were in a car accident or had surgery — a physical therapist may have helped you lot rehabilitate. Physical therapists piece of work in all kinds of capacities and with all types of people, from children, older adults and postpartum women to stroke patients, top-tier athletes and more.

If becoming a physical therapist is of interest to you, y'all may be wondering nearly the commitment needed to enter into the discipline — how many years does it take to become a physical therapist? It's more merely an undergraduate caste, volunteer hours, licensure or a fellowship. Some physical therapists will put in that fourth dimension and and then pursue additional standing teaching PT credits.

Earlier diving into the details, here is a expect at the broader moving picture.

Online Physical Therapy Programs

Learn from Arcadia's proficient DPT kinesthesia in an online program. Complete in 25 months.

Earn your DPT from a hybrid programme. Experience on-campus immersions and apply skills learned online to patients in person. Complete the program in 25 months. GRE and available's required.

  • Accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE)
  • Complete in 25 months
  • 32 weeks of in-person experience

The Hybrid DPT Program From USC — Bachelor'southward Req'd

With USC'due south Partition of Biokinesiology and Concrete Therapy, aspiring physical therapists can earn a Dr. of Physical Therapy degree in an innovative hybrid format. Bachelor'south required.

  • Total-time, iii-year program
  • 44 weeks of rich, varied clinical experiences
  • Regular visits to USC for on-campus, skill-edifice immersions

What Is a Physical Therapist?

The American Physical Therapy Clan (APTA) describes physical therapists as "movement experts who optimize quality of life through prescribed exercise, easily-on care, and patient didactics."

Concrete therapists help their patients discover relief in a number of ways, mostly involving the movement of the body in the form of exercises.

What Does a Concrete Therapist Do?

A physical therapist'south telescopic of practice includes rehabilitating patients or helping them do things for the first time, improving performance, and preventing injury. Concrete therapist duties mostly include examining patients, evaluating their condition, screening for injuries or disease, diagnosing conditions, determining a prognosis, developing plans of care, overseeing documentation and care, and discharging patients at the end of handling.

Otherwise, their scope of practice varies land by country. Maryland, for example, specifies that physical therapy practice does not include taking 10-rays, using substances that are radioactive, or using electricity to cauterize or perform surgery." Other states accept like stances, with Idaho stating that "the do of physical therapy shall not include the use of radiology, surgery or medical diagnosis of disease." You lot can find what the scope of practice for a physical therapist in your country includes and does non include on the APTA's website.

5 Common Steps to Become a Concrete Therapist

How long does it take to become a physical therapist? In full general, the path to becoming a physical therapist will span anywhere from 6 to viii years, depending on how long it takes y'all to move through each step, including your educational activity, clinical hours, shadowing hours and more. The journey to becoming a physical therapist isn't the aforementioned for everyone; nonetheless, these are the basic steps to enter the profession.

  1. Earn a Bachelor's Degree

    If you're looking for pre-physical-therapy programs, y'all may have all kinds of questions: "Do I need to go to med school to be a physical therapist?" Or, "What kind of education do yous need to be a concrete therapist?"

    Await no farther than your traditional bachelor's degree. Few colleges offer a physical therapist available'southward degree, only earning a bachelor's degree is one of the prerequisites for acceptance into a DPT (Doctor of Concrete Therapy) program. Your available'due south doesn't take to specifically exist pre-physical therapy, simply information technology should exist in an applicable, health-related field. This will allow yous to pick up foundational knowledge and skills required for the field, such as knowledge in:

    • Biology
    • Anatomy
    • Physiology
    • Biomechanics
    • Kinesiology
    • Neuroscience
    • Pharmacology
    • Cardiovascular and pulmonary sciences
    • Endocrine sciences
    • Metabolic sciences
    • Musculoskeletal sciences

    Note that a background in softer skills such as behavioral sciences, cultural competence, communication, direction sciences, finance, sociology, clinical reasoning, ethics, and testify-based practice will also be benign to your success as a physical therapist.

    Looking to pursue a career in physical therapy? The question of what to major in for physical therapy is a popular one. Here are some common majors for physical therapy:

    • Physics
    • Anatomy
    • Physiology
    • Biomechanics
    • Kinesiology
    • Exercise Science

  2. Gain Easily-on Physical Therapy Experience

    Concrete therapy shadowing is 1 of the main requirements for access into most high-quality Doctorate of Physical Therapy programs. (Not all physical therapy programs require observation hours, and the amount and completion appointment of hours may vary by programme.) For those that do require them, physical therapy volunteer hours can be paid or unpaid and may be completed in a variety of settings throughout a student'south undergraduate career, requirements volition vary by school.

    Physical therapy volunteer or shadowing hours will help you larn technical skills and soft skills by observing licensed physical therapists interacting with their patients and taking on some of the duties for yourself such as patient preparation and movement (e.k., lowering or raising them). You volition also gain exposure to working with patients from different backgrounds and with various conditions.

    Concrete therapy shadowing opportunities can be plant in most whatever of the environments in which a physical therapist practices, from hospitals to research centers to fitness centers. Similarly, you may find yourself working across a variety of concrete therapy practice areas, such equally:

    • Acute care
    • Aquatics
    • Cardiovascular and pulmonary
    • Elderliness
    • Abode health
    • Neurology
    • Oncology
    • Orthopedics
    • Pediatrics
    • Sports
    • Women's health

    Exposure to a number of different areas may assist yous with clarity of career pick. Depending on where you choose to shadow, you lot may find out at that place are some areas that you lot prefer more than others.

  3. Complete a Doctor of Concrete Therapy Programme

    Co-ordinate to the APTA, the typical doctorate in concrete therapy takes three years to complete. A typical physical therapy curriculum is 80% classroom and lab study, and 20% clinical pedagogy, so you'll non only learn about your field of study simply likewise gain hands-on experience. Courses in your physical therapy education might include:

    • Biology/anatomy
    • Cellular histology
    • Physiology
    • Exercise physiology
    • Biomechanics
    • Kinesiology
    • Neuroscience
    • Pharmacology
    • Pathology
    • Behavioral sciences
    • Advice
    • Ethics/values
    • Management sciences
    • Finance
    • Folklore
    • Clinical reasoning
    • Show-based do
    • Cardiovascular and pulmonary
    • Endocrine and metabolic
    • Musculoskeletal organisation

    Keep in mind that not all DPT programs are accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Educational activity (CAPTE). It's important to choose a plan that has CAPTE accreditation, so you can authorize to sit for the physical therapy licensure exam later graduation (and subsequently practice in your field).

Physical Therapy Educational activity Requirements

It'due south important to practise your research to find a programme that fits your specific needs and to ensure that you lot're on track to meet all admissions requirements for concrete therapy schoolhouse. A Doc of Physical Therapy (DPT) caste is required to practice concrete therapy on patients. DPT program requirements vary depending on the school but will mostly include a Physical Therapy Centralized Awarding Service (PTCAS) application, including transcripts, GRE scores, references, and observation hours.

Some DPT schools may have supplemental requirements such as a fee or the results of a physical examination; it'due south upward to you to brand certain you know and have addressed each requirement for the schools to which you are applying. Each of these physical therapy school prerequisites will crave time and attention to consummate, so make sure you begin them with plenty advance time before your awarding is due.

Medico of Physical Therapy Program Options

There are on-campus and online doctor of physical therapy program options available. As mentioned, information technology is important to ensure that your programme of pick meets the requirements of the state you wish to piece of work in — such as having CAPTE accreditation then that you can obtain your physical therapy license later on completing your education.

Equally for attending a DPT program online versus on campus: While many students are used to on-campus settings, online DPT programs may lend more than flexibility to students' schedules equally they go along to gain real-world experience exterior the classroom or have personal obligations. Online physical therapy programs also allow you to study at the school of your selection without having to uproot your family or move across the country.

4. Fulfill Physical Therapy License Requirements

Concrete therapy licensure is required in every state, but precise physical therapy license requirements vary past location. Be sure to check the requirements you lot need to fulfill in the state you wish to work in. To obtain a PT license, all aspiring physical therapists must pass the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE).

You are allowed five hours for the 250 NPTE questions, which volition be objective, multiple choice and computerized. The NPTE content will cover the body systems (e.1000., neuromuscular and nervous systems, lymphatic systems and musculoskeletal system) and non-systems (e.g., rubber and protection, therapeutic modalities, research and evidence-based practice).

The NPTE exam is administered four times per year. To see the virtually current NPTE exam dates being offered, view the NPTE website.

What happens afterward the NPTE exam?

For those who pass the NPTE, congratulations, you lot are i step closer to obtaining licensure!. Those who did not pass the required score, you do accept the pick of retaking the exam. In that location is a maximum of 3 times in a 12-month period and six times in a lifetime.

Later on becoming licensed, some physical therapists wish to go on learning and expanding their knowledge. Two means this can exist done via PT standing instruction: through clinical physical therapy residency programs and clinical concrete therapy fellowship programs.

5. Attend a Physical Therapy Residency or Fellowship

If you lot want to specialize in an area of physical therapy, such every bit orthopedics or sports, you'll need to complete a residency program and/or a physical therapy fellowship. In improver to gaining the knowledge to work in a specialty surface area, you would need to record some or all of the clinical hours needed to earn certification through the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties.

Physical Therapy Residency vs. Fellowship Programs

How should you lot cull between a physical therapy residency vs. fellowship? What's the difference between the two? When it comes to the field of concrete therapy, a residency experience prepares an individual to become a board-certified clinical specialist. A fellowship, on the other manus, is designed for the graduate of a residency or board-certified concrete therapist to focus on a subspecialty expanse of clinical do, instruction, or inquiry.

Careers for Physical Therapists

Where exercise physical therapists work? Careers and locations that apply physical therapists vary greatly. Concrete therapist work environments include:

  • Hospitals
  • Outpatient clinics or offices
  • Inpatient rehabilitation facilities
  • Skilled nursing, extended care or subacute facilities
  • Homes
  • Education or research centers
  • Schools
  • Hospices
  • Industrial, workplace or other occupational environments
  • Fitness centers and sports preparation facilities

In addition to these and the previously mentioned environments, some physical therapists set up private practices or join an role of physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech pathologists once their training is complete.

As with a PT student'southward ascertainment hours, licensed physical therapists may work in practice areas from acute intendance and home health to pediatrics or elderliness and specialize in oncology, neurology, sports or even women'south health.

For more information, see Physical Therapy Careers and Salaries.

Salaries for Concrete Therapists

The median annual wage for physical therapists was $89,440 in May of 2019; however, the highest x% of U.s. physical therapists earned upward of $124,740.

The median annual wages were in a higher place the median annual wage of the profession as a whole for those concrete therapists working in nursing and residential care facilities ($95,440); home health intendance services ($94,080); and state, local and private hospitals ($91,260).

Demand for Concrete Therapists

The employment outlook for the physical therapy field as a whole is much faster than the average for all occupations. Employment of physical therapists is projected to grow 22% betwixt 2018 and 2028.

This potent employment outlook is largely due to this predicted shortage, also equally to the babe boomer population aging: Not only are they staying agile later on in life, but they are besides susceptible to chronic and acute health conditions. As a result of this demographic shift, PT chore prospects are predicted to be particularly good in settings where older adults are treated, such equally astute intendance hospitals, skilled-nursing facilities and orthopedic care settings.

Prospects may as well exist especially favorable in rural settings as a result of an existing shortage of physical therapists, many of whom currently cull to live in highly populated suburban and urban locations.

The Bottom Line

Physical therapists do a vital, demanding job that affects the quality of life of their patients immensely. It requires extensive education and training to qualify every bit a physical therapist. Fortunately, concrete therapists have the opportunity to choose particular ranges of patients, settings and specialties in their career path, while earning a competitive salary and besides knowing that what they do makes a difference.

Last Updated May 2020