Physical therapist working with patients on stability balls.

Physical therapists apply exercise to improve patient quality of life. Their patients have medical weather condition or injuries that touch function and movement, who are referred to the physical therapist who helps manage and prevent these conditions through stretch, exercise, hands on therapy, equipment, and more. Physical therapists are trained to observe patients to empathize their needs and to evaluate the effectiveness of their treatment plans so that they can help their patients as best they can.

Earn Your Doctor of Physical Therapy Degree Online in Just 25 Months! CAPTE accredited. Offers 32 weeks of clinical education experience. Click to learn more.

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Steps to Becoming a Concrete Therapist

  1. Set up to apply for a doctor of physical therapy programme
  2. Earn your doc of physical therapy degree
  3. Go approval to take the National Physical Therapy Examination and pass
  4. Pass the Test and Get Licensed
  5. Specialization (if desired)

Footstep 1: Prepare to Use for a Doctor of Physical Therapy Plan

Dr. of Physical Therapy Application Requirements

Most schools crave you lot to submit your application through the Physical Therapist Centralized Application Service (PTCAS). Although verbal requirements will vary, common application requirements are as follows:

  • Application Fee
  • Bachelor'southward degree unless program is a 3 and 3 format (combines bachelor and doctorate didactics)
  • Transcripts, which are used to calculate a standardized GPA
  • PT-supervised observation hours
  • References- reference requirements will vary by school
  • Supplemental materials
  • Check to meet if you lot need to take the GRE

Additionally, many programs crave certain prerequisite coursework, which can differ significantly by programme but may include courses in the areas of anatomy and physiology, bio, chem, physics, social sciences, stats, math, exercise physiology, medical terminology, and writing. Check to see what each school requires.

Yous must use to a Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Instruction (CAPTE) accredited DPT program (or strange equivalent) to get certified. Graduates of non-accredited U.s. programs cannot be certified, and master's degrees are no longer accepted every bit a ways to become a certified physical therapist.

Check out available physical therapy scholarships.

Step 2: Earn Your Physician of Concrete Therapy Degree

One time you lot are admitted into an accepted doctor of physical therapy plan, yous can begin completing your degree. Co-ordinate to the American Physical Therapist Clan (APTA), a DPT typically takes 3 years to complete and consists of 80% classroom and lab work and 20% clinical pedagogy. Although curriculum will vary by program, here is what you can expect:

DPT Coursework

Coursework is designed to requite students a strong science background as well every bit gear up them for managing their businesses and knowing how to keep to keep their practice up to engagement with current research. According to the American Concrete Therapy Clan, the following topics are frequently part of a DPT curriculum:

  • Behavioral science
  • Biology
  • Biomechanics
  • Cardiovascular
  • Cellular history
  • Communication
  • Critical reasoning
  • Ethics
  • Bear witness Based Practice
  • Practise physiology
  • Kinesiology
  • Direction and Finance
  • Metabolic
  • Musculoskeletal
  • Neuroscience
  • Pathology
  • Pharmacology
  • Physiology
  • Sociology

On-Campus Lab Work

While completing your DPT program, y'all volition participate in hands on lab work where you gain hands on concrete therapy experience.

Clinical Experiences

As you lot complete your DPT degree, you will complete multiple clinical experiences or internships where you work in a physical therapy setting supervised past a physical therapist. These experiences ofttimes accept place off campus. Requirements for clinical experience volition vary by school, but on boilerplate a final clinical feel is 27.five weeks in length.

Earn Your Doctor of Physical Therapy Degree Online in Just 25 Months! CAPTE accredited. Offers 32 weeks of clinical education experience. Click to learn more.

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Step iii: Become Blessing to accept the National Physical Therapy Test and Pass

To become certified every bit a concrete therapist in your state, you are required to pass the National Physical Therapy Examination. In club to sit down for this test, a candidate must be approved by both the state and the Federation of Country Boards of Physical Therapy (FSBPT). To be approved to sit down for the exam, i must come across the following requirements:

  • Annals online and pay a registration fee (total exam fees amount to $485)
  • Have a CAPTE accredited DPT degree or foreign equivalent
  • Comply with examination security requests
  • Exist approved by your state (requirements by land volition vary). This involves submitting an application to your land's board of physical therapy (requirements described later).

Those educated in a foreign land will need to meet these additional requirements:

  • Proof that degree is deemed equivalent to a CAPTE accredited program. To do this, a regional accrediting bureau must perform an evaluation. The student must submit to the FSBPT the agency's proper name, the names of the tools used to evaluate the plan, and the evaluation outcome
  • Proof of completion of the TOEFL exam
  • Any additional land requirements needed to proceeds permission from the state to take the exam

Starting in 2022, the following TOEFL scores will exist required to sit for the exam:

  • Reading: 22
  • Listening: 21
  • Writing: 22
  • Speaking: 24

Requirements to get approval from your state to take the test (in improver to mandatory CAPTE accredited caste) can be found below. Note that fees do not include the above examination fee and may be a combination of several fees including application fee, criminal background cheque, and jurisprudence exam fees, depending on the land. Jurisprudence exams may be part of a state's application to sit for the exam, or may be completed afterward gaining approval to take the exam. There may besides be additional requirements for applying for certification not listed in the table, such as professional liability insurance or references. Always reach out to your country directly to understand the unabridged application procedure, every bit the process varies from state to state.

State Fees Jurisprudence Exam Background Check
Alabama $150 Yeah No
Alaska $390 Yes No
Arizona $160 Yep Yeah
Arkansas $l Yes No
California $450 Aye Yes
Colorado Unknown No Yes
Connecticut $285 No No
Delaware $173 No Yep
DC $264 Yes Aye
Florida $180 Yep ($65 fee) No
Georgia $75 Yeah No
Hawaii $350 No No
Idaho Unknown Yes No
Illinois $100 No No
Indiana $100 No Yes
Iowa $175 No Yes
Kansas $103 No No
Kentucky $225 Yes Yes
Louisiana $390 Yes Aye
Maine Unknown No No
Maryland $150 Yes Yes
Massachusetts $226 No No
Michigan $119 Yes Yep
Minnesota $243 No Yep
Mississippi $375 Yes Yep
Missouri $25 Yes Yes
Montana $100 Yep Yes
Nebraska $245 Yes Yeah
Nevada $325 Yes Yes
New Hampshire Unknown Yes Yes
New Jersey $125 Yes Aye
New Mexico $250 Yes Yes
New York $294 No No
Due north Carolina $150 Yes Yes
North Dakota $200 Aye Yes
Ohio $100 Yes ($95 fee) Yes
Oklahoma $150 No Yes
Oregon Unknown Yes ($48 fee) Yep
Pennsylvania $thirty No No
Rhode Island $155 No Yes
South Carolina $120 No Yeah
South Dakota Unknown No No
Tennessee Unknown No Aye
Texas $190 Yes Yes
Utah $100 Yes Yep
Vermont Unknown No No
Virginia $140 No No
Washington $65 No Yes
West Virginia $270 No Yes
Wisconsin $158 Yes No
Wyoming $240 Aye Aye

Tabular array information is from the Federation of Country Boards of Physical Therapy, except for fee information, which is from the respective country lath website linked to in the tabular array.

Step iv: Pass the Examination and Get Licensed

Once you are canonical to take the exam, you can schedule your exam date with prometric. The exam will be 250 questions that y'all accept five hours to complete. Yous must score 600 or higher to pass.

Later on passing the examination, your land will consequence y'all your license. Typically, considering you accept already applied to the state for approval to sit down for the exam, y'all do not need to take any more than steps later on passing. Over again, check with your country to brand sure they do not need any additional information.

Earn Your Doctor of Physical Therapy Degree Online in Just 25 Months! CAPTE accredited. Offers 32 weeks of clinical education experience. Click to learn more.

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Step five: Specialization

After y'all become licensed as a physical therapist, in that location are steps you can take to become specialized in an area of physical therapy practice.

Clinical Residency

If you lot are interested in specialization, you tin apply for a clinical residency, where you tin improve your knowledge in a specialized area of physical therapy to ready to provide services in that area. In a clinical residency y'all are supervised by a PT in the specialty you are interested in who serves as your mentor. This residency helps to develop the scientific inquiry skills needed in advanced do.

Clinical Fellowship

Fellowships are designed for those who already demonstrate expertise in a specific area of the concrete therapy profession. Most of the time, those who complete fellowships have already completed a residency. Fellowships provide advanced instruction in a subspecialty of concrete therapy practise. Like with residencies, fellowships have a strong mentorship component. Fellowships connect the fellow with a population of people who provide opportunities for advanced experience and learning.

Board/Specialty Certification

Concrete therapists can cull to increase their credentials through certification in one of several concrete therapy specialties including cardiovascular, electrophysiology, elderliness, neurology, oncology, orthopaedics, pediatrics, sports, and women's health. In club to become board certified, one must either have worked 2,000 hours in a specialty over the 10 preceding years or accept had a residency in the specialty. Additionally, a person looking to be board certified must laissez passer an exam.