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8 Ways to Increase Your Opportunity to Become a School PT

So, you want to be a physical therapist. And you want a satisfying career where you can help people move better and feel better. You want to work with people to improve functional mobility or prevent injury. Sounds great, but first things first: You have to go to physical therapy school.

What is the best way to enter a PT school? Are there things you can do to increase the chances of entering your chosen physical therapy program?

Level of Physical Therapy

At present, in the United States, the physical therapy program offers a degree called Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT). This clinical doctorate is considered an entry level degree for physical therapists and obtaining it allows you to take the PT. This really allows you to practice physical therapy.

Being a physical therapist is a process that requires time, hard work, and a plan to manage all the things that need to be done to go to school. Of course, you must have excellent grades in your undergraduate studies, but you also have to show willingness to be involved in lifelong learning and in helping others. Navigating all the steps needed to get into school can be difficult, and there are some things you can do to increase the chances of entering the DPT program.

1. Contact APTA

If you want to become a physical therapist, you should start by contacting the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). APTA is an organization that represents approximately 100,000 physical therapists, physical therapy assistants, and students of PT.

The APTA website is a useful tool for understanding what PT is doing every day, and you can find basic information about what kind of way to become a physical therapist. You can see which schools offer PT degrees, and you can learn how to apply to these schools.

2. Take the Required Prerequisites

When you enroll in physical therapy schools, you will see that various schools have different classes of prerequisites and you must graduate successfully.

One school, such as Ohio State University, requires you to pass a basic anatomy, while other schools, such as Simmons College in Boston, may require you to pass biology and chemistry classes.

Taking the time to understand what classes you need to pass successfully before applying to a PT school can save time (and money).

3. Select the Related Title

This may be obvious, but if you want to be a physical therapist, you must choose a bachelor program that is related to movement science.

Several choices of popular undergraduate degrees for pre-PT students include:

- Exercise physiology

- Kinesiology

- Biology

If you already have a bachelor's degree in the non-health field, don't be afraid. Many programs accept a number of students who want to become PTs as second careers and who have an unrelated degree.

Keep in mind that you may have to take several additional prerequisite classes before applying to PT.

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4. Strengthen Your Transcript

We all take one or two classes where we might get dubious grades. But having a low score on your undergraduate transcript can damage your chances of going to a PT school.

The application process can be very competitive, with some schools only receiving around 10 to 12 percent of applicants. You need your transcript to be perfect. The average overall score of students entering PT schools in 2012 was 3.52 according to APTA.

If you have low scores on your academic record, consider repeating the class. Spruce up your low scores with As can help your overall average point score and can help move your application to a pile of receipts for PT.

5. Take the GRE

Most physical therapy programs require you to take a postgraduate examination (GRE) to get admission. This exam is a standard test that measures the critical thinking needed to excel in graduate school. The best way to make your PT school application shine is to do well in the GRE.

Consider taking a GRE preparation class to help get ready for the exam. Make sure you are ready, and if your overall test score is less than enough, consider repeating the exam.

6. Volunteers or Shadows a PT

Even though getting good grades during your undergraduate career is important for gaining acceptance in a PT school, you also have to show the school your potential and willingness to work in various clinical settings related to PT. You can do this by spending a lot of time with a physical therapist at the PT clinic.

The various ways pre-PT students obtain clinical hours with physical therapists including:

- Volunteering at a local hospital PT clinic

- shadowing PT at a local school

- shadowing PT in outpatient clinics

- Work for a physical therapist at a private PT clinic

Being involved in a PT clinic can help you learn about the profession, and it can help you begin to feel that being a PT is right for you.

The best way to get into a PT clinic is to contact a local PT and ask about doing a few hours of shadow or volunteering. If the PT you are contacting cannot accommodate you, he may know someone who can.

Remember that different schools require different hours spent to overshadow PT, and some require that you spend time in various PT-related settings such as hospitals or outpatient clinics.

So how much time does the PT clinic take before registering? Depends on the program; Columbia University requires 75 hours of observation while New York Medical College requires 50 hours. (Volunteering or working long hours at the PT clinic can only help your chances of being accepted into the DPT program.)

When you overshadow PT, stay alert, but stay away unless the therapist specifically involves you. You just want to let the therapist do the work. Being arrogant during a patient care program may be considered rude or uncaring.

Many PT schools require that you submit a professional recommendation letter, so be as good as possible to ensure that you get a positive letter from the PT where you work.

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7. Use PTCAS

Physical Therapist (PTCAS) Centralized Application Service is a service offered by APTA that allows applicants to use a centralized application to apply to many different PT programs. PTCAS allows you to collect all your application materials under one roof then send material to several PT.

There is a fee for using PTCAS. At present, $ 150 (US) to enroll in your first school, and then $ 50 for each school after that. Fee waivers are available for those who can show financial needs.

8. Register with Different Schools

This may seem obvious, but applying to many different DPT programs increases your chances of getting into one of them. Of course, we all want to go to the top ranked schools in the country, or you might want to go to a school that is very close to your home. But just signing up for one school greatly limits your chances of entering.