Pathways to Physical Therapy
To become a physical therapist (PTs) in the United States, you must receive a Doctor in Physical Therapy (DPT) degree from an accredited program and pass the national licensure examination.
At Ursinus College, you can start your path towards becoming a physical therapist as soon as you arrive on campus. There are ample opportunities and experiences for Ursinus College students interested in a career in Physical Therapy. We have a long tradition of preparing and placing our students in PT programs, through a rigorous curriculum that is interdisciplinary, experiential, and research-intensive.
Our undergraduates pursuing a career in Physical Therapy often major in Health Sciences or Biology. The Health Sciences Allied Health Concentration combined with courses in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Psychology, and Statistics provide the foundational knowledge and prerequisite courses for application to most DPT programs. In 2024 alone, all 10 of our Health Sciences seniors on the pre-PT track were accepted into their PT school of their choice.
an Undergraduate Experience that Sets you Apart
Bolster your application by joining a Health Sciences research group beginning on day one. Our small research communities are game-changers when it comes to applying for PT school. Work one on one with professors on research projects as a Summer Fellow. Improve confidence and presentation skills by sharing research at our annual Celebration of Student Achievement (COSA) in the spring semester, where over 400+ students present their projects and findings.
Explore opportunities for programming, outreach, service leadership and innovation through participating in related student organizations or interdisciplinary centers such as the Parlee Center for Science and the Common Good.
Gain applied and professional experiences, such as internships and externships as part of our Experiential Learning Project (XLP) requirement. The XLP is a great way to acquire clinical and patient contact hours through volunteering and community services hours.
What Do physical Therapists Do?
Physical Therapists (PTs) provide services that help restore function, improve mobility, relieve pain, and prevent or limit permanent physical disabilities of patients with injuries or disease. PTs work closely with patients and clients to restore, maintain, and promote their overall fitness and wellness for healthier and more active lifestyles. Patients may include accident victims and individuals with disabling conditions such as low back pain, fractures, head injuries, arthritis, heart disease, and cerebral palsy.
PTs take the patient’s/client’s history and conduct a systems review, and perform tests and measures such as strength, range of motion, balance and coordination, posture, muscle performance, respiration, and motor function, to identify potential and existing problems. Based on the examination and the physical therapist’s evaluative judgment, PTs determine a patient diagnosis, prognosis, and plan of care that describes evidence-based treatment strategies and the anticipated functional outcomes. Finally, as a part of the plan of care, PTs determine the patient’s ability to be independent and reintegrate into the community or workplace after injury or illness. —From ExploreHealthCareers.org