Applying to Physical Therapy School: Where to Apply

Now that I’m about a month away from starting PT school, I realize that along the way I’ve gained some experience that may be helpful to others. Although each applicant is different, and I’m sure my thoughts will change as I go through school, this is what helped me make decisions. To start off, here are some things to keep in mind when deciding where to apply:

1. Cost. This can vary widely from state to state and from public to private schools. Look into loans and scholarships and think about how these things might affect you in the years to come, both while you’re in school and after you graduate.

2. Location. It’s not just important in the restaurant business. Where do you want to live for the next three years? Although I loved going to college in upstate New York, I knew I wanted to be in a larger city for grad school. Also, where do you want to start your career? Many of your contacts will probably be in hospitals and other settings affiliated with your school. And keep in mind the cost of living in various regions of the country, as well as other factors such as proximity to friends and family.

3. How do you stack up? On each school page, the APTA lists the average GPA and GRE scores of the students there. While I think it’s great to apply to a reach school or two, and that grades don’t tell an applicant’s full story, you’ll probably want to apply to a few schools whose stats match your own.

4. Pre-requisites. The Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education American Physical Therapy Association (CAPTE) does a great job listing requirements for each program. Since you could probably spend 10 years taking enough courses to satisfy the requirements at every school in the country, you’ll need to do a bit of research to find schools with admissions requirements you can meet (beyond the basics two semesters each of general anatomy/physiology, chemistry and physics). For example, I chose to take an upper level biology course in order to apply to Columbia, and I ruled out Boston schools since they all required an extra course that I didn’t have time to take. I also had three courses out-standing at the time of my application, which prevented my application to certain programs. And make sure to check out each school’s individual PT page because sometimes they can be more thorough and up to date than the APTA.

5. The details. Decide what’s important to you.  At one school I visited, I noticed banners in the health sciences building for the medical school, dentist school, pharmacy school, etc. When I asked where the PT flag was, the student said, “Oh, I don’t know. There’s never been one. I guess they don’t really care that much about us.” Although having a flag or not sounds silly, I knew I didn’t want to be at a school where the students felt ignored (amongst other criteria). Other things that were important to me included having a cadaver that wasn’t previously dissected by the medical students, and being able to choose where I wanted to do my internships. However, some of these preferences can also be put aside until you have the luxury of deciding between multiple acceptances.