What Is The 2025-2026 PTCAS Application Essay Prompt?

Updated 1/7/25

The current PTCAS application cycle officially opened on June 17, 2024 and will end in June 2025. During an APTA virtual fair in 2024, they stated that the main PTCAS essay prompt stays the same for 2-3 years. For 2024-25, the spirit of the prompt stayed the same as the previous year, although the wording changed slightly.

For 2024-25, the PTCAS personal statement prompt is: “Every applicant is unique in their own way, possessing individual qualities, abilities, and backgrounds. What unique traits will you bring to the physical therapy profession that will help you to be successful?”

For 2025-26, it is still unclear what the main essay prompt will be. It could stay the same for the third year in a row, or the APTA might change it up. Official word will come when the new cycle opens in June 2025, although I am usually able to find out sooner. Stay tuned to see what happens!

In the meantime, if you want to get an early start on the essay, feel free to start brainstorming and drafting as long as you’re aware you may need to start over should the prompt change for the next cycle.

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The prompt for the PTCAS essay prompt for the 2023-24 cycle was: “Every person has a background, an identity, interests, or talents which they feel their application would be incomplete without having mentioned. Describe the traits or experiences that make you unique and explain how they will help you be a successful physical therapist.”

PTCAS noted that the wording was changed in 2024 to make the prompt “more concise” and “less prescriptive.” They indicate that they consider the prompt to be the same as last year’s.

“Identity” was probably taken out because it is similar to “background,” and “interests” and “talents” seem to have been changed into “qualities” and “abilities.” The emphasis on the new version seems to be on “traits.” The biggest difference I see between the two prompts is that the most recent version excludes asking about experiences. If I had to guess, they don’t want applicants talking about experiences because that usually turns into talking about PT experiences, and these tend to be similar for most applicants. Restating this in your essay is redundant with the rest of your PTCAS application, and doesn’t typically lead to teaching the reader additional information about yourself. I think there is still room to talk about truly unique experiences as long as you tie it into your traits. They also don’t have a replacement for “interests” in the new prompt, possibly because too many pre-PTs were reporting the same interests in exercising.

If you’d like to work with me to brainstorm or edit your essay once it’s written, reach out, and if you need extra preparation, take a look at my PT school essay course!

The cycle will remain open until June 2025 with deadlines for PT programs starting as early as August 2024 and continuing until June 2025.

If you’re reapplying, or started your application early, your biographic information, coursework, schools attended, official test scores, attached transcripts, observation hours, experiences, achievements, licenses and certifications will carry over between cycles. The coursework section in particular is very time consuming since you must enter every single college course and grade you’ve ever taken, in addition to having your transcripts sent over.

The following parts of the application won’t transfer from one cycle to the next: letters of reference, essays, payments, and program-specific information.

There are also certain things that cannot be changed after you’ve submitted PTCAS, while others can be changed or added.

If you’d like to work with me to edit your essay once it’s written, reach out, and if you need extra preparation, take a look at my PT school essay course! Good luck!