Physical Therapy

Faculty

Matthew P. Ford, Chair, Associate Professor
Senobia Crawford, Associate Professor
Lydia A. Thurston, Assistant Professor

Graduate Programs and Requirements

Degree/Major

Doctor of Physical Therapy (D.P.T.)

Physical Therapy, D.P.T.

The Department of Physical Therapy offers a clinical doctorate in physical therapy degree (D.P.T.). This is a full-time, three-year graduate program preparing students to practice physical therapy in a variety of settings: hospitals, inpatient rehab, inpatient, out-patient, pediatrics, schools, nursing homes, home health, and community wellness.

Graduation from a physical therapist education program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), 1111 North Fairfax Street, Alexandria, VA 22314; phone; 703-706-3245; accreditation@apta.org is necessary for eligibility to sit for the licensure examination, which is required in all states.

Samford University is seeking accreditation of a new physical therapist education program from CAPTE. The program will submit an Application for Candidacy, which is the formal application required in the pre-accreditation stage. Submission of this document does not assure that the program will be granted Candidate for Accreditation status. Achievement of Candidate for Accreditation status is required prior to implementation of the professional phase of the program; therefore, no students may be enrolled in professional courses until Candidate for Accreditation status has been achieved. Further, though achievement of Candidate for Accreditation status signifies satisfactory progress toward accreditation, it does not assure that the program will be granted accreditation.

Admission Requirements

Possess a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university (degree in any field) or be in the senior year of undergraduate study. A completed bachelor’s degree is required prior to enrollment, as evidenced by a final official college/university transcript. Applicants may receive a conditional acceptance with a letter from the registrar stating they have in fact completed the requirements for the degree. The “conditional” status is removed once an official transcript is received.
Cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale.
Achieve a “B” or better in all pre-requisite courses. All pre-requisite courses must have been completed within ten years prior to application.

Required pre-requisite courses include:
Biology I & II with labs
Chemistry I & II with labs
Physics I & II with labs
Human Anatomy and Physiology I & II with labs
Pre-calculus
Statistics
Psychology
Graduate Record Examination within the past 5 years. (Minimum scores: Verbal: 146; Quantitative: 146; Analytical: 4.0).
Ten hours of documented volunteer experience in each of three different physical therapy practice settings (30 hours total).
Three letters of reference submitted through the application system. The three required references should be from a) current or previous professor, b) work supervisor, c) professional colleague.
International applicants or American citizens who learned English as a second language must score at least 550 (paper), 213 (computer) or 80 (internet) on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL).
Exceptions to any admission requirements will be handled on an individual basis.
If accepted, a non-refundable fee of $500 is required to secure admission into the program. This fee is applied to the first semester’s tuition.

Programs

Doctorate

Physical Therapy, D.P.T.

Courses

Physical Therapy