Physical Therapist Schools | Get Your Physical Therapy Degree - Beacon NY

How to Choose a Physical Therapist College near Beacon 12508

Receiving a physical therapist degree near Beacon NY is an important first step to starting a rewarding career in the medical care industry. Physical therapists (PT) help people who have been debilitated due to illness or injury regain function and mobility. But before they may legally practice and provide treatment for the rehabilitation of patients, they need to obtain the necessary education and training. A PT must additionally be licensed in every state, many mandating that the licensee earn a physical therapy degree from an accredited school. So before enrolling in a physical therapy school, it’s important to investigate the ones you are looking at to ensure they will furnish a superior education and satisfy your state’s licensing requirements. What you do not want to do is enroll in a school just because it happens to be the closest to your residence or it has cheapest tuition. There are other significant qualifications that must be evaluated besides cost and location. But before we discuss what those qualifications are and what questions you should ask, we’ll address what a physical therapist does and the options for education.

What is a Physical Therapist’s Job Description?

Physical therapists practice in diverse settings, such as Beacon NY private practices, hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes and sports facilities. What the facilities all share in common is that they have the equipment for diagnosing and rehabilitating patients. As previously stated, physical therapists help patients that are experiencing a lack of mobility and frequently pain due to illness or injury. After diagnosing a patient, they create a course of treatment to address the mobility issues and lessen or eradicate any pain. They also strive to prevent any advancement of the disability. While the causes of disability requiring physical therapy are abundant, they include:

Osteoporosis and Arthritis
Car or motor cycle accidents
Strokes.
Heart attacks.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
Burn injuries.
Knee Replacement.
Fibromyalgia.
Cerebral Palsy.

Licensed physical therapists practice in close affiliation with other Beacon NY health specialists, including doctors, chiropractors, registered nurses and dentists. They may also manage several physical therapy assistants who work under them in the diagnosis and treatment of their patients. Something to bear in mind for anyone thinking about going into the physical therapy field, it is quite physically demanding. Physical therapists routinely lift heavy equipment as well as patients, and kneel, crouch and stand for long periods of time on a daily basis.

Physical Therapy Degrees Offered

There are 3 physical therapist degrees available for individuals to pursue at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Of these choices, the only degree that is available to practice as a physical therapist is the doctorate. Undergraduate degrees target either preparing students to become a physical therapy assistant (PTA) or prepping them to progress to the doctoral level. Following are short summaries of degrees that are available in the Beacon NY area:

Associate Degrees educate students to be physical therapy assistants, or may be used as a stepping stone to a more advanced degree. Applicants must have earned a high school diploma or GED to qualify for enrollment. The degrees are typically offered by junior or community colleges, and require two years to complete. Clinical training, which may be in the form of an internship is typically a portion of the course of study.
Bachelor’s Degrees are developed as pre-physical therapist education to prepare candidates to move up to the doctoral level. While they are not a requirement to be eligible for the doctoral program, they are an important preliminary step to practicing as a PT. Similar to the majority of bachelor’s degrees, they typically take four years to complete and commonly include an internship program of a minimum of 500 hours.
Doctorate Degrees are a requirement if you want to become a practicing licensed physical therapist. The degree program also must be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). After earning the bachelor’s degree, the doctoral takes 3 years to finish, making the total commitment 7 years in the majority of cases. Practical or clinical training is an intregal component in addition to the substantial classroom and lab instruction. Consequently the fulfillment of an internship is required, not just for graduation but in some states for licensing as well.

The Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) has replaced the Master’s of Physical Therapy (MPT), which has been eliminated and is no longer attainable in the United States. A number of licensed physical therapists having a master’s or even a bachelor’s degree were “grandfathered” in prior to the existing licensing requirement for a doctorate was instituted.

Physical Therapist Programs Online

Although not as common as the on-campus alternatives, there are a number of accredited online physical therapy degrees offered, even more at the graduate level. Due to the hands-on structure of the training, clinical lab work and internships are combined with the online classes. This requires that the student live close to the school campus or nearby an available internship. Fortunately, the online portion of the course of study can be accessed within the comfort and convenience of the student’s Beacon NY residence. Online schools are not only to some extent more accessible, but in a number of cases more affordable. Tuition might be significantly lower than comparable on-campus alternatives, and expenditures for commuting are reduced. And many of the online schools are accredited by the CAPTE, guaranteeing a quality education. These benefits may make the online alternative the right choice for those students that are motivated enough to attend classes at home.

Subjects to Ask Physical Therapy Schools

By now you most likely have come to decision regarding some of your initial queries, like the kind of physical therapist degree you intend to attain, where you prefer to attend classes, and how much you can afford to spend for your education. But because there are so many PT schools within the Beacon NY area and throughout New York, you’ll have to look into additional qualifications also in order to further reduce your list of college choices. Also, you want to make sure that you pick the school that is best for you. That’s the reason we have collected a list of important questions that you must ask the physical therapy colleges you are reviewing. Ask all of the potential schools these questions before making an ultimate decision.

Is the Physical Therapist College Accredited? Find out if the colleges you are looking at have earned accreditation from a regional or a national agency. As earlier mentioned, if you are pursuing a doctorate the program must be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). If you enroll in an online school, it can also obtain accreditation from the Distance Education and Training Council. It’s important that both the physical therapy school and program you enroll in are accredited, not simply the school. Additionally, verify that the accreditation is through a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting organization. In addition to ensuring that you receive a quality education, accreditation might be mandated for state licensing and even for securing student loans or financial assistance.

What is the School’s Ranking? Along with accreditation, it’s imperative that the college and program you pick have outstanding reputations within the physical therapy profession. There are a number of ways you can look into a PT school’s reputation, beginning with requesting references from employers that they refer their students to. You may also check online reviews and rating services and ask the accrediting agencies for their reviews as well. Contact a few Beacon NY physical therapy clinics or other health care facilities that you might have an interest in working for and ask if they can provide any insight about your program selections. It may also be prudent to check with the New York Attorney General and school licensing authority to find out if any complaints have been submitted against the colleges.

What is the School’s Job Placement Percentage? There are a two significant statistics that you should know about each of the physical therapist schools you are looking at. First is their graduation rate. A lower rate might suggest that students left due to displeasure with the program, the instructors, or both. After the students have graduated, how many of them are being hired with the support of the school’s job placement program, particularly in the Beacon NY area? If a college has a high job placement rate, it suggests that its reputation within the medical care community is good or even outstanding. It also confirms that the school has a large network of contacts to assist students obtain internships or jobs upon graduation.

Does the Program Support Licensing Requirements? It’s essential that the college you select provides both exceptional training and a curriculum that satisfies the licensing requirements for New York or the state where you will be working. In every state a passing score is needed on the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) as well as a degree from an accredited physical therapy school. While licensing requirements vary state by state for PT and PTA graduates, a number of states require a minimum amount of clinical hours be performed as well as passing scores on supplemental exams.

Are Internship Programs Provided? Find out if the physical therapy colleges you are interested in have partnerships with Beacon NY hospitals or clinics for internship programs. Internships are not only a great means to receive hands on training in a clinical setting, they are also a requirement for most PT programs and state licensing. As a supplemental benefit, they can help students and graduates establish professional relationships in the Beacon healthcare community and help with job placement after licensing.

What are the Class Sizes ? Unless you are the kind of person that prefers to sit far in the back of class or hide in the crowd, you will probably want a smaller class size. Small classes permit more individual participation and one-on-one instruction. Ask the physical therapy colleges you are researching what the average student to teacher ratio is for their classrooms. If practical you may want to sit in on one or more classes before making your final determination. This will also give you a chance to speak with several of the instructors and students to get their opinions regarding the pharmacy tech program as well.

Where is the Program Located? For a lot of students, the physical therapy school they select will need to be within commuting distance of their Beacon NY home. Students who have chosen to attend classes online obviously will not have to worry themselves with the location of the campus. However, the availability of local internships will be of importance. Something to bear in mind is that if you choose to enroll in a school that is out of state or perhaps out of your local area, you might have to pay a higher tuition. State colleges usually charge higher tuitions for out of state residents. And community colleges frequently charge a higher tuition for those students that don’t reside within their districts.

Is Financial Assistance Offered? Most DPT schools provide some form of financial assistance to their prospective students. Ask if the schools you are reviewing have a financial aid office and find out what kind of help is offered. At a minimum they should help in securing a student loan or any grants you may be eligible for. Some physical therapy colleges offer scholarships, while others offer work programs. So before eliminating a program because the tuition is too expensive, ask what financial aid might be available.

Can the College Accommodate your Schedule? And last you need to verify that the physical therapy program you finally pick can furnish the class schedule you need. This is especially essential if you decide to continue working while attending classes. If you must schedule night or weekend classes in the Beacon NY area, confirm that they are available. If you can only attend part-time, verify if that is an option and how many credit hours or courses you would need to carry. Also, find out what the protocol is for making up any classes that you may miss because of work, illness or family emergencies.

Earning Your Physical Therapy Degree near Beacon New York?

If you are planning on attending a Physical Therapy School in the Beacon NY area, the following information may prove to be both interesting and educational regarding the location of your future Alma Mater.

Beacon, New York

Beacon is a city located in Dutchess County, New York, United States. The 2010 census placed the city total population at 15,541.[2] Beacon is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport, New York–New Jersey–Connecticut–Pennsylvania Combined Statistical Area. It was named to commemorate the historic beacon fires that blazed forth from the summit of the Fishkill Mountains to alert the Continental Army about British troop movements.

The area known as Beacon was settled by Europeans as the villages of Matteawan and Fishkill Landing in 1709. They were among the first colonial communities in the county. Beacon is located in the southwest corner of Dutchess County in the Mid-Hudson Region, approximately 90 miles (140 km) south of Albany, New York, and approximately 60 miles (97 km) north of New York City.

In 1683, the land that would come to include the City of Beacon was purchased from the Wappinger tribe by Francis Rombout and Gulian Verplanck, merchant-fur traders from New York City. The sale was confirmed, in 1685 by royal patent issued in the names of Rombout, Jacobus Kipp (as successor to the deceased Verplanck, and Stephanus Van Cortlandt. Rombout died in 1691, leaving his share to his daughter, Catharyna, who later married Roger Brett, an officer in the Royal Navy. The Rombout Patent was partitioned in 1706 with Catharyna Brett receiving about 28,000 acres along the Vis Kill. In 1708 the Bretts re-located upriver from the family home on Broadway to an area near the mouth of the Fishkill Creek and built a grist mill on the lower creek. In June 1718, Roger Brett was drowned when his sloop encountered a fierce squall near Fishkill Landing while returning from New York with supplies. Thereafter Catharyna Brett continued to manage her holdings, becoming a well-respected businesswoman.

Enroll in the Best Physical Therapy College near Beacon NY

Selecting the ideal physical therapist school is a necessary first decision you have to make to begin a rewarding career in the health care profession. As we have addressed in this article, the PT or DPT degree program and school you decide on should both have outstanding reputations and accreditation. However there are additional important questions that you need to ask pertaining to your college of choice also. As you commence your search for a physical therapist school, bear in mind that many factors will lead you toward your ultimate decision. You might want to visit each of the schools to view their facilities and speak with current DPT students. While there, ask yourself this critical question: will this program help me realize my goal of becoming a practicing licensed physical therapist? By adhering to our list of supplemental questions, you will be able to narrow down the field so you can make the ideal selection. And with the proper education and training, you can achieve your dream of becoming a licensed physical therapist in Beacon NY.