Physical Therapist Schools | Get Your Physical Therapy Degree - Lansford PA

How to Enroll In a Physical Therapist Program near Lansford 18232

Lansford PA physical therapy school student with volunteer Receiving a physical therapist degree near Lansford PA is an essential first step to beginning a rewarding career in the healthcare field. Physical therapists (PT) help people who have been disabled as a result of illness or injury gain back function and mobility. But before they may legally practice and work with the rehabilitation of patients, they need to acquire the necessary training and education. A PT must also become licensed in every state, many requiring that the licensee earn a physical therapy degree from an accredited school. So prior to selecting a physical therapy school, it’s important to investigate the ones you are looking at to make sure they will provide a quality education and satisfy your state’s licensing requirements. What you should not do is choose a school simply because it happens to be the closest to your residence or it has the most affordable tuition. There are other relevant qualifications that need to be considered in addition to 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 Does a Physical Therapist Do?

Lansford PA physical therapist helping patient walk Physical therapists practice in diverse locations, such as Lansford PA 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 touched on, physical therapists help individuals that are suffering from a lack of mobility and frequently pain due to injury or illness. After diagnosing a patient, they design a program of treatment to resolve the mobility issues and reduce or eradicate any pain. They also endeavor to stop any progression of the disability. Though the causes of disability necessitating physical therapy are numerous, they include:

Arthritis or Osteoporosis
Motor vehicle accidents
Strokes.
Heart attacks.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
Burn injuries.
Knee Replacement.
Sciatica.
Cerebral Palsy.

Licensed physical therapists practice in close partnerships with other Lansford PA health professionals, including doctors, chiropractors, registered nurses and dentists. They may also manage one or more physical therapy assistants who work under them assisting with the diagnosis and treatment of their patients. Something to bear in mind for anyone thinking about getting into the physical therapy profession, it is quite physically demanding. Physical therapists often lift patients and heavy equipment, and stand, crouch and kneel for extended periods of time on a daily basis.

Physical Therapist Degrees

Lansford PA physical therapist applying acupuncture to patient There are 3 physical therapist degrees available for individuals to pursue at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Of these choices, the single degree that is available to become a physical therapist is the doctorate. Undergraduate degrees emphasize either training students to become a physical therapy assistant (PTA) or preparing them to progress to the doctoral level. Below are brief explanations of degree levels that are offered in the Lansford PA area:

Associate Degrees educate students to practice as physical therapy assistants, or may be the first step toward earning a more advanced degree. Candidates must have a high school diploma or equivalent to qualify for enrollment. The programs are most often made available by community or junior colleges, and require two years for completion. Clinical training, which may be in the form of an internship is usually part of the curriculum.
Bachelor’s Degrees are developed as pre-physical therapy education to ready students to progress to the doctoral level. While they are not required to be eligible for the doctoral program, they are an essential first step to practicing as a PT. Similar to most bachelor’s degrees, they typically take four years to finish and often include an internship program of a minimum of 500 hours.
Doctorate Degrees are a requirement if you want to become a licensed practicing physical therapist. The degree program must also be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). In addition to the bachelor’s degree, the doctoral takes three years to complete, making the overall investment of time seven years in most cases. Clinical or practical training is an essential element along with the considerable classroom and lab instruction. Therefor the fulfillment of an internship is required, not just for graduation but in several 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 offered in the United States. Some licensed physical therapists having a master’s or in some cases a bachelor’s degree were “grandfathered” in prior to the current licensing mandate for a doctorate was implemented.

Physical Therapy Online Colleges

woman attending physical therapy school online in Lansford PA While not as common as the on campus options, there are many accredited online physical therapist programs offered, more so at the graduate level. Because of the hands-on structure of the training, internships and clinical lab work are combined with the online classes. This necessitates that the student live near the school campus or in proximity of a sponsored internship. Fortunately, the online part of the course of study may be accessed within the comfort and convenience of the student’s Lansford PA home. Online programs are not only to some extent more accessible, but in a number of instances more affordable. Tuition might be somewhat less than comparable on-campus alternatives, and expenditures for commuting are minimized. And a number of the online programs are accredited by the CAPTE, ensuring a quality education. These benefits can make the online option the right choice for those students that are disciplined enough to attend classes at home.

Subjects to Ask Physical Therapy Colleges

By now you most likely have come to decision regarding several of your initial queries, like the kind of physical therapist degree you would like to attain, where you prefer to attend classes, and how much you can afford to spend for your education. But considering there are so many PT schools within the Lansford PA area and across Pennsylvania, you’ll need to explore additional qualifications also in order to further narrow your list of college choices. Moreover, you need to make sure that you choose the school that is ideal for you. That’s the reason we have collected a list of essential questions that you must ask the physical therapy programs you are considering. Ask all of the competing colleges these questions before making a final decision.

Is the Physical Therapy School Accredited? Ask if the colleges you are looking at have received accreditation from a national or a regional organization. As previously mentioned, if you are pursuing a doctorate the program must be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). If you choose an online program, it can also obtain accreditation from the Distance Education and Training Council. It’s essential that both the physical therapy program and school you select are accredited, not simply the school. Additionally, check that the accreditation is from a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting agency. Besides guaranteeing that you receive a quality education, accreditation might be required for state licensing as well as for securing student loans or financial aid.

What is the College’s Reputation? Along with accreditation, it’s imperative that the school and program you pick have excellent reputations within the physical therapist profession. There are multiple ways you can investigate a PT program’s reputation, beginning with asking for references from employers that they refer their students to. You can also check online reviews and rating services and ask the accrediting agencies for their reviews also. Get in touch with several Lansford PA physical therapist centers or other medical care facilities that you might have an interest in working for and ask if they can give you any recommendations about your program selections. It may also be prudent to check with the Pennsylvania Attorney General and school licensing authority to find out if any complaints have been filed against the schools.

What is the College’s Job Placement Percentage? There are a two useful statistics that you need to know about each of the physical therapy programs you are reviewing. One is their graduation rate. A low rate might mean that students dropped out due to displeasure with the program, the instructors, or both. After the students have graduated, how many of them are being placed in jobs with the assistance of the college’s job placement program, particularly in the Lansford PA area? If a college has a higher job placement rate, it suggests that its reputation within the healthcare community is good or even excellent. It also verifies that the school has a wide network of contacts to help students gain internships or jobs after graduation.

Does the College Support Licensing Requirements? It’s imperative that the program you select provides both excellent training and a curriculum that supports the licensing requirements for Pennsylvania or the state where you will be working. In each state a passing score is required on the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) along with a degree from an accredited physical therapist college. Although licensing requirements vary state by state for PT and PTA graduates, some states require a minimum amount of clinical hours be performed and passing scores on additional exams.

Are Internships Provided? Ask if the physical therapy schools you are assessing have partnerships with Lansford PA clinics or hospitals for internship programs. Not only are internships a terrific way to get practical training in a clinical environment, they are also a requirement for most PT programs and state licensing. As a secondary benefit, they may help students and graduates develop professional relationships in the Lansford health care community and help with obtaining employment after licensing.

How Big are the Classes ? Unless you are the kind of person that prefers to sit way in the rear of the classroom or get lost in the crowd, you will probably prefer a small class size. Smaller classes enable more individual participation and one-on-one instruction. Ask the physical therapy colleges you are reviewing what the typical teacher to student ratio is for their classrooms. If practical you may want to monitor one or more classes before making your ultimate determination. This will also give you a chance to talk with several of the instructors and students to get their perspectives regarding the pharmacy technician program as well.

Where is the College Located? For a lot of students, the physical therapist college they decide on will need to be within travelling distance of their Lansford PA residence. 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 area internships will be of importance. Something to consider is that if you decide to enroll in a school that is out of state or even out of your local area, you may have to pay a higher tuition. State colleges usually charge higher tuitions for out of state residents. And community colleges normally charge a higher tuition for those students that live outside of their districts.

Is Financial Help Offered? The majority of DPT schools provide some type of financial support to their prospective students. Ask if the colleges you are considering have a financial assistance office and see what kind of assistance is available. They at least should help in obtaining a student loan or any scholarships you might be eligible for. A number of physical therapist colleges provide scholarships, while others provide work programs. So before you eliminate a school because the tuition is beyond your budget, find out what financial assistance may be available.

Can the School Accommodate your Schedule? And finally you must verify that the physical therapy college you finally choose can offer the class schedule you need. This is particularly crucial if you choose to continue working while attending school. If you need to schedule night or weekend classes in the Lansford PA area, confirm that they are offered. If you can only enroll on a part-time basis, find out if that is an option and how many courses or credit hours you would have to enroll in. Also, find out what the protocol is for making up any classes that you may miss due to work, illness or family obligations.

Earning Your Physical Therapy Degree near Lansford Pennsylvania?

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

Lansford, Pennsylvania

Lansford is a county-border borough (town) in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, United States, located 37 miles (60 km) northwest of Allentown and 19 miles south of Hazleton in the Panther Creek Valley about 72 miles (116 km) from Greater Philadelphia[a] and abutting the cross-county sister-city of Coaldale in Schuylkill County. The whole valley was owned and subdivided into separate lots by the historically important Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company (locally called "the Old Company") which likely settled some structures on the lands by 1827.[b]

Lansford grew with the development of local anthracite coal mines, and was named after Asa Lansford Foster, who was an advocate for merging the small "patch towns" that developed in the area surrounding the anthracite coal mines. The population was 3,941 at the 2010 Census, a steep decline from a high of 9,632 at the 1930 census common to many mining towns in northeastern Pennsylvania.[4]

The old No. 9 Mine and Museum in Lansford, a deep mine which operated from 1855 to 1972, is now open as a tourist attraction offering tours of the mine and a wealth of information on local mining history. A museum occupying the mine's former Wash Shanty building on the site displays a large collection of mining artifacts.

Enroll in the Best Physical Therapy Degree Program near Lansford PA

Selecting the best physical therapy school is an important initial decision you need to make to begin a rewarding career in the medical profession. As we have covered in this article, the PT or DPT degree program and college you pick should both have exceptional reputations and accreditation. However there are other relevant questions that you need to ask pertaining to your school of choice as well. As you begin your search for a physical therapist program, keep in mind that many factors will guide you to your final decision. You might want to go to different campuses to see their facilities and talk with current DPT students. While there, ask yourself this important question: will this program help me accomplish my goal of becoming a practicing licensed physical therapist? By adhering to our list of additional questions, you will have the ability to narrow down the field so you can make the right choice. And with the necessary training and education, you can achieve your dream of becoming a licensed physical therapist in Lansford PA.