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

How to Pick a Physical Therapy College near Northampton 18067

Northampton PA physical therapy school student with volunteer Receiving a physical therapist degree near Northampton PA is an important first step to beginning a rewarding career in the health care industry. Physical therapists (PT) help people who have been debilitated due to illness or injury regain mobility and function. But before they may legally practice and provide treatment for the rehabilitation of patients, they need to receive the appropriate education and training. A PT must additionally become licensed in all states, many requiring that the licensee receive a physical therapy degree from an accredited college. So before enrolling in a physical therapy school, it’s important to evaluate those you are looking at to ensure they will provide a superior education and satisfy your state’s licensing criteria. What you should not do is enroll in a school just because it happens to be the nearest to your home or it has the lowest tuition. There are other relevant qualifications that must be considered along with cost and location. But before we talk about what those qualifications are and the questions you should be asking, we’ll address what a physical therapist does and the options for education.

What Do Physical Therapists Do?

Northampton PA physical therapist helping patient walk Physical therapists practice in diverse locations, such as Northampton 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 struggling with a lack of mobility and often pain due to illness or injury. After patient diagnosis, they develop a program of treatment to resolve the mobility issues and reduce or eliminate any pain. They also try to prevent any advancement of the disability. Though the causes of disability requiring physical therapy are numerous, they include:

Osteoporosis and Arthritis
Motor vehicle accidents
Head injuries.
Heart attacks.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
Burn injuries.
Knee Replacement.
Fibromyalgia.
Cerebral Palsy.

Licensed physical therapists practice in close affiliation with other Northampton PA health professionals, including doctors, chiropractors, registered nurses and dentists. They may also supervise several physical therapy assistants who work under them assisting with the diagnosis and treatment of their patients. One thing to bear in mind for anyone thinking about getting into the physical therapy field, it is rather physically demanding. Physical therapists often lift patients and heavy equipment, and stand, crouch and kneel for prolonged periods of time on a daily basis.

Physical Therapy Degrees Offered

Northampton PA physical therapist applying acupuncture to patient There are 3 physical therapy degree options available for individuals to enroll in at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Of these options, the one degree that is available to become a physical therapist is the doctorate. Undergraduate degrees focus on either training students to become a physical therapy assistant (PTA) or prepping them to advance to the doctoral level. Below are brief explanations of degree levels that are offered in the Northampton PA area:

Associate Degrees educate students to practice as physical therapy assistants, or can be used as a stepping stone to a more advanced degree. Candidates must have earned a high school diploma or GED to qualify for enrollment. The programs are usually offered by community or junior colleges, and take about 2 years for completion. Clinical training, which may be in the form of an internship is normally part of the program.
Bachelor’s Degrees are designed as pre-physical therapist training to prep students to move up to the doctoral level. While they are not a requirement to be qualified for the doctoral program, they are an important preliminary step to practicing as a PT. As with the majority of bachelor’s degrees, they normally require four years to complete and commonly incorporate an internship program of a minimum of 500 hours.
Doctorate Degrees are required if you want to become a practicing licensed physical therapist. The degree program must also be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). After earning the bachelor’s degree, the doctoral takes three years to complete, making the overall investment of time 7 years in the majority of cases. Practical or clinical training is an intregal element along with the substantial 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 taken the place of the Master’s of Physical Therapy (MPT), which has been eliminated and is no longer attainable in the USA. A number of licensed physical therapists having a master’s or in some cases a bachelor’s degree were “grandfathered” in before the current licensing requirement for a doctorate was instituted.

Physical Therapist Online Schools

woman attending physical therapy school online in Northampton PA While not as prevalent as the more traditional options, there are a number of accredited online physical therapist degrees offered, even more at the graduate level. Due to the hands-on nature of the training, clinical lab work and internships are combined with the online classes. This necessitates that the student live near the college campus or in proximity of an available internship. However, the online segment of the curriculum can be accessed within the comfort and convenience of the student’s Northampton PA home. Online schools are not only to some extent more accessible, but in a number of instances more economical. Tuition can be significantly lower than similar on-campus alternatives, and expenses for commuting are reduced. And a number of the online schools are accredited by the CAPTE, guaranteeing a quality education. These advantages may make the online alternative the right choice for those students that are disciplined enough to learn at home.

What to Ask Physical Therapist Colleges

By now you most likely have come to decision concerning some of your preliminary questions, such as the type of physical therapy degree you want to earn, where you want to attend classes, and how much you can afford to spend for your education. But considering there are numerous PT schools within the Northampton PA area and throughout Pennsylvania, you’ll have to look into other qualifications as well in order to further narrow your list of college choices. Moreover, you need to make sure that you choose the program that is right for you. That’s the reason we have put together a list of critical questions that you need to ask the physical therapy schools you are thinking about. Ask all of the competing colleges these questions before making a final selection.

Is the Physical Therapy School Accredited? Find out if the programs you are looking at have earned accreditation from a national or a regional organization. As previously mentioned, if you are pursuing a doctoral degree the program must be accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). If you choose an online program, it can also receive accreditation from the Distance Education and Training Council. It’s imperative that both the physical therapy school and program you select are accredited, not simply the school. Additionally, check that the accreditation is through a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting agency. In addition to guaranteeing that you obtain a quality education, accreditation might be mandated for state licensing and even for getting student loans or financial assistance.

What is the Program’s Standing? Along with accreditation, it’s essential that the college and program you pick have excellent reputations within the physical therapy community. There are several ways you can investigate a PT program’s reputation, starting with requesting references from employers that they refer their students to. You can also search for online reviews and rating services and ask the accrediting agencies for their reviews as well. Contact a few Northampton PA physical therapy centers or other healthcare facilities that you might be interested in working for and ask if they can offer any insight about your program options. It might also be prudent to check with the Pennsylvania Attorney General and school licensing authority to see if any complaints have been submitted against the schools.

What is the School’s Job Placement Percentage? There are a two relevant statistics that you need to know about all of the physical therapist colleges you are reviewing. One is their graduation rate. A lower rate may suggest that students left because of dissatisfaction with the program, the instructors, or both. After the students have graduated, what percentage of them are being placed in jobs with the support of the college’s job placement program, particularly in the Northampton PA area? If a college has a higher job placement rate, it’s an indication that its reputation within the health care community is good or even outstanding. It also confirms that the program has a large network of contacts to help students get internships or jobs upon graduation.

Does the Program Support Licensing Requirements? It’s important that the program you select furnishes both exceptional training and a curriculum that supports the licensing criteria for Pennsylvania or the state where you will be practicing. In each state a passing score is needed on the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) in addition to a degree from an accredited physical therapist program. Although licensing requirements vary state by state for PTA and PT graduates, many states require a minimum amount of clinical hours be completed as well as passing scores on additional exams.

Are Internships Offered? Ask if the physical therapist colleges you are evaluating have relationships with Northampton PA clinics or hospitals for internship programs. Internships are not only a great manner 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 establish professional connections in the Northampton medical community and help with job placement once licensed.

How Large are the Classes ? Unless you are the kind of student that likes to sit far in the rear of the classroom or hide in the crowd, you will undoubtedly want a small class size. Small classes enable more individual participation and personalized instruction. Ask the physical therapist schools you are looking at what the average teacher to student ratio is for their classes. If practical you may want to sit in on one or more classes before making your final determination. This will also give you an opportunity to speak with several of the instructors and students to get their opinions regarding the pharmacist tech program also.

Where is the College Located? For a number of students, the physical therapist college they select will need to be within driving distance of their Northampton PA home. Those who have chosen to attend online classes naturally will not have to trouble themselves with the location of the campus. However, the availability of area internships will be of concern. One thing 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 may be required to pay a higher tuition. State colleges often charge higher tuitions for out of state residents. And community colleges often charge a higher tuition to those students that don’t reside within their districts.

Is Financial Aid Offered? The majority of DPT schools supply some form of financial assistance to their potential students. Find out if the colleges you are looking at have a financial aid office and find out what type of aid is available. At a minimum they should help in securing a student loan or any scholarships you might be eligible for. A number of physical therapist schools provide scholarships, while others provide work programs. So before you eliminate a college because the tuition is beyond your budget, ask what financial aid might be available.

Can the School Accommodate your Schedule? And finally you need to confirm that the physical therapist program you ultimately select can provide the class schedule you need. This is particularly essential if you decide to continue working while attending school. If you need to schedule evening or weekend classes in the Northampton PA area, confirm that they are offered. If you can only attend part-time, check if that is an option and how many courses or credit hours you would need to carry. Also, learn what the protocol is for making up any classes that you might miss as a result of work, illness or family obligations.

Earning Your Physical Therapy Degree near Northampton Pennsylvania?

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

Northampton County, Pennsylvania

Northampton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 297,735.[1] Its county seat is Easton.[2] The county was formed in 1752 from parts of Bucks County. Its namesake was Northamptonshire and the county seat of Easton is named for the country house Easton Neston.

Northampton County is included in the Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the New York-Newark, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined Statistical Area. Its northern edge borders The Poconos, and its eastern section borders the Delaware River, which divides Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

The county is industrially-oriented, producing anthracite coal, cement, and other industrial products. Bethlehem Steel, once one of the world's largest manufacturers of steel, was located there prior to its closing in 2003.

Enroll in the Ideal Physical Therapy Degree Program near Northampton PA

Selecting the right physical therapy college is an important initial decision you need to make to launch a gratifying career in the healthcare profession. As we have addressed in this article, the PT or DPT degree program and college you decide on should both have outstanding reputations and be accredited. However there are additional important questions that you need to ask regarding your school of choice also. As you commence your search for a physical therapy program, bear in mind that a number of variables will lead you toward your ultimate decision. You may want to go to different campuses to view their facilities and speak with current DPT students. While there, ask yourself this critical question: will this school help me realize my goal of becoming a licensed practicing physical therapist? By adhering to our list of supplemental questions, you will have the ability to narrow down the options so you can make the right choice. And with the proper education and training, you can accomplish your dream to become a practicing physical therapist in Northampton PA.