Physical Therapist Schools | Get Your Physical Therapy Degree - Pleasant Hill CA

How to Find the Right Physical Therapy School near Pleasant Hill 94523

Pleasant Hill CA physical therapy school student with volunteer Getting a physical therapist degree near Pleasant Hill CA is a critical first step to starting a fulfilling career in the healthcare industry. Physical therapists (PT) help patients who have been incapacitated as a result of injury or illness gain back mobility and function. But before they may legally practice and provide treatment for the rehabilitation of patients, they must obtain 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 school. So prior to selecting a physical therapy school, it’s essential to investigate the ones you are thinking about to ensure they will provide a quality education and satisfy your state’s licensing standards. What you should not do is choose a college simply because it happens to be the closest to your home or it has the lowest tuition. There are other important qualifications that need to be considered besides location and cost. But before we talk about what those qualifications are and what questions you should ask, we’ll address what a physical therapist does and the options for education.

What Do Physical Therapists Do?

Pleasant Hill CA physical therapist helping patient walk Physical therapists practice in varying locations, including Pleasant Hill CA hospitals, health clinics, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes and health clubs. What the facilities all have in common is that they are equipped for the diagnosis and rehabilitation treatment of patients. As earlier mentioned, physical therapists help patients that are experiencing a lack of mobility and frequently pain caused by illness or injury. After diagnosing a patient, they create a course of treatment to deal with the mobility issues and lessen or eradicate any pain. They also try to prevent any advancement of the disability. Although the causes of disability requiring physical therapy are numerous, they include:

Arthritis or Osteoporosis
Car or motor cycle accidents
Strokes.
Heart attacks.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
Burn injuries.
Hip Replacement.
Sciatica.
Cerebral Palsy.

Licensed physical therapists practice in close partnerships with other Pleasant Hill CA health professionals, including chiropractors, physicians, dentists and nurses. They may also manage several physical therapy assistants who work under them assisting with the diagnosis and treatment of their patients. Something to take note of for anyone thinking about getting into the physical therapy field, it is rather physically demanding. Physical therapists routinely lift patients and heavy equipment, and stand, crouch and kneel for prolonged periods of time on a daily basis.

Physical Therapy Degrees Available

Pleasant Hill CA physical therapist applying acupuncture to patient There are 3 physical therapy degree options available for individuals to pursue at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Of these choices, the one degree that is attainable to practice as a physical therapist is the doctorate. Undergraduate degrees target either training students to become a physical therapy assistant (PTA) or prepping them to progress to the doctoral level. Below are short summaries of degrees that are offered in the Pleasant Hill CA area:

Associate Degrees train students to become physical therapy assistants, or can be used as a stepping stone to a more advanced degree. Applicants must have obtained a high school diploma or GED to qualify for enrollment. The degrees are typically offered by community or junior colleges, and require two years to complete. Clinical training, which may be in the form of an internship is usually a portion of the course of study.
Bachelor’s Degrees are developed as pre-physical therapy education to ready students to move up to the doctoral level. While they are not required to be a candidate for the doctoral program, they are an integral first step to becoming a PT. Similar to most bachelor’s degrees, they typically take 4 years to finish and usually include an internship program of a minimum of 500 hours.
Doctorate Degrees are required in order to become a licensed practicing 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 complete, making the total investment of time seven years in most cases. Clinical or practical training is an essential component along with the extensive classroom and lab instruction. Therefor the fulfillment of an internship is required, not only for graduation but in some 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 phased out and is no longer available in the USA. A number of practicing physical therapists holding a master’s or in some cases a bachelor’s degree were “grandfathered” in before the present licensing mandate for a doctorate was implemented.

Physical Therapy Online Degrees

woman attending physical therapy school online in Pleasant Hill CA While not as prevalent as the on-campus options, there are some 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 school campus or in proximity of a sponsored internship. However, the online portion of the program may be accessed within the convenience and comfort of the student’s Pleasant Hill CA residence. Online programs are not only to some extent more accessible, but in a number of instances more affordable. Tuition might be somewhat less than similar on-campus alternatives, and expenses 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 option the best choice for those students that are motivated enough to learn at home.

Questions to Ask Physical Therapist Colleges

At this point you most likely have come to decision regarding some of your initial questions, including the kind of physical therapist degree you intend to obtain, where you want to attend classes, and how much you can afford to invest in your education. But since there are numerous PT schools within the Pleasant Hill CA area and throughout California, you’ll need to explore other qualifications also in order to further narrow your list of college options. Moreover, you want to make sure that you select the school that is ideal for you. That’s the reason we have collected a list of critical questions that you must ask the physical therapist schools you are reviewing. Ask each of the competing colleges these questions prior to making an ultimate decision.

Is the Physical Therapy Program Accredited? Ask if the programs you are reviewing have received accreditation from a national or a regional agency. As earlier stated, 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 may also earn accreditation from the Distance Education and Training Council. It’s imperative that both the physical therapy school and program you enroll in are accredited, not simply the school. Also, check that the accreditation is through a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting agency. In addition to ensuring that you receive a quality education, accreditation may be mandated for state licensing as well as for getting student loans or financial aid.

What is the School’s Reputation? In addition to accreditation, it’s essential that the school and program you select have exceptional reputations within the physical therapist community. There are a number of ways you can research a PT school’s reputation, starting with asking for references from employers that they place their graduates with. You can also search for online reviews and rating services and ask the accrediting agencies for their reviews as well. Get in touch with a few Pleasant Hill CA physical therapy clinics or other health care facilities that you may have an interest in working for and ask if they can provide any insight about your school options. It might also be a good idea to contact the California Attorney General and school licensing authority to find out if any complaints have been submitted against the schools.

What is the School’s Job Placement Rate? There are a two important statistics that you should find out about each of the physical therapist programs you are considering. One is their graduation rate. A low rate might mean that students left due to dissatisfaction with the program, the teachers, or both. Once the students have graduated, how many of them are being placed in jobs with the support of the school’s job placement program, particularly in the Pleasant Hill CA area? If a college has a higher job placement rate, it suggests that its reputation within the health care community is good or even exceptional. It also confirms that the school has a large network of contacts to help students gain internships or jobs after graduation.

Does the Program Prepare You For Licensing Requirements? It’s imperative that the school you enroll in provides both excellent training and a curriculum that supports the licensing criteria for California or the state where you will be working. In every state a passing score is required on the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) in addition to a degree from an accredited physical therapist program. While licensing requirements vary state by state for PTA and PT graduates, many states require a minimum amount of clinical hours be performed as well as passing scores on supplemental tests.

Are Internship Programs Offered? Find out if the physical therapist programs you are evaluating have partnerships with Pleasant Hill CA hospitals or clinics for internship programs. Not only are internships a great manner to obtain practical training in a clinical setting, they are additionally a requirement for the majority of PT programs and state licensing. As a secondary benefit, they can assist students and graduates develop professional connections in the Pleasant Hill medical community and help with obtaining employment once licensed.

What are the Class Sizes ? Unless you are the type of student that likes to sit far in the back of the classroom or hide in the crowd, you will undoubtedly want a smaller class size. Small classes enable more individual participation and one-on-one instruction. Ask the physical therapist schools you are considering 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 decision. This will also give you a chance to converse with some of the instructors and students to get their perspectives regarding the pharmacist technician program also.

Where is the School Located? For a number of students, the physical therapy school they select will need to be within driving distance of their Pleasant Hill CA home. Students who have opted to attend classes online obviously will not have to concern themselves with the location of the campus. However, the availability of area internships will be of concern. One thing to keep in mind is that if you choose 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 normally charge higher tuitions for out of state residents. And community colleges often charge a higher tuition for those students that live outside of their districts.

Is Financial Assistance Offered? The majority of DPT colleges offer some type of financial support to their prospective students. Ask if the colleges you are looking at 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 grants you might be eligible for. A number of physical therapist colleges provide scholarships, while others provide work programs. So before you eliminate a college because the tuition is too expensive, ask what financial assistance may be available.

Can the Program Accommodate your Schedule? And finally you must confirm that the physical therapy program you ultimately choose can furnish the class schedule you need. This is especially crucial if you decide to continue working while attending school. If you need to schedule evening or weekend classes in the Pleasant Hill CA area, verify that they are available. If you can only attend part-time, verify if that is an alternative and how many credit hours or courses you would need to carry. Also, learn what the procedure is for making up any classes that you may miss due to work, illness or family emergencies.

Earning Your Physical Therapy Degree near Pleasant Hill California?

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

Pleasant Hill, California

Pleasant Hill is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States, in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 33,152 at the 2010 census. It was incorporated in 1961. Pleasant Hill is the home of College Park High School, Diablo Valley College, John F Kennedy University, the Pleasant Hill Library and administration offices for the Contra Costa County Library system, and the Pleasant Hill Recreation & Park District.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 7.1 square miles (18 km2). Pleasant Hill has a varied landscape with some valleys and rolling hills. In undisturbed wilderness, oak woodlands and mixed woods can be found. It is located in the central East San Francisco Bay.

This region has warm and dry summers, with no average monthly temperatures above 71 degrees Fahrenheit (22 degrees Celsius) According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Pleasant Hill has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate, abbreviated "Csb" on climate maps.[10] Winter daytime temperatures tend to be in the fifties and sixties, and summers range in the high seventies to upper eighties, occasionally reaching the low nineties. On very rare occasions, the temperatures can reach the one hundred degree range during extreme heat waves. Freezing in winter is rare, but it does happen. Summer fog is occasional but winter fog is very common.

Choose the Best Physical Therapy Degree Program near Pleasant Hill CA

Selecting the ideal physical therapy program is a necessary initial decision you need to make to start a gratifying career in the health care field. As we have covered in this article, the PT or DPT degree program and college you pick should both have exceptional reputations and be accredited. But there are other relevant questions that you need to ask pertaining to your college of choice as well. As you commence your search for a physical therapy college, keep in mind that a number of variables will lead you toward your ultimate decision. You may decide to go to each of the colleges to view their facilities and speak to active DPT students. While there, ask yourself this critical question: will this college help me realize my goal of becoming a practicing licensed physical therapist? By following our list of supplemental questions, you will be able to narrow down the field so you can make the ideal choice. And with the proper education and training, you can fulfill your dream to become a licensed physical therapist in Pleasant Hill CA.