Physical Therapist Schools | Get Your Physical Therapy Degree - Titusville FL

How to Choose a Physical Therapist Degree Program near Titusville 32780

Titusville FL physical therapy school student with volunteer Receiving a physical therapy degree near Titusville FL is a critical first step to starting a rewarding career in the health care industry. Physical therapists (PT) help patients who have been incapacitated due to illness or injury gain back function and mobility. But before they can practice and work with the rehabilitation of patients, they need to acquire the necessary training and education. A PT must also be licensed in all states, many mandating that the licensee hold a physical therapy degree from an accredited school. So prior to enrolling in a physical therapy school, it’s important to evaluate those you are thinking about to make sure they will furnish a superior education and comply with your state’s licensing criteria. What you should not do is choose a college simply because it happens to be the nearest to your residence or it has cheapest tuition. There are other relevant qualifications that need to be considered besides cost and location. But before we cover what those qualifications are and the questions you should be asking, we’ll address what a physical therapist does and what the educational options are.

What is a Physical Therapist’s Job Description?

Titusville FL physical therapist helping patient walk Physical therapists practice in a variety of locations, such as Titusville FL hospitals, health clinics, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes and sports facilities. What the facilities all share in common is that they are equipped for the diagnosis and rehabilitation treatment of patients. As previously mentioned, physical therapists help people that are struggling with a lack of mobility and often pain caused by illness or injury. After patient diagnosis, they create a course of treatment to address the mobility issues and reduce or eliminate any pain. They also strive to stop 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.
Fire injuries.
Knee Replacement.
Fibromyalgia.
Multiple Sclerosis.

Licensed physical therapists practice in close association with other Titusville FL medical professionals, including doctors, chiropractors, registered nurses and dentists. They may also manage several physical therapy assistants who work for them assisting with diagnosing and treating their patients. Something to bear in mind for anyone considering entering the physical therapy profession, it is rather physically demanding. Physical therapists often lift patients and heavy equipment, and kneel, crouch and stand for prolonged periods of time on a daily basis.

Physical Therapy Degrees

Titusville FL physical therapist applying acupuncture to patient There are three physical therapy degree options available for individuals to enroll in at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Of these alternatives, the one degree that is available to practice as a physical therapist is the doctorate. Undergraduate degrees emphasize either training students to become a physical therapy assistant (PTA) or readying them to advance to the doctoral level. Below are short summaries of degree levels that are offered in the Titusville FL area:

Associate Degrees prepare students to be physical therapy assistants, or may be the first step toward earning a more advanced degree. Candidates must have earned a high school diploma or GED to qualify for enrollment. The programs are typically made available by community or junior colleges, and take about two years for completion. An internship or other form of clinical training is normally part of the program.
Bachelor’s Degrees are designed as pre-physical therapist education to prepare students to progress to the doctoral level. Although they are not required to be qualified for the doctoral program, they are an essential preliminary step to practicing as a PT. Similar to the majority of bachelor’s degrees, they typically require 4 years to finish and often incorporate an internship program of a minimum of 500 hours.
Doctorate Degrees are mandated 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). In addition to the bachelor’s degree, the doctoral takes 3 years to complete, making the total commitment 7 years in most cases. Clinical or practical training is an important element along with the considerable lab and classroom instruction. Consequently the completion of an internship is required, not just for graduation but in a number of 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 offered in the USA. 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 implemented.

Physical Therapy Programs Online

woman attending physical therapy school online in Titusville FL Although not as common as the on-campus alternatives, there are a number of accredited online physical therapy degrees offered, more so at the graduate level. Due to the hands-on structure of the training, internships and clinical lab work are combined with the online classes. This necessitates that the student live close to the school campus or in proximity of a sponsored internship. However, the online segment of the program can be accessed within the convenience and comfort of the student’s Titusville FL residence. Online programs are not only partially more accessible, but in many cases more affordable. Tuition may be somewhat less than comparable on campus alternatives, and expenditures for commuting are minimized. And many of the online programs are accredited by the CAPTE, assuring a quality education. These advantages can make the online alternative the right choice for those students that are disciplined enough to attend classes at home.

Questions to Ask Physical Therapist Programs

By now you probably have come to decision concerning several of your initial questions, including the kind of physical therapist degree you want to earn, where you prefer to attend classes, and how much you can afford to spend for your education. But since there are numerous PT schools within the Titusville FL area and across Florida, you’ll need to research other qualifications also so as to further narrow your list of school options. Furthermore, you want to make sure that you enroll in the program 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 thinking about. Ask each of the potential schools these questions before making an ultimate decision.

Is the Physical Therapist College Accredited? Ask if the colleges you are considering have received accreditation from a national or a regional organization. As earlier 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 school, it can also earn 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. Also, make sure that the accreditation is from a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting agency. Besides ensuring that you obtain an excellent education, accreditation might be mandated for state licensing as well as for securing student loans or financial assistance.

What is the School’s Ranking? Along with accreditation, it’s important that the college and program you pick have exceptional reputations within the physical therapist community. There are multiple ways you can investigate a PT program’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 organizations for their reviews as well. Contact some Titusville FL physical therapist clinics or other health care facilities that you might be interested in working for and ask if they can provide any recommendations about your program selections. It may also be prudent to contact the Florida Attorney General and school licensing authority to see if any complaints have been submitted against the schools.

What is the Program’s Job Placement Percentage? There are a two relevant statistics that you should find out about each of the physical therapist colleges you are looking at. One is their graduation rate. A low rate might indicate that students dropped out due to dissatisfaction with the program, the instructors, or both. Once the students have graduated, how many of them are being placed in jobs with the support of the college’s job placement program, particularly in the Titusville FL area? If a program has a high job placement rate, it suggests that its reputation within the healthcare field is good or perhaps excellent. It also affirms that the school has a wide network of contacts to assist students get internships or jobs upon graduation.

Does the Program Prepare You For Licensing Requirements? It’s imperative that the program you enroll in provides both excellent training and a curriculum that supports the licensing requirements for Florida or the state where you will be practicing. In every state a passing score is required on the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) in addition to 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 number of clinical hours be performed and passing scores on supplemental tests.

Are Internships Provided? Find out if the physical therapist colleges you are assessing have relationships with Titusville FL clinics or hospitals for internship programs. Internships are not only an excellent means to receive practical training in a clinical setting, they are also a requirement for the majority of PT programs and state licensing. As an ancillary benefit, they may help graduates and students form professional connections in the Titusville health care community and assist with job placement once licensed.

How Big are the Classes ? Unless you are the sort of person that prefers to sit way in the back of the classroom or get lost in the crowd, you will likely want a small class size. Smaller classes enable more individual participation and personalized instruction. Ask the physical therapy schools you are looking at what the average teacher to student 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 speak with a few of the instructors and students to get their opinions regarding the pharmacist tech program as well.

Where is the Program Located? For many students, the physical therapy college they choose will need to be within travelling distance of their Titusville FL residence. Individuals 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 importance. Something to keep in mind is that if you choose to enroll in a college that is out of state or even out of your local area, you may be required 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 don’t reside within their districts.

Is Financial Support Offered? The majority of DPT schools provide some type of financial assistance to their prospective students. Find out if the colleges you are looking at have a financial assistance office and see what type of help is obtainable. At a minimum they should help in securing a student loan or any grants you might qualify for. Some physical therapist colleges provide scholarships, while others provide work programs. So before you eliminate a program because the tuition is too expensive, learn what financial assistance might be available.

Can the College Accommodate your Schedule? And finally you need to verify that the physical therapy college you ultimately choose can provide the class schedule you need. This is particularly essential if you opt to continue working while you attend classes. If you must schedule night or weekend classes in the Titusville FL area, make sure 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 enroll in. Also, find out what the protocol is for making up any classes that you might miss as a result of work, illness or family emergencies.

Earning Your Physical Therapy Degree near Titusville Florida?

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

Titusville, Florida

Titusville is a city in and the county seat of Brevard County, Florida, United States.[7] The city's population was 43,761 as of the 2010 United States Census.[3] Titusville is on the Indian River, west of Merritt Island and the Kennedy Space Center, and south-southwest of the Canaveral National Seashore. It is a principal city of the Palm Bay–Melbourne–Titusville Metropolitan Statistical Area.

The area was once inhabited by the Ais Indians, who gathered palmetto, cocoplum and seagrape berries. They also fished the Indian River, called the Rio de Ais by Spanish explorers. By 1760, however, the tribe had disappeared due to slave raids, disease, and rum. The United States acquired Florida from Spain in 1821, and the Seminole Wars delayed settlement.[citation needed]

The community was originally called Sand Point, and a post office was established in 1859, although it closed a few months later. Henry T. Titus arrived in 1867, intending to build a town on land owned by his wife, Mary Hopkins Titus, daughter of a prominent planter from Darien, Georgia. He laid out roads and in 1870 erected the Titus House, a large, one-story hotel next to a saloon. He also donated land for four churches and a courthouse, the latter an effort to get the town designated as county seat.[citation needed]

Choose the Best Physical Therapist Degree Program near Titusville FL

Picking the ideal physical therapist program is an important first decision you must make to launch a fulfilling career in the health care profession. As we have addressed in this article, the DPT or PT degree program and school you enroll in should both have outstanding reputations and be accredited. However there are other important questions that you need to ask concerning your school of choice as well. As you start your search for a physical therapy program, bear in mind that numerous factors will guide you toward your ultimate decision. You may want to visit different campuses to view their facilities and talk to current DPT students. While there, ask yourself this important question: will this school help me achieve my goal of becoming a practicing licensed physical therapist? By adhering to our list of supplemental questions, you will have the ability to narrow down the field so you can make the best choice. And with the necessary education and training, you can accomplish your dream to become a licensed physical therapist in Titusville FL.