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

How to Select a Physical Therapist Program near Malverne 11565

Malverne NY physical therapy school student with volunteer Getting a physical therapist degree near Malverne NY is a critical first step to launching a rewarding career in the health care industry. Physical therapists (PT) help people who have been incapacitated due to injury or illness regain function and mobility. But before they can practice and provide treatment for the rehabilitation of patients, they must acquire the appropriate education and training. A PT must also be licensed in every state, many requiring that the licensee hold a physical therapy degree from an accredited school. So before enrolling in a physical therapy school, it’s necessary to research the ones you are considering to ensure they will provide a quality education and satisfy your state’s licensing criteria. What you do not want to do is select a school simply because it happens to be the nearest to your home or it has cheapest 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 what questions you should ask, we’ll cover what a physical therapist does and what the educational options are.

What Do Physical Therapists Do?

Malverne NY physical therapist helping patient walk Physical therapists practice in a variety of locations, such as Malverne NY hospitals, health clinics, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes and health clubs. What the facilities all have in common is that they have the equipment for the diagnosis and rehabilitation treatment of patients. As previously stated, physical therapists help people that are suffering from a lack of mobility and often pain due to illness or injury. After diagnosing a patient, they develop a course of treatment to deal with the mobility issues and lessen or eliminate any pain. They also try to stop any advancement of the disability. While the causes of disability necessitating physical therapy are numerous, they include:

Osteoporosis and Arthritis
Car or motor cycle accidents
Head injuries.
Cardiac arrest.
Sports injuries.
Fire injuries.
Hip Replacement.
Sciatica.
Cerebral Palsy.

Licensed physical therapists practice in close association with other Malverne NY medical specialists, including doctors, chiropractors, registered nurses and dentists. They can also oversee one or more physical therapy assistants who work under them assisting with diagnosing and treating their patients. Something to keep in mind for anyone thinking about entering the physical therapy profession, 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 Therapist Degree Options

Malverne NY physical therapist applying acupuncture to patient There are 3 physical therapist degree options available for students to enroll in at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Of these alternatives, the one degree that is available to become a physical therapist is the doctorate. Undergraduate degrees emphasize either preparing students to become a physical therapy assistant (PTA) or readying them to progress to the doctoral level. Below are brief explanations of degree levels that are offered in the Malverne NY area:

Associate Degrees train students to be physical therapy assistants, or may 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 degrees are typically provided by community or junior colleges, and take about 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 designed as pre-physical therapist education to prepare candidates to move up to the doctoral level. Although they are not required to be a candidate for the doctoral program, they are an important initial step to becoming a PT. Similar to the majority of bachelor’s degrees, they generally take 4 years to finish and usually incorporate an internship program of at least 500 hours.
Doctorate Degrees are mandated in order 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 complete, making the overall commitment seven years in the majority of cases. Practical or clinical training is an essential element along with the considerable lab and classroom instruction. Therefor the fulfillment of an internship is mandated, not solely 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 phased out and is no longer available in the USA. Some practicing physical therapists having a master’s or even a bachelor’s degree were “grandfathered” in before the current licensing mandate for a doctorate was implemented.

Physical Therapist Online Degrees

woman attending physical therapy school online in Malverne NY While not as prevalent as the more traditional options, there are some accredited online physical therapist degrees available, more so at the graduate level. Due to the hands-on structure of the training, clinical lab work and internships are integrated with the online classes. This requires that the student live near the college campus or in proximity of an available internship. However, the online part of the curriculum may be accessed within the convenience and comfort of the student’s Malverne NY residence. Online schools are not only partially more accessible, but in a number of cases more economical. Tuition can be somewhat lower than comparable on-campus options, and expenditures for commuting are reduced. And a number of the online schools are accredited by the CAPTE, ensuring a quality education. These benefits can make the online alternative the ideal choice for those students that are dedicated enough to attend classes at home.

Subjects to Ask Physical Therapy Schools

By now you probably have come to decision concerning several of your initial queries, including the kind of physical therapy degree you intend to obtain, where you want to attend classes, and how much money you can afford to spend for your education. But because there are numerous PT colleges within the Malverne NY area and across New York, you’ll have to explore other qualifications as well in order to further reduce your list of college options. Moreover, you need to be sure that you pick the program that is right for you. That’s the reason we have collected a list of important questions that you need to ask the physical therapy programs you are reviewing. Ask all of the competing colleges these questions before making an ultimate decision.

Is the Physical Therapy College Accredited? Ask if the programs you are considering have earned accreditation from a national or a regional agency. 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 select an online school, it may also obtain accreditation from the Distance Education and Training Council. It’s essential that both the physical therapist program and school you enroll in are accredited, not simply the school. Also, verify that the accreditation is through a U.S. Department of Education acknowledged accrediting agency. Besides ensuring that you receive an excellent education, accreditation may be required for state licensing as well as for getting student loans or financial aid.

What is the College’s Ranking? Along with accreditation, it’s imperative that the school and program you select have excellent reputations within the physical therapy profession. There are several ways you can research a PT college’s reputation, beginning with asking for references from employers that they place their graduates with. You can also check online reviews and rating services and ask the accrediting agencies for their reviews also. Call a few Malverne NY physical therapy clinics or other healthcare facilities that you might have an interest in working for and ask if they can provide any recommendations about your school options. It might also be prudent to contact the New York Attorney General and school licensing authority to see if any complaints have been filed against the schools.

What is the School’s Job Placement Rate? There are a couple of significant statistics that you need to know about all of the physical therapist schools you are reviewing. One is their graduation rate. A low rate may indicate that students dropped out due to displeasure with the program, the instructors, or both. After the students have graduated, what percentage of them are being hired with the assistance of the college’s job placement program, particularly in the Malverne NY area? If a program has a high job placement rate, it suggests that its reputation within the medical care community is good or perhaps excellent. It also verifies that the school has a wide network of contacts to help students obtain internships or employment after graduation.

Does the College Support Licensing Requirements? It’s important that the program you enroll in provides both exceptional training and a course of study that supports 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) along with a degree from an accredited physical therapy school. 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 Sponsored? Find out if the physical therapy programs you are interested in have associations with Malverne NY hospitals or clinics for internship programs. Not only are internships an excellent 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 supplemental benefit, they can assist students and graduates form professional relationships in the Malverne health care community and help with obtaining employment once licensed.

What are the Class Sizes ? Unless you are the sort of student that prefers to sit way in the back of the classroom or get lost in the crowd, you will likely prefer a smaller class size. Small classes permit more individual participation and one-on-one instruction. Ask the physical therapist colleges you are looking at 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 an opportunity to converse with some of the instructors and students to get their opinions regarding the pharmacy technician program also.

Where is the Program Located? For a lot of students, the physical therapist college they decide on will have to be within travelling distance of their Malverne NY residence. Individuals who have opted to attend online classes obviously will not have to concern themselves with the location of the campus. However, the availability of area internships will be of importance. One thing to keep in mind is that if you choose to enroll in a college that is out of state or perhaps out of your local area, you might need to pay a higher tuition. State colleges often charge higher tuitions for out of state residents. And community colleges frequently charge a higher tuition for those students that live outside of their districts.

Is Financial Aid Offered? The majority of DPT schools provide some type of financial aid to their potential students. Ask if the colleges you are examining have a financial assistance office and see what kind of assistance is available. They at least should help in securing a student loan or any scholarships you may qualify for. Some physical therapist schools offer scholarships, while others offer work programs. So before you eliminate a college because the tuition is beyond your budget, find out what financial assistance might be available.

Can the Program Accommodate your Schedule? And finally you must confirm that the physical therapist program you ultimately select can provide the class schedule you need. This is especially essential if you opt to continue working while attending school. If you must schedule night or weekend classes in the Malverne NY area, verify that they are offered. If you can only attend part-time, verify if that is an option and how many credit hours or courses you would have to enroll in. Also, ask what the protocol is for making up any classes that you may miss as a result of illness, work or family obligations.

Earning Your Physical Therapy Degree near Malverne New York?

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

Malverne, New York

Malverne was originally settled by the Rockaway Indians at an unknown point in history with the current Ocean Avenue serving as an Indian path. Western settlements can be dated back to the 1700s when the Abrams, Bedell and Pearsall families first settled and began farming the area.

Norwood, as it was originally known, formed a movement to become an incorporated village in the early 1920s. This area originally consisted of the communities of North Lynbrook and Malverne Park. It is widely believed that residents of the now Malverne Park area did not wish to become part of the new village and therefore requested not to be included. North Lynbrook was believed to be removed from the borders by then New York Lieutenant Governor Jeremiah Wood, who lived in that area at that time and did not wish to be in an incorporated village.

The spelling of the name was originally Malvern, minus the "e" as in the English connection. When the Long Island Rail Road started service to Malvern they spelled the name Malverne, with the "e". Although Malvern attempted to fix the error, the village changed the name to Malverne as so many people thought the name was spelled with the "e".[citation needed] This is a further indication how important rail service was to villages across the country and how powerful their effects were felt upon them. The last farm in Malverne, Crossroads Farm at Grossman's was acquired by Nassau County and continues to operate as the last working farm in the village.[3]

Enroll in the Best Physical Therapy School near Malverne NY

Choosing the ideal physical therapy school is a necessary initial decision you need to make to start a gratifying career in the health care field. As we have discussed in this article, the DPT or PT degree program and college you decide on should both have exceptional reputations and accreditation. However there are other critical questions that you should ask regarding your school of choice as well. As you commence your search for a physical therapist college, keep in mind that a number of factors will lead you to your final decision. You might want to visit each of the colleges to view their facilities and talk with active DPT students. While there, ask yourself this important question: will this program help me reach my goal of becoming a licensed practicing physical therapist? By following our list of additional questions, you will have the ability to narrow down the options so you can make the appropriate selection. And with the necessary training and education, you can accomplish your dream of becoming a licensed physical therapist in Malverne NY.