Physical Therapist Schools | Get Your Physical Therapy Degree - Morristown TN

How to Pick a Physical Therapist School near Morristown 37813

Morristown TN physical therapy school student with volunteer Receiving a physical therapist degree near Morristown TN is an essential first step to starting a rewarding career in the medical care industry. Physical therapists (PT) help individuals who have been disabled as a result of injury or illness regain mobility and function. But before they can practice and provide treatment for the rehabilitation of patients, they must acquire the proper training and education. A PT must additionally be licensed in every state, many requiring that the licensee earn a physical therapy degree from an accredited college. So before selecting a physical therapy school, it’s important to evaluate those you are looking at to make sure they will furnish a superior education and meet your state’s licensing requirements. What you do not want to do is choose a college just because it happens to be the nearest to your home or it has the lowest tuition. There are other important qualifications that must be evaluated besides cost and location. But before we discuss what those qualifications are and the questions you should be asking, we’ll cover what a physical therapist does and the options for education.

What is a Physical Therapist’s Job Description?

Morristown TN physical therapist helping patient walk Physical therapists work in diverse locations, including Morristown TN private practices, hospitals, assisted living facilities, rehab centers and sports facilities. What the facilities all share in common is that they have the equipment for diagnosing and rehabilitating patients. As earlier stated, physical therapists help people that are suffering from a lack of mobility and often pain due to injury or illness. After diagnosing a patient, they design a course of treatment to resolve the mobility problems and lessen or eradicate any pain. They also endeavor to stop any progression of the disability. Though the causes of disability requiring physical therapy are numerous, they include:

Arthritis or Osteoporosis
Car or motor cycle accidents
Strokes.
Heart attacks.
Sports injuries.
Burn injuries.
Knee Replacement.
Sciatica.
Cerebral Palsy.

Licensed physical therapists work in close affiliation with other Morristown TN medical professionals, including doctors, chiropractors, registered nurses and dentists. They can also supervise one or more physical therapy assistants who work under them in the diagnosis and treatment of their patients. One thing to keep in mind for anyone considering getting into the physical therapy profession, it is rather physically demanding. Physical therapists regularly lift patients and heavy equipment, and stand, crouch and kneel for prolonged periods of time on a daily basis.

Physical Therapy Degrees

Morristown TN physical therapist applying acupuncture to patient There are 3 physical therapist degree options available for individuals to enroll in at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Of these choices, the only degree that is offered to practice as a physical therapist is the doctorate. Undergraduate degrees emphasize either preparing students to become a physical therapy assistant (PTA) or prepping them to advance to the doctoral level. Below are brief summaries of degrees that are available in the Morristown TN area:

Associate Degrees train students to be physical therapy assistants, or may be the first step toward earning a more advanced degree. Candidates must have obtained a high school diploma or equivalent to qualify for enrollment. The programs are most often offered by community or junior colleges, and require 2 years for completion. Clinical training, which may be in the form of an internship is normally a portion of the course of study.
Bachelor’s Degrees are created as pre-physical therapy training to prep candidates to move up to the doctoral level. Although they are not a requirement to be qualified for the doctoral program, they are an essential first step to practicing as a PT. Similar to the majority of bachelor’s degrees, they typically require four years to finish and usually include an internship program of a minimum of 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). In addition to the bachelor’s degree, the doctoral takes 3 years to finish, making the total commitment seven years in the majority of cases. Clinical or practical training is an intregal component along with the extensive classroom and lab instruction. Therefor the completion of an internship is mandated, not only for graduation but in some states for licensing also.

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 United States. Some licensed physical therapists holding a master’s or in some cases a bachelor’s degree were “grandfathered” in prior to the current licensing requirement for a doctorate was implemented.

Physical Therapist Online Colleges

woman attending physical therapy school online in Morristown TN Although not as common as the more traditional alternatives, there are many accredited online physical therapist degrees offered, more so at the graduate level. Because of the hands-on nature of the training, clinical lab work and internships are integrated with the online classes. This necessitates that the student live close to the college campus or nearby an available internship. Fortunately, the online portion of the course of study can be accessed within the comfort and convenience of the student’s Morristown TN residence. Online schools are not only to some extent more accessible, but in a number of instances more economical. Tuition may be significantly less than similar on campus options, and expenses 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 ideal choice for those students that are motivated enough to learn at home.

Questions to Ask Physical Therapy Programs

At this point you most likely have made a decision concerning some of your preliminary queries, such as the kind of physical therapy degree you would like to attain, where you prefer to attend classes, and how much money you can afford to spend for your education. But since there are so many PT colleges within the Morristown TN area and throughout Tennessee, you’ll need to look into other qualifications also so as to further reduce your list of college options. Moreover, you need to be sure that you enroll in the program that is ideal for you. That’s the reason we have collected a list of essential questions that you need to ask the physical therapy schools you are considering. Ask all of the competing schools these questions prior to making an ultimate selection.

Is the Physical Therapy School Accredited? Find out if the colleges you are reviewing have received 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 program, it may also obtain accreditation from the Distance Education and Training Council. It’s essential that both the physical therapy school and program you select are accredited, not just the school. Additionally, make sure that the accreditation is through a U.S. Department of Education recognized accrediting organization. Besides guaranteeing that you obtain a quality education, accreditation might be required for state licensing and even for getting student loans or financial aid.

What is the Program’s Standing? Along with accreditation, it’s important that the college and program you pick have excellent reputations within the physical therapist profession. There are multiple ways you can research 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 also. Contact some Morristown TN physical therapy clinics or other medical care facilities that you might have an interest in working for and ask if they can give you any advice about your program selections. It may also be a good idea to check with the Tennessee Attorney General and school licensing authority to see if any complaints have been filed against the schools.

What is the Program’s Job Placement Rate? There are a couple of significant statistics that you should know about each of the physical therapy colleges you are considering. One is their graduation rate. A lower rate might indicate that students left because of 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 school’s job placement program, particularly in the Morristown TN area? If a program has a high job placement rate, it’s an indication that its reputation within the medical care community is good or perhaps outstanding. It also confirms that the school has a large network of contacts to help students obtain internships or jobs upon graduation.

Does the College Support Licensing Requirements? It’s imperative that the college you choose furnishes both superior training and a curriculum that supports the licensing requirements for Tennessee or the state where you will be practicing. In every 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 fluctuate state by state for PT and PTA graduates, some states require a minimum amount of clinical hours be performed as well as passing scores on additional tests.

Are Internships Offered? Find out if the physical therapist colleges you are reviewing have associations with Morristown TN hospitals or clinics for internship programs. Not only are internships a great manner to receive practical training in a clinical setting, they are also a requirement for most PT programs and state licensing. As an ancillary benefit, they may assist students and graduates establish professional connections in the Morristown healthcare community and help with obtaining employment after licensing.

How Big are the Classes ? Unless you are the sort of person that likes to sit far in the back of class or get lost in the crowd, you will undoubtedly prefer a small class size. Smaller classes permit more individual participation and personalized instruction. Ask the physical therapy schools you are reviewing what the typical teacher to student ratio is for their classes. If practical you may want to monitor one or more classes before making your final decision. This will also give you a chance to converse with a few of the instructors and students to get their opinions regarding the pharmacy technician program also.

Where is the Program Located? For many students, the physical therapy school they decide on will have to be within travelling distance of their Morristown TN home. Individuals who have decided to attend online classes naturally will not have to worry themselves with the location of the campus. However, the availability of area internships will be of concern. Something to keep in mind is that if you choose to enroll in a program that is out of state or perhaps out of your local area, you might have to pay a higher tuition. State colleges often charge higher tuitions for out of state residents. And community colleges frequently charge a higher tuition to those students that live outside of their districts.

Is Financial Assistance Provided? The majority of DPT schools provide some type of financial assistance to their prospective students. Ask if the colleges you are looking at have a financial assistance department and see what kind of assistance is offered. They at least should help in acquiring a student loan or any scholarships you may be eligible for. A number of physical therapy colleges provide scholarships, while others provide work programs. So before you eliminate a college because the tuition is beyond your budget, learn what financial aid might be available.

Can the School Accommodate your Schedule? And finally you need to confirm that the physical therapist school you finally pick can offer the class schedule you need. This is especially crucial if you choose to continue working while attending classes. If you need to schedule night or weekend classes in the Morristown TN area, make sure that they are offered. If you can only attend part-time, check if that is an option and how many credit hours or courses you would have to carry. Also, learn what the procedure is for making up any classes that you may miss because of work, illness or family emergencies.

Earning Your Physical Therapy Degree near Morristown Tennessee?

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

Morristown, Tennessee

Morristown is a city in and the county seat of Hamblen County, Tennessee, United States.[5] Morristown also extends into Jefferson County on the west and southern ends. The population was 29,137 at the 2010 United States Census.[6] It is the principal city of the Morristown, Tennessee Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Grainger, Hamblen, and Jefferson counties. The Morristown metropolitan area is also a part of the Knoxville-Sevierville-La Follette Combined Statistical Area. Morristown is primarily located in Hamblen County, while a small portion of the city is located in Jefferson County.

The first European settler of what eventually became Morristown was farmer Gideon Morris. It is recorded in Goodspeed's History of Tennessee that Gideon, along with an unspecified number of his siblings, arrived in the area of present-day Morristown from the Watauga Settlement, a short-lived semi-autonomous settlement located in northeast Tennessee that was originally leased from the resident Cherokee tribes during the 1770s.

The settlement founded by Gideon has, as far as is known, always been called Morristown. No known records exist demonstrating land grants in the area to anyone aside from Gideon and his extended family. Jefferson County, located southwest of Hamblen County, possesses a record in the Jefferson County Court House of the results of the execution of Gideon Morris' will, which includes property deeded to John Morris in 1817 for a 400-acre (160 ha) tract of land originally granted to Gideon by the state of North Carolina, and presumably comprising only a portion of the original grant due to the known size of the Morris family at that time. Gideon Morris lived on that tract of land until his death.

Pick the Right Physical Therapy Degree Program near Morristown TN

Selecting the right physical therapist college is an important first decision you must make to launch a rewarding career in the medical profession. As we have covered in this article, the PT or DPT degree program and school you decide on should both have outstanding reputations and accreditation. But there are other important questions that you should ask concerning your college of choice also. As you start your search for a physical therapy program, bear in mind that numerous factors will lead you to your ultimate decision. You may decide to visit each of the schools to see their facilities and speak with current DPT students. While there, ask yourself this important question: will this program help me realize 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 right choice. And with the necessary training and education, you can fulfill your dream of becoming a practicing physical therapist in Morristown TN.