Physical Therapy, DPT

Program Description

The Physical Therapy program will prepare graduates to deliver both primary and interdisciplinary health care to diverse populations within a variety of practice settings and health-care delivery systems. In keeping with the mission of WSSU, the program will develop practitioners who engender the values of social and professional responsibility, leadership, integrity and scholarship, as well as life-long personal and professional development.

Mission

The Winston-Salem State University Department of Physical Therapy develops doctors of physical therapy from diverse backgrounds who serve the people of North Carolina and beyond through evidence-based practice.

Purpose

In keeping with the mission of WSSU, the program will develop diverse practitioners who engender the values of social and professional responsibility, integrity, scholarship, and leadership, as well as personal and professional development. 

Learning Outcomes

1. Provide services to diverse patients and clients who are impaired or have experienced declines in physical function and health status resulting from injury, disease, or other causes. 
2. Interact and collaborate with a variety of healthcare professionals to provide the best service to address the needs of the client.
3. Determine and effectively communicate with a diverse clientele in order to address risk factors that may impede optimal functioning.
4. Advocate for prevention and promote health, wellness, and fitness to address causes of health disparities between the majority culture and ethnic minorities.
5. Engage in critical inquiry to address the needs of patients and clients.
6. Direct and supervise physical therapy services, including support personnel.
7. Provide services utilizing the art and science of physical therapy (PT) in an autonomous manner.

Application Deadline

Transfer Credits

Degree Requirements

A total of one hundred and twenty three (120) credit hours and thirty six (36) weeks of clinical education experience hours are required for completion of the DPT degree.

Minimum Grade Requirements

A minimum of a 3.0 cumulative grade point average must be maintained throughout the program.

Time Limits for Completion

The DPT degree may be conferred upon a student who has successfully completed all coursework and clinical internships. Completion of this work is scheduled to occur in December of the third year. The student is eligible to sit for the national licensure board examination immediately upon graduation from the program. The program is lock step and students must progress with their cohort to completion of the program in three years unless approved by the faculty and chair.

Progression Requirements

Students must maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA throughout their matriculation in the DPT Program. Students must also pass an integrated comprehensive exam at the end of their first year and score a 70% or higher in order to progress through the curriculum. In order to be eligible for graduation, students must pass a final comprehensive exam with a score of 70% or higher.

Prerequisites

All courses are taught in an established sequence as part of the lock step progression in the DPT program. In order to proceed through the curriculum, all previous prerequisite courses (previous semester’s courses) must be met successfully with a C or better including Clinical Education Courses and cumulative GPA of 3.0.

* YES=course must be completed in a 4-year college/university and NOT in a community college.
** REQ=required lab; Rec=recommended lab; NO=lab not required; N/A=not applicable

Additional information about program’s course requirements: WSSU requires that all “hard sciences” are taken in the past 10 years; they are Biology I, Chemistry I and II, Physics I and II, Anatomy and Physiology I and II, and Upper Level Biology.

Required Courses

Electives

Licensure

Graduates of the program will be eligible to take the national licensure examination for physical therapists administered by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy. Successful completion of this exam will enable the individual to be licensed as a physical therapist.  Licensure is required to practice in the United States.  Please note that a felony conviction may affect a graduate’s ability to take the national licensure examination and/or obtain state licensure. Persons with concerns should contact:

Accreditation

The Doctor of Physical Therapy program at WSSU is an entry-level, clinical doctorate in Physical Therapy.  The program is fully accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE).  CAPTE is recognized by the US Department of Education (USDE) and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) as the sole accrediting agency for physical therapist education programs.  The program reaccredited in 2013 for a total of ten (10) years.

For additional information concerning the status of this program contact:

American Physical Therapy Association (APTA)
Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE)
1111 North Fairfax Street
Alexandria, VA  22314-1488
Telephone: 703-684-APTA (2782)  
Toll-free: 800-999-2782
TDD: 703-683-6748
Fax: 703-684-7343

Admissions Application Requirements

Applications must be submitted before the January 15, 2022 deadline. Please make your check, certified check or money order payable to WSSU Admissions/Physical Therapy. Applicants must also include a full name and ‘PT Applicant ID#’, and submit all documents and the $50 application fee to:

Physical Therapy Observation Hours

Enter your PT observation hours on your PTCAS application.  Use online PT Hours signature process, as the program requires you to have your hours verified by a physical therapist.

Grade Point Average (GPA) Requirement

GPA’s will be blank if program data is not available or applicable.

Foreign Applicants and Transcripts

The program’s foreign (international) transcript policies do NOT apply to study abroad coursework that is itemized on a U.S. college or university transcript.  Study abroad is processed in the same way as U.S. coursework.

Health Requirements

Students who are accepted into the physical therapy program must provide a record of immunization for the following immunizations prior to orientation:

• Tetanus, Diphtheria & Pertussis
• Measles, Mumps, Rubella
• Hepatitis B
• Polio
• Varicella (Chicken Pox)

In addition to the university requirements, the department requires that you maintain an annual Tuberculosis (TB skin) test as well as a Health Care Provider Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certificate.  Immunization records and CPR certification must be completed prior to attendance in a clinical internship.  A certified background check (CBC) is required for admission to the university and program as well as drug screen prior to entering the program, at random points and prior to clinical experiences.

Graduate Record Examination (GRE)

GRE Score Requirements

Composite minimum is 290 (145 verbal & 145 quantitative), Average score for accepted students is 306.

References:  Three (3) references are required.

 Students seeking admission into the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program must have:

• A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university
• A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00
• Graduate Record Exam within five (5) years of applying for admission
• Completed graduate school application through Physical Therapy Centralized Application System (PTCAS) www.ptcas.org
• Minimum of fifty (50) hours of physical therapy observation
• CASPer Assessment
• Three letters of references (one letter must be completed by physical therapist)
• Written essay
• Grade of “C: or higher in the prerequisites courses listed above and cumulative GPA of 3.0
• Application fee of $50 which must be submitted by check, certified check or money order made payable to WSSU Admissions/Physical Therapy and mailed to:

Departmental Links

• Graduate Program Webpage
• Doctor of Physical Therapy Webpage 

The next accreditation self-study and onsite visit are scheduled for March, 2023.