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Physical Therapist Assistant Program Frequently Asked Questions  |
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What is a physical therapist assistant? What steps do I need to take to enter the program? What is the selection process for the program? How do I know if the program is right for me? Physical therapy is a dynamic profession with an established theoretical base and widespread clinical applications in the preservation, development and restoration of optimal physical function. What is a physical therapist assistant? A physical therapist assistant is an educated health care provider who assists the physical therapist in the provision of physical therapy. Every day, physical therapists in the U.S. help approximately 1 million people:
What steps do I need to enter the program? The first step in being admitted to the program is contacting your home college. A student wishing to enroll in the program must be admitted prior to enrolling in the PTA 101 course. If you are attending Anne Arundel Community College, attend an orientation session or call 410-777-7310 for information regarding admissions into the program. If you are attending Chesapeake College, E-mail Linda Blythe or call 410-822-5400. If you are attending the College of Southern Maryland, E-mail Jane Bush or call 301-934-2251. After you contact your home college, you will need to complete and submit an application form for the program by March 15 of the year you wish to enter the program to the appropriate contact person at one of the colleges stated above.
What is the selection process for the program? All students must have an overall college GPA of at least 2.0 to be eligible for consideration for admission. Selection into the program is based on specific GPA and regional requirements at each college and depends on the number of places available for each college.
How do I know if the program is right for me? If you attend Anne Arundel Community College, the orientation sessions are provided to help with this decision. If you attend Chesapeake College or the College of Southern Maryland, contact an academic advisor who can help you with this decision. In addition, it is suggested that students try to volunteer for a few hours in a physical therapy practice or the physical therapy department at a hospital. Many physical therapy practices are willing to help students in this way. Students need to speak to the individual sites and ask to do such volunteer hours.
The physical therapist assistant program is based on two academic years with five semesters. General Education subjects can be taken ahead of time. The program is full-time after the first semester and consists of 70 credit hours.
Once students graduates from their home college, they must take a licensure examination to be able to practice in Maryland as a physical therapist assistant. The licensure exam is a national examination that is developed and administered by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy. It is a computerized examination of 175 questions in 3.5 hours and must be passed in order to obtain a license. For more information, please visit the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy Web site. |
