Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)

Our condensed two-and-a-half-year curriculum allows you to enter the field faster, and our students typically receive several job offers before graduation. Because you graduate in December instead of the May date typical of other PT programs, you’ll have a head start on board exams, additional certifications, advanced training opportunities and the job market.

At Saint Joseph’s, you’ll learn in many different environments — not just in the classroom. Starting in your first professional year, you’ll be exposed to patients and clients through our integrated clinical experiences and pro-bono clinics. In the latter part of the program, you'll participate in three full-time 12-week clinicals nationwide under the supervision of a licensed physical therapist.

Our faculty includes doctorally trained, clinically certified specialists who represent just about every practice area. And they practice what they teach — most are expert clinicians and many engage in rehabilitation research. All of them are outstanding instructors invested in your success.

You’ll get to engage in physical therapy research — a rarity among PT programs today. Our faculty of active practitioners conduct research in areas such as biomechanics, oncology, pediatrics and treatment interventions.

State-of-the-art research facilities housed inside Glasser/Woodland Hall — including the physical therapy department’s Patricia Leahy Motion Analysis Lab and BTE Technologies™ Rehabilitation Research Lab — give you a taste of working in a professional healthcare setting.

View required courses for this program in the academic catalog. Please contact us if you have any questions about the program curriculum.

Information and Resources

• Department of Physical Therapy Student Handbook/Policy & Procedure Manual
• Department of Physical Therapy Clinical Education Policy & Procedure Manual

BS to Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT)

Enter the Doctor of Physical Therapy program as a first-year undergraduate student to earn a BS in health science (BSHS) or BS in exercise physiology and a DPT in just under six years. Students who have taken college coursework but have not received a bachelor’s degree may also transfer into the pre-professional years of the BS/DPT program if they meet all prerequisite requirements.

The Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), 3030 Potomac Ave., Suite 100, Alexandria, Virginia 22305-3085; telephone: 703-706-3245; email: accreditation@apta.org; website: www.capteonline.org. If you need to contact the program/institution directly, please call 215.596.8677 or email lpackel@sju.edu.

Physical therapists must be licensed to practice, and must pass the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) for physical therapists and physical therapist assistants, which is administered by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy. This exam does not need to be taken again for licensure to transfer to another state, provided that one's score satisfies the scores for each individual state in which one practiced. The only requirement to take the examination is graduation from a Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education-accredited program, such as the University's DPT program.

For Saint Joseph’s graduates who responded to the alumni survey, 100% were employed within one year of passing the licensure examination (2021-22).

The 2-year graduation rate is 89.55% (2021-2022).

The two-year ultimate pass rate on the national licensure examination for the DPT classes of 2021-2022 is 97%. The first-time pass rate for the DPT class of 2022 was 78.8%. To access further details on pass rates, visit this link on the FSBPT website.

Visit the Department of Physical Therapy website to view the technical standards that apply to all clinical training students in Saint Joseph’s DPT program.

Applications for 2022-2023 will be available via the Physical Therapist Centralized Application Service (PTCAS) in June. No supplemental application is required. Please submit all documentation directly to PTCAS. 

Requirements:

You must meet the following requirements to be considered for admission to the DPT program:

• Have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited university or college
• Complete all prerequisite courses listed below by the end of the spring term preceding enrollment at Saint Joseph’s
• 3.00 cumulative GPA and a 3.00 math/science GPA with a “C” or better in all prerequisite courses
• Interview: An invitation-only interview is required for admission into the program. Interviews begin in October and continue until all seats are filled.

GRE scores are not required. Shadowing hours are not required but highly recommended of all applicants.

Prerequisites:

Required prerequisite courses should be completed by the end of the spring term preceding enrollment at Saint Joseph's:

• Chemistry, with lab (2 semester sequence, 8 credits)
• Biology, with lab (2 semester sequence, 8 credits)
• Physics, with lab (2 semester sequence, 8 credits)
• Anatomy & Physiology (2 semester sequence, 8 credits-inclusive of labs I and II.)
• Nutrition (3 credits)
• Mathematics (3 credits of pre-calculus and 3 credits of statistics; 6 credits total)
• Psychology (6 credits)
  • Complete two of the following: Introduction to Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Developmental Psychology, or Abnormal Psychology or Health Psychology.
• Additional Social Science coursework (6 credits)
  • Examples of social sciences are:
    • • Psychology
      • Economics
      • Political Science
      • Sociology
      • Anthropology
• English (6 credits)
  • One writing intensive course
  • One additional English course
• Medical Terminology (2 credits)^

^ If you have not completed medical terminology at the time of acceptance, you can opt to complete a free online proficiency course prior to the start of the program in May.

If you’re applying as an international student, you must provide proof of English Language Proficiency and Certification of Finances along with your application. Check the graduate admission page for additional requirements.

Physical therapy was ranked one of the top 10 best healthcare professions in the U.S. and was named among the top 30 best jobs overall by U.S. News & World Report. With a Doctor of Physical Therapy, you can become a movement specialist and have the option to work in patient care or academia, research, the government and health care administration. 

PTs can practice in a number of diverse environments, including:

• Inpatient and outpatient clinics and healthcare facilities
• Home health care
• Sports medicine clinics
• Fitness facilities
• Schools
• Research centers
• Private practice

It usually takes three to eight years to become a physical therapist. To become a physical therapist, you must have a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree from a CAPTE-accredited institution, which typically takes three years to complete if you’ve already completed four years of pre-professional undergraduate coursework — a requirement to be admitted to a PT school. At Saint Joseph’s, you can complete your pre-professional coursework and DPT degree in just 5.5 years with our BS to DPT program. After earning your DPT you’ll need to obtain a license in the state in which you decide to practice to work as a physical therapist, which requires passing a state licensure exam.

Physical therapists make a median annual salary of $91,010 according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

This salary may be higher for high-paying specialties, including:

• Sports medicine
• Cardiovascular
• Geriatrics
• Neurology
• Pediatrics