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Physical Therapy (BS/DPT)

 

Why Study Physical Therapy?

As a physical therapy professional, you'll be empowered to help people live to their fullest. You may work with patients as they recover after injuries, or help people with disabilities gain the skills to remain independent.

Why Study Physical Therapy at SUNY Downstate?

As a physical therapy student at SUNY Downstate, you'll learn more than the profession's technical side. Here, we place as much emphasis on the social side of working with the individuals who need your help. That's because our philosophy is to look at patients as people with families, jobs and goals—and not just health problems to be solved.

You will build your craft through a combination of coursework and community involvement. Our program, more than 50 years old, will put you to work in our community at a variety of clinical sites. So by the time you graduate, you'll build the social skills to work with patients in an urban and culturally diverse environment.

What You Will Learn

  • You'll earn a BS in Health Sciences and a doctorate in physical therapy in this three-year program. By the time you graduate, you'll be an adept practitioner in the cognitive, affective and psychomotor domains.
  • Early coursework covers technical topics such as anatomy, kinesiology, neuroanatomy, and examination.
  • Several classes—Ethics Seminar, Clinical Case Study Roundtable and Interdisciplinary Health Team—include students from other programs at the School of Health Professions. This gives you a chance to see patient-care issues through the lens of other health professions.
  • Coursework incorporates topics relating to cross-cultural, ethical, and multi-professional issues in patient care.
  • Each class encourages clinical decision-making, critical thinking skills, interpersonal skills, the teaching-learning process, and the rights and dignities of patients/clients.

Tuition and Fees

SUNY Downstate Bursar Webpage

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School of Health Professions

Physical Therapy Program

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Careers & Outcomes

Our emphasis on clinical education prepares you for opportunities in many settings: critical and intensive care units, outpatient clinics, long-term care facilities, school systems and more. You may choose to specialize in fields such as pediatrics, cardiopulmonary, sports, orthopedics or neurology.

Job Titles

  • PT Clinician
  • Educator
  • Consultant
  • Researcher
  • Administrator

 

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Meet Our Faculty

SUNY Downstate faculty are experts in the field. They're also guided by a commitment to meet the needs of our diverse student body—so our graduates can serve an equally vibrant population.

You'll also learn from expert adjuncts who practice daily and share their experience with you, as well as the perspective of faculty from our College of Medicine and other programs in the School of Health Professions.

 

Program Highlights

 

PT is teamwork.

As a student in the Neuromuscular PT class, you'll work directly with patients at the University Hospital Of Brooklyn. You'll collaborate with medical and OT students to take histories and do discharge planning.

Seal of approval.

Downstate is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE).

Preparation=success.

You'll thrive in our DPT program, ranked #137 by US News & World Report. Every student passed the licensure exam between 2016-18, and 100% of our grads in the Classes of 2015-17 found jobs (figures reflect most recent available data).

Additional Info

Undergraduate Credits

Applicants must have 80 credits from an accredited college or university, including at least nine from a four-year college at the junior or senior level.

Clinical Experience

Applicants must have at least 50 hours of clinical experience in a PT setting.

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