The Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) is a professional entry-level degree for students seeking a career as physical therapists. The DPT program has been designed to prepare highly competent professionals to act as autonomous practitioners in health care settings that include direct access by the public to physical therapy services. Graduates will be prepared to provide a full range of physical therapy services including screening and referral, evaluation, diagnosis, intervention, consultation, and education. For more information on the DPT visit APTA's website.

The DPT program at LIU’s Brooklyn Campus is fully accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education and is registered with the New York State Education Department.

The DPT program at LIU is a 3-year full-time program over 11 academic terms with a total of 118 credits including 37 weeks of clinical education. The DPT program is a clinical doctorate that requires candidates to possess a baccalaureate degree upon entrance. LIU also offers an option which students can complete the same program in a 5-year time frame, with fewer credits required each semester.

The 1st year of the program begins in July.

Application Process:
The Division of Physical Therapy at Long Island University is participating in the new Physical Therapist Centralized Application Service, known as PTCAS. Applicants applying to our DPT program for the 2009 entering class will follow the steps below. Step 1 and 2 allow applicants to submit an online application to the LIU’s Admissions Office. Step 3 is for the PTCAS application. Applicants must complete ALL 3 steps. Missing any steps will cause delays in the application process.

Contact us:
Wing S. Fu, wing.fu@liu.edu Assistant Professor, Coordinator of Admissions and Program Recruitment

DPT curricular coursework includes learning with respect to:

• The foundational sciences (anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, psychology, neuroscience, movement analysis) with increased emphasis on the human movement system to increase the knowledge required by the physical therapists as the primary provider of health care intervention for movement dysfunction
  
• The clinical sciences (musculoskeletal, cardiopulmonary, neuromuscular, integumentary, urogenital, and endocrine pathology, nature of illness, movement dysfunction through the lifespan)
  
• Evidence-based physical therapy examination, diagnosis and intervention with emphasis on clinical decision-making
  
• A clinical education model including 37 weeks of full time clinical experience in diverse practice settings. Participation of LIU faculty members promotes a teaching-learning model that facilitates self-directed and collaborative student learning and communication.
• Emphasis on new and expanding roles for physical therapists in cultural competence, health promotion and wellness, administration and management, health care financing, consultation in health care and, client education on individual, community, and public levels
  
• Preparation to be critical consumers of scientific and clinical literature in support of evidence-based practice and as potential participants in research
  
• Elective courses in advanced topics in specialized practice areas

The DPT program enables the graduate to:

1. Value individual diversity and respect the human dignity of patients, family members, and professional associates

2. Provide physical therapy services as an autonomous practitioner able to competently serve as a point of entry to, and collaborate within, the health care environment

3. Integrate theory, academic knowledge, and clinical skills to practice physical therapy within the complexities of the current health care environment

4. Assess the physical therapy or health care needs of a patient; establish optimum patient outcomes based on examination, evaluation, diagnosis, and prognosis; plan and implement interventions to address the identified needs

5. Communicate clearly and effectively with patients, families, colleagues, policy makers, reimbursement representatives, and community members

6. Apply critical thinking strategies and self-directed learning to the role of physical therapist

7. Pursue and apply knowledge of the underlying science on which physical therapy practice is based

8. Understand the contributing economic, medical, cultural, and psychosocial issues which impact delivery of health care services

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
All applicants to the DPT program must provide evidence of all the following application requirements prior to beginning classes in July 2009:

• Conferral of a baccalaureate degree in any major
• A cumulative undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of at least 3.00 on a scale of 4.00
• Successful completion of the following prerequisite science courses with a GPA of at least 3.00 and no grades lower than “C”*:

• 1 semester of general Biology with lab
  (Designed for science majors)
• 2-semester sequence of general Chemistry with lab
  (Preferably designed for science or health-related majors)
• 2-semester sequence of general Physics with lab
  (Preferably designed for science or health-related majors)
• 1 semester of Human Anatomy AND 1 semester of Human Physiology
  (OR a 2-semester sequence of combined Anatomy-Physiology)

• Submission of an official score report of the GRE general test**
• Evidence of a minimum of 36 hours of volunteer or work experience in 2 different physical therapy settings including an inpatient setting and an outpatient setting with at least 18 hours in each setting.
• Three completed recommendation forms

• One from a physical therapist
• Two academic references with at least one from an instructor of an upper-division course in the undergraduate major

All international and non-native applicants must take the TOEFL examination. The minimum total score accepted is 61 on the internet-based test, 173 on the computer-based test, or 500 for the paper-based test.
Every applicant with international credentials must submit a course-by-course evaluation of their documents completed by an international credential evaluating agency that LIU accepts.
All applications will be reviewed and screened. Quality applicants will be notified and scheduled for an interview.

Statement of Essential Functions

The Doctor of Physical Therapy program at Long Island University is dedicated to providing professional education and developing post-baccalaureate students to becoming competent physical therapists. Graduates will be expected to function as autonomous practitioners and to provide a full range of physical therapy services. Individuals who complete the program are eligible to sit for the National Physical Therapy Licensure Examination and entry into the profession of physical therapy. Therefore, all students admitted to the program must be able to demonstrate the following essential functions with or without reasonable accommodations.

Cognitive:
Students must demonstrate the cognitive abilities to measure, calculate, process, reason, analyze, and synthesize information as well as problem solve in an effective and timely manner.

Judgment:
Students must make sound judgments with an understanding of the rationale and justification in classroom, laboratory and clinical settings.

Observation:
Students must demonstrate observation skills in order to obtain accurate information in classroom, laboratory and clinical settings. Examples of these skills include (but are not limited to) reading numbers on a goniometer, reading dials on electrotherapeutic modalities, and assessing color changes of the skin.

Communication:
Students must demonstrate the ability to understand and utilize verbal, non-verbal, and written communication including oral and written English clearly, effectively and efficiently. These communication skills enable the students to complete reading and written assignments as well as to providing and obtaining information in classroom, laboratory and clinical settings.

Sensorimotor:
Students must demonstrate adequate gross motor, fine motor, equilibrium and sensory functions in order to accurately carry out physical examinations (e.g. palpation and auscultation), provide physical therapy interventions (e.g. applying joint mobilization, training and assisting patient transfer and ambulation), and emergency treatment to patients in a safe, reliable, and efficient manner.

Emotional, social and behavioral:
Students must possess emotional health required to make sound judgments, utilize their full intellectual abilities, develop mature, sensitive, and effective rapport with other individuals and complete all responsibilities in educational and clinical settings. Students must also be able to function effectively in environments with high physical and mental demands and display flexibility and adaptive skills to titleered conditions. In addition, professionalism, compassion, integrity, concern for others, interest and motivation are other personal qualities the students must possess.

A student with disabilities will not, on the basis of his or her disabilities, be excluded from admission into the program. More importantly, the student, not the university, maintains the responsibility to disclose and provide documentation of any disability, and requests reasonable accommodations in a timely manner.

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