DOCTORATE OF PHYSICAL THERAPY (DPT)

Why Study With Us?

Our Doctorate in Physical Therapy (DPT) Program, currently ranked No. 2

by U.S. News & World Report, provides didactic and clinical education that emphasizes life-long learning. This entry-level degree program trains students to seek out and evaluate resources from the research literature while the coursework draws upon available studies from the research literature to justify patient/client examination and intervention. Students learn about the current theories underlying patient treatments and how to use the literature to continually improve on physical therapy practice. This allows UD students to achieve exceptional problem solving skills to use as they encounter new patient problems and situations.

This full-time, 2.5 year program encompasses the regular fall and spring semesters, as well as UD's summer and winter sessions, to permit students to begin their professional practice early. Our program qualifies graduates to sit for the national physical therapy examination to become licensed in the United States as a physical therapist. All UD DPT program graduates have passed the licensing examination (see CAPTE Commission on the Accreditation of PT Education for more details) and 96% of admitted students graduate from the program (10-year average). The UD DPT program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). Part-time matriculation is not permitted.

Two full-service out-patient Clinics

Unlike other programs, UD has two full service out-patient Physical Therapy Clinics on-site that provide PT services to the community. The Sports & Orthopedic and Neurologic & Older Adult clinics, housed within the STAR Campus, operate under the supervision of UD faculty and Board Certified Clinical Specialists to provide students exceptional hands-on treatment experiences during their Integrated Clinical Education (ICE) courses, while providing excellent physical therapy services to patients. A Pediatric ICE is also provided at a local children’s hospital. In addition to these three ICE experiences, all students participate in three 10 week, full-time clinical educational experiences after they complete their coursework. 

Highly Rated Faculty

UD Physical Therapy faculty are highly regarded as leaders in their profession and are highly involved within the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) and other professional associations. The PhD level faculty perform research in state-of-the-art laboratories and have received major research funding from the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, the Whittaker Foundation and the Department of the Army. Students routinely take advantage of the opportunity to participate in faculty-lead research projects. Faculty are highly accessible and routinely meet with students to provide assistance in course work, career planning, or simply to chat.