• U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident Alien (PRA) with a green card in possession before we will consider your application.
• Bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution in the United States (This must be completed prior to matriculating into the program).
• Minimum GPA of a 3.2 (out of 4.0) overall, and in science and prerequisite courses. We use the GPAs calculated by PTCAS. To learn more about their calculations, visit: HERE
• All degree requirements completed or no more than 2 prerequisite courses outstanding at the time of application. If admitted, all coursework, prerequisites, and degree must be awarded/completed by June 30th prior to matriculation in August.
• Three references letters from anyone other than a family member or friend. The recommended letters are ones from a licensed physical therapist, academic faculty member during your undergraduate of graduate education, and a supervisor. References should be able to address your academic abilities, professionalism, leadership, work ethic, and more. **All items must be submitted directly to PTCAS, we do not receive any items at USF.***
• GRE Scores must be submitted. There is no minimum score required, but your GRE results will be used in the selection process. We recommend that students try to achieve a score close to the national average of a 50 percentile for each section (written, analytical, and quantitative), which is also usually the USF admitted student average as well. Make sure you use GRE code 4083 to have your scores sent to USF SPT&RS.
• For applicants for whom English is not the native language, a minimum Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) score is required at the time of application. This requirement may be waived by the SPT&RS Selection Committee if the applicant has received an undergraduate degree from an accredited school in the United States by the time of matriculation into the DPT degree program.
  
  

Optional:

While we no longer require or recommend observation hours, we will still encourage applicants to ensure they understand the profession and type of program they are entering. This can be done by shadowing in various physical therapy settings, working or volunteering in a healthcare setting (hospital, doctors office, etc.), and through online research and reading. Below are some good resources to learn more about the profession:  

• APTA: https://www.apta.org/your-career/careers-in-physical-therapy/becoming-a-pt
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/physical-therapists.htm
• Explore Health Careers: https://explorehealthcareers.org/career/physical-therapy/physical-therapist/
  
  

Why do we no longer require observation hours? Observation hours put an undue burden on both applicants and clinicians, and in many cases are not a deciding factor in admission. The importance of observation hours is to have an understanding of the profession and type of program you are going into, and this can be achieved in multiple ways, not just through shadowing.

** You are more than welcome to submit observation hours as part of your application, but please be aware that they will not be used in the selection/admissions process.**

Meeting minimum admissions requirements does not guarantee admission to the School of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Sciences. Visit the USF Graduate Catalog for more information.

The Application Review Process:

1. We review your application to ensure that you meet the minimum requirements for admissions to our program, all listed above.

2. If you meet the above requirements, then the DPT selection committee will begin a comprehensive review of all items in your PTCAS application. This includes:

Academic Success - We will review your GRE scores, GPAs, transcripts, and more to ensure you are prepared to succeed academically in our program. 

Involvement - We will review your extra-curricular activities, work experience, research, etc. to see what experiences you have that might relate well to our program and profession. We also look to see if there are any leadership positions or just membership.

Professionalism - We will review letters of recommendation, your personal statements, and other essays to get a sense of your level of professionalism and work ethic. 

Research - If you have any research this will be reviewed as part of your application.

All other items - The committee will review everything in your application to determine which students will be the best fit for our program.

Lastly, we DO NOT interview for our program. All admissions decisions are made based on your PTCAS application, and all decisions from the selection committee are final.