Doctor of Physical Therapy Program Frequently Asked Questions

The Situational Judgement Test is an additional assessment taken through Altus Assessments. It is a type of psychological test which presents the test-taker with realistic, hypothetical scenarios and is used by academic programs to help assess applicants for non-academic attributes or people skills. More information about the test can be found here. The total cost to take the test will be $52.

The program has minimum overall and prerequisite GPA requirements.  The most competitive applicants have GPA’s that exceed the minimum requirements and observation hours across multiple settings.  If you meet the minimum admissions requirements, you may be invited to interview for the program.  Interviews do not guarantee acceptance to the program.

Applicants must apply through the Centralized Application Service for Physical Therapists (PTCAS; ptcas.org). The program does not utilize a supplemental application.

The PTCAS application opens in June of each year, 14 months in advance of our start date. We operate a rolling admissions process. The program encourages applying early.  We receive hundreds of applications each year and accept 40 students from those applications.

Applicants are required to have a bachelor’s degree in any field of study from an accredited college or university.

No. Applicants can major in anything as long as the required prerequisite courses are completed.

No.

No, beginning with the 22-23 admissions cycle, the GRE is not required.

Biology, Anatomy, Physiology, and Chemistry prerequisite courses must have been completed within ten years prior to application. Work experience or graduate level education in a related field (e.g., athletic training, exercise physiology etc.) may be accepted, at the discretion of the admissions committee, in lieu of the ten-year prerequisite course time limitation.

At the time of application, candidates are expected to have no more than two prerequisite courses remaining to be taken during the spring semester after the application closing date. Exceptions may be considered at the discretion of the Admissions Committee. All prerequisite courses must be completed prior to starting the DPT Program.

There is a section on the PTCAS application where applicants can list these courses.

Yes.

The MU DPT Program evaluates the following GPAs:  prerequisite GPA (calculated by PTCAS) and overall GPA (calculated by PTCAS). We will take the higher grade of the repeated course when determining a prerequisite GPA. Repeated coursework will be factored in with old coursework when calculating your science and overall GPA.

Applicants who may be below the required overall and prerequisite GPA requirements are recommended to retake any prerequisite courses in which they achieved a C- grade or below. If you are still below the required GPAs, we recommend you retake any remaining courses in which you received a C- grade or below in order to boost your overall GPA.

No. Completing prerequisite courses or your bachelor’s degree at MU does not guarantee an interview. If you are an applicant on the MU Health Sciences Pathway, please refer to the Affiliate Programs page for information on the benefits of the pathway.

Observation hours in a physical therapy setting are not required but are strongly recommended. Typically students who are admitted to the program have at least 100 hours in multiple settings.

Hours completed are documented on the PTCAS application with the dates of employment/ volunteering, number of hours completed, description of duties, and a contact person. However, the applicant should make sure that the hours have been verified by the employer/volunteer location. Hours must be verified in order to be counted on the application.

Yes.

No.

Yes, the admissions process is competitive. The program receives hundreds of applications a year for 40 seats.

No.

Since MU is a private institution, all costs are the same for in-state and out-of-state students. Please visit the Tuition and Fees tab for details.

We strongly encourage prospective students to attend one of our information sessions that are listed under the Information Sessions tab. Students with additional queries about their transcripts may send an electronic copy of their transcripts to the Admissions Director.

If you would like to tour our facilities and discuss the admissions process in person, you may schedule an appointment with the Admissions Director by emailing emoore@methodist.edu.

The program is a full-time, 33-month curriculum. There are no night classes, part-time tracks, or online only versions of the program. Classes are typically Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. and clinical rotation schedules are based on the hours of the clinic in which the student is assigned. The program has one start date a year in August.

Due to the demands of the program, through academics and clinical rotations, students are strongly discouraged from working while enrolled.

The DPT program offers a doctorate degree that includes all basic aspects of physical therapy. While the program does not offer specialties, there is an opportunity for emphasis through electives, clinical affiliations, scholarly projects and research.

Yes. Students are required to complete a research project as part of the research design courses included in the DPT program’s curriculum. DPT faculty are involved in various research, and students are also able to offer assistance to current faculty members on research projects that interest them.

No. All of our students live in apartments and houses around the university. A list of suggested apartments is given once the student is accepted into the program.

Yes. A $1,000 non-refundable deposit is due within two weeks of being accepted into the program.