Pre-Physical Therapy

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Students interested in becoming physical therapists are best suited majoring in either Biology or Exercise Science. By choosing one of these majors the student is most likely to get all needed prerequisite courses.

Prerequisites

The prerequisites required for entrance into most physical therapy programs are:

Chemistry:

CHE101, 101L, 102 and 102L- General Chemistry I and II (8 semester hour)

General Biology:

BIO110 and BIO110L- Principles of Cell and Molecular Biology and laboratory (3 semester hours in LASP + 1 semester hour) or BIO101 and BIO101L- Principles of Biology and laboratory (3 semester hours in LASP + 1 semester hour)
BIO111 and BIO111L- Core Principles of Organismal Biology and laboratory (3 semester hours + 1 semester hour) or BIO102 and BIO102L- General Biology of Whole Organisms and laboratory (3 semester hours + 1 semester hour)

Human Anatomy and Physiology:

BIO227 and BIO328 or BIO327 and BIO328 - Human Anatomy and Physiology I and II (8 semester hours)

Physics:

PHY201, 201L, 202 and 202L- General Physics I and II (8 semester hours) or PHY203, 203L, 204, 204L-Calculus Physics I and II (8 semester hours)

Statistics:

MAT203- Elementary Statistics (3 semester hours)

These courses are the basic prerequisites for most physical therapy programs. Schools vary in their prerequisites therefore, to ensure you have taken everything required investigate your school of choice. Keep in mind many schools require specific psychology and/or sociology courses.

What do I need to do other than classes?

Physical therapy programs also want their students to be familiar with the field of physical therapy. Therefore, most schools require volunteer work in the area of physical therapy. Investigate your school of choice for the volunteer hour requirement.