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What is physical therapy?
Physical therapy is a health profession whose primary purpose is the promotion of optimal human health and function through the application of scientific principles to prevent, assess, correct, or alleviate acute or prolonged movement dysfunction.
What do physical therapists do?
Physical therapists are health professionals who evaluate and treat the dysfunctions of persons who are impaired or disabled as a result of pain, disease, injury, or developmental delay.
Applicants during the 2011-2012 admission cycle (with an application deadline of February 1, 2012) will be applying for the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program. The program admits up to 32 students per year. Applicants interested in admission for Fall 2012 will need to apply through the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) Physical Therapy Central Application Service (PTCAS).
Applicants will also need to complete Western Carolina University's Graduate School application in "Apply Yourself" (the on-line application process), pay the application fee, and send an official copy of Graduate Record Examination scores. For more information about the application process, check out our Guidelines for Applying to the Program (PDF).
You can find the applications here:
If you have questions about the on-line application process, contact:
Western Carolina University
Graduate School and Research
110 Cordelia Camp Building
Cullowhee, NC 28723
Telephone: 828-227-7398 or 1-800-369-9854 (within the USA only)
Application deadline is February 1. All application materials must be submitted to PTCAS by that date. Only applications received by that date will be considered in the initial review of applications. Applications received after February 1 will be considered only if the class is not filled from the initial applicant pool.
Application Requirements
The majority of the application materials must be submitted through PTCAS. So that you can plan ahead, applications must include:
- Official college/university transcripts from all previous coursework
- Listing of prerequisite courses (PDF)
- Three letters of recommendation completed according to PTCAS guidelines.
- An essay written on a topic specified by the PTCAS.
- Demonstration by the applicant that s/he has chosen a career in physical therapy with thoughtful consideration and with a realistic understanding of the scope of physical therapy practice. Volunteer or paid experience with a physical therapist in at least two different clinical settings is strongly recommended.
We require an official copy of scores on the General Test of the Graduate Record Examination submitted to Western Carolina University (Institution Code 5897) by the Educational Testing Service. Your test fee entitles you to request that scores be sent to as many as four graduate institutions. Average GRE scores for students accepted into the physical therapy program: 450-517 (Verbal) and 557-595 (Quantitative).
What We Expect from Applicants
To give you an idea of what we expect from our applicants, please read about our application review process (PDF) and our summary of applicant qualifications (PDF).
Citizens of other countries, whose degrees are not from U.S. institutions, must have their transcripts and full course descriptions translated into English and evaluated by a recognized credential evaluation service such as World Education Services.
International applicants from countries where English is not the primary language must submit a minimum score of 550 (paper-based), 213 (computer-based), or 79 (Internet-based) on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and provide a statement of financial responsibility.