Admissions Requirements

The Programs in Physical Therapy invites applications from individuals who have or will have received at the time of enrollment a baccalaureate degree granted by a college or university of recognized standing. If accepted, students would be enrolled full-time and begin the program in the fall semester of that year.

*Advanced placement (AP) courses accepted by your University are not accepted as a replacement for our prerequisites.

*For on-line classes with labs, we will accept pass/fail or credit/no credit grades for courses taken in Spring 2022 in addition to Fall 2021. Beginning in Fall 2022, all science prerequisite courses arepreferredto be in person. However, hybrid courses with on-line lecture but in person lab experiences will be considered.

* Letter grades, if given an option, are preferred over pass/fail or credit/no credit grades for all prerequisite courses.

*PT observation hours are used to gauge the student’s awareness of and interest in the profession. Diversity of physical therapy practice settings is preferred. PT observation hours ranging from 75-100 are adequate and are used in the overall assessment of the applicant.

A full list of prerequisites with detailed information (use drop down arrow) is provided below.

The prerequisite checklist will assist you in verifying that you have completed all of our requirements.

Prerequisite Checklist

Biology I (4 credits)

One 4-credit Biology course with laboratory required. Courses for science majors are recommended.Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Required
Credits - SH: 4
Acceptable Courses
- Biology: Cell
- Biology: College Biology I
- Biology: General
- Biology: General I
- Biology: Genetics
- Biology: Histology
- Biology: Immunology
- Biology: Microbiology
- Biology: Molecular

Biology II (4 credits)

One 4-credit Biology course with laboratory required. Courses for science majors are recommended.Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Required
Credits - SH: 4
Acceptable Courses:
- Biology: Advanced
- Biology: Cell
- Biology: College Biology II
- Biology: General II
- Biology: Genetics
- Biology: Histology
- Biology: Immunology
- Biology: Microbiology
- Biology: Molecular

Chemistry I (4 credits)

One 4-credit Chemistry course with laboratory required. Courses for science majors are recommended.Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Required
Credits - SH:4
Acceptable Courses:
- Chemistry I
- Chemistry: Advanced
- Chemistry: Biochemistry
- Chemistry: College Chemistry I
- Chemistry: Inorganic
- Chemistry: Organic

Chemistry II (4 credits)

One 4-credit Chemistry course with laboratory required. Courses for science majors are recommended.Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Required
Credits - SH: 4
Acceptable Courses:
- Chemistry II
- Chemistry: Advanced
- Chemistry: Biochemistry
- Chemistry: College Chemistry II
- Chemistry: Inorganic
- Chemistry: Organic

Physics I (4 credits)

One 4-credit Physics course with laboratory required. Courses for science majors are recommended. The course does not have to be calculus-based.Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Required
Credits - SH: 4
Acceptable Courses:
- Physics I
- Physics: College Physics I
- Physics: General

Physics II (4 credits)

One 4-credit Physics course with laboratory required. Courses for science majors are recommended. The course does not have to be calculus-based.Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Required
Credits - SH: 4
Acceptable Courses
- Physics II
- Physics: College Physics II
- Physics: General

Anatomy (3 credits)

One 3-credit Anatomy course or 2 semesters (total 6-8 credits) of combined Anatomy & Physiology I and II. Laboratory is not required but is recommended.Courses must be taken within 5 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Recommended
Credits - SH: 3
Acceptable Courses
- A&P: Advanced
- A&P: COMBINED Course (e.g. A&P)
- A&P: Comparative
- A&P: Human
- A&P: Mammalian
- A&P: Physiology
- A&P: SEPARATE courses
- A&P: Vertebrate

Physiology (3 credits)

One 3-credit Physiology course or 2 semesters (total 6-8 credits) of combined Anatomy & Physiology I and II. Laboratory is not required but is recommended.Courses must be taken within 5 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Recommended
Credits - SH: 3
Acceptable Courses
- A&P: Advanced
- A&P: Combined Course (e.g. A&P)
- A&P: Comparative
- A&P: Human
- A&P: Mammalian
- A&P: Physiology
- A&P: SEPARATE courses
- A&P: Vertebrate
- Mammalian Physiology
- Physiology

One Additional Science Course (3 credits)

One additional 3 credit science course is required. Any Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Exercise Physiology, Motor Learning, Kinesiology or Motor Control course beyond the prerequisites is acceptable.Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Recommended
Credits - SH: 3
Acceptable Courses
- A&P: Animal
- A&P: Any
- A&P: Comparative
- A&P: Exercise Physiology
- A&P: Neuroanatomy
- A&P: Pathophysiology
- A&P: Vertebrate
- Biology: Any
- Chemistry: Any
- Exercise Physiology
- Motor Control
- Motor Learning
- Kinesiology
- Physics: Any

Psychology (6 credits)

One 3-credit Psychology course. In total, two courses in Psychology are required.Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Not Applicable
Credits - SH: 6
Acceptable Courses
- Psychology: Abnormal
- Psychology: Adolescent
- Psychology: Advanced
- Psychology: Any
- Psychology: Child
- Psychology: Death & Dying
- Psychology: Developmental
- Psychology: General
- Psychology: General I
- Psychology: General II
- Psychology: Growth & Development
- Psychology: Human Behavior
- Psychology: Life Span Development
- Psychology: Psychopathology
- Psychology: Rehabilitation
- Psychology: Social
- Psychology: Sports

Social/Behavioral Science (15 credits)

One 3-credit Social/Behavioral Science course. In total, five courses in Social/Behavioral Science are required. Motor Learning and Motor Control courses are accepted but can count for only one prerequisite category (additional Science or Social/Behavioral Science).Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Not Applicable
Credits - SH: 15
Acceptable Courses
- Comm: Communication
- Comm: Public Speaking
- Ethics
- Humanities
- Literature
- Motor Control
- Motor Learning
- Social/Behavioral Science: Advanced
- Social/Behavioral Science: Anthropology
- Social/Behavioral Science: Any
- Social/Behavioral Science: Community Health
- Social/Behavioral Science: Criminal Justice
- Social/Behavioral Science: Cultural Geography
- Social/Behavioral Science: Ethnic Studies
- Social/Behavioral Science: Human Sexuality
- Social/Behavioral Science: Marriage/ Family
- Social/Behavioral Science: Personal Health
- Social/Behavioral Science: Social Science
- Social/Behavioral Science: Social Work
- Social/Behavioral Science: Sociology
- Social/Behavioral Science: Women's Studies

Statistics (3 credits)

One 3-credit Statistics course taken within Biology, Mathematics, Statistics or Psychology Departments. Business or Economics does not fulfill this requirement.Courses must be taken within 10 years of application.

Course Level - General or College
Lab Required - Not Applicable
Credits: SH: 3
Acceptable Courses
- Biology: Biostatistics
- Mathematics: Statistics
- Psychology: Statistics

Supplemental Materials Required

Letters of recommendation

Please provide 3 references:

One academic reference from your major. If you are unable to obtain a reference from your major, please submit a reference from a professor in a science course.

One academic reference from either your major, non-major, or research advisor.

One reference from a licensed physical therapist.

PT Observation Hours

PT observation hours ranging from75-100are required- a licensed Physical Therapist (PT) must verify hours with signed form uploaded or online via PTCAS.

Certification in CPR and First Aid

Please upload proof of your in-person American Heart Association CPR Certification in the documents section of the PTCAS application. If you do not have the CPR Certification completed at the time of submission, upload a document with the anticipated date of completion. . Please also email the certification toptadmissions@cumc.columbia.eduonce completed by the deadline in PTCAS.

Resume

Please upload your resume in the documents section of the PTCAS application by the deadline in PTCAS.

GRE

The GRE is required for admission and the last acceptable GRE test date for this cycle is October 15th. Official GRE scores must be submitted by November 1st and our Program code is7745.

Please refer toPTCASfor a complete list of courses. It is highly recommended that a minimum of 14 of the 17 prerequisites for admission, including all coursework in the sciences, be completed by the November 1^stapplication due date. Students on the quarter system must take a 3-part series or 3-part courses to fulfill requirements.

For any additional questions regarding admissions, you may send an email toptadmissions@cumc.columbia.edu. Don't forget to include your name and contact information.

Doctor of Physical Therapy