The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

This page is intended for college transfer students and graduates ONLY. High school students MUST contact the institution directly for information about the guaranteed freshman-entry program. Do not apply using PTCAS.

PROGRAM CONTACT INFORMATION (2009-10)

Barbara Connolly
Professor and Chair
The University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Department of Physical Therapy
930 Madison Avenue
Suite 643
Memphis, Tennessee 38163
Phone: 901-448-5888
Phone (alternate number): 901-448-5350
Email: dpt@utmem.edu
Website: www.utmem.edu/allied/physical_therapy_home.html

APPLICATION DEADLINE for 2010 ENTERING CLASS

PTCAS Application Deadline	Friday, January 15, 2010
Deadline Type	FIRM Deadline
Application Close Date (for soft deadlines only)
Program Has Rolling Admissions Process?	Yes
Important Dates (if any): Early Decision Deadline is November 2, 2009.

SUPPLEMENTAL REQUIREMENTS

If supplemental materials are required, send items directly to the PT program.

Supplemental APPLICATION required?	YES - For selected applicants only
Supplemental MATERIALS required?	YES - for selected applicants only
If yes, list of items	Pre-professional Evaluation Projected completion of courses
Supplemental FEE required?	YES - for selected applicants only
If yes, amount	$75
Supplemental deadline(s) YYYY-MM-DD	2010-03-01
Link to supplemental forms or instructions	.

PROGRAM PREREQUISITES

Course Prerequisites

Must applicants earn a Bachelor's degree prior to enrolling into the PT program? Yes
Link to program’s prerequisite web page: www.utmem.edu/allied/physical_therapy_home.html

Course Prerequisite Name or Subject Area	Req, Rec, Crq*	SEM hrs	QTR hrs	Lab Required (Y/N)	Additional clarifying information, if any
General Biology I	REQ	4	.	YES	General Zoology and General Botany can be substituted for General Biology I and II.
General Biology II	REQ	4	.	YES	General Zoology and General Botany can be substituted for General Biology I and II.
Anatomy and Physiology I	REQ	4	.	YES	Human Anatomy and Human Physiology can be substituted for A & P I and II.
Anatomy and Physiology II	REQ	4	.	YES	Human Anatomy and Human Physiology can be substituted for A & P I and II.
General Chemistry I	REQ	4	.	YES	.
General Chemistry II	REQ	4	.	YES	.
General Physics I	REQ	4	.	YES	.
General Physics II	REQ	4	.	YES	.
Mathematics	REQ	3	.	.	Student must complete coursework that fulfills physics prerequisite.
Computer Sciences	REQ	3	.	.	If coursework has not been taken, must demonstrate computer literacy and request a waiver after acceptance into the program.
Statistics	REQ	3	.	.	Course should cover nonparametric and parametric statistics. Use of statistical technique with data sets, interpretation of statistical results and computer interaction in data analysis strongly recommended. Biomedical statistics, education statistics, psychology statistics as well as statistics courses in the math department are acceptable. Business statistic courses typically do not meet the requirements.
General Psychology I	REQ	3	.	.	.
General Psychology II	REQ	3	.	.	A course in Human Growth and Development can be substituted for General Psychology II
Humanities/Social Sciences	REQ	12	.	.	.
English Composition I	REQ	3	.	.	.

Graduate Record Examination (GRE)

Is the GRE required?	Required
Program’s GRE College Code	# 1850
Last acceptable GRE test date – YYYY-MM-DD (if applicable)	2010-03-01
Oldest GRE score considered – YYYY-MM-DD (if applicable)	.

GRE table below may contain blank fields if program data is not available or applicable.

GRE Section	Minimum GRE Score	Average GRE Score for Accepted Students
Verbal	.	454
Verbal Percentile	.	.
Quantitative	.	618
Quantitative Percentile	.	.
Analytical Writing	.	.
Analytical Writing Percentile	.	.
Composite (verbal & quantitative)	.	1072
Composite Percentile	.	.
Additional information about program’s GRE requirements	.

References

Number of references required by program: None

PT Observation Hours

Enter your PT observation hours on your PTCAS application. Print the PT Observation Hours form from the PTCAS application or use online PT Hours signature process, if the program requires you to have your hours verified by a physical therapist. Send signed forms to PTCAS.

PT HOURS	PROGRAM REQUIREMENT
Description of Program’s PT Hours Requirement	PT hours are highly recommended
Total Number of PT Hours REQUIRED
Total Number of PT Hours RECOMMENDED	100
DEADLINE for Completion of All PT Hours YYYY-MM-DD	2010-04-15
PAID Experience	Accepted
VOLUNTEER Experience	Accepted
INPATIENT Experience	Accepted
OUTPATIENT Experience	Accepted
Additional information about program’s PT hours requirement	No set numbers of observational/volunteer/actual work experience hours are required. However, students who have been successful in gaining admission to the program typically have over 100 hours in a variety of clinical settings.

GPA Requirement

GPAs will be blank if program data is not available or applicable.

GPA	Minimum GPA	Average GPA for Accepted Students
Overall Undergraduate Cumulative	2.50	3.49
Program-specific Prerequisite	2.50	3.55
Additional information about program’s GPA requirements (if any)	Experience has shown that generally a cumulative GPA of at least 3.00 must be presented for an applicant to be competitive. Program will average the grades made in a course, if a course was repeated.

Program Essay Instructions

Some PTCAS programs require applicants to respond to a custom essay question in addition to the standard PTCAS essay question. The PTCAS application will automatically prompt you to respond to the custom essays for your designated programs. The custom essay question for this program is below.

(none)

FOREIGN APPLICANTS AND TRANSCRIPTS

The program’s foreign (international) transcript policies do NOT apply to study abroad coursework that is itemized on a U.S. college or university transcript. Study abroad is processed in the same way as U.S. coursework.

Program’s citizenship requirements (individuals listed may be eligible for admission)	U.S. citizens U.S. permanent residents
Program requires non-native speakers to submit TOEFL scores?	Yes
Program policy for submission of non-U.S. (foreign/international) coursework	Send an original foreign transcript directly to the PT program.
Program policy for CANADIAN coursework	Send original CANADIAN transcript directly to program
Additional information about program’s policy on foreign coursework	Applicants whose native language is not English must submit results of the TOEFL, with a minimal score of 550.

PROGRAM INFORMATION

PT Degree Offered	Program culminates in a doctoral (DPT) degree.
PT Program Start Date(s) For Entering Class YYYY-MM-DD	2009-08-17
Dual-degree programs offered in conjunction with the PT degree (if any)	.
Institution's religious affiliation (if any)	.

Profile of Most Recent Entering Class

Items will be blank if program data is not available or applicable.

Size of Most Recent Entering Class	66
Anticipated Size of Next Entering Class	66
Percent of IN-STATE students in most recent entering class	90%
Percent of WICHE students in most recent entering class (if applicable)
Percent of OUT-OF-STATE (non-resident) students in most recent entering class	10%
Percent of CANADIAN students in most recent entering class
Percent of INTERNATIONAL (non-U.S/non-Canadian) students in most recent entering class
Additional information about the class profile	Program gives preference to applicants who are in-state residents and to children of alumni.

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

Established in 1911 and accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, the UT Health Science Center (UTHSC) is the flagship statewide academic health system, offering three undergraduate programs, more than 20 graduate degrees, and three professional programs. More than 2500 students are currently enrolled in programs at the UTHSC.

The aim of the UT Health Science Center is to improve human health through education, research, clinical care and public service. The UTHSC campuses include colleges of Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy. Patient care, professional education and research are carried out at hospitals and other clinical sites across Tennessee. Endowed professorships, Research Centers of Excellence, and continuing relationships with research and health care facilities across Tennessee ensure that both basic science and applied research stay focused on contemporary health topics. During fiscal year 2008, UT Health Science Center faculty and staff received more than $100 million in research funding, including support from National Institutes of Health grants and private foundations.

The Department was established in 1965 and has a long history of graduating excellent students. The objective of the Department is to provide a quality education to enrolled students that requires accumulation of scientific knowledge, acquisition of essential physical therapy skills and the development of professional attitudes and behaviors. Therefore, the Doctor of Physical Therapy degree program is designed to:

provide knowledge and competence in promoting optimal human movement and function based on the biological, behavioral, physical and medical sciences
prepare leaders in the multifaceted roles of clinicians, educators, researchers, and administrators in individual, group, and community contexts
model and instill in students the values that promote professionalism and caring
facilitate student commitment to independent thinking and lifelong learning and to student realization of the intrinsic rewards of these attributes

Consistent with the educational missions of UT Health Science Center, the overall mission of the Department of Physical Therapy is to

secure well-qualified students and educate them under a highly qualified faculty in environments conducive to preparation of the best possible physical therapists;
maintain an environment that encourages honesty, trust, and fairness;
promote personal growth, development, satisfaction and achievement for all students, faculty, and staff;
improve human health through education, research, and public service; and
provide excellence in health care for clients and keep pace with advances in health care delivery.

The fulfillment of that mission is exemplified by graduates who are empathetic, skilled, and safe general practitioners of physical therapy and who exhibit an intrinsic motivation for continued learning.

There are eleven full time and 1 part time faculty members in the department plus over 15 adjunct faculty members. Of the full-time faculty six hold post-professional doctoral degrees; six hold the DPT degree, 3 are certified as clinical specialists, and 90% are engaged in clinical practice. Over the past 3 years, the faculty has averaged 4.1 publications in peer-reviewed journals. The faculty to student ratio is 1:11.