- Degree Level
- Doctorate
- Graduate
- Degrees Offered
- Doctor of Physical Therapy
- school/college
- College of Health Sciences
On-Campus/Residential DPT Program
Arcadia University’s Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program provides students with the instruction they need to thrive in healthcare careers. Physical therapy continues as an integral part of America’s evolving healthcare system, and practitioners can have a satisfying career helping people, from newborn to elderly, function at their optimum ability. Physical therapists work to prevent or overcome the effects of disease or injury for clients in a range of vibrant environments, including acute care hospitals, rehabilitation hospitals, outpatient centers, individual homes, skilled nursing facilities, public school systems, and private practice. Physical therapists also work as educators, researchers, and consultants.
Innovative Patient-Centered Curriculum
Option for Hybrid-Based Study: In Arcadia’s innovative patient-centered curriculum, offered on-campus or by hybrid pathway, students learn to integrate and apply clinical, behavioral, and basic science knowledge. Time spent in lectures and labs is structured to nurture students’ critical thinking skills and help them absorb the full depth of knowledge for evaluating, treating, and instructing clients.
Aligned for Excellence
On campus study: The Arcadia University physical therapy program offered on-campus adheres to the standards set by The American Physical Therapy Association. Additionally, physical therapy will be provided by physical therapists who are doctors of physical therapy; that consumers will have direct access to physical therapists in all environments; that physical therapists will be practitioners of choice in clients’ health networks; and, that physical therapists and their assistants will maintain active responsibility for the health of the people they serve, as well as the growth and respect of the physical therapy profession. Arcadia’s entry-level program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education.
Opportunity: Far and Wide
Arcadia University believes that to understand the world students should experience the world and has become a recognized leader in global education, providing interested students with international opportunities to experience the world as medical professionals. Arcadia’s DPT students have options for clinical education across the United States, often internationally, as well as the opportunity to join a service learning project in Belize, Bolivia, Jamaica, or Guatemala.
Prepared, Employed Graduates
With the combined classroom and experiential learning offered throughout the program, Arcadia graduates surpass the national average for passing the licensure examination on the first attempt and have done so since the program’s inception. Arcadia is ranked 1st in the Philadelphia region, 2nd in the state, and in the top 15% of all PT programs in the nation by U.S. News and World Report. Many graduates are offered their first professional physical therapy job from the connections they made during their clinical experiences. Arcadia’s DPT Program is recognized in all 50 states.
DPT has an impressive tradition of high placement and career outcomes for our graduates. Take a look at our DPT program outcomes:
Arcadia’s Ya’Meer Thomas-Lowery ’25DPT Awarded Otho Davis Scholarship
Growing up playing football, basketball, and track and field in Paterson, N.J., Ya'Meer Thomas-Lowery '25DPT–like many young athletes–wanted to go to a Division I university to continue his athletic and academic careers. ...
The Doctor of Physical Therapy program at Arcadia University is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), 3030 Potomac Ave., Suite 100, Alexandria, Virginia 22305-3085; telephone: 703-706-3245; email: accreditation@apta.org; website: http://www.capteonline.org. If needing to contact the program/institution directly, please call 215-572-2950 or email ptadmission@arcadia.edu.
Due Process for Anyone Outside the Arcadia Community
Any stakeholder of the Arcadia University Physical Therapy Program (“Program”) has the right to file a complaint and receive due process. Current students, faculty, and staff involved with the Program should follow the established University policies and procedures for handling such claims set forth in the Physical Therapy Program Handbook. All other stakeholders, including, but not limited to, prospective students, clinical education sites, or employers of graduates, may also file a complaint related to the Program and should contact the Office of General Counsel at generalcounsel@arcadia.edu or call (215) 572-2926, and the Chair of the Physical Therapy Program, Dr. Phil McClure at mcclurep@arcadia.edu or call (215) 572-2863. The College of Health Sciences prohibits any form of retaliation against any party making a complaint against the Program.
