Today, the DeSales University Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program was granted candidate for accreditation status from the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE).
With this designation, the University will enroll the first class of graduate students for the fall 2014 semester. In addition, the school will begin to recruit undergraduate students for a freshman-entry option beginning with the fall 2015 class.
“For the past two years, we have been working diligently to prepare for this latest addition to the successful reputation that the University has built as a leader in educating the healthcare providers of the future,” said Dr. Kay Malek, director of the DPT program. “The program has developed a contemporary curriculum and assembled a well-qualified team of physical therapy educators who will use state-of-the-art equipment and facilities to train highly qualified, compassionate physical therapists to meet the needs of patients with movement disorders in the Lehigh Valley.”
Entry into the Doctor of Physical Therapy program has two options. Prospective students are eligible to apply upon completion of a 4-year bachelor’s degree at an accredited university or after a 4-year sport and exercise science or biology degree is earned from DeSales University.
A second admissions option is a 3+3 accelerated program that allows an exceptionally qualified high school graduate to enter the University as a freshman student to pursue a bachelor of science in health science degree in the first 4 years of study, followed by completion of the remaining 2 years in the graduate phase of the DPT program. In either case, admission to the DPT program is competitive and continuation beyond admission depends on each student’s academic progression.
The curriculum includes courses that will use the University’s new gross anatomy laboratory, medical simulation center, and standardize patient care suites. Courses in physical therapy differential diagnosis, intervention and clinical reasoning, along with service learning opportunities, 36 weeks of clinical education and completion of a faculty-mentored student research project are also part of the graduate degree program.