General Program Description

Students applying to the entry-level graduate DPT program at Fresno State will apply to a post-baccalaureate, 3 year independent DPT program. The entry-level DPT program requires a total of 110 units with students maintaining a minimum of a 3.0 cumulative GPA throughout the program. Courses in each semester build on previous coursework and are only offered once a year. Students must pass all coursework, present a case report at the end of the second year, complete 30 weeks of full-time clinical externships, and complete an evidenced based research position paper with an oral defense during the third year in lieu of a dissertation. Students will be eligible to take the national licensing examination only after successful completion of the DPT program.

Clinical Experiences
In the entry-level 3 year post-baccalaureate DPT program, students complete 30 hours of full-time clinical externships: 9 weeks during the summer after the first year; 12 weeks during the summer after the second year and 9 weeks during the spring semester of the third year. In addition, all students complete an 8-week clinical assignment in our Gait, Balance, and Mobility Research and Education Center located in the department on-campus, as well as 2 semesters in the Musculoskeletal Care Clinic located in the Student Health Center on campus.

Faculty
The Physical Therapy faculty are diverse in their interests and areas of academic preparation. We currently have seven full-time faculty and fifteen part-time faculty members, however we anticipate a total of nine full-faculty within the next year. All of the full-time faculty hold post-professional doctoral degrees and are engaged in clinical practice and applied clinical research. Over the past 3 years, the faculty have averaged three publications in peer-reviewed journals. Students regularly interact with faculty in the classroom and in individual and group efforts. Such efforts involve research projects, career development, professional activities, community service and other forms of professional socialization. The full-time faculty to student ratio is 1: 5. As active practitioners, faculty offer students outstanding direction in the integration of principles and theory in the process of learning to become effective clinical decision-makers. Participation by adjunct clinical faculty who teach courses provides students with the opportunity to learn advanced concepts alongside established clinicians.

Enrollment
The university enrolls more than 22,000 students of diverse culture, gender, and age. The physical therapy program accepts 32 students in the fall of each year.

Admission
Students are only admitted for the fall semester. Students transferring from community and other colleges or universities who meet the criteria are considered on the same basis as California State University, Fresno students applying for admission to the program. Prior to an invitation to campus for an interview, the student must meet the minimum criteria (baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university; minimum of 3.0 GPA for prerequisites and upper division GPA; submission of a complete application including GRE scores, 3 letters of recommendation, personal statement and verification by a licensed physical therapist of a minimum of the appropriate 100 clinical hours (20/100 hours must be an in-patient setting). A minimum of 7/9 of the specified prerequisite courses must be completed or be currently enrolled by the student at time of application. No more than one science (if semester-based course; two if the course is quarter-based) and one non-science prerequisite courses can be in progress after the fall term prior to matriculation. No course may be repeated more than one (1) time and no more than three (3) prerequisite courses may be repeated. AP credit, CR/NC grades, correspondence courses, or independent study courses cannot be used for prerequisite requirements. The 9 required prerequisites are: Human Anatomy with lab; Human Physiology with lab; Inorganic Chemistry with lab; Organic or Biochemistry with lab; General Psychology; Upper Division Psychology (Abnormal Psychology or Psychological Aspects of Disability recommended); General Physics I and II with labs (including mechanics, heat, light, sound, and electricity); and Statistics. All science courses must include laboratories and cannot be at an introductory level. Human Anatomy and Physiology must be taken from the Anatomy, Physiology, Anatomy & Physiology, Biology or Zoology department. Combined Human Anatomy and Physiology courses will be considered only if a combined course sequence (2 semesters or 2 quarters) is completed. The application deadline for the professional program is October 15. Students must submit an application to the DPT program through PTCAS, a national physical therapy centralized admission service used by most physical therapy programs. Inclusive in this process is a personal statement that is submitted by the applicant. The student must also submit an application to the University through CSU Mentor. Please see our website for more detailed information: at www.fresnostate.edu/physicaltherapy or call 1-559-278-2625. Or, contact our DPT Admissions Coordinator, Crystal Bishop at (559) 278-6579 or email: [email protected].

Outcomes
Graduation rates and Licensing Exam Pass Rates are for the 2 year MPT program. The average graduation rate for the last 3 years (2009-2011) was 94%. The average first time and overall pass rate on the national licensing exam for the last 3 MPT classes were 85% and 100% respectively. Fall 2012, Fresno State admitted their first cohort of 32 students for the entry-level 3 year DPT program. The average prerequisite GPA for fall 2012 and 2013 admits was 3.6. The average composite GRE score was 300 and the writing score 4.0.

Tuition, fees and financial aid
Student fees for the DPT are below state-supported University of California and private university doctoral degree programs. Based on program-cost analysis conducted in consultation among the CSU chancellor’s office and DPT campuses, the CSU Doctor of Physical Therapy Tuition Fee is set at $8,074 per term. Campus fees are an additional $407.50/term. Fresno State’s entry-level DPT program consists of 8 terms for a total of $67,852 for the 3 years. Non-residents pay $372/unit (x 110 units). Because the DPT is a post-baccalaureate-entry degree program and students will not enter from established professional careers, need-based aid will be available to qualifying students. The financial aid set-aside from student fees is 33.3 percent of the academic year fee rate.

Student life
California State University, Fresno offers limited dormitory housing however, all fraternities and sororities offer housing, and there is a plentiful supply of off-campus housing available with a wide range of rental prices. Athletic programs are abundant, including intramural recreation. Fresno, located 60 miles from Yosemite National Park and 45 miles from Sequoia National Park, is within driving distance of the ocean and mountains providing recreational activities that include skiing, hiking, mountain climbing, river rafting, cycling, swimming, and fishing.