General Program Description
Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute’s Physical Therapist Assistant Program is a 1 + 1 program serving Caldwell and Watauga county areas. To better serve the regional needs of the Physical Therapy community, CCC&TI’s PTA Program is designed to support transfer students from other community colleges and universities. It is the philosophy of the PTA program faculty that focused and determined students can achieve their goal of becoming a licensed physical therapist assistant through prioritizing social and family commitments, a strong commitment to learning, and hard work within the established curriculum. CCC&TI’s PTA Program is a member of the Carolina Clinical Education Consortium and actively support our clinical instructors in becoming credentialed.
Clinical Experiences
The first clinical experience is an integrated part-time clinical one day per week during the first semester of the technical year. The second 5 week clinical experience is an integrated full time clinical during the first 5 weeks of fall semester of the second year during the second fall semester. The third and 4 clinical experiences are merged together for a total of 7 weeks experience concludes the academic preparation. Most clinical experiences are within a 1-hour drive time one way from the student’s home. Housing is seldom required, but is often available at the more remote facilities. Students are expected to complete a hospital based experience, outpatient orthopedic and skilled nursing/long term care/rehabilitation experience during their rotations.
Faculty
There are two full-time faculty members both holding MA Ed in Higher Education; one PT and the other a PTA with Advance Recognition in Education. The two part-time faculty members work exclusively in Pediatrics and Neuro respectively.
Enrollment
Annual PTA program admission is limited to a 24 student cohort. During Spring semester each year, enrollment can reach 48 students due to two different cohorts tracking through the program.
Admission
CCC&TI’s PTA Program accepted the first cohort of PTA students based on a competitive admission process effective with the PTA Class accepted in 2013. A point system allows students to be ranked according to their grades obtained in general education courses and on the HOBET or TEAS exam score. Contact Amy Huffman, Coordinator, Allied Health Admission, 828/726-2718 or [email protected].
Outcomes
94% first time take passage rate for the PTA Class of 2012 with a 100% overall passage rate, currently. 100% first time take passage rate for the PTA Class of 2013. 100% first time take passage rate for the PTA Class of 2014.
Tuition, fees and financial aid
Tuition and fees for an in-state resident for the 2014-15 academic year are approximately $1144 per semester. Out-of-state fees are approximately $4,216 per semester. For specific information, contact the Student Financial Aid office at Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute at 828/726-2713.
Student life
No on-campus housing is available but local apartment rentals are reasonable. There is ample parking; all cars must be registered with Campus Security. There are active intramural programs and some interscholastic sports are available. Students are expected to join the APTA and the student PTA Club once accepted into the program. Many PTA students are inducted into the national honor society, Phi Theta Kappa.