General Program Description

Clinical Experiences
First-year students rotate through a long-term care facility and a general hospital supervised by a clinical instructor within the PTA program. Second-year students carry out clinical rotations for 10 weeks at the completion of all academic courses. The two 5-week rotations are chosen by the student to offer the areas specialization they desire.

Faculty
There are two full-time and four part-time faculty members. The faculty to student ratio is 1:24.

Enrollment
Onondaga Community College has a total enrollment of 4,200 full?time students and 4,000 part-time students (56% female, 44% male). The physical therapist assistant program has a total enrollment of 24 students per class from an applicant pool of 100. Transfer students are accepted, and no preference is given to in-state residents.

Admission
Students are accepted for their freshman year. The following prerequisite course work is required for admission: high school biology and an additional science, algebra and an additional math. Students must pass required courses with a grade of C or above and carry a minimum 2.5 grade point average from their most recent educational experience. Onondaga Community College has a rolling admissions policy. Students are admitted only in the fall. The program begins with the fall semester, and the student completes the program with full-time clinicals in the summer of the sophomore year, graduating in August. 67% of qualified applicants are admitted to the program (3-year average).

Outcomes
63% of admitted students graduate from the program (3-year average).

Tuition, fees and financial aid
For the academic year 2000?01, the average tuition for county residents is $1,250 per semester. Out-of-county residents pay $2,500 per semester. Out-of-state residents tuition is $3,750 per semester. Additional student fees include malpractice insurance, clinical lab fee, lab health services fee, health curriculum fee, activity fee, and an administrative processing fee (total approximately $190). Tuition is subject to change. New York State scholarships are available for minority and disadvantaged students applying to health professions. Seventy percent of the entire university student body receives some type of financial aid.

Student life
No on-campus housing is available; however, off-campus rentals are adequate. Men’s intercollegiate athletic programs include basketball and baseball. Women’s intercollegiate athletic programs include tennis, softball, and volleyball. Onondaga Community College is located in the geographic center of Onondaga County. The campus occupies 181 acres on Onondaga Hill, 4 miles from downtown Syracuse, overlooking the hills and valleys of central New York. The six buildings, all of contemporary design, house one of upstate New York’s most modern and complete educational facilities in a picturesque, wooded setting. A fitness and nature trail borders the western and northern perimeters of the campus.