General Program Description

This weekend program is on a 12-month cycle. Full-time students enter the weekend program in late May, continue through the program for 3 calendar years and graduate in May of the third year. Classes begin in May and are scheduled on Saturday and Sunday from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. for 33 weekends per calendar year. The philosophy for the graduate program reflects the original Franciscan mission in recognizing the value of intellectual excellence, professional competence and strong community life. Knowledge, while valuable in itself, is to be used in the service of others. Students build upon existing knowledge in order to develop an extended knowledge base that includes research skills applicable to the area of concentration. Learning is seen as a dynamic process that includes student feedback, promotes self-directed pursuits, fosters student-teacher interaction and involves mastery of subject matter. The teaching-learning process is goal-oriented, self-directed, dynamic and perceptive.

Clinical Experiences
The Program includes a total of twenty-nine of weeks of clinical education divided over three clinical practica. Clinical Education I occurs in the spring of Year Two. Clinical Education II and III occur in the spring of Year Three, prior to program completion. Clinical experiences are scheduled Monday through Friday and, therefore, preclude the student’s employment at that time. Every student is required to complete an assignment in an acute care setting, in-patient rehabilitation setting and an out-patient setting. There is a one week 40 hour service learning experience and project with one of the Program’s community partners. This clinical education experience emphasizes the role and need of community service in the practice of physical therapy. The Program has more than 495 clinical experience sites along the eastern seaboard and nation-wide.

Faculty
There are seven full-time core faculty members. There are more than 30 associated faculty members who serve as guest lecturers, instructors in specialty courses, and laboratory assistants. All of the full-time faculty hold post-professional doctoral degrees, and all are engaged in some clinical practice. Over the past 3 years, the faculty has averaged two publications in a peer- reviewed journal and multiple scholarly presentations. The faculty to student ratio is 1:11.

Enrollment
There are approximately 2,200 undergraduate students, and 480 graduate students at the university. There are 78 students currently enrolled in physical therapy program.

Admission
The undergraduate grade point average (GPA) for the Graduating Class of 2014 was 3.4, and the GPA for pre-requisite courses was 3.2. Thirty students from a pool of approximately 200 applicants are accepted each year and begin in the summer session (late May). Minimum requirements for admission include: an overall GPA of 3.0, science GPA and prerequisite GPA of 2.5; Graduate Record Examination (GRE); three recommendations (one from a physical therapist); a minimum of 200 hours of documented experience with a physical therapist; a personal interview; and an on-site writing sample. The prerequisite courses required (with a C or higher) include: Anatomy and Physiology (8 credits), Physics (8 credits), Mathematics (3 credits), Psychology (6 credits), Statistics (3 credits), Humanities (6 credits), English Composition (6 credits), and Chemistry (8 credits). Students are offered admission to the program on a rolling basis. thirty-three percent of qualified applicants are admitted to the program (3 year average).

Outcomes
91% of admitted students graduate from the program (3-year average for class years 2011-2013); 89% of the graduates (class years 2011-2013) passed the professional licensure exam (3-year average); 100% of those program graduates responding to surveys are employed (3-year average for class years 2011-2013).

Tuition, fees and financial aid
The graduate tuition is determined by credit hours. The 2014-2015 academic year tuition is $909 per credit hour. Fall and spring semesters are between 10-13 credits each ($9,090-$11,817). Summer sessions are usually 9-11 credits ($8,181-$9,999). The Federal Stafford Student Loan (FSL) Program is available to students enrolled for a minimum of 5 credits per semester. The FSL Program makes two types of loans available to students: subsidized and unsubsidized. Students may obtain an application for the FSL from a local lending institution. Neumann University will mail an application to all new students. If you have already borrowed from the FSL program, you should use the same lender that you used in the past.

Student life
Services available to physical therapy students include use of the computer laboratory, library, physical therapy laboratory, university bookstore, career services, learning assistance center, institution research, and instructional media services. During the week, the physical therapy program secretary assists students in contacting offices not usually open on weekends, in particular financial aid, the business office, admissions and the registrar. Full-time faculty are available during the regular week to meet with students and conduct tutorials and review sessions.