General Program Description

As part of the University Health Network and just steps away from the University of Vermont Medical Center and the College of Medicine, the College of Nursing and Health Sciences connects talented faculty practitioners, scientists, and scholars with the next generation of health care providers. The University of Vermont doctor of physical therapy (DPT) program includes coursework related to the science and art of physical therapy, including basic, clinical and applied sciences and basic concepts of practice management, ethics and quality in health care. The DPT program combines seminars, lectures and hands-on lab experiences that allow students to integrate clinical, theoretical and professional practice concepts. The program begins in July and is three academic years in length, including summers.

Clinical Experiences
The DPT program includes a total of 36 weeks of full-time clinical education experiences. First-year students will complete a 6 week full-time clinical experience in an outpatient orthopedic setting following completion of the spring semester. This is followed by 30 weeks of clinical experience throughout the fall semester, winter intercession and spring semesters of the third year. Clinical sites are located at more than 317 facilities throughout the United States, but concentrated primarily in the Northeast. In addition clinical correlations place students in the clinic for intensive experiential learning during the first two years of the program.

Faculty
There are seven full-time, one part-time and more than 11 associated faculty members. Of the full-time faculty, four hold post-professional doctoral degrees and one holds a tDPT. Over the past 3 years, the faculty has averaged three publications per person in peer-reviewed journals. The faculty-to-student ratio is approximately 10:1

Enrollment
There are 9,958 undergraduate students, 1,405 graduate students and 459 medical students enrolled at the University of Vermont. The physical therapy program will accept 30-35 students each year.

Admission
Post-baccalaureate graduates are encouraged to apply to the Doctor of Physical Therapy program. The DPT program is open to applicants who have completed baccalaureate, masters or doctoral degrees in other disciplines prior to enrollment. Their course of study will be three years in length, including summers. For more information visit the program’s webpage at www.uvm.edu/~rms and click on “Physical Therapy Program” from the menu. Applications for the DPT program are reviewed following the December 15th filing deadline. Prerequisites include: 2 semesters of chemistry with labs, 2 semesters of physics with labs, 2 semesters of anatomy/physiology, 1 semester of biology, 1 semester of exercise physiology, 1 semester of statistics, and 1 semester of psychology. A minimum overall undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 is required as is a cummulative GPA of 3.0 in the science prerequisites. Those individuals who are applying and currently hold a baccalaureate degree or higher also need to meet the following criteria: minimum GRE scores of 153 on the verbal, 144 on the quantitative, and 4.0 on the written analytical sections. 17% of qualified applicants are admitted to the program (2-year average).

Outcomes
96% of admitted students graduate from the program (2-year average) within four years; 96% of the graduates passed the licensure exam and 100% of those program graduates responding to surveys are employed (3-year average).

Tuition, fees and financial aid
Estimated tuition and fees will be $591 per credit hour for Vermont residents and $1,493 per credit hour for nonresidents. The program consists of 101-103 credits. Financial aid for graduate study will be primarily in the form of state and federal loans with some opportunity for Graduate Assistantships. There are limited scholarships available to out of state students. The University of Vermont, in participation with the New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE)’s RSP tuition Break program, offers discounted tuition to permanent residents of New England States wishing to pursue a doctor of physical therapy degree. For information on this program, follow this link and look for the UVM physical therapy program to see if you qualify. http://www.uvm.edu/~rgweb/?Page=policiesandprocedures/p_nebhe.html&SM=p_menu.html#table

Student life
The University offers a variety of housing options which are explained here: https://reslife.uvm.edu/content/apartments_and_family_housing. Graduate students may participate in a variety of meal plans. Rents in the Burlington area vary from approximately $75 per week for a single furnished room to $800 or more per month for a two-bedroom apartment. A single student should expect minimum overall living expenses of approximately $850 per month. Montreal is the nearest metropolitan city, 100 miles from the campus. The campus is served by a mass transit bus system. The airport is three miles from campus; the passenger rail service is eight miles from campus.