For more information contact:
Email: ptprog@gwu.edu
Phone: (202) 994-8237

Doctor of Physical Therapy Program

Welcome

On behalf of the faculty of The George Washington University (GWU) Program in Physical Therapy, I would like to welcome you and encourage you to browse our website! We are delighted that you are looking at our Program. As a faculty, we take great pride in our profession and are more than delighted to share our knowledge with potential members of our profession, colleagues, and others who may be interested in learning more about physical therapy. We are ready to assist you in finding out more about the profession in general and our program speciffically. We hope that this is just your first step in fulfilling your educational goals, and that GW will play a major role in helping you reach those goals.

This is a very exciting time in the physical therapy profession. The profession is undergoing a period of rapid growth and change. The demand for physical therapists is once again outpacing the supply. According to recent reports from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, physical therapy (PT) is among the fastest growing professions and this growth is expected to continue at least through 2012. Currently, there is a shortage of physical therapists, both locally and nationally. More and more physical therapists are being recognized as autonomous practitioners with a very specialized area of knowledge, skill, and expertise. Physical therapists are the experts in the diagnosis and management of neuromusculoskeletal dysfunction. Physical therapists are also highly valued as essential members of health care teams from pediatric settings to geriatric settings and from rehabilitation centers to fitness and wellness centers. With the specialized knowledge and skills provided by the Physical Therapy Program at The George Washington University, you will be well prepared for a career in a great variety of settings. Your background as a physical therapist will not only open the door to a world of patient care, but also to one of advocacy and professional service.
The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Program in Physical Therapy, provides some very unique opportunities for its students

• Clinically, the Program is housed in a state of the art facility within The George Washington University Hospital providing students with easy access to experienced clinicians at work. In addition to clinical immersions and internships at The George Washington University Hospital, students have access to many world-renowned facilities from local institutions such as the National Rehabilitation Hospital and Children’s’ National Medical Center, to those as far away as California and Australia. International internships provide interested students with an authentic global perspective on health care again not readily available to all physical therapy students.
• The Program is also located at the doorstep of the capital, providing GW students with access to the center of policy making and advocacy; something again not readily available to most other physical therapy students. This is further enhanced by the fact that the headquarters of the American Physical Therapy Association is located only minutes away in Alexandria, Va., again providing our students with opportunities to see the profession in action and experience policy making and advocacy at the national level.
• The Program has relationships with the National Institutes of Health, National Rehabilitation Hospital, and Children’s’ National Medical Center and is exploring the possibility of clinical research internships for interested students. These facilities provide not only excellent clinical education opportunities, but also opportunities for collaborative research. Close ties with these renowned facilities provide students with the opportunity to interact with expert clinicians who provide instruction and laboratory assistance.
• In addition the University itself provides a wealth of opportunities for students. Being one of a number of Health Sciences Programs within the School of Medicine and Health Sciences engenders interdisciplinary activities that naturally foster team building, teaching, and leadership qualities within our students. The Office of Student Opportunities also provides students with the opportunity to participate in a variety of lecture series on such topics as global health, community health, and health policy, as well as interdisciplinary internship and volunteer experiences across the globe.

We hope you find this site informative. We encourage you to contact us with any additional questions that might arise, and wish you the best of luck in the pursuit of your educational goals.

-Sincerely, Margaret Plack, PT, Ed.D., Director, Doctor of Physical Therapy Program