Welcome to the UNCW Physical Therapy blog. If you want to become a physical therapist at UNCW the information here will help you in streamlining your academic career so you don't waste time taking unnecessary courses.
Things To Think About
Pre-Physical Therapy
Here is a short list of courses that most graduate schools require for entrance: BIO 201(with lab): Cells
BIO 240-241(with labs):Human Anatomy & Physiology 1 & 2
CHM 101-102 (with labs): General Chemistry
PHY 101-102 (with labs): Elementary College Physics
MAT 111:College Algebra
STT 215: Introduction to Statistics
PSY 105: Introduction to Psychology
PSY 223: Life Span Human Development
Here are a few things to keep in mind throughout your time here at UNCW to keep you on the right track.
- Meet all of the minimum requirements for the professional schools of health to which you plan to apply; for example, most professional schools of health require the following as a minimum
- Completion of at least 90 semester hours, an undergraduate degree is generally expected prior to application (except some pharmacy schools)
- 8 semester hours each of general biology, general chemistry, organic chemistry and physics (all with labs)
- Calculus plus one additional math course, statistics is sometimes required
- 6-8 semester hours of English with an emphasis on writing
- Beyond the minimums, follow a rigorous curriculum, particularly rich in biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics;
- Take at least 15 - 16 hours each semester;
- complete as many upper-level elective science courses as possible to demonstrate depth of understanding and;
- choose a variety of non-science electives (see below) that increase your general knowledge as well as your specific understanding of healthcare related ideas and issues.
Unfortunately UNCW does not have a Pre-Physical Therapy undergraduate degree program. Instead undergraduate students must choose a different academic major to study. The majority of undergraduate students at UNCW interested in entering the field of Physical Therapy choose Exercise Science as their major which is a Physical Education (P.E.) degree with a concentration in exercise science. Below is a link to the 2008-2009 Undergraduate catalogue where you can find the Exercise Science course list.
http://www.uncw.edu/uc/documents/0809cas-ped-exsci_000.pdf
Suggested Minors for Physical Therapy careers:
Science Humanities, & Society
Psychology
Gerontology
Sociology
Community Health
These are just a few of the majors that my friends are taking who are also planning on going into the physical therapy field. You can choose not to take on a minor or you can choose any other minor not on this list. These are just going to be the most helpful in enhancing your knowledge of your specific field.