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Thank you for taking time to visit our Web site! We encourage you to take a few moments to carefully review the admissions requirements and application process for our Doctor in Physical Therapy Entry (EDPT) program, which is designed for students seeking their first degree in Physical Therapy.

For students with advanced standing, please see the admissions requirements for the Transitional DPT Program.

General Requirements (Entry-Level DPT)

The applicant must have earned a BA or BS degree from a regionally-accredited college or university by the time he or she matriculates in the DPT program. Exceptions will be made on a case-by-case basis.

Western University is looking for students who come from a broad, liberal arts background with the baccalaureate degree obtained in any field of study other than physical therapy. A high degree of intellectual curiosity and accomplishment along with excellent verbal and written communication skills need to be evident in the applicant. The graduate of Western University's DPT program will be able to problem-solve in clinical practice and will also be able to communicate appropriately with the client about the client/patient care plan.

You can use our Academic Worksheet to ensure that all of the following prerequisites have been met or will be met by the end of the Spring semester/quarter prior to matriculation. Note: the worksheet can only be read using Acrobat Reader and is a fill-in PDF form. Simply type the information onto the form after downloading it to your computer. To download a free copy of the Acrobat Reader, please visit the Plug-Ins page.

Prerequisite Courses - Sciences

Human Anatomy*: 1 course (lecture and lab) – 4 semester units or 6 quarter units

Human Physiology*: 1 course (lecture and lab) – 4 semester units or 6 quarter units

General Chemistry**: One year (lecture and lab) – 8 semester units or 12 quarter units

Physics: One year (lecture and lab) – 8 semester units or 12 quarter units

Note: All science courses must include laboratories. No introductory courses will be accepted to satisfy any of these prerequisites.

*These courses must have been completed no more than 7 years prior to the date of matriculation. Please contact the Admissions office if you have any questions regarding this policy.

**These courses must be a course specified for science majors. Please contact Admissions if you have any questions regarding this policy.

Prerequisite Courses - Non-Science

Psychology: 2 courses – At least one course must be from the psychology department. 3 semester units each or 4 quarter units each

Statistics: 1 course – 3 semester units or 4 quarter units

English Composition*: 1 course – 3 semester units or 4 quarter units

*If your institution does not offer an English Composition course please contact the Admissions office.

Notes:

• Anatomy & Physiology - Anatomy and physiology must be taken from the anatomy, physiology, A&P, biology or zoology departments. The anatomy and physiology must be "Human." No exceptions will be considered. Combined anatomy and physiology (A&P) courses will be considered only if a combined course sequence (2 semesters or 2 quarters) in anatomy and physiology (A&P) is completed.

• Prerequisite Courses - Courses must be completed at a regionally accredited college or university (exceptions will be made on a case-by-case basis). Prerequisite courses must be successfully completed with a grade of "C" or better. A grade of "C-" in any prerequisite course is not acceptable. Only one prerequisite course may be taken on an advanced-placement, pass/no pass or credit/no credit basis. For courses completed in California, all prerequisites must be considered to be University of California (UC) or California State University (CSU) transferable.

• Course Work in Progress - No more than three prerequisite courses can be in-progress at the time of application. Applicants applying for priority consideration may have only two (2) prerequisite courses in progress at the time of application. All prerequisite courses must be completed by the end of the Spring semester/quarter. Summer courses may be approved if special circumstances apply. Please submit official transcripts directly to the Admissions Office upon completion of course work in-progress. Final transcripts and/or final grades (including degree verification) for all course work in progress must be received prior to matriculation.

• Transcripts - A complete set of official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended must be submitted with your application.

• GPA Calculation - When evaluating applications, we consider both the cumulative/overall GPA (which includes all college course work e.g. undergraduate and graduate) and the prerequisite GPA (prerequisite course work only). Emphasis is placed on the prerequisite GPA. We may also consider a GPA based on the last 60 semester/90 quarter units. Applicants should have a competitive overall and prerequisite GPA consistent with current incoming class averages of 3.0 and above.

• Volunteer/Work Experience - A minimum of 200 hours of volunteer or paid work experience in two or more physical therapy facilities and/or clinical settings is required. This must include a minimum of 40 in-patient hours. In-patient settings may include: in-patient hospitals (acute, sub-acute/transitional care or rehab), skilled nursing facilities (SNF), extended care facilities (ECF), and residential facilities (geriatric/pediatric). You must have at least 40 hours to qualify as a setting/facility.

• Letters of Recommendation - We require three satisfactory recommendations: one from a supervising physical therapist and one from a college course instructor. The third letter must be from either a physical therapist or college course instructor; a physical therapist is preferred.

• Interviews - On-campus interviews are not required. However, prospective applicants are encouraged to attend one of our DPT Information Sessions. These sessions are offered throughout the year at our Pomona, California campus. You are also invited to make an appointment with the Physical Therapy department at any time to meet with faculty, speak with students, sit in to observe a class, and tour our facilities. You may contact Linda Cook at (909) 469-5294 or lcook@westernu.edu to schedule your visit.

• Applicants With Foreign Coursework - Applicants who wish to use course work completed outside the United States must submit their transcripts for evaluation to a Western University Approved Service. A course-by-course evaluation is required and all course work must be designated as undergraduate, graduate or professional. Western University will only honor evaluations from one of the above services. The evaluation must be included with the application packet.

• The General Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is required for all applicants. The exam must have been taken within five years of the anticipated matriculation date. The score report should be mailed to the applicant's home or it may be sent directly to Western University of Health Sciences. If mailed to the applicant's home it is to remain in its original sealed envelope and included with the application. If mailed from ETS applicants need to provide ETS with our institution code 4152 and the department code of 0619.

• The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) (including essay) is required for all applicants who are not U.S. citizens and for whom English is a second language. EXCEPTION: The TOEFL exam will be waived for students who have graduated, or will have graduated, with a confirmed baccalaureate or higher degree from a United States institution by the time of matriculation if appropriate documentation is provided.
  • Must receive a minimum score of 550 (paper-based exam) or 213 (computer-based exam)
  • TOEFL scores are valid for 3 years and must be submitted at the time of application. A course-by-course evaluation should be sent to the applicant's home address. This unopened evaluation should be placed in the WesternU application packet.
  • Score reports may be sent from the evaluation service directly to WesternU. Just be sure to address them to DPT Admissions.

Admissions Counseling

Admissions counselors are available by phone or e-mail to answer any questions you may have regarding course work and the admissions process. During the months of August through March e-mail is the preferred method of contact.

If you have any questions as to whether specific courses meet our requirements, please view our listing of approved prerequisites. If you have additional questions, you may submit an online Coursework Acceptability Form.

In the event that we are unable to determine whether the course(s) in question is acceptable, we may request a catalogue course description and/or syllabus.

Computer Requirements

Students who are taking online courses in the College of Allied Health Professions will need to have access to a computer system and Internet connection for the purpose of exchanging e-mail messages and other electronic documents. Students may use the work stations in the on-campus computer lab. However, it is highly recommended that students purchase a personal computer system for this purpose. Please visit our Computing Resources Web Site page for additional information.

The information herein is subject to change without notice at the discretion of the Board of Trustees of the University. Please visit our website periodically for updates and/or changes.