Admission Requirements

Thank you for your interest in the Doctor of Physical Therapy program at Boston University College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences: Sargent College.

Our program begins the last week in May each year. It is a 3-year, full-time, on-campus program. Our review of applications begins December 15 and continues until enrollment is complete. Applicants can apply to Boston University’s Physical Therapy program using the Physical Therapy Centralized Application Service found at http://www.ptcas.org.   Accepted applicants will be notified and invited to attend an information session during the month of February.

Below is a checklist of requirements needed to apply:

  1. Completion of the following pre-requisite coursework at the college level:

    • Biology (3-4 credits): one course of general or cellular biology with a lab
    • Human Anatomy (3-4 credits): one course with a lab (Note: when anatomy and physiology are taken as a combined course, two semesters are necessary to meet the requirements)
    • Human Physiology (3-4 credits):  one course with lab. (Note: when anatomy and physiology are taken as a combined course, two semesters are necessary to meet the requirements)
    • Chemistry (6-8 credits):  two-semester course sequence with lab
    • Physics (6-8 credits):  two-semester course sequence with lab
    • Statistics (3-4 credits):  one course to include descriptive statistics, correlation, and introduction to inferential statistics or research design
    • Developmental Psychology (3-4 credits): one course.  (Please note, general psychology does not fulfill this requirement)
    • Exercise Physiology (3-4 credits): one course, lab not required

    Courses taken to fulfill prerequisites must be completed with an overall prerequisite GPA of 3.0 or higher in order for the application to be considered. You may have courses still in progress during the application process, but all prerequisites must be completed by the start of the program. If you have questions about whether a course fulfills one of the above requirements, please contact the PT program at pt@bu.edu.

  2. Completion of 30 hours or more of health care experience. Letters of verification are not required.
  3. A completed graduate application, submitted via PTCAS at http://www.ptcas.org.  

  4. Three letters of reference.
    • One from a course instructor or academic advisor.
    • Two others from a supervisor in health care or another work capacity.
    • These letters of reference should be sent directly to PTCAS. Forms are available as part of the PTCAS application.


  5. Two essays responding to each question requested by the PTCAS system for Boston University
  6. Scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE).
    • Scores of 500 or more on the verbal and quantitative portions of the GRE are strongly recommended. Analytical writing scores are also evaluated. Applicants with one or more subtest scores below 400 will not be considered.
    • Graduate Record Exam Scores should be sent directly to the Academic Services Center (ASC) in room 207 at BU Sargent College using the Institution Code of 3028, Department of Physical Therapy Code:  0619.
  7. Official transcripts showing evidence of completion of your Bachelor's Degree will need to be sent to the following office by our program ’s start date in May:

    8. Academic Services Center
     Boston University
     Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
     635 Commonwealth Avenue, Rm 207
     Boston, MA 02215

 

Application Deadline

The review of applications begins on December 15.