Education FYI - Vision 2020

Doctor of Physical Therapy Accreditation
As many of you are very familiar with, most educational preparation for PTs is at the graduate doctoral level (DPT). But did you know that as of 2016, CAPTE will no longer accredit programs that are not at the DPT level? This is part of the APTA strategic plan that by the year 2020 "physical therapy will be provided by physical therapists who are doctors of physical therapy, recognized by consumers and other health care professionals as the practitioners of choice to whom consumers have direct access for the diagnosis of, interventions for, and prevention of impairments, functional limitations, and disabilities related to movement, function, and health." Currently, only eight accredited programs in the U.S. are not at the DPT level, including California State University campuses among others.

Why don't California State Universities offer a DPT?
The state of California requires legislative approval for the California State University campuses to award any doctoral degree, including the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree. This does not, however, affect licensure eligibility, or practice potential of CSU graduates. CSU's Master of Physical Therapy (MPT) programs are fully accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), and the program meets the same rigorous standards and outcomes that all accredited DPT programs meet. Therefore, graduates are eligible for licensure in any state.
Efforts to change these legal restrictions are ongoing by several academic disciplines (including Physical Therapy) within the California State University System.