Physical Therapist ,
I make my schedule in the morning and drive to patients' homes. They are usually happy to see me because I can teach them ways to help them to recover from their impairments/injuries faster.
CAREER
Physical Therapists
Overview
Salary Median (2020)
$95,620
Projected Job Growth (2019-2029)
+16.9% (much faster than the average)
Career
Roadtrip Nation Leaders in This Career
What Physical Therapists Do
Assess, plan, organize, and participate in rehabilitative programs that improve mobility, relieve pain, increase strength, and improve or correct disabling conditions resulting from disease or injury.
Other Job Titles Physical Therapists May Have
Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT), Home Care Physical Therapist (Home Care PT), Inpatient Physical Therapist (Inpatient PT), Pediatric Physical Therapist (Pediatric PT)
How Leaders Describe a Typical Day at Work
On a great day, I would visit four different families. I would use a coaching model to help the caregiver help their child. It might be through information on play activities and exercises to help the child learn to roll over, sit up or walk. Or info on what types of toys to get to help build their child's cognitive or motor skills. I would provide hands on physical therapy for the child. There is great satisfaction in seeing a child sit up by themselves, crawl or take their first steps.
Tasks & Responsibilities May Include
- Plan, prepare, or carry out individually designed programs of physical treatment to maintain, improve, or restore physical functioning, alleviate pain, or prevent physical dysfunction in patients.
- Perform and document an initial exam, evaluating data to identify problems and determine a diagnosis prior to intervention.
- Record prognosis, treatment, response, and progress in patient's chart or enter information into computer.
- Instruct patient and family in treatment procedures to be continued at home.
- Evaluate effects of treatment at various stages and adjust treatments to achieve maximum benefit.
Education
Level of Education Attained by Physical Therapists
Most common level of education among people in
this career: Doctoral degree (47%)
Doctoral degree
Bachelor's degree
Master's degree
Majors Related to Career
Educational Paths Suggested by Leaders
Physical Therapist ,
Suggested Path
High School
Bachelor
Exercise Science and Kinesiology
Doctorate
Physical Therapy/Therapist
Suggested Path
High School
Bachelor
Physical Therapy/Therapist
Graduate
Special Education and Teaching, General
Additional Skills & Experiences That Can Help You Excel
Physical Therapist ,
Go to a clinic and "shadow" a therapist and see what they do on a day to day basis.
Love of children, patience, creativity to make work/exercise fun for infants/toddlers, exposure to people with differing abilities and a belief that everyone can learn and develop, willingness to share knowledge and skills with others.
Getting Started
Recommended First Step for:
High School Students
Physical Therapist ,
Be interested in the human body. Be interested to see how your muscles and bones work during sports and when you perform daily activities. Most physical therapists have some kind of sports background because we have excellent body awareness.
Visit hospitals or other offices where physical therapists work, look for some that specialize in working with children - pediatrics - contact your local Infants and Toddlers Program, each state has one, and see if you can shadow someone for a day. Take classes for pre professional development for health care careers - sciences, math, communication.
College Students
Everyone
This page includes information from theO*NET 26.1 Databaseby the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under theCC BY 4.0license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
