Looking for a college with pre-physical therapy

[Polevaultgirly16]

my pr is 11'9 and i want to go into some sort of sports medicine or physical therapy i want to stay somewhere in the west coast or east coast any ideas of where would be good for me?

[SweetPVJumps]

you know, heres a tip about the physical therapy thing. i looked into that cuz i thought i wanted to do it. but the woman i talked to said that its super dang hard, almost impossible, to compete in college and have that major, because you have to spend a ton of hours being like a trainer for a college team so you dont have time to do your own sport. she knows cuz she wanted to compete in college. im not saying your stuck, i just suggest you ask around more about that and hopefully find out some better news than i did.

[rainbowgirl28]

you know, heres a tip about the physical therapy thing. i looked into that cuz i thought i wanted to do it. but the woman i talked to said that its super dang hard, almost impossible, to compete in college and have that major, because you have to spend a ton of hours being like a trainer for a college team so you dont have time to do your own sport. she knows cuz she wanted to compete in college. im not saying your stuck, i just suggest you ask around more about that and hopefully find out some better news than i did.

That's not necessarily true. That may be true if your school only has athletic training as the closest pre-PT thing, but lots of schools have exercise science programs that are geared toward physical therapy, and don't require you to be an athletic trainer. Two of my previous schools, University of Georgia and University of Florida both had exercise science programs.

[VaultMarq26]

Marquette university has exercise science and a Doctoral of Physical Therapy program. You can a directly admitted to the physical theapy program, or you can reapply as a junior. Our best girl jumper just jumped 12', so you would be right there.

[bjvando]

I'm not sure exactly what my school offers, but I do know it has a great PT program as well as athletic training

www.fullerton.edu

check it out!

(and a purtty good track program too....)

[polevaultdad]

Depends on how far away you can stand being from home.

BJ is right - take a look at the schools you interested in and let them know who you are. The options are numerous. Example - A girl we know just graduated from CAl Poly SLO and is leaving for Arkansas for their Graduate Program in PT. Most major universities and state schools have a Kinesiology Major - which used to be PE, which used to train people to become teachers. Now Athletic Training - is a path you can choose.

Cut and paste the link below to see how they do it at UNM. My daughter vaults there and loves it. That was going to be her major, until she had to take anatomy/biology/etc.

They have a Physical Performance and Development Department that has curriculum in PE, Athletic Training, Health Science, Exercise Science. They also have a Nutrition major.

Most schools will have similar programs. With a PR of 11-9, most schools would be interested. (Ask Becca - 11-9 would qualify you for NAIA Nationals). If you need money or want a scholarship, you better get started contacting people so they know you are around and interested. Or else the money will be spent. Vaulting scholarships are out there, but they are few in number.

Good Luck!



http://ppd.cte-0027.unm.edu/naw/Qdisp.n ... oDISP.html

[USMC Vaulter]

you know, heres a tip about the physical therapy thing. i looked into that cuz i thought i wanted to do it. but the woman i talked to said that its super dang hard, almost impossible, to compete in college and have that major, because you have to spend a ton of hours being like a trainer for a college team so you dont have time to do your own sport. she knows cuz she wanted to compete in college. im not saying your stuck, i just suggest you ask around more about that and hopefully find out some better news than i did.

I'm gonna have to disagree with this. Someone else already mentioned that its really the Athletic Training major that has problems with sports schedules since you have to work with the sports teams, however there are many schools that offer pre-physical therapy as a major, or excercise science, kinesiology, or even biomechanics which are usually tailored as majors for those intending to go on to grad school for physical therapy (or atleast meet all the requirements).

Before joining the Marines I was in a pre-physical therapy program at the University of Delaware while on their track team as a pole vaulter. Now that I just got out of the Marines I'm headed back to school in the fall and will be doing track and pre-physical therapy again. I'll be attending Liberty University in Virginia and the actual major there is Kinesiology with a specialization in excercise science (which was designed specifically for those who want to go to grad school for PT).

Just keep on looking for the school that has all the major aspects you want in a college, but if your main concerns are pre-PT and a track program, there should be a decent number to choose from.

[giolanaro]

I am going to have to say Cal State University Fullerton. It has a great Kinesiology program and a Great PT program. I also heard they will be having an OK PV coach hahaha(whats up BJ).

www.fullerton.edu

[SweetPVJumps]

[quote="USMC Vaulter"][quote="SweetPVJumps"]you know, heres a tip about the physical therapy thing. i looked into that cuz i thought i wanted to do it. but the woman i talked to said that its super dang hard, almost impossible, to compete in college and have that major, because you have to spend a ton of hours being like a trainer for a college team so you dont have time to do your own sport. she knows cuz she wanted to compete in college. im not saying your stuck, i just suggest you ask around more about that and hopefully find out some better news than i did.[/quote]


I'm gonna have to disagree with this. [/quote]

cool glad to know that i was semi misinformed

[jumpbackin]

Long Beach State

[Chia Vault]

I went to PT school at Idaho State after completing my BS in biology also at ISU. I dropped out after a year but that was just me. What you do before pt school can vary considerably. You can find a degree with the most overlap with the prereq's or you can get an unrelated degree. I had a classmate who had his degree in pe. Different schools require different pre req classes and different amounts of hours of "observation/volunteering/work experience" this you can do anytime. summers, between classes, or weekends in the off season. I did all three.

Vault now. You only have four years of eligibility. you can go to school forever.
I am now 32 and am half way through dental school. Trust me, there is no rush to "grow up". I would have put it off longer if I could have but the wife and kid #3 finally won out.
Idaho state has a great vault program.
Dragila is back there again too!
Call coach dave nielsen 208-282-3299 or nieldave@isu.edu