About Physical Therapy

What is Physical Therapy?

Physical therapists play a crucial role in helping patients increase their mobility, overcome movement dysfunctions, and decrease pain. They focus on wellness, the prevention of injury, and the promotion of optimal health. The physical therapy program at New York Tech School of Health Professions combines active hands-on learning, technology, and evidence-based scientific education.

Mission

Our mission is to offer suitably qualified students a physical therapy program that prepares skilled, knowledgeable, adaptable, culturally sensitive, and technologically innovative clinicians, scientists, and researchers.

Mission Statement of Physical Therapist Education

(As prepared by the American Physical Therapy Association):
The mission of physical therapist professional education is to graduate knowledgeable, self-assured, adaptable, reflective, and service-oriented practitioners who, by virtue of critical thinking, lifelong learning, and ethical values, render independent judgments concerning patient or client needs; promote the health of the client; and enhance the professional, contextual, and collaborative foundations for practice. These practitioners contribute to society and the profession through practice, teaching administration, and the discovery and application of new knowledge about physical therapy.

Patient-Centered Approach

A patient-centered approach means caring for people holistically while respecting their personal beliefs, experiences, and values. This is essential when treating patients in today’s world, which is more globally and culturally diverse than ever. Here, you’ll adopt a holistic attitude when learning in our classrooms, working in our high-tech labs, and applying your training in clinical settings through our many clinical affiliations. Upon graduation, you’ll be able to treat patients from a wide spectrum of clinical populations and practice settings.

Orthopedic PT Residency Program

New York Tech is one of a small number of programs in New York State offering an orthopedic residency program for qualified physical therapy graduates. Experience advanced orthopedic therapy classroom and lab instruction and assist faculty in teaching entry-level D.P.T. courses as you prepare for the Orthopedic Clinical Specialist examination.

Scholarships

In addition to the full slate of scholarship opportunities available to New York Tech students, physical therapy students are eligible to apply to the targeted Occupational Therapy/Physical Therapy Scholarship Program offered through New York City’s Teach NYC program.

Accreditation

New York Tech’s physical therapy program is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) of the American Physical Therapy Association.

The Department of Physical Therapy at New York Institute of Technology achieved the status of a developing program with the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) in May 1996.

Graduation from an accredited academic program is needed for those who wish to work outside of New York State. All graduates are eligible to take the National Physical Therapy Examination. Accreditation of an academic program with CAPTE is a long and rigorous process that occurs over several years. Listed below are the significant dates for this program:

• Candidacy for accreditation was granted in July 1998.
• Full accreditation was granted by CAPTE in November 2000.
• Final CAPTE report granted New York Institute of Technology full 10-year accreditation, and the program is fully accredited through June 2026.

The Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at New York Institute of Technology is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). For more details contact:

The Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education
American Physical Therapy Association
3030 Potomac Ave., Suite 100
Alexandria, VA 22305-3085

Phone: 703.706.3245
Email: accreditation@apta.org
Website: http://www.capteonline.org.

If needing to contact the program/institution directly, please call 516.686.7696 or email Maria Severance at Maria.Severance@nyit.edu.

Complaints to CAPTE regarding the program must follow strict guidelines. This information can be accessed at: capteonline.org/complaints. New York Tech’s Orthopedic Residency Program does not require, and thus does not have, CAPTE accreditation.