Why PT over other Career Options?

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FitnessDoc2012

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Just wondering what everyone's reasoning is for choosing PT over other Career options?... especially knowing that taking on a career as a PT will immense a massive amount of debt....
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I'm still not too sure either. It's not only the salary, but I've been researching PT and seen that in some areas PTs are only diagnosing while PTAs work with the patients, which is a concern for me and probably others because one of the reasons I like PT is the ability to work with patients.
The debt doesn't really bother me too much. If you go to a state school, it really won't be too bad. The salary is also decent. Yeah, it's not like a pharmacists or even a PA's salary, but it should be high enough to live relatively comfortably while paying off the debt.
If you think about it one way, so much of your life will be spent at work. Eight hours, five days a week, every week. You'll be there as much as you'll be home. Why not choose a job you know you'd enjoy so you can spend all of that time doing what your passionate about instead of counting down the hours? If not, it's just a wast of half of my life...and that's a big waste. Time like that is something money can't really buy.
 
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Debt isn't unreasonable at all if you're going to a state school.
 
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For me, I chose PT because the way it makes me feel. Yes, I am aware of how corny that sounds...but it's true. I was a health and exercise science major in college and considered multiple career paths during my undergrad. I thought about med school, PA school and nursing school...and while I might have enjoyed some of those careers, I just wasn't excited about them. Something about PT excited me and that excitement has only grown with additional experiences. Sure, the debt part is going to suck. There is no way around that. But...I would rather be in debt and love what I do, than be in debt and be unhappy.
 
puppypaws said:
I'm still not too sure either. It's not only the salary, but I've been researching PT and seen that in some areas PTs are only diagnosing while PTAs work with the patients, which is a concern for me and probably others because one of the reasons I like PT is the ability to work with patients.
The debt doesn't really bother me too much. If you go to a state school, it really won't be too bad. The salary is also decent. Yeah, it's not like a pharmacists or even a PA's salary, but it should be high enough to live relatively comfortably while paying off the debt.
If you think about it one way, so much of your life will be spent at work. Eight hours, five days a week, every week. You'll be there as much as you'll be home. Why not choose a job you know you'd enjoy so you can spend all of that time doing what your passionate about instead of counting down the hours? If not, it's just a wast of half of my life...and that's a big waste. Time like that is something money can't really buy.
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Have you actually observed the scenario of PT making a PT diagnosis while the PTA then universally takes over the patient's case?

I work for the largest PT provider in the mid-west and as a corporation we hardly employee any PTAs, leaving the PT to examine the patient, synthesize the data gained during the exam, formulate a plan of care, and execute the plan.
 
jesspt: I haven't personally observed that scenario, but my aunt works at a hospital in NY where this has occurred.
 
A career in PT does not have to equate to a massive amount of student loan debt. That said, it could equate to a sizable amount of student loan debt if you do not do your HW or you have limited options. However, that does not make PT unique at all. In fact, as you look at other health care careers you will see that student loans are the status quo. Compared to other "mid level:rolleyes:" health care practitioners, a physical therapist may have less debt(think pharmacy or dentistry). Will these folks make more? Almost certainly. You can most certainly make a six figure salary as a PT, but you will probably have to do it working more than a 40hr week, which is what a Pharmacist, MD/DO, DMV, NP, and DDS do.

I chose PT because I enjoy understanding how movement is impacted by various traumas/illness/injuries/imbalances. I also thought I could make a decent living without burning the candle at both ends. I literally have an obsession with understanding the human body and the various sciences/clinical practices one studies to quench that thirst for knowledge. Those are my reasons!
 
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Hey everyone thanks for all your support/encouragement/advice over the years on this forum. After having a bad experience in PT school and then realizing the huge amount of debt with low salary and worry about reimbursement since the APTA does not lobby for our services as strong as the AMA or nursing association, I have decided to go to an accelerated nursing program with hope of attending nurse practitioner school. I wish you all lots of success in your programs and in the field of physical therapy!! :)
 
FLsurferDPT said:
Hey everyone thanks for all your support/encouragement/advice over the years on this forum. After having a bad experience in PT school and then realizing the huge amount of debt with low salary and worry about reimbursement since the APTA does not lobby for our services as strong as the AMA or nursing association, I have decided to go to an accelerated nursing program with hope of attending nurse practitioner school. I wish you all lots of success in your programs and in the field of physical therapy!! :)
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Best wishes! I hope you find what you are looking for!
 
I truly enjoy the field of rehab. I've always loved the medical field and wanted to be a doctor for a long time...but I enjoy rehab/PT so much more. Hands on treatment with your patients, building close relationships, watching their progress...nothing beats the feeling of seeing someone walk out the door 10x better than when they came in. It's just really gratifying when you get to take an active role in all that.
 
can somebody tell me then how to go to pt school with an affordable debt to salary ratio in NJ or PA....every single school is outrageously priced.
 
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Hefe, before you post your message you should do your research. I have posted multiple documents analyzing debt and interest to earnings potential of a PT...I was just posting a question to see if anyone had any info regarding affordable PT programs in the northeast.
 
FitnessDoc2012 said:
can somebody tell me then how to go to pt school with an affordable debt to salary ratio in NJ or PA....every single school is outrageously priced.
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May I ask what specific numbers do you consider affordable? 80K or less? Any school less than 100K? If you cannot find programs in PA or NJ that fit your financial criterion then are you willing to go to school outside the area? I am from Philadelphia, and I know how expensive it is to attend school and live in the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic corridor. I have chosen to go to school in Rochester, MN(The Mayo Clinic) in part because it would save me anywhere from 15-40K in base tuition. I also know that the COL is much cheaper in a place like Rochester, MN than it is in Philly, NY, DC, or Boston.

Underlying point is that you may have to expound your search to get what you are looking for.
 
puppypaws said:
jesspt: I haven't personally observed that scenario, but my aunt works at a hospital in NY where this has occurred.
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Not to be inflammatory here, but if you're talking about an acute care hospital, rather than their outpatient ortho PT department, there is little "diagnosing" going on. The PTs are identifying some obvious impairments and developing a treatment plan, then passing it off to the PTAs. This does happen in some acute care settings. It is also one of the reasons (among many) that you could not pay me enough to work in that setting.
 
TheOx777 said:
I chose PT because I enjoy understanding how movement is impacted by various traumas/illness/injuries/imbalances. I also thought I could make a decent living without burning the candle at both ends. I literally have an obsession with understanding the human body and the various sciences/clinical practices one studies to augment that thirst for knowledge. Those are my reasons!
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Ox hit it right on the head. My interest began with how the body responds to exercise and has grown into a greater appreciation of the human body and more intrique on its inner-workings.






FLsurferDPT said:
I have decided to go to an accelerated nursing program with hope of attending nurse practitioner school. I
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Good luck, dude! You'll go far!
 
I'm surprised that so many people are so concerned about the debt. The debt really isn't any worse than for any other masters degree - healthcare or not - and the expected starting salary is pretty darn good, especially if you compare it to, say, someone who pays the same price to get a masters in English! The job market is also good.

You have to think of it as an investment. You're taking out loans so that you can have (in most cases) a dramatically increased salary once you're done. I live in the northeast, which has a very high cost of living, and have loans from undergrad which are still not paid off, loans from a year of law school, and loans for a two-year masters program. I already owe about $85,000. In my last job which was directly related to my masters degree (and which I quit to change careers) I was only making a little over $46K and my loans were manageable (and were even before I got married last year and had the benefit of my husband's income.) I have all Stafford loans at this point, and my combined monthly payment is a little over $600. I don't know if loan consolidation is still available, but I consolidated most of my loans and then lengthened the repayment timeframe. There are also graduated- and income-sensitive repayment options available.

That said, since I already have such high debt, I am looking at state schools and will, I hope, be able to pay most of the tuition out of pocket, rather than taking on more loans. But if I didn't already have high loan debt, I would not think twice about private schools.
 
FitnessDoc2012 said:
Just wondering what everyone's reasoning is for choosing PT over other Career options?... especially knowing that taking on a career as a PT will immense a massive amount of debt....
Click to expand...

PT is definitley going to be an expensive career path, but so are many other great professions. You've gotta get into some debt in order to get you feet up. PT employment is expected to grow pretty fast in the near future, so job opportunities will be pretty plentiful. You're also required to go through a PT program after your bachelor's--there's a lot of work, but it's also very rewarding. If you've got a heart for PT and helping people back in moving again and setting plans for them, then it's all worth it.

Take a look at some of these:
1. http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos080.htm - a super thorough description of what it looks like to be in PT as your career
2. http://www.onlinehealthcaredegrees.com/ - also taking some courses to get a head start online could be helpful
3. http://careers.stateuniversity.com/pages/489/Physical-Therapist.html - a condensed version of no. 1

Just make sure you evaluate your heart if you're called to it, and it can be a very rewarding career whether it puts you into debt or many years to finish the program :)
 
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