I have been a tech for three years now. I just wanted to hear from PTs from both sides (those who worked as techs and those who didn't). Do you feel like working as a PT aide gave you an upper hand in school? How? For those of you who weren't, did you feel less prepared than your classmates who were techs? I just wanted to get some insight. I'm starting PT school soon and I'm getting nervous!
Did working as a Tech help you in PT school
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The biggest advantage I've experienced is just having a previously built catalog of exercises and being familiar with modality parameters. But, both of those things are topics that you're taught in school, so I don't think that someone who was not a tech would be at a disadvantage -- in the long run, we learn the same information, just at different times and maybe in different places
Don't be nervous for school - relax now before you start and study hard once you begin. You'll be fine.
Don't be nervous for school - relax now before you start and study hard once you begin. You'll be fine.
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I never worked as a rehab tech/aide, and I don't think I was any further behind than anyone else in my class. Then again, I wasn't beside my classmates in the clinic to observe what talents/skills they may have had that I didn't. I will second 02143 and say that I would imagine that you would have a catalog of exercises, because that was one of the things I lacked at the beginning, but it didn't make me less prepared. You learn so many exercises (good and bad) at your clinical rotations, that it all works out in the end!
I was a tech/aide at a subacute place so i felt it really helped me initially in clinic with transfers and therex and IMO, IME, it showed I was confident with hands-on activities compared to classmates. But as I said, it helped initially. After many weeks/months classmates who weren't techs caught on pretty quick and are great therapists today. So yes, i think it gives an upper hand, albeit only slight.
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I was an aide for a year before starting PT school. While I do think it was helpful for me to have had previous knowledge of exercise prescription and exercise technique, I don't think that my other classmates who were not aides were necessarily at a disadvantage. If you're at a good school and people are willing to put the work in, the outcome is all the same. I happened to have worked at an awesome clinic were the therapists were great at educating me on the perfect technique and what the goal of each exercise was so it really did help during exercise physiology class and just general exercise prescription for my rotations.