Those who can do, those who can't teach?

[FLsurferDPT]

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As PT school becomes closer and closer and more of a reality I am trying to convince myself that I am making the right choice. I have a BS in biology with about a 3.8 gpa and have been accepted to some great PT schools. However, the tuition of funding a physical therapy education is starting to scare me. I've looked everywhere for scholarships or any type of financial aid (I even thought of doing military but couldn't find anything for PT tuition reimbursement) but it seems like there is nothing available.

On the other hand, I thought about becoming a high school or middle school biology teacher. I can get paid to get a one years master degree and still have a job that makes an impact in peoples lives without a three year doctoral education that would cost 75,000+. With all these teach grants and cornucopia of financial aid I really don't know what to do. Comparing the careers on bls, physical therapy looks to be a lot more in demand and pays about 20,000 more a year but teachers don't work summers and so salary of course would be lower.

I'm sure everyone right before PT school starts is worried about paying for the education. The question is whether I should play it safe, become a teacher for now, I'm only 21, and maybe later in life go back for a health care degree when i've saved up money or be risky and go for something I love although I do love the youth and biology and think it would be cool to teach others about how cool science is. With the health care reform I'm getting really worried whether the health care system will be stable or not. Any thoughts? 😎

 

[FLsurferDPT]

Sorry guys you can ignore this post. I read on articles on how teachers get knives and guns pulled on them and how most hate their jobs. Physical therapy is one of the most satisfying careers and you get to TEACH your patients, the best of both worlds. I can tell a lot of you all are getting worried about debt from loans but I did the math and here is what I found.


This calculation will compare the salary of a teacher to a physical therapist. Here are my calculations starting with accounting for the student loans. Being a teacher would require no additional money. A pt education would cost about 80,000 with everything factored in and three years. So for a ten year period I would expect to work for seven years and make 525,000 (7*75,000). With being a teacher it would take one year to get the degree and teachers start out making 25,000 so I would work for nine years with a salary of about 30,000 since I factored in the fact that teacher pay increases with experience so that equals 270,000 (9 years time 30,000) salary. Now with the Pt salary I would have to subtract the 80,000 from the 525000 to account for loans. This leads me in ten years to have made 445,000 as a physical therapist. Already that difference in salary from PT and teacher is (445,000-270,000)=175,000!

now for twenty years if I make the same salary of 75,000 a year and for teaching my pay goes up to about 45,000 a year I would make 10*75,000=750,000 for those ten years as a pt and 10*45,000=450,000 for ten years as a teacher. Now to add that on the the previous salaries of the earlier ten years... In 20 years as a PT i would make 750,000+445,000= 1,195,000 dollars (over 1 million dollars). As a teacher in twenty years I would make 270,000+450,000=720,000 (not even a million dollars in 20 years). the choice becomes more obvious. I will make 477,000 (almost half a million) more as a PT. Now I could obviously make a ton more working as a traveling pt or doing home health in which teachers cant do. I know money isn't everything but in comparing two careers that help people, I feel really blessed and excited that I have the opportunity on the rewarding career that helps people and makes good money in respect to teaching.

 

[callmecrazy]

I'm so glad this post wasn't what the title made it sound like!

I've actually sort of "been there, done that" so hopefully I can provide some insight. I have my BS in Biology, and while in undergrad, I completed my requirements to be a secondary ed bio teacher. I ended up in a research lab due to a lack of teacher openings. I continued to look for open teaching positions but found nothing to even apply for for a year and a half. It was then that I sort of re-evaluated things and decided I needed a new path. In doing so, I also realized that if I went into teaching I would probably retire doing the same thing I did when I was started, which was unappealing to me. A lot of soul searching and career research led me to PT, and I am now in my 3rd semester of PT school.

That's my story, so here is some advice. Being a good PT involves a huge amount of "teaching". And if you like the youth population you can go into pediatrics; you can even work as a PT in a school. That being said, teaching jobs are stable in that you are pretty much set until retirement once you are tenured. The jobs can be hard to find though, so where you want to live is a huge factor. You can't touch a teaching job here, but they're plentiful in places like Baltimore and Orlando.

And the most important advice... choose the career path that is going to make you happy and give you satisfaction. You could spend time saving up for the DPT, or you could use that same time paying off loans while already happily working as a PT. Don't let "playing it safe" hold you back from what you love. Go for the career you are most drawn to.

 

[callmecrazy]

Physical therapy is one of the most satisfying careers and you get to TEACH your patients, the best of both worlds.

This. Exactly.

 

[sapphirek3]

Don't do it!!!! I was a high school biology teacher for 5 years and am now going for my DPT. Save yourself the time and just go for the DPT! The debt is worth it!

 

[helloteenah]

I'm glad you posted this. I am considering the DPT versus the Diagnostic Medical Sonography degree.

After working for three years as tech, I know that I enjoyed my time in the physical therapy world. I am just really scared of paying for tuition and the cost of living. Right now I work FT as a legal assistant.
So I've been considering this new sonography program that is starting this summer in my city. I wouldn't have to move. I'd be done in 16 months. I'd save a lot of money in tuition. The median salary is 61,000 according to BLS website.

One problem is that the job market for PT is going to grow 30% whereas sonography will grow by 18%. I've read on indeed.com forums that the market is over saturated with sonographers, and new graduates are having difficulty finding jobs with the hiring freezes at hospitals. Private practices are laying off sonographers to cut the costs. So then I think about how there is always an ad in the classifieds looking for a physical therapist to work.

I keep going back and forth, but your post made me feel better. I was drawn to sonography for practical reasons, but I can't really say "This is what I want to do!"

 

[helloteenah]

Also I found this job listing posted in my local newspaper's classifieds with the following salary:
"State Salary Range: $25.48 - $50.88 hourly
$4,417.00 - $8,819.00 monthly

It is a physical therapist job for a state run rehabilitation center where you would also be instructing PT students.