Samuel Merritt College

PROGRAM CONTACT INFORMATION

Janessa Reinblatt
Assistant Director of Admission
Samuel Merritt College
Office of Admission
370 Hawthorne Avenue
Oakland, California 94609
Phone: 510-869-1571
Phone (alternate number):
Email: jreinblatt@samuelmerritt.edu
Website: http://www.samuelmerritt.edu/physical_therapy/requirements

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Final PTCAS Application Deadline	Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Deadline Type	Soft Deadline
Program has rolling admissions process?	NO

Other deadlines (if any):

Additional Deadline Information: Applications should be received by October 15. Applications may be accepted after this deadline on a space available basis. Please check with the Office of Admission. Interview notifications will be sent in late December 2008. Interviews will be held in late January 2009.

PROGRAM PREREQUISITES

Course Prerequisites

Must applicants earn a Bachelor's degree prior to enrolling into the PT program? YES

For more information about course prerequisites, visit the program Web site: http://www.samuelmerritt.edu/physical_therapy/requirements

Course prerequisite fields will be blank if program data is not available or applicable.

Course Prerequisite Name or Subject Area	Req, Rec, Crq*	SEM hrs	QTR hrs	Lab Required (Y/N)	Additional Program Information
English Composition	REQ	3	.	NA	.
General Psychology	REQ	3	.	NA	.
Statistics	REQ	3	.	NA	.
Social Science Elective	REQ	3	.	NA	Any additional course in sociology, psychology, anthropology or ethnic studies
General Biology	REQ	8	.	YES	.
General Chemistry	REQ	8	.	YES	.
General Physics	REQ	8	.	YES	.
Human Anatomy	REQ	3	.	NO	.
Human Physiology	REQ	3	.	NO	.
Exercise Physiology	REQ	3	.	NO	.

* “Req” = required course; “Rec” = recommended course; “Crq” = conditionally required course

Graduate Record Examination (GRE)

GRE: Required
Last acceptable GRE test date( if applicable):
Oldest GRE score considered (if applicable): 10/15/2003

GRE table below may contain blank fields if program data is not available or applicable.

GRE Section	Minimum GRE Score	Average GRE Score for Accepted Students
Verbal	450	520
Verbal Percentile	.	.
Quantitative	500	660
Quantitative Percentile	.	.
Analytical	.	.
Analytical Percentile	.	.
Writing	.	.
Writing Percentile	.	.

Additional information about program’s GRE requirements:
Verbal and Quantitative GRE scores must be available to report to PTCAS by the application deadline of October 15.

References

Total number of references required by program: 2 References

REFERENCE TYPE	Reference Type Is Required, Recommended, Accepted, Conditionally Required, NOT Accepted, or Other
Teaching Assistant	Not Accepted
Supervisor	Not Accepted
PTA	Not Accepted
Professor (Science)	Required
Professor (Math)	Conditionally Required
Professor (Liberal Arts)	Conditionally Required
Pre-Health Advisor	Not Accepted
Politician	Not Accepted
Physical Therapist (1)	Required
Physical Therapist (2)	Not Accepted
Health Care Provider	Not Accepted
Friend	Not Accepted
Family Member	Not Accepted
Faculty Advisor	Not Accepted
Employer	Not Accepted
Co-Worker	Not Accepted
Clergy	Not Accepted
OTHER	Not Accepted

Additional information about program’s reference requirements:
Two letters of reference are required; one from a faculty member that addresses your academic preparedness for a DPT program and the other from a physical therapist who has supervised you in a clinical environment (inpatient or outpatient).

PT Observation Hours

Enter your PT observation hours on your PTCAS application. Login to the PTCAS application and print each customized PT Observation Hours form, if the program requires a physical therapist to verify your hours with a signature. Mail the signed form directly to the PT program, if required. Do not mail to PTCAS.

PT HOURS	PROGRAM REQUIREMENT
Description of Program’s PT Hours Requirement	PT hours are required - a licensed PT must verify hours with signed form
Total Number of Hours REQUIRED	40
Total Number of Hours RECOMMENDED	.
DEADLINE for Completion of All PT Hours	31-May-09
PAID Experience	Accepted
VOLUNTEER Experience	Accepted
INPATIENT Experience	Required
OUTPATIENT Experience	Not Applicable
Number of hours in each PT specialty (if specified)	.
Number of hours in each PT setting (if specified)	.

Additional information about program’s PT hours requirement:

GPA Requirement

GPAs will be blank if program data is not available or applicable.

Name of GPA	Minimum GPA	Average GPA for Accepted Students
Overall Undergraduate Cumulative	2.80	3.39
Program-specific Prerequisite	2.60	3.29
Other GPA 1:	.	.
Other GPA 2:	.	.

Additional information about program’s GPA requirements (if any): All grades earned will be included in the overall GPA calculation. If a course is repeated, both the initial and repeat grade will be included in the overall GPA calculation. Courses satisfying a prerequisite requirement may be repeated once if the initial grade earned is a C+ or below. If a prerequisite course is repeated, the new grade will be used in the prerequisite GPA calculation if available at the time of application.

PTCAS Essay Instructions

You can customize your PTCAS essay for each designated PTCAS program. The PT program may require you to respond to specific essay questions. If program instructions below are blank, respond to 3 of the 5 essay questions on the PTCAS application form.

What personal characteristics do you have that make you suitable for the profession of physical therapy?
What is your motivation for pursuing a career in physical therapy?
How has your background and experience prepared you to interact effectively with individuals who are different from you in their social, cultural, or economic perspectives?
What types of patients have you observed with the greatest frequency, and what have you learned from them?
If you were to be accepted to two or more physical therapy education programs, what would help you make the decision regarding which program you should select?
REPEAT APPLICANTS If you have applied to a physical therapy program in the past five years, what have you done to improve upon, or enhance, your application for this current admissions cycle?

PROGRAM’S ESSAY REQUIREMENTS (If program instructions are blank, you must respond to 3 of the 5 essay questions on the PTCAS application form):

SUPPLEMENTAL REQUIREMENTS

If supplemental materials are required, send items directly to the PT program.

ITEM	PROGRAM REQUIREMENT
Supplemental application required?	YES - For all complete PTCAS applicants
Supplemental deadline(s)	15-Oct-08
Link to supplemental application or instructions	http://www.samuelmerritt.edu/physical_therapy/ptcas_essay
Supplemental FEE required?	NO
If yes, supplemental fee amount	$
Briefly describe requirements for supplemental materials (if applicable)	Additional essay question.

Criminal Background Check

Are accepted applicants required to complete a criminal background check? YES
Description of criminal background check process (if applicable): Our clinical sites require criminal background checks for students rotating through their facility. All admitted students will be required to have a clear background check prior to engaging in clinical studies.

FOREIGN APPLICANTS AND TRANSCRIPTS

The program’s foreign (international) transcript policies do NOT apply to study abroad coursework that is itemized on a U.S. college or university transcript. Study abroad is processed in the same way as U.S. coursework.

POLICY	PROGRAM REQUIREMENT
Program’s citizenship requirements (individuals listed may be eligible for admission):	U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents, Canadian citizens, Foreign (non-U.S.) citizens with a visa, Foreign (non-U.S.) citizens
Program requires non-native speakers to submit TOEFL scores?	YES
Program policy for submission of non-U.S. (foreign/international) coursework:	Send foreign transcript evaluation to PTCAS.
Program policy for CANADIAN coursework:	Same as instructions for foreign transcripts above.

Additional information about program’s policy on foreign coursework:

PROGRAM INFORMATION

PT Degree Offered:	Program culminates in a doctoral (DPT) degree.
PT Program Start Date(s) For Entering Class:	9/1/2009
Dual-degree programs offered in conjunction with the PT degree (if any):	.

PROFILE OF MOST RECENT ENTERING CLASS

Items will be blank if program data is not available or applicable.

PROFILE INFORMATION	PROGRAM DATA
Size of Most Recent Entering Class	32
Anticipated Size of Next Entering Class	32
Percent of IN-STATE applicants accepted	30
Percent of WICHE applicants accepted (if applicable):	.
Percent of OUT-OF-STATE (non-resident) applicants accepted	33
Percent of CANADIAN applicants accepted	0
Percent of INTERNATIONAL (non-U.S/non-Canadian) applicants accepted	0

Additional information about the class profile:

Institution's religious affiliation (if any):

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

The entry-level, DPT program is designed around several important approaches to learning so that graduates excel in serving patients and clients as practitioners capable of autonomous decisions as part of a health care team. Courses are designed to progressively build critical thinking, clinical decision-making and clinical reasoning skills with increasingly complex patient problems. Courses that focus on learning the practice of physical therapy are closely integrated with the basic sciences such as anatomy, kinesiology, and biomechanics. Pharmacology, imaging and the medical management of the patients are simultaneously covered in concert with the clinical courses. Physical therapy services through the lifespan, from pediatrics through geriatrics, are interwoven in the clinical courses and there are additional, specific courses that address the needs of these special populations served by physical therapists. There are clinical case study courses in small-group seminar format that also synchronize with the other courses each semester. Students have part-time clinical experiences under the mentorship of physical therapists during which they are able to see patients who have problems similar to those being covered in the classroom. Students see patients who have neuromuscular problems under faculty supervision in a free outpatient clinic during two semesters. Two full-time clinical experiences are interspersed after key semesters so that classroom learning is reinforced with clinical experience. The importance of communication and relationship between the PT and patients in a culturally diverse environment and the multiple roles of physical therapists in the health care system are addressed throughout the program. Students begin the 33 month, full-time program each fall. The final six months of the program are spent on a full-time clinical experience.

There are many distinguishing features of the DPT program at Samuel Merritt College.

You will have outstanding clinical education experiences. As a DPT student, you will have 42 weeks of full-time, clinical experiences. Clinical experiences start in the second semester and are interwoven throughout the curriculum, culminating in a six-month internship, one of the only such internships in the United States. For the past three years, 50/60% of our interns received a stipend during their internship.
You will work with excellent faculty to become a physical therapist who provides the best care possible to your patients. Students are introduced to evidence-based practice in their first semester in the program and these skills are developed and reinforced in all courses. During the six month internship, you will select a patient, and under the guidance of your clinical instructor and academic faculty, complete a case-study report in a format suitable for publication. Each year, graduates present their case reports at major State and National conferences.
Faculty who excel both in the classroom and in the clinical setting and who are dedicated to work with you to pursue your goal to become a Physical Therapist.