Learning Outcomes

1. Students and graduates practice in a safe manner that minimizes the risk to patient self and others.
2. Students and graduates demonstrate professional behaviors in all situations and practices in a manner consistent with established legal and professional standards and ethical guidelines.
3. Students and graduates are able to: 1) communicate in ways that are congruent with situational needs; 2) adapt delivery of physical therapy services with consideration for patients' differences, values, preferences, and needs; 3) participate in self assessment to improve clinical and professional performance; and 4) apply current knowledge, theory, clinical reasoning, and the patient's values and perspectives in patient management.
4. Students and graduates are able to: 1) determine with each patient encounter the patient's need for further examination or consultation by a physical therapist or referral to another health care professional (screening); 2) perform a physical therapy examination using evidence-based tests and measures; 3) evaluate data from the patient examination (history, systems review, and tests-measures) to make clinical judgments; 4) determine a diagnosis and prognosis that guides future patient management; 5) establish a physical therapy plan of care that is safe, effective, patient centered, and evidence-based; 6) perform physical therapy interventions in a competent manner; and 7) educate others using relevant and effective teaching methods.
5. Students and graduates will produce quality documentation in a timely manner to support the delivery of physical therapy services and collect and analyzes data from selected outcomes measures in a manner that supports accurate analysis of individual patient and group outcomes.
6. Graduates from the UofSC DPT program will demonstrate advanced knowledge in all four major content areas of the NPTE (National Physical Therapy Exam) above that of the national average: 1. Physical therapy examination; 2. Evaluation, Differential Diagnosis, and Prognosis; 3. Interventions; and 4. Non-System domains.
7. Graduates from the UofSC DPT program will demonstrate advanced knowledge in all four system specific content areas of the NPTE above that of the national average: 1. Cardiovascular and pulmonary; 2. Integumentary and Lymphatic Systems; 3. Musculoskeletal; 4. Neuromuscular; and 5. Other systems.

Degree Requirements (121 Post-Baccalaureate Hours)

Foundational Core (25 Hours)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
PHYT 701	Human Musculoskeletal and Gross Anatomy	5
PHYT 702	Musculoskeletal and Gross Anatomy Dissection	3
PHYT 731	Mechanisms of Motor Skill Performance	3
PHYT 782	Functional Anatomy	4
EXSC 780	Physiology of Exercise	3
PHPH 750	Fundamental Neuroscience I	4
PUBH 700	Perspectives in Public Health	3
Total Credit Hours		25

Clinical Core (63 Hours)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
PUBH 678	Transforming Health Care for the Future	1
PHYT 720	Fundamentals of Physical Therapy	4
PHYT 750	Orthopedic Physical Therapy I	4
PHYT 751	Orthopedic Physical Therapy II	3
PHYT 752	Orthopedic Integration in Physical Therapy	4
PHYT 740	Professional Issues in Physical Therapy	2
PHYT 754	Manual Therapy I	3
PHYT 756	Integumentary Physical Therapy	2
PHYT 757	Pharmacology for the Physical Therapist	2
PHYT 759	Therapeutic Exercise	2
PHYT 760	Orthotics and Prosthetics	2
PHYT 761	Pain Mechanisms and Treatment	2
PHYT 763	Biophysical Agents in Physical Therapy	1
PHYT 765	Geriatric Physical Therapy	2
PHYT 766	Essentials of Cardiopulmonary Physical Therapy	3
PHYT 770	Acute Care Physical Therapy	3
PHYT 777	Special Topics in Physical Therapy	1-3
PHYT 788	Evidence-Based Practice in Physical Therapy	2
PHYT 806	Differential Diagnosis and Clinical Reasoning for Physical Therapists	2
PHYT 809	Neuromuscular Assessment and Treatment I	3
PHYT 810	Neuromuscular Assessment and Treatment II	4
PHYT 811	Pediatric Physical Therapy	3
PHYT 815	Management of Physical Therapy Practice	2
Total Credit Hours		57-59

Clinical Experiences (20 Hours)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
PHYT 850	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy I	6
PHYT 851	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy II	6
PHYT 852	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy III	9
PHYT 860	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy IVa	1
PHYT 861	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy IVb	5
Total Credit Hours		27

Research Core (13 Hours)

Course List

Course	Title	Credits
PHYT 753	Research Proposal Development	1
PHYT 787	Seminar and Research in Physical Therapy	1
PHYT 888	Research Project in Physical Therapy	1-6
Total Credit Hours		3-8

Sequence of Study

The DPT program is a lock-step program in which required courses must be taken in sequence, as listed below, unless prior permission to vary the order is received from the program director.

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
Fall		Credit Hours
PHYT 701	Human Musculoskeletal and Gross Anatomy	5
PHYT 731	Mechanisms of Motor Skill Performance	3
PHYT 740	Professional Issues in Physical Therapy	2
PHYT 753	Research Proposal Development	1
PHYT 782	Functional Anatomy	4
PHYT 787	Seminar and Research in Physical Therapy	1
	Credit Hours	16
Spring
PHYT 702	Musculoskeletal and Gross Anatomy Dissection	3
PHYT 720	Fundamentals of Physical Therapy	4
PHYT 750	Orthopedic Physical Therapy I	4
PHYT 761	Pain Mechanisms and Treatment	2
PHYT 754	Manual Therapy I	3
PHYT 787	Seminar and Research in Physical Therapy	1
	Credit Hours	17
Summer
PHYT 741	Clinical Documentation in Physical Therapy	1
PHYT 751	Orthopedic Physical Therapy II	3
PHYT 759	Therapeutic Exercise	2
PHYT 763	Biophysical Agents in Physical Therapy	1
PHYT 850	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy I	6
	Credit Hours	13
Second Year
Fall
EXSC 780	Physiology of Exercise	3
PHPH 750	Fundamental Neuroscience I	4
PHYT 721	Health Promotion & Wellness in Physical Therapy	2
PHYT 756	Integumentary Physical Therapy	2
PHYT 787	Seminar and Research in Physical Therapy	1
PHYT 788	Evidence-Based Practice in Physical Therapy	2
PHYT 785	Seminar in Physical Therapy	1
PHYT 815	Management of Physical Therapy Practice	2
	Credit Hours	17
Spring
PHYT 757	Pharmacology for the Physical Therapist	2
PHYT 760	Orthotics and Prosthetics	2
PHYT 765	Geriatric Physical Therapy	2
PHYT 770	Acute Care Physical Therapy	3
PHYT 787	Seminar and Research in Physical Therapy	1
PHYT 807	Neuroplasticity and Genetics in Physical Therapy	1
PHYT 809	Neuromuscular Assessment and Treatment I	3
PUBH 678	Transforming Health Care for the Future	1
	Credit Hours	15
Summer
PHYT 766	Essentials of Cardiopulmonary Physical Therapy	3
PHYT 806	Differential Diagnosis and Clinical Reasoning for Physical Therapists	2
PHYT 851	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy II	6
PHYT 888	Research Project in Physical Therapy	1-6
	Credit Hours	12-17
Third Year
Fall
PHYT 752	Orthopedic Integration in Physical Therapy	4
PHYT 787	Seminar and Research in Physical Therapy	1
PHYT 810	Neuromuscular Assessment and Treatment II	4
PHYT 811	Pediatric Physical Therapy	3
PUBH 700	Perspectives in Public Health	3
PHYT 888	Research Project in Physical Therapy	1-6
	Credit Hours	16-21
Spring
PHYT 852	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy III	9
PHYT 888	Research Project in Physical Therapy	1-6
	Credit Hours	10-15
Summer
PHYT 860	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy IVa	1
PHYT 861	Clinical Experience in Physical Therapy IVb	5
	Credit Hours	6
	Total Credit Hours	122-137