Physical Therapy Assistant

Types of Degrees Physical Therapy Assistant Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many physical therapy assistant graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Associate Degree	5,655
Undergraduate Certificate	211
Bachelor’s Degree	89
Basic Certificate	37
Master’s Degree	1

What Physical Therapy Assistant Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, physical therapy assistant majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Physical Therapy Assistant Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

Skills for Physical Therapy Assistant Majors

A major in physical therapy assistant prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.

Abilities for Physical Therapy Assistant Majors

A major in physical therapy assistant will prepare for your careers in which the following abilities are important:

• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.

What Can You Do With a Physical Therapy Assistant Major?

People with a physical therapy assistant degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Physical Therapist Assistants	31.1%	$58,040

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Physical Therapy Assistant?

This major is dominated by women with about 72% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of physical therapy assistant majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	7
Black or African American	5
Hispanic or Latino	10
White	60
International Students	0
Other Races/Ethnicities	7

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Physical Therapy Assistant

Some degrees associated with physical therapy assistant may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

How much schooling do you really need to compete in today’s job market? People currently working in careers related to physical therapy assistant have obtained the following education levels.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	99.8%
Bachelor’s Degree	0.2%

Online Physical Therapy Assistant Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	15	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	379	1
Bachelor’s Degree	0	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	2	0
Post-Master’s	1	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Majors Related to Physical Therapy Assistant

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to physical therapy assistant.

Major	Number of Grads
Medical/Clinical Assistant	52,088
Pharmacy Technician/Assistant	6,707
Other Allied Health and Medical Assisting Services	4,121
Occupational Therapist Assistant	3,647
Emergency Care Attendant (EMT Ambulance)	3,195
Radiologist Assistant	1,446
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Assistant	616
Respiratory Therapy Technician/Assistant	454
Anesthesiologist Assistant	382
Speech-Language Pathology Assistant	295
Pathology/Pathologist Assistant	187
Lactation Consultant	58

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.