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Message from the Chair
Welcome to the Fresno State Department of Physical Therapy.
On behalf of the faculty, staff and students of the Department of Physical Therapy, welcome to our home page. We are very proud of our students, faculty and programs within the department. This is a very exciting time as you investigate the profession of Physical Therapy. Our Physical Therapy Program offers a progressive, professional Physical Therapy graduate education. Our mission is to prepare graduates to become competent adaptable, and compassionate Physical Therapy practitioners of the highest quality committed to life-long learning, self-development, and critical inquiry. We have a distinguished history of achieving our mission and serving the community.
There are currently three degree programs within the department: a Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Health and Rehabilitation Sciences (IHRS) designed to accommodate students seeking careers in health care including Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Rehabilitation Counseling, Therapeutic Recreation or Public Health, a two-year Master of Physical Therapy (MPT) and a one-year joint Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) with University of California, San Francisco.
We invite high school and college undergraduate applicants to the IHRS program and applicants who already hold a baccalaureate degree to apply to the graduate MPT program and practicing clinicians with a Masters in Physical Therapy are eligible to apply for the DPT.
The Physical Therapy faculty members are an impressive group devoted to our students and the profession of Physical Therapy. Collectively, we are a professionally and personally diverse group with expertise in geriatrics, pediatrics, neurophysiology and neuro-rehab, orthopedics, anatomy, pharmacology, exercise science, biomechanics, and professional foundations. We have vast clinical expertise in all major areas of practice. The majority of faculty conducts research on an on-going basis and routinely present and publish work in collaboration with our students. The faculty are dedicated educators and highly accessible. In addition to the seven full-time physical therapist faculty members many other professionals contribute to the Program including physicians, physical therapists, and other health care professionals. We are very fortunate to have a community that is supportive of this program achieving its mission with our students.
The curriculum is contemporary and innovative. Students learn in small class sizes in well-equipped classroom facilities. They have ongoing patient contact in the Program such as patients visiting the classroom and regular trips to local clinics, as we as our on-campus Gait, Balance, and Mobility Education and Research Center that contains state-of-the-art equipment for testing and treating patients. Additionally, there are two full-time clinical practicums during the summer between the first and second year and during winter break in the final year. Post-graduation, students enroll in two 9-week full-time clinical internships. Successful completion of the curriculum and the post-graduate internships are to be eligible for state licensure.
As one of the public schools within California, Fresno State's program is most affordable, even with the implementation of the additional self-support DPT program.
Graduates of the Programs are our ambassadors. They routinely pass the licensure examination. Our graduates are regularly employed within weeks of seeking employment. They are employed in diverse settings such as hospitals, outpatient facilities, nursing homes, and private practices. Many of our graduates have assumed leadership positions in the professional associate, several have gone on to pursue advanced degrees, and most are still actively practicing Physical Therapy either full or part-time. Many of our graduates have assumed administrative positions in clinical settings, including ownership of private practices. Many of our clinical instructors are our own graduates and some have assumed academic teaching responsibilities in the program. Several have achieved Clinical Specialist Certification.
On behalf of the faculty of the Physical Therapy Program, I welcome you as you investigate Fresno State's Physical Therapy program.
Sincerely,
Peggy R. Trueblood, PhD, PT
Professor and Department Chair
Phone: (559) 278-3008
E-mail: peggyt@csufresno.edu