The Doctor of Physical Therapy program at Samford University is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), 3030 Potomac Ave., Suite 100, Alexandria, Virginia 22305-3085; telephone: 703-706-3245; email: accreditation@apta.org; website: capteonline.org. If needing to contact the program/institution directly, please call Prisca Collins at 205-726-4435 or email pcollin3@samford.edu.

Doctor of Physical Therapy Admission:
PTCAS Application Opens: June 16, 2025
Application Deadline: October 1, 2025
Entry Month: August 2026

The steps below outline the application process for the Doctor of Physical Therapy program. To apply, you are required to submit both an application through PTCAS as well as a Physical Therapy Supplemental Form. The link to the Supplemental Form will be e-mailed to you within 48 hours of submission of your application. Before starting these applications, we recommend that you complete the following checklist:

• Obtain student copies of your college transcripts to assist you in completing the coursework section for the application.
• Print the instruction manual located under “Quick Links” found at ptcas.org.
• Create an application account. PTCAS simplifies the process of applying to all physical therapy programs. Compete one application and send it along with other information to our centralized service. The PTCAS organization will verify your application for accuracy, calculate your GPA and send your materials to the Doctor of Physical Therapy admissions department at Samford University.
• Request official transcripts from each institution attended by using the transcript request form in PTCAS.
• Complete the form, submit it to the registrar's office of each institution attended and instruct them to enclose the form with your official sealed transcript. Transcripts must be sent to the PTCAS Transcript Department:
  
  PTCAS Transcript Processing Center
  P.O. Box 9112
  Watertown, MA 02471
  
  PTCAS accepts official transcripts sent directly from the registrar's office only. Please send transcripts as early as possible and no less than four to six weeks before the application deadline due to the time needed by PTCAS to verify your application.
• Pay the initial service fee of $140 when submitting the PTCAS application.
• Obtain three letters of recommendation from 1) current or previous professor; 2) supervisor; and 3) physical therapist. These letters of recommendation will be submitted through PTCAS. The references should attest to the applicant's academic ability and potential.
• Please fill out ALL sections of the application.

Submit official test scores to Samford University - Code: 1688.

Admission to the Doctor of Physical Therapy program is competitive. Admission requirements include:

• Baccalaureate degree from a college or university that holds institutional accreditation (degree in any field) or be in the senior year of undergraduate study. A completed bachelor’s degree is required prior to enrollment, as evidenced by a final official college/university transcript. You may receive conditional acceptance with a letter from your registrar stating you have, in fact, completed the requirements for the degree. The “conditional” status is removed once we receive your official transcript.
• Cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale
• Overall GPA of at least 3.0 on prerequisite courses from institutionally accredited colleges or universities. Required prerequisite courses include:
  • Biology I & II with labs
  • Chemistry I & II with labs
  • Physics I & II with labs
  • Human Anatomy and Physiology I & II with labs
  • Pre-calculus
  • Statistics
  • Psychology
  
  *AP, IB, or CLEP credit will be accepted as pre-requisite courses if the courses are documented on your transcripts and have been accepted by your undergraduate College or University.
• Graduate Record Examination (GRE) within the past 5 years with preferred minimum scores of:
  • Combined Score: 297
  • Analytical: 4.0
  • Submit Scores to PTCAS, Samford Code: 1688
   
• Ten hours of documented volunteer experience in each of three different physical therapy practice settings (30 hours total)
  • The program likes to see applicants spend at least a day and a half (10 hours) in three different settings, observing diverse patient populations (total = 30 hours +).  An example of this would be three half days in a children’s hospital outpatient center, one and a half days in a skilled nursing facility; one long day with a physical therapist seeing patients with sports injuries in the clinic, then also on the athletic field later in the evening.  The goal of these 30 hours should be to observe the most different practice settings so that the applicant can reflect on the different roles a physical therapist can serve.
   
• Three letters of reference submitted through the application system. The three required references should be from 1) current or previous professor, 2) work supervisor and 3) a licensed physical therapist.
• International applicants, American citizens or permanent residents who learned English as a second language must score at least 575 (paper) or 90 (internet) on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or a score of 6.5 on IELTS.
• Participate in an in-person interview. 

Upon acceptance, a non-refundable fee of $1,000 is required to secure admission into the program. This fee is applied to the first semester's tuition. 

Exceptions to any admission requirements will be handled on an individual basis.

Students and applicants who seek accommodations must make a request by contacting the Section 504/Disability Access and Accommodation Coordinator, 205-726-4078 or disability@samford.edu.

 * Class of 2023 started Summer 2020 with Covid restrictions

Samford offers a fast-track program that provides eligible students the opportunity to earn both a Bachelor of Science in exercise science and a Doctor of Physical Therapy in just six years. Students can apply for the program as incoming freshman. 

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