Physical Therapy
Welcome
The Department of Physical Therapy at the С²ÝӰԺ offers a PhD in Physical Therapy degree, a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree, and an accredited Pediatric Physical Therapy Residency Program. The С²ÝÓ°Ôº Department of Physical Therapy began graduating students in 1972 as the first PT Program in the state of Arkansas. As a member of the College of Health and Behavioral Sciences, (see ) the Department of Physical Therapy is chaired by Dr. Kevin Garrison, PT, PhD, Chairperson and Associate Professor.
Programs Offered
С²ÝÓ°Ôº DPT – TOP 25%
U.S. News & World Report released the 2024 Best Graduate Schools rankings on April 10, revealing the excellent performance of С²ÝÓ°Ôº programs including Physical Therapy #58, Occupational Therapy #92 and Speech Language Pathology #136.
The С²ÝÓ°Ôº DPT Program continues to rank best among DPT Schools nationally.  С²ÝÓ°Ôº is ranked among the top 25% of DPT Programs according to U.S. News & World Report 2024 Best Grad Schools review.
Dunleavy and Maresh Distinguished Alumni
The Joe Finnell Distinguished Alumni Award (JFDAA) recognizes and honors С²ÝÓ°Ôº Physical Therapy alumni for outstanding contributions and impact to the profession or community. This year’s recipients are the 13th and 14th С²ÝÓ°Ôº Physical Therapy alumni to receive the JFDAA. The 2024 JFDAA recipients are Dr. Kim Dunleavy and Dr. Twala Maresh. They will be recognized at the 2024 DPT Convocation Ceremony at С²ÝÓ°Ôº in the Reynolds Performance Hall on Friday, August 9, 2024 at 2:00 PM. The public is invited to attend. Click for more information about each recipient.
PTCAS is Open
Prospective DPT students, please know that Physical Therapist Central Application Service (PTCAS) is now open for DPT applications. С²ÝÓ°Ôº utilizes PTCAS for DPT admissions and our application deadline is October 1st.
Visit to learn more and to begin.
DPT Accreditation
The Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at the С²ÝÓ°Ôº 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: . If needing to contact the program/institution directly, please call (501) 450-3611 or email pt@uca.edu.

DPT Program Information![](/pt/files/2023/10/IMG_0984-300x300.png)
С²ÝÓ°Ôº DPT Brochure provides information for prospective applicants to the DPT Program.ÌýÌý provides information about specific courses as well as the Arkansas Four Year Schools PT Prerequisite Course Equivalency to С²ÝÓ°Ôº.
Links
APTA ArkansasÂ
American Physical Therapy Association ()
С²ÝÓ°Ôº DPT Financial Fact Sheet (new)
2023-С²ÝÓ°Ôº-dpt-student-financial-fact-sheet 11_1
This С²ÝÓ°Ôº specific financial fact sheet is updated annually and provides specific dollar amounts regarding cost to attend.