Admission Information

Admission Requirements

Applications to the DPT program will be accepted during the fall semester of each year for enrollment in the program starting the following summer. (ECU no longer offers the MPT). Admission is competitive and limited to 30 students.

Applications that arrive on or before November 1, 2013 will be screened at that time. Qualified applicants will be interviewed and may be offered early acceptance into the program.

Deadline date for receipt of all applications is November 13, 2013. Applications must be postmarked by this date to be reviewed.    

EARLY INTERVIEW DAY - TBA
REGULAR INTERVIEW DAY - TBA - Approximately 60 applicants will be interviewed on this day.

Applicants are notified of their acceptance status 7-10 days following interviews.  The program begins the 11-week summer session in May.

Applicants must apply separately to both the DPT program and Graduate School.
IMPORTANT!  Do NOT submit applications through PTCAS (Physical Therapist Centralized Application Service).

Transfer Students

The Department of Physical Therapy at East Carolina University requests that all students wishing to transfer into our program complete the admissions applications for our department and the ECU Graduate School.  The Graduate School must accept the student prior to consideration by the department.  Transfer students will be treated as all other new applicants seeking entrance into our program and will have to complete all courses required of the PT program at ECU.

In-State Residency

Tuition at East Carolina University is considerably less expensive for North Carolina residents.  The Department of Physical Therapy is not able to make rulings on residency status.  The Registrar at East Carolina University makes these decisions.  Out-of-state students who wish to become residents of North Carolina should go to the ECU Registrar for details http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/registrar/Residency.cfm

Admission preference is given to North Carolina residents.

At the time of application to the program, students must:

• be eligible for admission to the Graduate School. (Applicants must apply separately to both the DPT program and ECU Graduate School.)
• have satisfactory Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores--verbal, quantitative and WRITING. Applicants must include all scores on the DPT application.
• provide evidence of exposure to the practice of physical therapy. Must be supervised by a licensed physical therapist. A minimum of 100 hours is encouraged. A variety of clinical experiences is suggested including:  in-patient, out-patient, rehabilitation, long-term care, geriatrics, and pediatrics.
• have two of the three letters of reference (from the ECU Graduate School application or the DPT application) be completed by licensed PTs who supervised the applicant's PT experience. 
• present evidence that the required prerequisite course work will be completed and an undergraduate degree from an accredited institution conferred before the start of the program in the summer. Applicants should have no more than two prerequisite courses left to complete at the time of application.

Required undergraduate prerequisite courses:

• General chemistry, 8 semester hours with lab 
(CHEM 1150,1151,1160,1161) 
• General physics, 8 semester hours with lab
(PHYS 1250,1251,1260,1261)
• Biology, 12 semester hours to include:
• 8 hours of biology (BIOL 1100,1101,1200,1201) plus 1 semester of Human or Mammalian Physiology with lab OR 4 hours of biology (BIOL 1100, 1101) plus 2 semesters of Human Physiology and Anatomy with lab (BIOL 2140, 2141, 2150, 2151)
• College algebra or higher
• Statistics (Students must take the statistics course from the math department at their institution.  Exercise science statistics courses are not acceptable.)
• Psychology, 6 semester hours (one introductory and one higher)

The above courses must be taken through their respective departments unless prior agreement has been made with the Department of Physical Therapy.

Prerequisite Course Numbers for Other North Carolina Universities

For more information regarding prerequisite courses, please contact Tracy Gilland gillandt@ecu.edu.

For application materials for the Graduate School, click here:
ECU Graduate School.

Information regarding application for the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) must be obtained by contacting:
Graduate Record Examination
Educational Testing Services
P.O. Box 6000
Princeton, NJ 08541-6000
609-771-7670
GRE Website

Admission requirements are subject to change without prior notice.