personal statement examples for pt school

PTCAS Personal Statement Examples

The American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) first launched the Physical Therapist Centralized Application Service (PTCAS) on August 1, 2008, in an attempt to simplify the registration process for prospective physical therapist (PT) students and to make the interview process for professional PT educational programs easier.

PTCAS enables people to apply to numerous PT programs using a single web-based application and one set of materials. The American Physical Therapy Association administers PTCAS is a service of Liaison International, a Watertown, Massachusetts-based education information technology firm.

Best Practices To Communicate Your Determination In PTCAS Essay

1. communication.

This is the first and most crucial element a student must grasp before the beginning of actual writing. It is also the most important for your future education. Examine your manuscripts and ask yourself the following questions:

Is my vocabulary large enough to convey all of the information and details I need to the reader?
Are both my written and spoken talents near-perfect enough to persuade the reader to support you?
Is it possible for me to adequately communicate how good a communicator I am?

Some of these may appear strange at first glance. But, keep in mind that communication is the most crucial factor in establishing patient-therapist relationships and achieving the best results.

It’s Good To Know: Physical Therapy Personal Statement Examples

Only after getting a professional license, a physical therapist can practice. Keep in mind that, to avoid numerous uncomfortable circumstances, every professional should follow business ethics.

You will be able to obey all of the rules and regulations once you have learned everything. The admissions committee will be confident that you will always want to advocate for your patients in the future, no matter what.

3. Maturity

As a therapist, you must demonstrate that you can function well in every stressful setting. This will ensure that you can face the most unexpected and extreme situations with a cool head.

From the standpoint of social, physical, and emotional well-being, you can determine your maturity level. There’s nothing wrong with being vulnerable to others. But, the capacity to control one’s emotions is more important for a future physical therapist. You can familiarise yourself with one of the applicable PTCAS personal statement samples if you’re looking for one.

4. Responsibility

As a student, you should take responsibility for your education; therefore, if you accept the challenge, you must demonstrate that you can not only obtain the incoming material but also locate extra sources.

The best thing you could do is join a study group. You can create a training timetable, and work with your lecturer to increase your knowledge and learning skills. This demonstrates your commitment to your education and excitement for it. If you don’t hold yourself accountable, your future patients may suffer as a result.

Common Avoidable Mistakes In PTCAS Essay Prompt

If you identified all of the main themes to include in advance, writing the PTCAS essay and supporting physical therapy personal statements should come as no surprise to you. If you answer the query correctly and include various examples to demonstrate all of the positive qualities of your personality, the results will undoubtedly brighten you up.

There’s nothing like hiring a personal statement writer to acquire an excellent personal statement that puts your story in context and illustrates your strong desire to become a skilled physical therapist.

Avoid unnecessary words and tough word constructs, and don’t treat them as fiction.
Remember not to capitalize the practice’s title or name, whether it’s a physiotherapist or a physician consultant, from an excellent PTCAS statement example.
Ensure there’s no vagueness or space for a double perception of your phrases in your statements, and prevent underestimating and overestimating them.
Don’t exaggerate the field in your phrases; pay attention to your syntax, and don’t add facts that the board knows but has nothing to do with you. If you believe that as a Physiotherapist, you will excel at athletics therapy, you may be wrong. They may also allocate you to the burns healing unit, infection control center, stroke rehabilitation, or prosthetics.
Generalizations and clichés should be avoided. The following are the most common clichés for personal statements:
“I am very enthusiastic about…
“I have always sought to be a PT…
“The world we’re living in… ”
“I’ve always been captivated by…
“I enjoy dealing with students… “I’ve always been impressed by…

What should I Write In PTCAS Personal Statement

What has shaped who you are as a result of your life experiences?
What kind of observational experiences do you have?
Are there any patients who have had an impact on you?
How has a personal experience influenced your desire to practice physical therapy?
Who are the people who have the most influence in your life?
When did you realize you wanted to pursue a career as a physical therapist?
When was the last time you worked in a group or on a team? How was working in a group better than working alone?
What direction do you see physical therapy taking, and how do you see yourself fitting into that picture?
What kind of physical therapist do you want to be?
What would you do if you were in charge of future patients?
What personality attributes are necessary for a physical therapist?
What events have helped you enhance those traits, or what traits are you working on now?
How has your experience as a patient influenced your decision to become a physical therapist?
Why do you think you’ll be useful in this field?
Do you want to teach or conduct research?
Owning a business, traveling, and working for a non-profit organization are all options. or doing voluntary work in a different country?

PTCAS Essay Examples

When I shattered my arm at the age of 12, I was afraid but also ecstatic. Finally, I’d be able to put on a cast and have all of my friends sign it, as well as relate the stories about breaking my arm while falling from a tree.

The recovery was difficult and unpleasant, as well as painful. But, I eagerly anticipated the day when I could remove the cast and resume my normal daily routines. Whenever the cast came off, it surprised me. I started staring over my left arm in disbelief, unsure why it’s so much shorter than my right because it was that difficult to do things with it.

And that is when the doctor told me that my ordeal wasn’t finished yet. He told me that I’d have to go through months of physical therapy before I could play basketball or throw a football. I was upset at first, but after a few weeks, I found a new passion in the procedures that I had to practice regularly.

I was interested in learning more about the muscles and tendons they were working on, as well as why they were so effective. This passion has remained with me for many years. That is why, I’ve decided to get a degree in physical therapy.

At the age of 12, my physical therapist pushed me to pursue a career as a physical therapist. I see a future in which I can collaborate closely with my patients to develop a therapy plan based on their hobbies and interests, and then follow them on their path to complete recovery and beyond.

With a physical therapy degree, I will be able to use the most up-to-date research and techniques to provide the most effective treatment regimen for my patients, speeding up their recovery and allowing for more complete healing.

As a physical therapy student, I see professionalism as a way to keep learning about rehabilitation, improving my ability to connect with patients and coworkers, and following a set of standards that are both fair and ethical.

I feel that a commitment to the aforementioned responsibilities will undoubtedly impact what my future holds as a graduate student working as a rehabilitation professional.

Without a doubt, there is no growth without information.

A person who is unfamiliar with old-fashioned or traditional medical procedures will assist in the treatment of patients. As someone interested in pursuing a profession in this field, I am excited to learn about new ways to treat a patient who is in pain.

It will always be my belief but there is no such thing as plenty of learning because circumstances and scenarios change daily. As a result, I am a firm believer in customized treatment.

As humans, we are subject to new sets of laws and norms that are put in place to prevent anarchy while also providing protection. Being a Physical Therapy student is nothing out of the ordinary.

We are even required to adhere to the standards to a greater extent because we are dealing with people who have to deal with chronic pain daily. During my internship, I had the opportunity to deal with patients, counseling them, and clarifying conditions to them that they should be aware of.

Even though it was difficult, I believe it was an invaluable learning experience for me since I realized the significance of communicating.

https://www.ingentaconnect.com/contentone/asahp/jah/2022/00000051/00000002/art00009

https://synapse.koreamed.org/articles/1148913

https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1524&context=honorsprojects

personal statement examples for pt school

Author & Editor Team: : Adila Zakir, Alexa Smith

Our review panel has been working in academic and non-academic writing for more than 1 decade.

The Ultimate Guide to Writing PT School Application Essays

Here are some pointers for writing essays when you apply to physical therapy school. Please know that there isn’t a single best way to write your essays and everyone will answer each prompt differently, so do what works for you!

Essays are challenging to write, especially without any guidance. I had about 10 revisions of each of the 7 essays I wrote, had several people read them each time, and still had trouble writing some of them.

How to Start Writing Your Essay

1. Organize Your Thoughts

Write down the essay prompt, either on a computer or by hand. Read it a couple times, even out loud, until you have a good idea of what it is asking.

Then write down any thoughts that came to mind. They can be related to the prompt, or you can just write down what you like about the physical therapy profession or any specific experiences that stand out to you.

It doesn’t matter if you’ll actually end up writing about them. Don’t worry about your grammar or if it is written well. Just write down all of your thoughts into bullet points, or just a few words or a sentence for each idea.

If you are having trouble coming up with ideas, there is a section at the end of this post just for you. There are a lot of questions that may help you come up with ideas for your essay, so go check them out!

2. Turn your ideas into paragraphs

Write more about each point that you wrote down. Try to form a paragraph and relate it back to the prompt. If you’re struggling on writing more than a sentence or two about the bullet point, then maybe one of your other ideas will be better to include in your essay.

3. Choose 2-3 things to talk about

Now that you’ve written as much as you can about each bullet point, you should start to see a general direction to keep writing your essay. What are your favorite topics? What ideas can relate to each other to make a cohesive essay? What ideas answer the prompt the best?

4. Form a Complete Essay

Now that you’ve chosen your favorite paragraphs, format them into one essay. Now you can add an introduction paragraph that briefly mentions these paragraphs and your overall topic. Then you can add a conclusion.

5. Edit Your Essay

Now that you have a complete essay, you can read it from beginning to end. If it doesn’t flow well between each paragraph, add some transition sentences. If you don’t answer the prompt very well, rewrite some sentences. Keep editing and rewording until the essay is finished.

How Do You Format Your Essay?

You can format your essay however you like! I recommend that you have an introduction, some body paragraphs, and a conclusion. However, you don’t need your typical “5 paragraph” essay. Some supplemental essays may also have a shorter length, so you might only write two paragraphs.

You can indent each new paragraph, or just put a space between paragraphs instead of indenting, unless the school states that there is a specific way they want you to format your essay.

General Tips for PT School Essays

I know that writing your essays is not as simple as those 5 steps. It can take weeks and be mentally exhausting. However, I’ve included a bunch of tips to help guide you to writing a great essay.

Be careful what you write about patients. If you choose to write about a patient, don’t include any specific personal information like their name, ethnicity, or occupation, or you will be violating HIPAA. Describing their general age, condition, gender, what setting you observed in, general occupation if it relates to your story, and what interventions were used is perfectly fine.
Don’t use contractions. I just did, but that’s besides the point! Contractions are too casual, so avoid them if possible.
First-person speech. It’s ok to say “I” and talk in first person. You’re writing about yourself, after all! Just make sure that you vary your sentence structure so that you don’t begin every sentence with “I”. There is never any reason to say “I think” in any sentence. It sounds unprofessional, so just delete it.
Focus on the positives. If you had any negative experiences, setbacks, or mistakes, don’t spend too much time writing about them. Explain yourself in a couple sentences, but focus on what you learned and how you’ve bettered yourself. Don’t dwell on the past, but try to focus on the positive results.
Try to avoid clichés. Almost everyone can write about how they want to be a physical therapist because they love to help people, or because they got injured and need physical therapy. You can briefly write these things, but you need to have other, more personal experiences that you can write about. Be sure to set yourself apart from others.
Why have you chosen each school? For supplemental essays for a specific school, make sure to mention why you want to go to their school, if it fits into the prompt. It’s good to show that you’ve done your research and are excited to attend their program for specific reasons.
Answer the question. It’s self-explanatory, but it’s so easy to get caught up in what you’re writing and go in a direction that doesn’t answer the original prompt. Make sure everything that appears in the essay helps to answer the prompt in some way.
Have others read and edit your essay. Family members, friends, classmates, college writing center, or people on the Student Doctor Network Forums can all help your essay. It’s so beneficial to have an outside perspective on essays, especially because the admissions committee reading your essay won’t read it in the same way that you do. Try to have as many people critique your essay as possible.
If you ask for help online, don’t post your entire essay for everyone on the internet to read. Make a new thread or comment on a current essay thread, and send an email directly to the person willing to read your essay. There are people that might steal your essay and use it as their own, so be careful who you send it to.
Take a break from writing. Constantly thinking about your essay, rewriting, and editing is exhausting. It’s helpful to take a few days from working on your essay, and then come back to it with a fresh start.
Try writing in different environments. I wrote mostly at home, but found that I got stuck with my writing. I started to write at coffee shops, which helped me be more productive. Try working at a library, outside, at a friend’s house, or in a different room in your own house.
Essays can take weeks to write. Make sure you start early enough so you aren’t stressed out from trying to meet an upcoming deadline. Start working on your essays as soon as possible.
Be careful when writing multiple essays. The PTCAS essay is sent to every school, so don’t copy and paste the same paragraphs into any supplemental essays. However, if two different schools have an essay prompt that is similar, then feel free to similar paragraphs.
Essays are weighed differently by each school. Some might not even read the PTCAS essay, others care more about their supplemental essays, or some schools do not care much about a well-written essay.
Maximum character length. You don’t have to write 4498 out of 4450 characters for your essay to be great. Shorter is fine if you can get your point across. Aim for the character maximum, but it’s fine to have several hundred less than that.
What if you wrote too much? Worry about the essay length after you have written your thoughts down. When you are finalizing your essay, remove the repetitive information and anything that does not support the prompt, for starters. Then you can try rewording your sentences so they get straight to your point.

Tips for Specific Essays

If you’re stuck with writing your essays, see if you can answer these questions. You don’t need to answer all of them or any of them to write a great essay. A lot of these questions will overlap and be useful on other prompts, so make sure to read through everything if you need help.

Hopefully these questions will get you out of any writers block you may have.

PTCAS Essay

You can find the essay prompt on the PTCAS Essay page , or on their Facebook page once it is released. When I applied in 2014, the essay prompt was released in early June, and the PTCAS application opened in early July. This gave me an entire month to write my essay before I could even start my PTCAS application.

The essay prompt changes every year or every several years, so I can’t give great advice for this. These are some tips from past essays, so hopefully they help.

How have your life experiences shaped who you are?
What observation experiences can you talk about?
Are there any patients that have influenced you?
How has an experience impacted how you want to want to practice physical therapy?
Who are the most influential people in your life?
When did you know that you wanted to be a physical therapist?
When have you been on a team or worked in a group? How was the team approach better than working by yourself?
Where do you see the field of physical therapy going, and how do you fit into that picture?
What sort of physical therapist to you see yourself being?
How would you treat your future patients?
What dream goals do you have?
What character traits are important to have as a physical therapist
What experiences have strengthened those traits for you, or what traits are you currently working on?
How has your time spent as a patient affected how you will be a physical therapist?
Are there any specific therapists that you wish to be like, or any therapists that you don’t want to become?
Why will you be valuable to this profession?
Are you interested in teaching, research, owning your own business, traveling, working for a nonprofit, or volunteering in another country?

Autobiography Essay

What challenges have you overcome in your life?
What are some of your major accomplishments?
Why do you want to be a physical therapist?
What things have you done that helped you grow as an individual
What activities have you participated in?
Who are some influential people on your life?
How have your family, friends, or peers shaped who you are today?
How would other people describe you?
What 5 words describe you the best?
What character traits are important for a physical therapist to have? Do you have these traits, or how are you improving them?
What is important to you?
How will your experiences make you a successful physical therapy student/physical therapist?
How did your upbringing shape your personality, and how will that make you a better physical therapist?
How have your experiences led you to the physical therapy career instead of other health care careers?
Is there a central theme about your life experiences?
How can you contribute to the field of physical therapy and your future patients?

Diversity Essay

Describe your life experience as it is related to your culture.
Is it hard to understand others who are from a different culture?
Do you have a culturally different perspective than your peers?
Does your culture have a different set of health care beliefs, or have you encountered another culture with different beliefs?
Have you had an experience in life where you felt like your culture created a barrier for you?
Have you volunteered for an economically disadvantaged population?
Do you have trouble relating to higher socioeconomic classes?
Have your experiences helped you relate better to certain people?
Have you witnessed any social, cultural, or economic barriers when observing in a health care setting?
How have you learned from any of these experiences?
How does recognizing, understanding, or appreciating diversity make you a better physical therapist?
Have you worked with individuals with disabilities?
How do these experiences support that you will be able to work with diverse patients when you are a physical therapist?

Reapplicant Essay

Have you retaken any classes?
Did you retake the GRE?
Do you have additional observation experiences?
Did you observe in any new settings or see a different patient population?
Did you have any additional work experience?
Where you involved in any groups or team sports?
Did you volunteer?
How are you more prepared to be a successful student?
Have you improved any personal skills?
Have you worked with individuals that are different or gave you a unique perspective?
What have you learned and how have you improved?
How did these new experiences change your perspective, improve your application, change your personality, taught you something new, made you grow, or support your desire to become a physical therapist?

Does Your Academic Record Accurately Reflect Your Capabilities?

Most people say that you should only answer this section if something major happened in your life that was out of your control, like an illness, personal injury, family emergency, death of a loved one, etc.

Don’t use this area to write a list of excuses for why your grades weren’t as good as you wished. Examples of excuses: Explaining that you weren’t mature enough, didn’t study hard enough, partied too much, took too many difficult classes, or went to a challenging university. Those are excuses because you were responsible and they could have been avoided or handled better. If you are eager to explain yourself, you can try to add a sentence or two into your PTCAS essay.

A lot of people had lower grades at the beginning of their college career, so if your grades improved over time and your transcript shows that, you don’t need to write an essay to explain yourself. It takes a while to learn how to succeed in college, and admissions committees understand that.

Additional Resources

Unfortunately there isn’t much information about physical therapy school essays. I found these resources for general essay writing, grad school essays, and med school essays, but they’re mostly applicable to physical therapy school too!

PTCAS Essay Prompt Essay Workshop 101 Writing the Personal Statement Personal Statement Before You Write Your Personal Statement, Read This Writing Your Medical School Personal Statement: Tips and Myths Writing the Personal Statement for Medical School

Student Doctor Network Forums:

Supplemental Essays character limit PTCAS Essay question for 2015-2016 application cycle! Essay This year’s personal statement prompt? Should I or should I not write about this in my essay? Re-applicant essay Does your personal statement have to be 4500 characters?

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Pingback: PTCAS: Personal Statement/Essays

The link you set for the reapplicant essay doesn’t lead to that blog post. I wanted to ask if you know if reapplicants should submit the same essays if the essay question is the same this year?

Sorry for taking so long to reply! I just saw your comment this morning.

Thank you for letting me know about the link. Occasionally blogs are taken down, so I’ll have to go through and make sure to remove all the links to that site.

That’s a tough question, and I don’t think there is really a correct answer. If you read the Student Doctor Network forums , you can find others who have run into the same situation. Do you know why you were not accepted the first time around? If you didn’t meet the GPA or GRE requirements, your application may have been automatically disqualified and your essays might have never been read. You can choose to use the same exact essay, but hopefully they haven’t been read by the same program already. You can also choose to edit your essays a little bit, and maybe add any new experiences that you’ve had since you last applied.

Best of luck this application cycle! 🙂

Hi Katie! I’ve been reading your blog for a while now and I really appreciate it!!! I’m just wandering if you know any PT personal essay editing service?

Hey Lauren! Sorry for the delay in my response, and I hope it isn’t too late.

When I was applying to schools, I sent my essays to 3-4 of my friends (including an English major), so I got tons of feedback from them. There’s also the Student Doctor Network forums, and there are DPT students and PTs that offer up their spare time to edit essays! Just be cautious when sending your essay to strangers on the forum – make sure that they have a decent number of posts on that site.

I’m not sure if there is an essay editing service online, specific towards PT admissions essays.

If you need any last minute help, feel free to email me your essay and I can give some comments! Best of luck with getting into schools! 🙂

I’m almost finished with my PTCAS application process and I found this. Super helpful, I’m making some edits to my essay now. Thank you!

You’re welcome! I’m glad I could help! Good luck with applying and everything.

Thank you, that was so helpful!

You’re welcome! Thanks for the nice comment 🙂 glad I was able to help!