General Information

Class of 2020 Statistics

• \Acceptance: 779 applications were completed and received for the incoming class; 17.84% of applicants were accepted.
• Matriculation: 44% of accepted applicants matriculated into the class.
• Average GPA: 3.53
• Average Prerequisite GPA: 3.58
• Average GRE: Verbal = 153, Quantitative = 153

Before making the choice of where to go to school, here are some questions that you should ask. These questions come from our own first year students.

This is an important component for students in any professional curriculum, since you are learning a profession from practitioners and role models in the field. Thus, besides being an expert in a particular subject, faculty members are also members of the profession that you are training for. You will want opportunities outside of the classroom to speak with faculty, and discuss aspects of the profession, career opportunities and specialty areas of interest.

At the University of Miami, faculty are always available to students and are actively engaged in the profession in many different ways: holding regional, state or national offices or appointments in the APTA. They are also very involved in community service, and work along side students in projects such as Habitat for Humanity, Junior Orange Bowl Sports Ability Games, Marquette Challenge, Hurricane Challenge, Shake-a-Leg, Inc. of Miami, National Handicapped Sports and the Paralympic Games. They can also be found with the students on the occasional intercollegiate softball games between local PT programs.

Because PT is such a diverse profession with many different clinical specialties, it is important that a faculty reflect those different areas of expertise in order to prepare the practitioner of the future. In keeping with the Guide to Physical Therapy Practice, the four major elements of the patient/client management model are musculoskeletal, cardiopulmonary, integumentary and neuromuscular – all of these specialty areas should be reflected in a PT faculty.

At the University of Miami, we have faculty members who are Board Certified Clinical Specialists in Cardiopulmonary, Geriatric, Pediatric, Orthopaedic, Sports Physical Therapy and Womens Health Study. Additionally, faculty expertise is notable in sub-specialty areas of Orthopaedics, Spine, Pediatrics, Neurology, Geriatrics, Amputee Rehabilitation, Kinesiology and Biomechanics, Vestibular Rehabilitation, Spinal Cord Injury, and Electrophysiology.

Electives, while not a major element in most PT programs due to the rigor of the professional preparation for an autonomous generalist practitioner, are nevertheless important for an introduction to specialized areas of practice beyond entry level. Electives are usually found in areas of faculty or guest faculty expertise and enable a student to gain a broader understanding of a specialized area of practice that is not usually found in entry level education.

At the University of Miami, there are 25 elective courses in specialty areas such as private practice management, wellness, sports physical therapy, recreational activities for the disabled, women’ health, interdisciplinary pediatric assessment, the foot, complementary therapies, etc. (See List of Electives).

Sometimes it is important to know when faculty are available and where they are located. Many students also like to be able to study in a comfortable place, have access to the laboratory to practice skills, or use the library to study in the evening.

At the University of Miami, all the classrooms, student library and faculty offices and labs are located in the same building. General operating hours of the facility are from 8:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., which is when faculty can be found in their offices, research labs, satellite offices or the University of Miami Hospital. Enrolled students also have 24 hour availability to the Student Floor, which contains the classrooms, labs, computer rooms, student library, etc. Faculty also can be reached via email at any time.

Limited research has shown that an active faculty promotes increased professionalism in its students. Beyond merely membership in the professional association, the APTA, active participation and leadership indicate a strong professional commitment on the part of the faculty member and also a strong role model for students.

At the University of Miami, nearly all faculty at one time or another have held national office in one of the Section of the APTA (Education, Geriatrics, Pediatrics, Neurology, Orthopaedics, Sports, Electrophysiology, Acute Care, Cardiopulmonary), or at the state or regional level. Many have also held national appointments (CAPTE Site visitor, Commissioner on CAPTE, Advisory Panels, & Task Forces) including serving on National Health Institute and Veteran Administration panels. And many have received some of the highest honors for Service from the APTA and affiliated organizations.

There is a life beyond the classroom! Having an outlet for physical exercise and wellness activities is increasingly important to all Americans. At the University of Miami, we have the Patti and Allan Herbert Wellness Center. For specific information about this, go to the Wellness Center website by clicking here.

No one likes a run-around or playing phone-tag. It is important to have a readily available person with whom to speak with about most of your concerns as a potential student.

At the University of Miami, we have an Office of Student Services, where questions from prospective students, as well as current students and alumni can be answered. If they do not have an answer, they will forward your question to a faculty member or the Chair of the Department for the information.