BHS in Pre-Professional Physical Therapy
Physical therapists (PTs) are health care professionals who diagnose and treat individuals of all ages, from newborns to the very oldest, who have medical problems or other health-related conditions that limit their abilities to move and perform functional activities in their daily lives.
PTs examine each individual and develop a plan using treatment techniques to promote the ability to move, reduce pain, restore function, and prevent disability. In addition, PTs work with individuals to prevent the loss of mobility before it occurs by developing fitness- and wellness-oriented programs for healthier and more active lifestyles.
The University of Missouri offers a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree.
This degree is granted to some students who gain Advanced Admission to the Doctor of Physical Therapy program. Students may not major in the BHS in Preprofessional Physical Therapy unless they have applied and been accepted for Advanced Admission to the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program.
Major Program Requirements
This degree program is only for students who are planning advanced admission into the DPT in Physical Therapy program and is not a standalone undergraduate degree. Advance Admission grants students the opportunity to apply to the DPT program during their junior year and enter the DPT program after completing 90 credit hours of college level coursework. Students who seek to gain early admission to the DPT program must complete a minimum of three years (six fall/spring semesters or 12 quarters of full-time enrollment) of residential coursework on a college campus prior to starting the DPT program. To be eligible to apply for advanced admission, students must have a 3.5 cumulative GPA. Students accepted for the early admission program must complete 90 credit hours, including University of Missouri general education requirements and pre-requisite coursework prior to beginning the professional phase of the program. At the time of application, students may have up to three of the following courses to be completed, with no more than two planned for the spring semester: Statistics, Chemistry, Physics 1, Physics 2, Biology, Physiology, Medical Terminology and Anatomy.
| Pre-requisite Courses | ||
| ENGLSH 1000 | Writing and Rhetoric * | 3 |
| or ENGLSH 1000H | Honors Writing and Rhetoric | |
| MATH 1100 | College Algebra * | 3-5 |
| or MATH 1160 | Precalculus Mathematics | |
| HLTH_SCI 4200W | Introduction to The Research Process and Evidence Base - Writing Intensive | 3 |
| STAT 1200 | Introductory Statistical Reasoning * | 3 |
| or STAT 1300 | Elementary Statistics | |
| or STAT 2500 | Introduction to Probability and Statistics I | |
| or ESC_PS 4170 | Introduction to Applied Statistics | |
| CHEM 1400 & CHEM 1401 | College Chemistry I and College Chemistry I Laboratory * | 4 |
| or CHEM 1400H & CHEM 1401H | College Chemistry I - Honors and College Chemistry I Laboratory - Honors | |
| PHYSCS 1210 | College Physics I * | 4 |
| PHYSCS 1220 | College Physics II * | 4 |
| BIO_SC 1010 & BIO_SC 1020 | General Principles and Concepts of Biology and General Biology Laboratory * | 5 |
| or BIO_SC 1500 | Introduction to Biological Systems with Laboratory | |
| or BIO_SC 1500H | Introduction to Biological Systems with Laboratory Honors | |
| or BIO_SC 1030 | General Principles and Concepts of Biology with Laboratory | |
| MPP 3202 | Elements of Physiology * | 5 |
| CDS 2190 | Medical Terminology * | 3 |
| PTH_AS 2201 | Human Anatomy Lecture * | 3 |
| Students must complete departmental requirements, including at least 6-8 hours of 3000/4000-level coursework in one of the following content areas: a) Biological/Physical Science, b) Social/Behavioral Science. (See suggested courses below.) | ||
| Suggested Biological/Physical Science Courses: ~ | ||
| BIOCHM 3630 | General Biochemistry | 3 |
| BIO_SC 3750 | General Microbiology | 3 |
| CHEM 3200 | Quantitative Methods of Analysis with Lab | 4 |
| MPP 4204 | Medical Pharmacology | 4 |
| MICROB 3200 | Medical Microbiology and Immunology | 4 |
| MICROB 4304 | Immunology for Health Professions | 3 |
| NEP 3850 | Physiology of Exercise | 3 |
| or NEP 3850W | Physiology of Exercise - Writing Intensive | |
| NEP 4860 | Exercise Prescription | 3 |
| Suggested Social/Behavioral Science Courses: | ||
| HLTH_SCI 3700 | Health Care in the United States | 3 |
| PSYCH 3140 | Cognitive Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH 3150 | Human Memory | 3 |
| PSYCH 3830 | Health Psychology | 3 |
| PSYCH 4210 | Physiological Psychology | 3 |
| SOCIOL 3430 | The Sociology of Sport | 3 |
| SOCIOL 3440 | Sociology of Health | 3 |
| SOCIOL 4210 | Aging and the Life Course | 3 |
| Major Core Requirements | ||
| PTH_AS 7222 | Gross Human Anatomy (The Health Professions) * | 7 |
| PH_THR 5110 | Fundamentals of Physical Therapy * | 1 |
| PH_THR 5210 | Applied Neurophysiology * | 3 |
| PH_THR 5220 | Biophysical Agents * | 2 |
| PH_THR 5230 | Clinical Evaluation and Procedures * | 4 |
| PH_THR 5240 | Foundations of Therapeutic Exercise * | 3 |
| PH_THR 5250 | Human Kinesiology * | 3 |
| PH_THR 5260 | Introduction to Clinical Education I * | 1 |
| PH_THR 5270 | PhysZOU I | 0.5 |
| PH_THR 5100 | Introduction to Interprofessional Practice | 1 |
| PH_THR 5310 | Applied Therapeutic Exercise * | 3 |
| PH_THR 5320 | Clinical Kinesiology * | 3 |
| PH_THR 5330 | Clinical Pathophysiology * | 3 |
| PH_THR 5340 | Introduction to Clinical Education II * | 1 |
| PH_THR 5350 | Introduction to Orthopedic Physical Therapy * | 3 |
| PH_THR 5360 | Pharmacology in Rehabilitation * | 2 |
| PH_THR 5370 | PhysZOU II | 0.5 |
- ~
MPP 3202 may meet the Physiology requirement and count toward the Biological/Physical Science category.
- *
Courses in which a grade of C- or higher is required
Semester Plan
| First Year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits | ||
| MATH 1100 | 3 | CHEM 1400 & CHEM 1401 | 4 | ||
| PSYCH 1000 | 3 | MO State Law Requirement | 3 | ||
| Humanities Course | 3 | HLTH_SCI 1000 | 3 | ||
| BIO_SC 1010 | 3 | ENGLSH 1000 | 3 | ||
| BIO_SC 1020 | 2 | PSYCH 2510 | 3 | ||
| PH_THR 1000 | 1 | ||||
| 15 | 16 | ||||
| Second Year | |||||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits | ||
| PHYSCS 1210 | 4 | CDS 2190 | 3 | ||
| COMMUN 1200 | 3 | HLTH_SCI 3700 | 3 | ||
| HLTH_SCI 2400 | 3 | H_D_FS 2400W | 4 | ||
| PSYCH 2410 | 3 | PHYSCS 1220 | 4 | ||
| STAT 1200 | 3 | ||||
| 16 | 14 | ||||
| Third Year | |||||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits | Summer | Credits |
| HLTH_SCI 3000 | 1 | HLTH_SCI 4200W | 3 | PTH_AS 7222 | 7 |
| HLTH_SCI 2500 | 3 | MPP 3202 | 5 | PH_THR 5110 | 1 |
| HLTH_SCI 2850 | 3 | Humanities Course | 3 | ||
| HLTH_SCI 4480 | 3 | SOCIOL 3430 | 3 | ||
| PTH_AS 2201 | 3 | ||||
| PTH_AS 2203 | 2 | ||||
| 15 | 14 | 8 | |||
| Fourth Year | |||||
| Fall | Credits | Spring | Credits | ||
| PH_THR 5210 | 3 | PH_THR 5100 | 1 | ||
| PH_THR 5220 | 2 | PH_THR 5310 | 3 | ||
| PH_THR 5230 | 4 | PH_THR 5320 | 3 | ||
| PH_THR 5240 | 3 | PH_THR 5330 | 3 | ||
| PH_THR 5250 | 3 | PH_THR 5340 | 1 | ||
| PH_THR 5260 | 1 | PH_THR 5350 | 3 | ||
| PH_THR 5270 | 0.5 | PH_THR 5360 | 2 | ||
| PH_THR 5370 | 0.5 | ||||
| 16.5 | 16.5 | ||||
| Total Credits: 131 | |||||
Degree Audit
The degree audit is an automated report reflecting a student’s academic progress toward the completion of a degree.
MU students can request a degree audit by logging in to myDegreePlanner. Students may also access myDegreePlanner via myZou, in the Student Center, click on the Academic Progress Tile, then select Request Degree Audit. The audit automatically pulls in the student’s MU course work, transfer courses and courses in progress. This is available to current students, admitted students, and those who last attended less than three terms ago.
Past MU students can request a degree audit by contacting the Academic Advising Unit of the division in which they were last enrolled at MU. For contact information, go to https://advising.missouri.edu/contact/.
Prospective students, can access a preliminary MU degree audit via https://www.transferology.com. Information on the college credits already earned will have to be manually entered before it can be evaluated against current degree requirements.
For additional details on degree audits, go to https://registrar.missouri.edu/degrees-audits/degree-audits/.
Major and Career Exploration
The University of Missouri has many resources to assist you in exploring majors and career possibilities. For guidance, visit the Majors and Careers website or view specific resources below.
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If you are considering a change of major or are exploring multiple majors, schedule an appointment with an advisor in the Discovery Center by calling (573)884-9700 or through MU Connect Discovery Center service in you success network.
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If you have decided on a major, visit an academic advisor in the School or College that you are interested in to discuss the process of declaring the major.
- If you would like to learn more about your career interests, abilities, values and talents, visit the MU Career Center. No Appointment is necessary to explore career options with one of our staff members.
- If you would like information about MU majors and degree programs, visit:
- the Degrees, Majors (Degree Programs), Emphasis Areas, Minors and Certificates page in the catalog,
- the MU Majors website.
For additional major and career exploration resources, visit Major & Career Exploration in the catalog.