Outstanding high school seniors are invited to apply for Ohio University’s Early Assurance Program (EAP) for the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT).
The Physical Therapy EAP is highly selective. Students selected for the EAP earn conditional admission to the doctoral program, and a spot in the program is reserved for them as long as they maintain program requirements (including passing a required admission interview conducted in the spring term of their junior year).
The DPT program prepares future physical therapists with the knowledge, behavior, skills and inter-professional experiences required to function as a movement specialist within the contemporary health care environment. The program imparts students with the foundation to become expert clinicians through rigorous preparation built upon evidence-based practice principles, critical thinking, altruism, integrity, ethical conduct and professional and fiscal responsibility.
To be considered, students must first be admitted to Ohio University. Admitted students may then submit the Physical Therapy Early Assurance Program (EAP) application, including a response to the essay question. For best consideration, applicants should also submit one letter of recommendation. The fall 2025 Physical Therapy EAP application deadline is January 10, 2025.
On the application, students will be asked to identify the year that they intend to matriculate into the DPT program. (In other words, students must identify the year that they plan to begin the DPT program.) Once the intended matriculation year is selected, students may not change their matriculation year. Selected students will be notified in March. Note: Fall 2025 applicants who intend to graduate in 4 years and begin the DPT program the summer after graduation should declare summer 2029 as their matriculation year. Students who plan to graduate in 5 years or take a gap year after graduation should declare summer 2030 as their matriculation year.
You will need your OHIO email address and password to apply. Visit our Application Status web page for instructions to activate your OHIO ID. For questions, please contact Undergraduate Admissions at admissions@ohio.edu or 740.593.4100.
Please contact Ashley Crow, coordinator for recruitment and admissions, at crowa@ohio.edu with any questions about the Physical Therapy EAP.
An applicant may choose any major so as long as the prerequisite coursework as been completed. Many students choose majors that allow prerequisite courses to count toward their degree requirements such as biology, exercise physiology or psychology.
No, any high school senior may apply to the Physical Therapy EAP.
In order to maintain eligibility, an applicant must graduate within a timeframe that allows them to matriculate into the program in the year declared on their application. Due to the limited number of spots available for the Physical Therapy EAP per class, switching matriculation years is generally not permitted. However, if an accepted EAP student finds they will be graduating earlier or later than their declared matriculate year, it may be possible to adjust their matriculation year depending upon spot availability in the specified cohort. This is not guaranteed. If the requested matriculation year is already full, accepted EAP students may apply to the Physical Therapy Program through the Physical Therapy Centralized Application Service (PTCAS) and will be considered as part of the general applicant pool. (adopted 9/5/2024)
Yes, but please note that a change of major may delay graduation. Year of matriculation cannot be changed once selected.
No greater than 16 students will be accepted to the Physical Therapy EAP per year.
Applicants on the wait list will be notified of their wait list status in March of their application year. The waitlist will remain active until the start of the fall term. If a seat becomes vacant, the first student on the wait list will be offered a spot in the program for their matriculation year.
Unless prerequisite courses have been completed before enrolling at Ohio University, students generally need 4 years to complete all prerequisites coursework. The year of matriculation is often 4 years from the beginning of full-time college student status.
Applicants on the wait list may contact the physical therapy program to inquire about the status of the wait list at any time.
We encourage applicants to apply to the physical therapy program through the Physical Therapy Centralized Application Service (PTCAS) so that they may be considered in the general applicant pool.
If an accepted applicant plans to attend Ohio University for physical therapy school, they will need to apply to Ohio University’s Physical Therapy Program however will not be required to do it through the Physical Therapy Centralized Application Service (PTCAS).
Students may apply to multiple early assurance programs, but students who join the Physical Therapy Early Assurance Program are not permitted to participate in another early assurance program.