Admissions Criteria

Academic Policy 1:

PTA student recruitment and admission procedures and practices adhere to applicable law, are nondiscriminatory, and assure equal opportunity to all applicants. Admission to the PTA program is based upon achievement of minimum academic criteria and the quality of the applicant’s academic credentials in relation to those of other applicants.

Procedure:

FIRST YEAR STUDENT ADMISSION CRITERIA

  1. A high school diploma or (GED)
  2. The minimum high school units required for admission to the Physical Therapist Assistant program include four secondary units of English, two units of mathematics (including one unit of algebra), two units of science with a lab (one unit must be biology), and five units of arts, humanities, social studies, and/or foreign languages.
  3. The minimum high school GPA required for admission is a 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale).
  4. The minimum Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or ACT scores (for those who have been out of high school five years or less) are:
    1. SAT: At least 400 on each subsection (reading, math)
    2. ACT: At least 17 on each subsection (English, math)

Achievement of the minimum criteria does not guarantee admission into the PTA Program. The program is competitive, and applicants who submit their application to Penn State by November 30 will be given priority consideration. Applications received after November 30 will be reviewed on a space available basis.

How to Apply

Penn State encourages all applicants to submit their application online at admissions.psu.edu; however, paper applications are available from the admissions office and from many high schools. Once you have completed the online application, you should submit official high school transcripts or proof of equivalency and standardized test scores to the undergraduate admissions office. Currently, the Physical Therapist Assistant program only admits new students during the fall semester.

ADVANCED STANDING (TRANSFER) STUDENT ADMISSION CRITERIA

Advanced standing (transfer) students are applicants who have attended any regionally accredited college or institution on the college-level and attempted 18 or more semester credits subsequent to high school graduation. Consideration for transfer admission to the Physical Therapist Assistant program is based on the following criteria:

  1. Applicants must demonstrate sufficient ability to perform college-level course work in one of the following ways:
    1. Cumulative college grade point average of 2.8 (on a 4.0 scale)
    2. A grade point average of 2.8 or better (on a 4.0 scale) for all college-level course work completed in the past year (at least 12 credits).
  2. Good standing at institutions previously attended.
  3. A high school diploma or equivalent and completion of the high school units noted above.

Achievement of the minimum admission criteria does not guarantee admission into the program. Admission to the program is competitive, and applicants who submit their application to Penn State by November 30 will be given priority consideration. Applications received after November 30 will be reviewed on a space available basis. Consideration will be given to students with strong academic performance in science courses.

How to Apply

Penn State requires that all transfer applicants submit their application online at admissions.psu.edu. To expedite the review of your transfer application, submit your official transcripts from high school of graduation (or GED) and all postsecondary institutions to the Undergraduate Admissions Office. These official transcripts should be forwarded by you, to Penn State in the original, sealed envelopes provided by those schools. Standardized test scores are not required of transfer applicants. Currently, the Physical Therapist Assistant program only admits transfer students during the fall semester. Exceptions may be granted for students transferring from another accredited physical therapist assistant program, if space allows.

**Students that are admitted to Penn State Fayette but do not meet initial admission criteria for the PTA program may be granted approval of a change of major and admitted to the PTA program after demonstrating sufficient ability to perform college-level course work. This may be demonstrated by completing at least 12 credits at Penn State Fayette and achieving a grade point average of 2.8 or better (on a 4.0 scale) or by satisfactorily completing a developmental plan determined by the Program Coordinator. Achievement of the minimum admission requirements does not guarantee approval of a change of major request, as admission to the program is competitive. Student then follow procedures below for submitting a change of major request.

CURRENT PENN STATE FAYETTE STUDENTS (CHANGE OF MAJORS)

Consideration for change of major to Physical Therapist Assistant is based on the following criteria:

  1. Students must submit the following to the PTA program coordinator
    1. Change of major request form (form available in registrar’s office)
    2. A copy of high school and college transcripts
  2. Good standing at institutions previously attended.
  3. A high school diploma or equivalent and completion of the high school units noted above.
  4. Students must meet admission criteria above for new or advanced standing students, as appropriate.

Achievement of the minimum criteria does not guarantee admission into the PTA program. Admission to the program is competitive, and applicants who submit their request by November 30 will be given priority consideration. Requests received after November 30 will be reviewed on a space available basis. Consider will be given to students with strong academic performance in science courses.

FORMER PENN STATE FAYETTE STUDENTS (RE-ENROLLMENTS)

Consideration for re-enrollment into Physical Therapist Assistant is based on the following criteria:

  1. Complete a request for re-enrollment for available through the Registrar’s Office or on-line at registrar.psu.edu. There is a $20 non-refundable fee to be turned in with the form. The completed form must be submitted to the Registrar’s Office, Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, 2201 University Drive, Lemont Furnace, PA 15456.
  2. Applicants must meet admission criteria above for new or advanced standing students (as appropriate).

Achievement of the minimum criteria does not guarantee admission into the PTA program. Admission to the program is competitive, and applicants who submit their request by November 30 will be given priority consideration. Requests received after November 30 will be reviewed on a space available basis. Consider will be given to students with strong academic performance in science courses.