Master of Physical Therapy

The Master of Physical Therapy (MPT) is a postbaccalaureate degree conferred upon successful completion of an accredited Physical therapy professional education program. Successful candidates are then qualified to apply for and take the Physical Therapy national licensure exam (in their particular state; students who pass this exam are then licensed (or registered) as Physical Therapists (and may typically use the designation LPT, RPT, or simply PT).

Until the end of the 1990s, the requirements to receive a Bachelor's Degree was considered to be sufficient academic preparation to qualify to apply for the exam (and to subsequently enter Physical Therapy practice). However, with the on-going support of the American Physical Therapy Association (the accrediting organization for all American PT academic programs) the bachelor's degree in physical therapy was slowly replaced by the more advanced Master of Physical Therapy (and, eventually, the academic requirement will be a Doctor of Physical Therapy).