Private School DPT

[PT Hopeful2]

This is a question for those of you who completed your DPT degree at a private school.

Was it worth it? Do you regret not going to an in-state, public school?

As a student applying in the upcoming cycle, the temptation to go to a private school is definitely there--I imagine the students, the professors, the academic rigor, and the surrounding city/environment to be superior to the public, in-state options that I have. But I can also foresee regret in accruing that much debt upon completion of my degree. So, for those of you who attended a private school: how did you justify going to a private school, and do you regret your decision?

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[jadedphysiotherapist]

This is a question for those of you who completed your DPT degree at a private school.

Was it worth it? Do you regret not going to an in-state, public school?

As a student applying in the upcoming cycle, the temptation to go to a private school is definitely there--I imagine the students, the professors, the academic rigor, and the surrounding city/environment to be superior to the public, in-state options that I have. But I can also foresee regret in accruing that much debt upon completion of my degree. So, for those of you who attended a private school: how did you justify going to a private school, and do you regret your decision?

Do not go to private school especially this cycle. Loan interest rates are increasing. There is literally no job market advantage.

Private schools aren't superior.

Things that matter most in order for me were cost of attendance, graduation rates, board passage rates, employment stats, where you take your clinicals, and your faculty rep within the field for networking purposes and school brand name.

 

[Bluecase]

Some private schools offer scholarships and for me were cheaper than state schools. Just apply, see what happens, then make a decision


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[truthseeker]

I went where I could get in. happened to be private but I lived with my uncle for free so . . . you do what you have to do.

 

[CaliPhoto]

I am a current SPT at a private university in California.

I would suggest you visit both the private and public schools you're interested in. Meet the faculty and talk to some of their students. Use this information, along with tuition costs to determine which program you would feel most comfortable with.

If I had the option, I would choose the university with the lowest cost of tuition because once you're out of school all that debt is yours to payoff.

 

[rchristie23]

I agree with truthseeker and CaliPhoto. Worry about getting an acceptance first and visit both private and public school. I start a program at a private school that was my dream school, but the government is paying for mine. That makes the debt anxiety a nonissue. However, the schools I looked at, the private school was far better. Of course it's a top 10 school that has been around for a long time. One of the public schools was cheaper, but seemed disorganized and looked like they threw everything at you hoping stuff would stick. The private school was focused and the way it was structured made it appear to set the students up for success. The classes build on each other and there is time for you to work if you needed. The public school students seemed overwhelmed. This is just from my experience.


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[jadedphysiotherapist]

Just don't apply to spots like usc or university of St augustine as you will have a difficult time making ends meet.

Seriously, don't even waste the application money.

WashU, Pitt, and Duke are right on the absurdity threshold for applying.....which really sucks because the education and research are actually fantastic

 

[dptwannabee1]

There are public in state schools ranked( if you care) at the top. I honestly turned down Emory and Duke for my in state flagship. Did I love the other schools...sure. But at the end of the day wasn't going to be worth twice the debt.

 

[FitBUX]

As some of the replies have said, private schools tend to cost more but your situation may be different than others based on scholarships and/or living situations. We built a free tool for Pre-DPTs to use where you can analyze the different levels of student loans on your financial future for each dpt program. The link is below...Let me know what you think as we are constantly improving it (p.s. for the free tool you can sign-up for the free account).

Pre-Physical Therapy Student Loan Help - FitBUX

 

[DesertPT]

"Private schools" in PT education primarily refers to private health professions universities, not traditional private universities that you have heard of. There are a good few, such as USC, which is always ranked number 1 (but also always the most expensive), Creighton, Mayo, etc that are well-known private schools with a PT program. But overall very few PT schools are at prestigious "private universities" in the sense that you are used to hearing that word used. Harvard, Stanford etc are private universities. Midwestern, AT Still, St. Augustine, etc etc are private "health professions" universities which are actually typically less prestigious than their public counterparts, at least regionally.

Rank and prestige is utterly irrelevant in PT. Like, seriously, I cannot overstate how much your school's US News ranking is a load of crap. No correlation between public/private and quality of education either. Board pass scores vary across schools within such a narrow range (almost all schools between 94-99%) that "quality of education" is not a simple thing to attempt to measure. Locally, there may be one school in your city/state that is known by PTs in the area to produce better students than another in general, which may be a case where school choice matters slightly, although everyone still finds some kind of job regardless.

 

[jadedphysiotherapist]

"Private schools" in PT education primarily refers to private health professions universities, not traditional private universities that you have heard of. There are a good few, such as USC, which is always ranked number 1 (but also always the most expensive), Creighton, Mayo, etc that are well-known private schools with a PT program. But overall very few PT schools are at prestigious "private universities" in the sense that you are used to hearing that word used. Harvard, Stanford etc are private universities. Midwestern, AT Still, St. Augustine, etc etc are private "health professions" universities which are actually typically less prestigious than their public counterparts, at least regionally.

Rank and prestige is utterly irrelevant in PT. Like, seriously, I cannot overstate how much your school's US News ranking is a load of crap. No correlation between public/private and quality of education either. Board pass scores vary across schools within such a narrow range (almost all schools between 94-99%) that "quality of education" is not a simple thing to attempt to measure. Locally, there may be one school in your city/state that is known by PTs in the area to produce better students than another in general, which may be a case where school choice matters slightly, although everyone still finds some kind of job regardless.

This. It is ridiculous. Yes you can get swamped with some of the best research but students need to look at the pass rates for the boards.

Also some schools have less than 90% graduation rate as well as less than 90% board pass rates. I'm not sure how accreditation works for those, but that is poor territory. Avoid

 

[pegasuscvc]

In the work force, no one will care where you went to school unless you're going into research. Hate to say it but it's true. In the end, a "superior" (debatable) private school won't matter at all so long as the cheaper university has the same board pass rate. In the end you'll pass the same boards, work the same jobs, and have the same salary as the graduate who went to the cheaper school, but twice the debt. If the expensive private school is the only place you can get in, then I guess that's where you're going, but avoid expensive schools if at all possible (unless scholarships are paying for it).