Thank you for your interest in Columbia's DPT program. The curriculum has been designed to enable students to think critically, exercise technical competence and make significant contributions in improving the health status of their patients/clients by embracing evidence-based practice. Outcome assessment has shown that our graduates have advanced the profession through their contributions as clinical researchers and educators in collaboration with other health care disciplines, and have served as advocates for change within the health care delivery system. I welcome you to share the excitement and deep satisfaction of becoming a physical therapist.

The program is part of the College of Physicians & Surgeons, which also houses the Programs in Occupational Therapy and Human Nutrition and shares a campus with the Dental School, School of Nursing and Mailman School of Public Health. This unique collection of health sciences schools, programs and a major teaching hospital affiliate New York-Presbyterian Hospital, form Columbia University Medical Center an integral part of the Washington Heights community in upper Manhattan, one of New York City's most diverse neighborhoods. As reported in US News and World Report, the Physical Therapy program and the College of Physicians and Surgeons are consistently ranked among the best programs in the country; top 13% and 5% respectively. New York-Presbyterian Hospital is ranked 6th among the nation's hospitals.

New York City acts as the perfect magnet to draw a diverse and dynamic group of students and faculty to the university and offers the ideal environment for graduate study, practice and research. As an entry-level student in the DPT program, you will study with a talented cadre of classmates, drawn from all parts of the country and abroad. The faculty brings excellent academic, research and patient-care experience into the classroom and laboratory. For your clinical education experiences you will be able to select from a myriad of hospitals, rehabilitation centers, outpatient facilities, specific practice settings in sports medicine and the performing arts, and school-based programs, nation-wide and internationally, providing both generalist and specialist services that mirror today's practice environment.

As the only Ivy League University in New York City, Columbia's students are at the center of one of the most intellectually exciting academic communities in the world. There are many advantages - formal and informal.

As a prospective applicant, I invite you to discover what I have learned since joining the program as its Director in 2002. The DPT program is filled with faculty who love to teach a motivated student body, a faculty dedicated to maintaining the highest standards of education, research, patient care and involvement in the world around us.

The material on our web site under the Admissions and Curriculum links, will answer many of your questions about our DPT program. If you need further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact me (rg2135@columbia.edu) or the program's Admission Coordinator, Cynthia Worthington (cw75@columbia.edu), or call the program at 212-305-0470.

I look forward to receiving your application.

With best wishes,

Risa Granick, PT, EdD, MPA
Director, Program in Physical Therapy
Associate Professor of Clinical Rehabilitation and Regenerative Medicine