Physical therapy is becoming an increasingly important part of America’s healthcare sector and they are very much in demand. Physical therapy is a set of methods and procedures that assists a patient to rehabilitate and gain full use of their bodies after an accident or medical procedure or general health care conditions. It depends upon the conditions, injury or ailment how long the treatment would continue. In some cases it is short and for some cases it continues for the entire life. No matter what part of the body ails a person – ankle, neck, shoulder, back, knee – physical therapists helps individuals improve their quality of life. A physical therapist is partner throughout a person’s journey to restore and maintain motion so that one can function at their personal best.

Association Group Responsible for providing license

In Vermont, the Office of Professional Regulation is responsible to issue license to physical therapists. The application process is dependent on whether you are new student, a licensed physical therapist in another state or country.

Mailing Address:

Office of the Secretary of State
Office of Professional Regulation,
Director
National Life Bldg North, FL2,
Montpelier
VT 05620-3402
Phone:  1-802-828-2363

Application process

For people from United States

PHYSICAL THERAPIST APPLICATION BY EXAMINATION 

Eligibility: Applicant must be a graduate of a CAPTE accredited physical therapy educational program, approved by the Vermont Board of Physical Therapy.

The Board should receive an official transcript in physical therapy from an institution that has been approved for training by the Commission on Accreditation for Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE).

Foreign Trained Applicants: If the applicant has received education outside US at a school which is not accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE), the applicant must submit a credential evaluation. The evaluation must be prepared by a Board approved agency.

Board approved agencies are:

International Credentialing Associates (ICA) – www.icaworld.com

Foreign Credentialing Commission on Physical Therapy (FCCPT) – www.fccpt.org

English competency: The applicant must pass an approved English proficiency exam if the applicant’s native language is not English.

Instructions for Registering Online for National Physical Therapy Examinations

Vermont Board of Physical Therapy is using the FSBT website to allow candidates to register online for NPTE. The website the candidate will follow to get registered is https://www.fsbpt.net/pt . The examination lasts for one day for a period of approximately 5.0 hours. The exam consists of approximately 250 multiple-choice questions. The National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE) is a computer-based examination given at Prometric Testing Centers.

Once the Vermont Board determines the eligibility based on the educational qualification and other guidelines it will be intimated that candidate can appear for the online examination. The FSBT will send the candidate an Authorization to Test (ATT) letter.

The ATT letter would contain the all important information about the exam schedules

Where to give the exam: The Prometric Testing Center fee must be paid directly to the Prometric Testing Center at the time of scheduling. Please visit www.prometric.com for further details for place and fees.

PHYSICAL THERAPIST APPLICATION BY ENDORSEMENT 

For applicants from other states who hold a current license in another jurisdiction.

Candidate should enclose verification of licensure in good standing from all jurisdictions in which the applicant has been licensed.

Candidate should send the official transcripts or letter of completion to be mailed to the board office.

Request your NPTE score transfer from the FSBPT at www.fsbpt.net/pt .

Temporary License – Is applicable only for applicant’s applying by Endorsement.

A temporary license allows an applicant to practice while the application is being considered, or while verifications from other jurisdictions have not yet been received.

Other Information

Fees:

Application Fee: $100.00

License renewal 

Licenses renew on a fixed biennial schedule, September 30th of the even numbered years, and must be renewed before they expire.

Verify Vermont Licensure: It can be viewed on the official website http://vtprofessionals.org/opr1/physical_therapists/

Information about jobs and salary

Job in State: As per data of May 2012 there are 630 jobs in VermontState.

Salary: The average mean wage is $ 73,070. The bottom 10% is at $ 53,360 and the top 10% is earning a handsome amount of $94,000.

Links for reference

Official Website: http://vtprofessionals.org/opr1/physical_therapists/

Exam Websites: http://www.fsbpt.org , www.prometric.com/fsbpt

Important Websites: http://www.apta.org , http://www.capteonline.org/home.aspx