The USC Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy's faculty roster includes 11 Catherine Worthingham Fellows, which is the highest membership category in the American Physical Therapy Association. This distinction gives us the highest concentration of Catherine Worthingham Fellows in the nation.
100% of academic faculty members have doctorate degrees, compared to 45 percent of the faculty members of other educational institutions, according to the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education.
1st program in the nation to directly confer a PhD degree, representing the division’s long-held focus on biokinesiology, the integrative study of biological bases of human movement, both normal and disordered.
Our degree programs allow graduates to choose an educational path to help them reach their goals and become leaders in the field. The majority of our students are enrolled in our pioneering, three-year Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT), which is delivered in both hybrid and residential formats. We also offer one of the top programs in biokinesiology — the study of the biological bases of movement, with a master’s degree and a PhD.
We offer four leading residency programs preparing advanced practitioners in the following areas: neurological, orthopedic, pediatric and sports physical therapy. Our broad variety and large volume of continuing education opportunities also help professionals gain access to the latest advances in the field.
Faculty research emphases include musculoskeletal biomechanics, motor behavior and neural control, motor development, and exercise science and muscle research. Students are exposed to a variety of basic science and clinical research experiences.
The Health Sciences Campus, where the division is located, is surrounded by the vast USC+Los Angeles County Medical Center, three large private hospitals, and numerous outpatient clinics and diagnostic centers. Our location within this exceptional medical community offers physical therapy students an exhilarating academic experience in an intellectually rich and culturally diverse environment, and offers patients access to state-of-the art care.
The division is administratively housed within the Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC.
