For the second time in three years, Georgia State University’s Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) graduates earned a rare 100 percent first-time pass rate on the National Physical Therapy Exam (NPTE). The 42-person Class of 2022 accomplished this feat after completing a three-year program impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Previously, the Class of 2020, who graduated during the pandemic, also earned the perfect first-time pass rate.
The graduates, now licensed to practice, join an elite national group. According to the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy, which administers the exam, only 87.4 percent of DPT graduates passed the exam on the first attempt in 2022. On average, Georgia State’s DPT graduates scored more than 30 points above the national average, which further attests to the excellent education, training and mentorship they had received at Georgia State University.
Department chair Dr. Sujay Galen praised the students’ hard work and the PT faculty for the excellent education and mentorship they had provided students throughout the three years of study. He said formal preparation for the boards is vital to the graduates’ success. The DPT program at Georgia State has a dedicated comprehensive review course that all DPT students take before graduation that helps them prepare for the boards.
“Thanks to Dr. Jodan Garcia for leading our PT students through the comprehensive exam review course before the board exam. His and all of our faculty’s student mentoring efforts have paid off,” said Galen.
Since 2019, more than 163 DPT students have graduated, all of whom have passed their boards with 100 percent employment upon graduation. The department has graduated 1,681 physical therapists since the program’s inception in 1968 and is ranked the top DPT program offered by a public university in the State of Georgia.